<p>I realize that it’s college, and people experiment a lot in college, but does browns laid back, hippy mentality translate to lots of drugs? I’m not a total goodie-goodie all the time, but drugs are something I really don’t want to get involved with when I go to college, so how abundant is drug use among the students? Is it something the majority of people do, or does Brown’s repuation as a liberal, hippy-esque school lead people to make such assumptions?</p>
<p>I'm guesssssing that pot is pretty prevalent, and alcohol. But that's just me guessing.</p>
<p>My friend told me that at her Brown tour, there were two student guides. At one point one of them said "and now I'll take the parents aside to talk about such and such without their kids present" and the student who was left with the prospective students was like "so okay, I know that the drug question is burning in all of your minds. Don't worry; they're very easy to get here." Haha, I don't know if she was lying, but she didn't apply to Brown. </p>
<p>I assume that avoiding drugs would be easy enough, however, and don't think the prevalence of drugs should be a deciding factor.</p>
<p>I think that you're correct in your assumption that Brown's laid-back atmosphere predisposes students to drug use. However, also in accordance with that mentality, there is little if any pressure for non drug users to partake.</p>
<p>Very brief report on alcohol use at Brown. In large surveys, alcohol use and other drug use are closely related. Places with high rates on one have high rates on the other.</p>
<p>you guys realize this is a really silly thread, right? you're making a bunch of unsubstantiated claims by going directly from "laid-back" to drug use.</p>
<p>drug usage at brown is no different from drug use at any other college. the social culture is adequately, perhaps even remarkably, diverse. as the above survey shows, the vast majority of students drink reponsibly.</p>
<p>Does it really? I mean, for some people, 4 drinks could definitely be past responsible....the difference between 0 and 4 is huge for someone like a small female. And the data doesn't delineate between those who drink nothing versus those who drink several drinks all the time does it? It seems like a pretty bad study to me....I remember thinking that when they presented it during orientation. Why didn't they create a separate group for those who never drink??? Common, that seems like a very obvious and necessary way to design that study. Anyways, I would have made the categories 0, 1-3, 4-6, 6+ or something like that. </p>
<p>In any case, I don't think you can conclude from a study that says 72% describe themselves as anything up to a self defined "light drinker" means we are necessarily responsible. I'm not saying we aren't, but you know what I mean.</p>
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<p>It would be helpful to know more details, but that is all they reported. </p>
<p>Four or more drinks for women, 5 or more for men, are not arbitrary. These cutoffs are based on data that shows people above this level have many more alcohol-related problems than people who drink less. So researchers who study alcohol abuse at colleges say that the students they worry about are those who exceed these standards.</p>
<p>Compared to other colleges, I think the data shows Brown to be on the light side for drinking, and given the association between drinking and drug use, probably on the light side for drug use as well.</p>
<p>They told us in a seperate statistic at orientation that ~20% of Brown students do not drink at all, FYI.</p>
<p>I didn't remember that one....but thats pretty darn low don't you think?</p>
<p>Drugs in college are 100% dependant on whether you want them. If you are seeking, they will be found, but are also entirely avoidable. Also, casually, the most you are likely to see or be aware of without being a part of the scene is the green stuff.</p>
<p>Pot/Alcohol use and non-alcoholic/non-drug entertainment at Dartmouth vs. Brown...which one wins which?</p>
<p>You guys are ridiculous.</p>
<p>everyone at brown is a total pothead because theyre liberal and everyone is a hippie also, if you want the next 4 years of your life to be one smoke filled hazy memory come to brown.</p>
<p>its a satire!</p>
<p>from my very limited perspective, from the 2 nights ive stayed over, id say alcohol is very prevalent, but no more than any other college, pot is fairly prevalent, but again no difference from any college. you dont get a sense that everyone is a pot head at brown because, surprise, theyre arent any more than at any other school. if you dont want pot you dont smoke pot, thats it, stop complaining and making it a big deal, be a grown up and make smart decisions and brown can be whatever you want it to be.</p>
<p>Pot use at Brown is really not much higher than at other schools, but is sometimes more out in the open.</p>
<p>Alcohol is much, much more prevalent than pot use. Brown, as a matter of VERY tacit policy, does not enfore the State of Rhode Island's drinking age laws - this is an unwritten agreement with the students to use alcohol responsibly. This means, though, that if you don't drink you can hang out with your friends while they drink moderately without worrying for your own career.</p>
<p>mgcsinc, are you a brown student? I was just at the training for running events, which included bartending and such, and while Brown doesnt strictly enforce the checking of IDs, if they find someone who isn't "marked" by the party throwers as 21 drinking, the people in charge of the party will get in trouble.</p>
<p>I am a Brown student. I don't particularly want to be too explicit about how stuff works, but lets just say that you will learn the reality of age control about 15 minutes into your job as party manager.</p>