<p>I am a freshman at lafayette college and after suffering through my first semester and a half here, and I feel the need to post this. IF YOU ARE LOOKING FOR A SCHOOL WHERE YOU CAN GO TO ANY PARTY THAT ISN'T IN A DORM ROOM AS A NON-ATHLETE/GREEK THEN DO NOT EVEN CONSIDER LAFAYETTE. As a freshman guy at Lafayette, you can do absolutely nothing on the weekends except drink in your dorms. As a kid who was pretty social in high school and would go to parties pretty often, all I can do now is warn you not to come to Lafayette if you want a party scene. The biggest reason the party scene here is so terrible is because the sports houses and the frats are the only ones who have parties and no one is allowed to go except for the athletes, and 25% of students are D-1 athletes, and the members of the frats, and students can't pledge until sophomore year. There are also only 4 frats and the school is cracking down on them which completely destroys the chance of ever having open parties. If you are like me or even think you might want to go to a school that has parties, then please don't make the mistake that I have which has wasted an entire year of my life and DO NOT GO TO LAFAYETTE COLLEGE. This school may be very good academically but if you're like me, then that doesn't outweigh the boredom and border line depression that coming to this school has caused me to feel. I am not saying that this is a terrible school and nobody should go here, but if you want to have fun on the weekends for all 4 years, then I would highly recommend not coming to Lafayette. The only reason I am writing this is because I wish that something like this had been posted before I decided to apply here early decision. DO NOT TAKE YOUR COLLEGE DECISION LIGHTLY, yes you can transfer but having to go through the process of going to a new school twice in two years is something you should really try to avoid, plus you are wasting an entire quarter of your college career and nobody wants to go through the entire application process again. I will be transferring after this year.</p>
<p>Lafstudent1 (and all others who may be reading),</p>
<p>As a Lafayette junior, I can attest to the fact that there are many social opportunities for students on this campus. First, many students have a perfectly good time simply hanging out with their friends on the weekends. Several student organizations sponsor social events, such as the Hillel Society which has free dinner every Friday night (just to name an example). It is always packed and students love to hang out and relax there. Also, the Lafayette Activities Forum (LAF) is a student run organization that has lots of great activities for students on the weekends as well–they have brought magicians, comedians, bands, etc. and they do an excellent job! Other organizations have special dinners, as well as cultural and social events. In addition, Easton is a cool college town with lots of restaurants, and several students go down there on the weekends as well (it has an excellent farmer’s market on Saturdays in the fall and spring too). Whether in Easton or Lafayette, there is always something to do for those who want to have a good time with their friends. Many students here form tight-knit groups who are well satisfied with their social lives.</p>
<p>In response to the comment about Greek Life, our administration fully supports their efforts provided that they are abiding by school policies. Greek life has a presence on campus, but not so much that anyone feels social obligation to join one ( in fact, only 1/3 of eligible students are in fraternities or sororities!). I have never been involved in Greek Life and have been perfectly fine without it.</p>
<p>If parties are what you are looking for, you will find them in some of the residence halls, and most party-goers are happy to attend. It does not matter that the parties are primarily in the dorms–memories are made from the people you spend time with, not from the 4 walls that surround you. Also, alcohol exists here as it does at any other college, but by NO means is drinking in your room the only thing you can do. </p>
<p>Having spent two and a half years at Lafayette, I have been very happy with both the academics and the campus/social life that it has to offer. While Lafayette is not perfect (no college is), I have enjoyed my time very much here. In fact, we have a retention rate of 94.8%!!! If I were applying to colleges again, I would make the same choice of attending Lafayette. For all those reading, know that Lafstudent1 is simply a member of that small 5% minority. Overall, Lafayette students are happy and proud to be here.</p>
<p>Taylor Brown '15</p>
<p>As a Lafayette senior, I can attest to the fact that Captain Clueless is not in fact clueless. In fact, he is actually very well informed! As Mark Twain once quoted, “the best of time and the worst of times can be had by simply hanging out with their friends on the weekends.” Except for the worst of times because everything here is just so darn fun! I personally take part in several student organizations on weekend nights. On Fridays, I usually go to the New Balance club, where I am a very active member. I also LOVE Easton. On a scale of Detroit to fantastic, it’s above Detroit! Many students go to Easton on weekends for all kinds of activities. Most weekends, over 25 students go to Easton! Even though these students are walking to the bus terminal to go to colleges in other cities, I’m sure they enjoy the scenic walk down. Whether in Easton or Lafayette, there is always something to do for those who want to have a good time with their friends. </p>
<p>In response to the comment about Greek Life, you are absolutely bazonkers!!! Fraternities here are desperate for new boys so they will do anything to get their hands on them. Many fraternity parties actually have Freshman guy quotas! Most fraternities have to actively seek out boys, browsing the halls of dorms and giving out goodies to try to get more fraternity boys at their fraternity parties. The only sad part is that girls are a little left out. </p>
