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Does Columbia do this? Maybe it does, I have no idea.
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<p>perhaps this would be nice to post at the start of your posts? that way you're not misleading people into thinking you perhaps have some intimate knowledge of both schools.</p>
<p>Ouch. And here I thought we were having an interesting conversation about an inherently vague subject. Are Columbia students sensitive about this subject? They shouldn't be. I think a very special sort of person really loves Columbia.</p>
<p>I agree. A certain type loves Columbia, particularly those that love New York and those who are perfectly happy with a smaller social circle. But if you are the type that wants a lot of community then there are better options than Columbia.</p>
<p>I felt no lack of community at Columbia, slipper. I don't know what you're talking about. There is a club for every conceivable interest group or national origin, there are events on low steps practically every other day that everyone sees as they walk by, there are dozens of club sports and competitive teams in everything from sailing to quiz bowl, and usually you can walk right up and join. There are large parties thrown by the student councils (i.e. Glass House Rocks) where not only do you get free booze but literally half the campus is there and there's a ton of interesting things going on. Every freshman-year floor in Carman or John Jay becomes a tight-knit group of friends for the rest of college, and quite often for life (I know a bunch of people on my floor freshman year who are living together in the city now). Alumni events are quite common and well-attended, even the SEAS ones. There are plenty of frats and frat parties if that's what you want, but we simply have too much variety at our fingertips for any one thing to dominate the social scene.</p>
<p>So we don't go to football games. Who cares? If that's your biggest knock on the school's community, I think we'll just accept it and move on.</p>
<p>Larger social circles = more superficial ones. One can only have so many really good friends, anyway. I don't think my life would improve if I had more strained conversations with the acquaintances I merely nod to once in awhile on College Walk during social events that were only well-attended because my school was located in the wilderness and there was nothing better to do.</p>
<p>Denzera,</p>
<p>I disagree. There IS community at Columbia as I have mentioned, but its far from a campus oriented school. To argue otherwise means you haven't been anywhere else or you're just looking at it with a skewed viewpoint. Columbia has lots of activity, but it tends to be dispersed. </p>
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<li><p>Floors: I agree that people become good friends with their floor at Columbia (particularly Carman), but the issue is that not too many get beyond their floor. After first year people are dispersed throughout campus and that's when things get more cliquey.</p></li>
<li><p>Reunions: Last year's Columbia reunion had about 200 people out of 1200+. The first night of the Columbia reunion was in Hammerstein ballroom and was a cocktail party that ended at midnight and ended up in groups of 5-10 going out in the city. The second night a fancy party in a tent that merged into an all alumni jazz party that ended at midnight (lol I know Columbia well!). </p></li>
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<p>The Dartmouth reunions involve three day weekends with alumni staying in the dorms (which was so much fun into itself), pre-parties with your friends, people going out and running into each other all night and everywhere, swimming in the river, barbeques on the lawn, and the pinnacle is a fancy affair with over 500 people in attendance in a beautiful outdoor space. The whole weekend it feels like the campus is taken over by the class. </p>
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<li>Frats: I'm not arguing that Columbia's frats don't have fun, I am saying there is little cohesiveness among them. If you go to the more campus oriented schools, tons of people go to whatever frat is throwing the party. People not in the frats hang out at other frats regularly. At Columbia only the frat brothers + a few others hang out at their own house and no-one really hangs out at frats that aren't their own. Its that Columbia cliqueyness.</li>
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<p>These are just examples of the difference. This is college, of course there is community. Once again Columbia is no NYU, but it also isn't a campus oriented school. Its an awesome school that is the perfect fit for a certain type of person. It IS cliquey, however, and there just aren't that many big events, particularly compared to the campus schools. Alumni just aren;t as loyal.</p>
<p>As for football, I don't know where you got that from. Community has little to do with sports at most of the Ivies.</p>
<p>Slipper, man, I dislike you, if only for the fact that you are giving me buyer's remorse regarding picking here over Dartmouth when I had the choice.</p>
<p>What if, just for today, we define school spirit as an alumn who is so appreciative of his Columbia College education and the scholarship that enabled him to have it that he donates $400 million to Columbia for student financial aid? :)</p>
<p>Hey Shazkar,</p>
<p>There are some things about Dartmouth that aren't so great.</p>
<p>1) The fact that there's so much community might also make it slightly socially competitive. Its easy to ignore this though.</p>
<p>2) It FEELS less diverse than Columbia even though its about 33% minority. </p>
<p>3) Less options in terms of majors. You can't major in Sanskrit like you can at Columbia.</p>
<p>4) There are less women (bad if you are a guy!), Barnard makes the ratio pretty nice.</p>
<p>True 'nuff. Odds are I wouldn't be happy at such an isolated place anyway. It's just that I'm one of those grass-is-always-greener type people. I doubt I would ever be satisfied.</p>
<p>Don't want buyer's remorse? Get in ED!</p>
<p>^ Uh, isn't buyer's remorse worse if you get in ED? No reversability potential there...</p>
<p>lol this thread is funny :D</p>
<p>Why is this the largest thread I've seen all week?</p>
<p>yeah, going ED somewhere creates the MOST buyer's remorse...</p>