Columbia's Atmosphere

<p>Ok, so I'm kinda torn on this question: is Columbia's campus atmosphere good? I've heard some people warn me away from Columbia, saying that all the students do is go into NYC on the weekends, and that there's no campus cohesion whatsoever. Then again, I've heard some people say that Columbia is the most wonderful place on earth. I'm more disposed to agree with the latter opinion... Can any current/former students help describe Columbia's atmosphere? Thanks!!</p>

<p>do a search. there are at least 5-10 good threads on this already</p>

<p>Read the Columbia forum. It should give you very idea what Columbia atmosphere is like.</p>

<p>This thread pretty much talks about columbia's social life...</p>

<p><a href="http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/showthread.php?t=327011%5B/url%5D"&gt;http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/showthread.php?t=327011&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p>

<p>
[quote]
Ok, so I'm kinda torn on this question: is Columbia's campus atmosphere good?

[/quote]

I think it's good. Gore's come to talk about a few times. For the most part, the air seems alright. I'd avoid the steps of Avery though. Those architecture kids sure know how to smoke. Otherwise, I think commencement was carbon neutral this year.</p>

<p>Are you comparing the Columbia's atmosphere to other schools?</p>

<p>Brilliant post, WS.</p>

<p>lol, yes i was/am. I'll visit this summer, so I guess I can find out then.</p>

<p>don't judge us by NYC's smog. it doesn't reach us all the way up in our ivory tower.</p>

<p>You don't know smog until you've come to Beijing. I can barely see the buildings across the street right now.</p>

<p>JohnnyK: You want pollution?</p>

<p>Blondie: I want the SMOG!</p>

<p>JohnnyK: YOU CAN'T HANDLE THE SMOG! Son, we live in a world that has cars, and those cars have to be fueled by machines that release C02. Who's gonna clean it up? You? You, Lieutenant WindowShopping? I have a greater asthma risk than you can possibly fathom. You weep for air quality, and you curse the chinese. You have that luxury. You have the luxury of not knowing what I know - that America's pollution controls, while tragic, probably SAVED LIVES. And my existence, while grotesque, and incomprehensible to you, SAVES LIVES. You don't want the truth because deep down in places you don't talk about at parties, you want those Chinese wheezing, you need those Chinese wheezing. We use words like greenhouse gases, industrialization, social darwinism. We use these words as the backbone of a life spent fighting something. You use them as a political rant. I have neither the time nor the inclination to explain myself to a man who rises and sleeps under the blanket of the very smog that I provide, and then questions the manner in which I provide it! I would rather you just said thank you, and went on your way. Otherwise, I suggest you pick up a chainsaw, and cut down a rainforest. Either way, I don't give a damn what you think you are entitled to!</p>

<p>edit: how in the hell am I still lucid after all that johnnie walker and Wii tennis? How are there no typos? HOW THE FARK ARE THERE NO TYPOS?!</p>

<p>You sound like you write for ivygate. and i mean that in the best possible way</p>

<p>If you can't appreciate possibly the funniest post in the history of this board, and simultaneously an excellent Few Good Men reference, I've given up on you, J-bug.</p>

<p>I demand that my funny post gets more attention and appreciation.</p>

<p>I think Columbia has a pretty good social atmosphere. A lot of people do go all around the city on weekends, but there are also a ton of people who go to campus parties (although none of the on-campus parties can really compare with the big state schools), and there are also a lot of people who go to local bars like lions head.</p>

<p>Although there is definitely division among groups on campus, you'll probably get that anywhere, and to me there did seem to be at least some unity among people on campus. Different people have different experiences with every college, columbia included, but I really thought columbia was awesome and couldn't think of any other college I'd rather be attending.</p>

<p>And the smog/smoke you see is from the grad students smoking outside Butler library. I guess seeing how much happier they could've been if they'd gone to columbia for undergrad stresses the grad students out and makes them start smoking hahaha.</p>

<p>One thing I'll never forget about my time at Columbia is Denzera's twenty minute plot summary of A Few Good Men, from his dorm in Plimpton to Max SoHa and back. I mean, I don't really remember anything he said and to be perfectly honest, I don't think I was paying that close attention, but damn, D loves that film.</p>

<p>Are you nuts? I remember no such thing. I don't even like the film that much, aside from Crazy Jack's speech. If I'd been talking your ear off about, say, Contact, or Blazing Saddles, or something worth getting excited about, I could see that. But A Few Good Men? Seriously?</p>

<p>It was definitely A Few Good Men. In fact, I want to say that it was almost exactly two years ago, airing on TNT, after a Celtics/Pacers game.</p>

<p>edit: I can't believe I read that as Blazing Sadlers.</p>

<p>I've spent a lot of time up in that part of Harlem (known among real estate agents and Columbia students as "Morningside Heights"). Honestly speaking, the Columbia/Barnard campus is totally dead when compared to other colleges and universities that are in the middle of the action. Schools that are located at the "center" of major college towns include NYU, Parsons, Yale, UW-Madison, Cornell, Smith, UVA, Michigan, and UNC-CH. At these schools, you can walk 5 or 10 minutes to a friend's dorm room and then happen upon 5-10 parties randomly on your way back. At all hours, there are friends you run into, and there are also generally many more events on campus.</p>

<p>The problem at Columbia is that most students go to the rat-infested subway station, then hop on for VERY long subway rides and travel far away from the campus. The only reason to stay near campus is if there is a private party, because the public spaces on the campus are not generally used for socializing, especially after dark and on weekends. As a result, Columbia's campus is not only dead, but also can be very isolating - either you need to find a small clique to travel around and spend enormous amounts of $$$$ in lower Manhattan with, away from the campus, or you need to find an exclusive clique that happens to be throwing a private party that night. Some of those parties are good, though...</p>

<p>I really cannot wait to see Columbia2002's response to this post. I would feel sorry for posterx, but he's just made basically every incorrect assumption possible about the greatest university in the world.</p>

<p>Hey, it's just an opinion, formed from many years of spending time up there (and other campuses). All I am saying is that it is very different from other campuses, because there is comparably little social activity. The public spaces are not used in the same ways. Students there don't hang out in front of their dorms and talk with other students until 4am like they do elsewhere. It doesn't seem to be buzzing with activity 24/7. But, I'm not claiming that everyone there will be miserable or that there's absolutely nothing going on.</p>

<p>If you really want to know about these campuses, honestly you can't believe anything you read here, you have to visit each campus for yourself for 2-3 days (including one weekend day), sit in on a half dozen classes, eat with students, go to parties and socialize.</p>

<p>PosterX, you lose all credibility when you open your posts with scandalous statements like "I've spent a lot of time up in that part of Harlem (known among real estate agents and Columbia students as "Morningside Heights"). You've trolled against Columbia here in the past, and admitted that you aren't a Columbia alum/student when I called you out for misrepresenting numerous facts about Columbia. Your two posts on this thread barely merit a response, but I'll nonetheless point out that you have absolutely no clue yet proclaim expertise on such matters as the relative number of 4 am conversations about Plato's Republic in the Columbia dorms versus in the UW-Madison dorms and the number of rats at the 116th Street 1 Station versus that of the Astor Place 6 Station. Get a clue, and more importantly, get a life.</p>