<p>If fraternities are not for you, you can even find fraternity parties in some of the residence halls, and most party-goers are happy to attend. As can be seen from the tour, each dorm has a walk in closet with a skylight. Many students install strobe lights into these and throw fraternity parties in their own rooms! I have fraternity parties with my friend Ronnie all the time, where we drink Coca Cola and play our Xbox until 1:30 in the morning! It does not matter that the parties are primarily in the dorms–memories are made from the people you spend time with, not from the 4 walls that surround you!</p>
<p>Having spent 3 and a half years here at Lafayette, I have been very happy with the social life. I made 5 friends freshman year, 4 sophomore year, 6 junior year, and 2 already this year, plus my mom, which almost makes 20! While no college is perfect, Lafayette is. Come for the academics, stay for quality time with Taylor! Goodbye, future Pard puppies!</p>
<p>Somebody took a satire class…</p>
<p>How do you know Lafstudent 1’s opinion is a minority opinion? Did someone actually do a study that showed 5 percent of students are dissatisfied with the social scene at Lafayette?</p>
<p>When I say that 5% are dissatisfied, I am referring to the percentage of students who decide to transfer out of Lafayette like Lafstudent 1. We have a 95% retention rate. Retention rate is a measure of general student satisfaction.</p>
<p>Taylor</p>
<p>The OP’s message was, don’t go to Lafayette if your idea of a great freshman year is to attend many parties. I suppose Lafayette administration might support this message. I wonder what other students would say about this. Do most students focus on parties or are more students engaged in social activities that are not classical frat-type parties?</p>
<p>My D is finishing her sophomore year at Lafayette and has been very happy both academically and socially. When I mentioned that she is almost halfway done with college she joked that we might “have to drag her out kicking and screaming” after graduation. In fact, she is staying at Laf this summer to do research with one of her professors. </p>
<p>Socially, she seems to have found a wide array out outlets – from parties in a dorm/house with friends to sorority activities to campus sponsored activities to events/parties with clubs she and/or her friends are active in, to going into Easton, etc. In short, it sounds like most active/involved students don’t seem to have problems filling their time. Now I’d guess that the “party life” at Lafayette is not huge compared to what can be found at a much bigger school - but it seems fine for most students. As Taylor mentioned, Lafayette’s 95% retention rate speaks to the fact that most students are pretty happy. </p>
<p>That said, no school is right for everyone and it is wise for each prospective student to consider the pros and cons of attending a small LAC and decide if it is the right fit for him/her. I hope the OP transfers to a school more to his liking.</p>
<p>2 small comments on your post happy1- Last year’s retention rate was close to 80%, hopefully due to the quad renovation but very likely due to the fact that many students are dissatisfied socially.
-Keep in mind that she’s in greek life and a female, gender lines are very real.</p>
<p>As I mentioned in my post, I got that 95% retention rate from @captainclueless who works in admissions. Hopefully he will clarify where he got that number. Your 80% seems low, but hopefully someone who has the information will chime in here to clarify. And I understand your point but also know that my D has lots of male friends very few of whom are in frats and they are all happy as well.</p>
<p>And as I’ve said before different types of schools are better fits for different people. Two reasonable people with the same academic profile might well find themselves happier at different types of schools. I hope that you and the OP find a college that gives you the type/level of social life that you desire.</p>
<p>If you google Lafayette College retention, several sites turn up that mention a 95% freshman (or 94.5) rate and 91% six year graduation rate. If the rate dropped to 80%, that would be newsworthy. </p>
<p>I am always curious when I read students complain about a lack of social life when there are so many activities listed at the college. My son is graduating one week from today( yeah!) and I have read the newsletters, etc. for four years. He doesn’t give me many details of his social life but I know he is almost always busy-----and I am positive that he is not studying all of the time. There was a very brief period of time around Halloween his freshman year when he thought about transferring but by winter break he couldn’t wait to get back to school. He has stayed in Easton for the past two summers.</p>
<p>For those who complain about a lack of activities, what is missing? I can understand if you haven’t found the right group of friends but the college gives you many opportunities.</p>
<p>I think a big part of the social life at Lafayette (and any college for that matter) is about taking the initiative to get involved. Most people I know find their social circles from the various organizations and campus activities they are involved in. While there is a definite sense of community, everyone’s experience is very individualized based on the opportunities they choose to take advantage of. Lafayette certainly has a huge variety of both extracurricular and social opportunities (which are often connected), but the students are the ones that still have to reach out for them. When a student reaches out, the community reaches back. That’s what I think causes the issue with some students. If someone spends most of the time in their room, they will not have a thriving social life no matter what the campus has to offer. The best advice I can offer any student is to reach out, and take initiative. Lafayette is not a fit for everyone, but I think more students would find it to be a good fit if they took the time to be more proactive.</p>
<p>Taylor</p>
Hey @captainclueless , what kinds of students are drawn to Lafayette? I’m thinking global studies/globalization, and I’m super into Hindi and India. I’m really weird (not hippie and not MIT) ex: I love jellyfish, so I want to be with other weird people. I hate parties and the greek life.
@JellyfishQueen This was a one time post from a disgruntled student from two years ago. And @captainclueless graduated from Lafayette and hasn’t been on CC for about two years. And I’m not sure what your question is but Lafayette gets a wide variety of students.