Does this sound like Brown?

Colleges and Universities A-Z Brown University
21

<p>pretty much anyone can carve out a comfortable niche at brown, both academically and socially since people at brown are so passionate about exercising their varied interests.</p>

<p>one of my favorite things about brown is how your social, academic, and extracurricular interests can often blend seemlessly. you can just as easily socialize by attending a film festival at the cable car with your modern culture and media friends, as go to a gallery opening at the art center, or lecture by prominent campus visitors (bill clinton, salman rushdie, oliver stone, etc.)</p>

<p>although traditional parties shouldn't be discounted (there are many types of parties that can be fun whether you drink or not), here are some links you might find interesting:</p>

<p>one of many sources of lectures:
<a href="http://www.brown.edu/Students/Lecture_Board/%5B/url%5D"&gt;http://www.brown.edu/Students/Lecture_Board/&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p>

<p>artsy movie theaters that border campus
<a href="http://www.avoncinema.com/%5B/url%5D"&gt;http://www.avoncinema.com/&lt;/a>
<a href="http://www.cablecarcinema.com/%5B/url%5D"&gt;http://www.cablecarcinema.com/&lt;/a> (this one doubles as a coffee shop, has couches instead of tradition theater chairs, and free popcorn refills)</p>

<p>concerts
<a href="http://www.lupos.com%5B/url%5D"&gt;www.lupos.com&lt;/a>
<a href="http://www.brown.edu/Students/Brown_Concert_Agency/%5B/url%5D"&gt;http://www.brown.edu/Students/Brown_Concert_Agency/&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p>

<p>galleries
<a href="http://www.gallerynight.info/%5B/url%5D"&gt;http://www.gallerynight.info/&lt;/a>
<a href="http://www.providenceartclub.org/%5B/url%5D"&gt;http://www.providenceartclub.org/&lt;/a>
<a href="http://www.risd.edu/museum.cfm%5B/url%5D"&gt;http://www.risd.edu/museum.cfm&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p>

<p>theater
<a href="http://www.trinityrep.com/%5B/url%5D"&gt;http://www.trinityrep.com/&lt;/a>
<a href="http://www.brown.edu/Departments/African_American_Studies/RitesandReason/index.shtml%5B/url%5D"&gt;http://www.brown.edu/Departments/African_American_Studies/RitesandReason/index.shtml&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p>

22

<p>Ooh thanks for all those links! I've saved them (live & learn!) and I'll definitely be spending a lot of time reading them in the next few days. Thanks! :)</p>

23

<p>A little bit about my life at Brown? Hmmm! Well, some of my experiences won't be all that helpful to you since I'm a freshman, but I'll see what I can do... </p>

<p>friends:
My friends are awesome! I've met about a million fascinating people since orientation and have ended up closer to some people than others... it was really exciting to get to know people from all different areas of the country and all different experiences... but of course this isn't specific to Brown, and you've already had that experience as a freshman. I'd say in terms of making friends, though, that Brown people are incredibly friendly and outgoing compared to the average person our age.</p>

<p>classes:
I took five great classes this past semester and I'd be happy to talk about any of them in more detail if any of them interest you. I took Advanced Composition (Spanish), Politics of Race and Culture (Anthropology), Introduction to Sleep (Psychology), Modern Jewish History, Society, and Politics (Judaic Studies) and Chorus (Music).</p>

<p>This coming semester I'm shopping classes in departments from physics to cognitive science to philosophy to Slavic studies to economics... how can I possibly decide?</p>

<p>housing:
I live in a small, all-freshman dorm, so my experience there wouldn't be too helpful to you, but if you want to learn more about different residential options, go here: <a href="http://reslife.brown.edu/%5B/url%5D"&gt;http://reslife.brown.edu/&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p>

<p>surrounding area:
The neighborhood around Brown is really nice. It's full of old houses of different styles, cute little parks, etc. Thayer St runs right next to campus and has a bunch of restaurants (ranging from cheap to not-so-affordable) and fun little shops, plus standard CVS, Starbucks, etc. Wickenden is a little bit of a walk, but there are more quirky shops and fun places to eat. About a 5 minute walk down the hill is the downtown area of Providence, which is undergoing quite a revival right now and is pretty nice. There are statues and cool-looking buildings by the river, clubs, theaters, stuff like that. It doesn't hold a candle to New York or Boston, but it's nice.</p>

