<p>I would hope they aren't crazy, since MIT is a school full of, you know, smart (and sometimes nerdy) people, but I want to know for sure. I would prefer really small parties (20 or so people), where I know most of the people, and where we actually have some purpose (like playing video games), rather than huge frat parties with 200 people where the only purpose is to get drunk and make small talk. So what exactly are the parties at MIT like?</p>
<p>You’re assuming all MIT parties are the same ;)</p>
<p>Some parties are huge and wild. Others are a small group of 20-or-so friends buying snacks and dancing under a black light. There’s a range in between those, and different dorms/Greek houses/independent living groups will all have different types of parties. Want to find the stereotype? You can get that. Want to just hang out with a bunch of geeks? You can get that, too. (Want to have a lot of fun on campus but aren’t a partying type? You’re in luck, because you don’t need to attend a party to have a social life anyway.)</p>
<p>I have been to 200-person MIT frat parties where the only purpose is to get drunk. (And dance!)</p>
<p>I have been to 20-person MIT parties where the only purpose is to play video games.</p>
<p>I have been to 20-person MIT parties where the only purpose is to get drunk and play video games.</p>
<p>;)</p>
<p>I went to one MIT party where the floor was bowing from the sheer number of people on the dance floor. I went to (or more correctly, my fraternity hosted) a toga party. I went to one black-tie and tails party. I went to one party in a video arcade.</p>
<p>MIT is a community of some 10600 undergraduate and graduate students. In a community of students that size, you can find every possible type of social scene from incredibly geeky study parties, to orgies (I suspect).</p>
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<p>Only if you bring a towel.</p>
<p>@k4r3n2 But you should always have a towel. 
(I’d feel lame if no one got that)</p>
<p>I don’t understand why a school full of smart people, like MIT, would have any crazy frat parties at all. I mean, take all of the really smart 4.0+ people at my high school. None of us drink. None of us like to party. Since MIT is basically made up of people with grades like us, I would expect basically everyone at MIT to not drink and to not like to party. (at least the second one) But this isn’t true. Why?</p>
<p>For two reasons: because not every smart person is like the 4.0+ kids at your high school, and because many people change their attitudes about drinking when they’re in college and away from the watchful eyes of their parents and hometowns. </p>
<p>One of the great things about MIT is that you get to choose the social scene(s) in which you want to participate, and the variety of possible social scenes is vast. But while MIT is a very socially diverse place, it’s also a very accepting place – part of the beauty is that you’re not judged for the choices you make, and, in return, you accept that you won’t judge others.</p>
<p>Listen, I can empathize. I was a straight-laced straight-A student in high school, and didn’t drink a drop of alcohol until after I graduated from high school. I came to MIT and went a little crazy, but ended up settling with one group of friends that liked to order pizza and watch movies on the weekends, and another group of friends that liked to play beer pong on the weekends. It worked for me.</p>
<p>mollie: My question was more about the partying than the drinking. I don’t get why people would suddenly change their minds about partying, when they most likely could have partied in high school if they wanted too.</p>
<p>I think because the partying crowd in high school is different than the partying crowd in college.</p>
<p>@crystal: can you elaborate a bit, lol?</p>
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<p>i don’t think most MIT students were social outcasts in high school, far from it. MIT is not a seminary. MIT students tend to be very driven, assertive and confident. Anti-social types typically don’t perform well at MIT and they are often screened out during the admission’s process. The education at MIT is collaborative in nature and the complexity of the projects favors team work as opposed to solitary work. It is only normal that after a tough week students may want to have fun and socialize during the weekend. While for some there is a work hard, play hard culture, there is also a more balanced way of having fun. Not every party is just about hanging around a beer keg getting drunk. My D just graduated from MIT and was an active member of her sorority. She attended parties of of all types: some of them very formal some less so. She also liked to dance, listen to music, attend a performance on campus or outside, watch a sports event or an occasional TV show. Being a member of sorority (or fraternity) does not seem to hurt student performance. Actually, sorority (and fraternity) members have a higher average GPA than non-members. A good balance between having fun and studying is probably the best approach. You’ll go crazy at MIT if you just study! .</p>
<p>@ Onamatapia. MIT is fun. All types of fun. My daughter attends all different types of parties and get together at MIT. Everyone will respect your choices and you will have a wide selection of ways to have fun. But, I have to say that MIT has the best parties in Boston! At least, that is what I hear from my daughter. 
You will have many different ways to be social at MIT. You should enjoy! :)</p>
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<p>Love that one, cellardweller!</p>
<p>Onamatapia ~ My son is a freshman at MIT and from what I hear, there are parties for all tastes.
He is involved in serious things like classical music (was awarded a scholarship for private lessons after his audition), is a non-drinker, a committed student, does research, but still joined a frat (a “nerdy” one, lol). He lives on campus, as it is the rule for freshmen, and goes to parties/events on weekends. I can see, from the pictures where he is tagged on facebook that they are having a great time, but nothing too wild. There are always guests from the nearby all girl colleges, and everyone is all dressed up.</p>
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Well, I mean, living in a dormitory and not in your parents’ house certainly doesn’t hurt. </p>
<p>But what exactly do you mean by “party”, then? Speaking for myself, I definitely went to more organized, large-capacity parties in college than I did in high school, mostly because frequent open-invitation parties simply didn’t exist at my high school. But that doesn’t mean my attitude about going to parties changed, just that the opportunities available changed.</p>
<p>mollie: If I got invited to a party now in high school, I wouldn’t go, unless it was made up of mostly my friends and other people I kind of know (i.e. a non-popular party).</p>
<p>cellard: “i don’t think most MIT students were social outcasts in high school, far from it.”
Well maybe my school is just bizarre, but there are literally zero popular kids at my school with 4.0 or higher. Everyone with grades like that tends to be shy and unpopular, yet still have a good (albeit small) group of equally unpopular friends.</p>
<p>Oh, and also, in this case, by ‘party’ I mean big frat parties where the only activities are drinking (which I don’t like) and making conversation with people you don’t know (which I don’t like).</p>
<p>onamatapia ~ I see that you are only 15. You might feel differently when you get a little older. :)</p>
<p>Okay, I’m just going to ask this bluntly: At MIT frat parties, is there anything to do besides getting drunk, making small talk, and dancing (like do people play any games such as would you rather or apples to apples; things like that [non-drinking games] and do people play any video games)? And can you have fun there without drinking, or is literally everyone drunk? What % of people there are drunk?</p>
<p>Well, I mean, it depends on the frat (there are twenty-six of them at MIT, with all the possible diversity that entails) and the party (different parties have different themes and, therefore, different activities available). </p>
<p>It is always possible to have fun at a frat party without drinking. Actually, if you’re underage, you won’t be drinking anyway at a registered party.</p>
<p>But if you wanted to play video games, or Apples to Apples, with your friends, you would likely stay home and play those games with your friends rather than going to a frat party. The frat party scene isn’t the only scene at MIT, and it doesn’t have to be your scene.</p>