I know its that time of year, so I’m offering myself up for anyone who has questions about Brown, whether your an ED admit, a potential RD candidate, or a younger student thinking about applying next year.
Here’s a little bit about me. I was a RD admit last year. Nothing too special as an applicant, but I had good grades, really good test scores, and I came from a relatively well-known private school that sends a good amount of kids to Brown/ other ivies every year- I would say it was a combination of those three factors that helped me get in to Brown. I’m a freshmen and I intend on double concentrating in poly-sci and econ, although those are definitely not set in stone yet. If you have any questions about life at brown, ask away!
@Postmodern: you don’t get to choose your dorm, so it doesn’t really matter. Your freshman year experience is not going to vary that much depending on what dorm you’re in, anyway.
@Postmodern as someone else mentioned, you don’t get any choice in the matter, but there are two different things I would say make a good dorm. As far as facilities, by the nicest dorms are Andrews/Metcalf/Miller. However, Keeney has more of a crazy party scene, so if you want partying but in a much older dorm then Keeney is better.
@avalynn as far as like partying or general socializing? It really varies based on the student. If you know the right people/are an athlete there is a ton of partying, although it is sometimes relatively exclusive and can be hard to get in as a freshman. That being said, there is always a lot happening on campus, so you will almost always be able to find something.
@jclwriting Everything about Brown is perfect for me. It is a great size (not too big, not too small). Professors are great and incredibly qualified, but at the same time are committed to undergrads. The open curriculum is also a nice touch. Providence is a great college town, as it isn’t too urban and brown is somewhat set apart from downtown, but there is still plenty of places to go within a short distance. Also, I’ll be completely honest in that Brown was one of, if not the most, prestigious schools I was admitted to, and that certainly aided in my decision.
Hi! I’m applying to Brown right now and I’m writing the Why Brown? essay. It’s coming off as a little generic, so I was wondering if you have any insight into the Open Curriculum as a Brown student?
@lesjubilants I absolutely love the open curriculum. I would say it is very indicative of how trusting the university is in current students- Brown doesn’t feel the need to look over our shoulder and tell us what we should be studying, and this allows you to truly pursue whatever you are passionate about. For example, one of my neighbors this year is a visual arts (not sure exact concentration, but something like that) concentrator and is also doing premed, something that would probably be impossible at any other school. The S/NC and only A/B/C grades allow Brown students to move away from grade obsession and towards actual intellectual exploration (although some grade-obsessed students do abuse these options for the sake of their GPA). I would honestly say the hardest part of the open curriculum is choosing classes for the first two semesters- there are literally hundreds of incredible sounding courses, and you can only take four (although shopping period lets you experiment with a few more). But overall, I love the open curriculum and definitely think it is a good thing to mention in your ‘why brown’ essay, although I would definitely mention some other stuff too; I’m sure the admissions officers read a ton of ‘why brown’ essays about the open curriculum, so I would really try to make yours unique in some way.
@person2000 I would say that varies incredibly by the student. Lots of students are very involved with clubs, and a lot of their free time is taken with various club meetings or other structured activities, such as a cappella, writing for the various school papers, or doing some community service. Lots of students play sports, either at the varsity, club, or intramural level. There are a ton of fun things to do off-campus/in providence, and, within a short uber ride, you can go to the providence mall (which is huge), countless restaurants in downtown Prov, or go to the beach. Partying is also definitely big in some circles, and there are a fair number of Brown students who will spend a decent chunk of their weekend partying. Personally, I spend most of my time hanging out with friends in the dorm, going downtown and shopping/exploring the city, and going out to parties. That being said, I am only a freshman and I plan on getting more involved with clubs in the coming semesters. However, the workload at brown is definitely pretty significant, especially at certain points in the year, so there are definitely times where free time is hard to come by and most of your time will be spent doing work.