<p>Any more specific questions or clarifications or whatever... feel free to ask.</p>

24

<p>do you think i'll ever be apart of your life at brown?</p>

25

<p>Thanks for all the info ILoveBrown! You’re making me love Brown! ;)</p>

<p>That’s great about your friends. While I love my friends here, overall everyone is from the same 3 states, aren’t incredibly friendly and don’t have varied interests. That to me is a big reason to transfer: to meet interesting & lovely people whom you’ll stay friends with for a long, long time.</p>

<p>I would love to hear about Modern Jewish History (as you can see from my major/minors). Have fun shopping…the best kind & doesn’t involve a credit card (directly, haha). Have you heard of any particularly strong/weak departments?</p>

<p>Thanks so much for the housing link. As an incoming junior, that would be important for me. I guess you’ll be going in the lottery soon?</p>

<p>I’ve been to RI once before and it was SO pretty! The area sounds a zillion times better than where I am right now, I’m not even joking! It sounds like a great mix between the perfect college area but near other places too. Yay! Do you need a car to go to the grocery store/airport etc. or is there any public transport? You said there are clubs; is that like bars & clubs? We only have 2 dingy ones where I live.</p>

<p>Thanks again! :)</p>

26

<p>Esquared: I hope so for your sake... good luck with the defferal and let me know how it turns out!</p>

27

<p>lovecollege:</p>

<p>Modern Jewish History (<a href="http://boca.brown.edu/%5B/url%5D"&gt;http://boca.brown.edu/&lt;/a> and search for Fall 2005 -- JS0009 or HI 0096) was an amazing class. It was mostly a lecture class but it was small (about 22 students) and we had a lot of really interesting discussions about various issues and about the (many) books we read. I definitely acquired a new perspective on both Jewish history in general and my family background specifically. Prof Mandel is also my advisor, and she's a brilliant teacher and researcher. I'm hoping to take as many of her classes as possible.</p>

<p>I'll let somebody else take the question about strong and weak departments... besides the obviously strong ones (Intl Relations, Neuroscience, Egyptology), I don't know a whole lot about various departments' reputations.</p>

<p>Yeah, the surrounding area of Rhode Island is really pretty. If you have a car or are willing to take some time on Rhode Island busses (I think $1.50 anywhere in the state), you can get to some really nice beaches and cool towns (Newport, Tiverton, etc). The bus system in Rhode Island is pretty good, and parking at Brown is minimal, so you definitely don't need to have a car. You can also get to major cities by train (Amtrak) or bus. For example, a bus leaves every hour for Boston and costs only about $13 round trip for students, and there's a similar bus to New York for a little more. TF Green is the cute little airport. You can get there by bus ($1.50 but inconvenient), shuttle ($9 and comes right to the Brown campus every hour), or cab ($30... why bother?).</p>

<p>There are small convenience stores around Brown, and then there are bigger stores like Whole Foods and other grocery stores within a longer walk or a very short drive.</p>

<p>There are bars right near campus, and downtown Providence has some bars and some clubs -- both dancey-type clubs and small-venue-music-type clubs.</p>

28

<p>:) Brilliant info! Seriously, what's not to love? Is there anything you wish you'd known before you come or anything you dislike?</p>

29

<p>Hmm... I personally was hoping to be in a college in a bigger city (Boston, New York, or DC), so deciding to come to Brown over those places was definitely a compromise for me.</p>

<p>My freshman dorm is awesome, but I prefer residential systems where freshmen and upperclassmen live in "houses" (Yale, Harvard, UChicago) that they can stay in all 4 years and build a real community.</p>

<p>The meal plan is way too complicated and not very flexible for having visitors (but the food is decent).</p>

<p>For some reason I didn't know there was shopping period before I showed up for orientation... that sure was hard to figure out... but it's all good now.</p>

30

<p>I don't think I'll mind not being in a city. I know I'll live in NYC at some point and I'm not in a city now, which is fine cos I get more work done but I hate the town.</p>

<p>Do you know what housing is like for upperclassman at all? I'm going to check out the site you gave me v. soon but I was wondering if you knew any upperclassmen.</p>

<p>I think that's it for now! I'm excited to come visit soon!</p>

31

<p>I think Brown is a great bet for you.</p>

32

<p>Oh thanks slipper! :) I'm feeling a lot that it's a big reach for me (I know it's a reach for anyone). Even though my college stuff is good, I haven't taken a broad range of classes (lots of 300-levels, math but no labs for example). And my HS stats are not good at all, esp. the SAT's. So it's gonna be a tough semester I think!</p>

33

<p>I have a quick question about EC's. I was wondering if anyone had heard of, or is in, a club that runs student events? Any info on that would be great (personal experience rather than site info- even my school says we have a club when we either don't or no-one is in it!). Also, what kinds of speakers/music acts come to Brown? Thanks guys! I'm falling more in love with Brown as the days go by!</p>

34

<p>There are a number of groups that coordinate different types of events.</p>

<p>The UCS, Undergraduate Council of Students: <a href="http://www.brown.edu/students/UCS/index/home.htm%5B/url%5D"&gt;http://www.brown.edu/students/UCS/index/home.htm&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p>

<p>They plan some events but are also involved in general student life, University policy making, etc. They do exist and are active. The official members are elected by the student body, but I'm pretty sure all (or most) of their meetings are open. I haven't attended any of them yet.</p>

<p>Individual Class Coordinating Boards (for each class)
Each board is elected by the class, and plans events (usually social mixers, dances, etc). The 09 CCB seems like it's worked pretty hard this year.</p>

<p>The Lecture Board: <a href="http://www.brown.edu/Students/Lecture_Board/%5B/url%5D"&gt;http://www.brown.edu/Students/Lecture_Board/&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p>

<p>They bring in all sorts of interesting speakers! This year, Rob Corddry (of the Daily Show), John Kerry, and K. Natwar Singh (India's Minister of External Affairs) have been some exceptional speakers so far. I'm not sure which of these was brought by the lecture board and which by other institutions, though.</p>

<p>Student Activities Office: <a href="http://www.brown.edu/Administration/Student_Activities/%5B/url%5D"&gt;http://www.brown.edu/Administration/Student_Activities/&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p>

35

<p>For Spring weekend this year, Wilco and Common are performing. Personally, I've never heard of Common, but rap isn't what I usually listen to.</p>

36

<p>Thanks ILoveBrown! I went on the website today just to see the overall range of clubs- wow!!! I couldn't believe there were so many, even academic ones which I don't have here! And I really like Common so that's pretty cool!</p>

<p>Could anyone tell me what the housing is like? I'd be entering as a junior so I hope it'd be something decent (pref. where I don't have to have a meal plan)! Thanks.</p>

<p>Also, as something personal to me, what kind of ethos/morals would you say the average student/overall student body has? For example, students here I've seen have been more than happy to talk during exams, steal each others' partners & so on. Obviously, not every single person is perfect but what is the Brown body like?</p>

37

<p><a href="http://reslife.brown.edu/residence_halls/index.html%5B/url%5D"&gt;http://reslife.brown.edu/residence_halls/index.html&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p>

<p>of the dorms, the ones with a lot of juniors tend to be suites in the Vartan Gregorian Quad or on Wriston Quad</p>

38

<p>Vartan looks amazing!! Just as good as where I am now (the one good thing about my school!).</p>

39

<p>Also, as something personal to me, what kind of ethos/morals would you say the average student/overall student body has? For example, students here I've seen have been more than happy to talk during exams, steal each others' partners & so on. Obviously, not every single person is perfect but what is the Brown body like?</p>

40

<p>this is something that's very hard to generalize, but i never had any problems with other students as colleagues like the ones you describe</p>

<p>in fact, as a pre-med, i was surprised by how friendly and cooperative our cohort was. we don't celebrate our honor code the way places like princeton and haverford do, but we also don't have the type of competitiveness that honor codes are often designed to ameliorate</p>