No Campus-- Effect on Social Scene

<p>Is it difficult to make friends at NYU because there is essentially no campus? My friend's brother goes there and tells me that it's really difficult to make new friends after freshmen year...</p>

<p>Whether you will make friends or not really depends on yourself. Most people are unwilling to speak up first to meet people and that's pretty much why it is difficult. In general, people are more willing to talk in dorms since they are neighbors and pretty much see each other a lot. </p>

<p>NYU does have an "campus". It is basically the city.</p>

<p>You will make friends wherever you go as long you converse first when others are quiet themselves. Joining clubs is also a great way to meet and talk to people. I do not recommend sororities though unless you are the party type.</p>

<p>Does this person not have a major? Many people continue to meet people within their own departments, and it is unaffected by what year they are. It is true that there is not a campus and that upperclass dorms are further away, but they still tend to be filled with people of the same class. it certainly is not a traditional college, that's for sure, and you will have to put more effort into it... there is less chance bumping into someone in NYC than on a small college campus, but it can still happen, because the village is almost nyu's campus since there are so many nyu students going to class and living in and around it. Classes, dorming, clubs you can join, etc... all ways of meeting people. The only difference freshman year might make is the closer proximity of the dorms to class (and each other), as well as welcome week and more floor/building activities</p>

<p>Find out for yourself.</p>

<p>it REALLY is what you make of it, your initiative is the key to any social circle.</p>

<p>I find it difficult to make friends...
I think that at any school, you're going to see people settle into their groups of friends during freshman year. And, though I go out to clubs in the evenings, often I don't really meet people who I would want to become close to. Often, I just get hit on by way older guys, which is kinda weird. I'd much rather meet people my own age. </p>

<p>Going out gets to be soooo expensive!! Many places have cover charges. I've visited friends at other schools, and it just seems that their "going out" experience is so much more chill than things are here. You just locate whatever house it's at, and go meet people. </p>

<p>I don't know if you drink or not, but New York can be a dangerous place not to have your wits about you. Many of my friends have lost wallets and other stuff; at a smaller school, you'll probably be able to find your goods, but here, you'll never see them again.</p>

<p>It's also my opinion that NYU doesn't have very good clubs, and I think this impacts the social life. (As a contributing member of two clubs, I feel like I have the authority to make this statement.) It would be nice to be on a campus where more student initiative was part of the experience.</p>

<p>sfkef2010, which two clubs are you a part of?</p>

<p>If anything, it might actually help. Regardless of where you are, it'll always take some effort to make friends, but the nice thing about being in NYC is there's always so many things you can go out and do with your friends (and bond, I guess).</p>

<p>thanks for the input... i guess it's mostly about how much you want to socialize</p>

<p>
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Find out for yourself.

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</p>

<p>How helpful... at the expense of 53k+ a year? Don't think so...</p>

<p>Friends at NYU (they're sophomores/juniors now) gave me varied answers. However most of them knew before enrolling that it wouldn't be a traditional college experience - overall there is not much school spirit, but there is always the opportunity to bond with floormates. And like others have stressed on this forum, be the first to say hello. and early, before everyone starts getting used to their own routine, then it'd be hard to initiate relationships later on... </p>

<p>But I suppose it's a 2-way street. The lack of a campus doesn't necessarily help but then again it's in and of the city, which I feel is great but not the best for bonding the school together - but more likely than not you're going to find your own niche of friends and acquaintances :)</p>

<p>True. Some NYU students, especially the students that are from New York City, have friends from other universities nearby so they are not really restricted to NYU peers only. In fact, my NYU friends and girlfriend (an NYU CAS student) do not really have much new friends from NYU, considering that they already knew me and other friends from high school and parties.</p>

<p>I believe the reason for the lack of school spirit is that students have more activities to do in the city rather than participating in school spirit activities.</p>

<p>No, it's because NYU events are retarded.</p>

<p>f1rewalker, if you do not have any useful information to add to people that are genuinely concerned with the social scene, why do you waste both your own and the time of others with pointless retarded posts?</p>

<p>...bahhahahahhhhaha</p>

<p>his posts lower my blood pressure significantly... keep posting =)</p>

<p>It's not hard to meet new people, but it's sooooo hard to stay in touch!!
You definitely have to be an extremely outgoing person to make lasting friendships that are not in your dorm. You always meet people whom you will never just "bump into" because dorms are far away from each other and same with classes, and there are no major "events" at which everyone gathers.
I am a freshman and my friends all agreed on this aspect of NYU. My circle of best friends is from my floor, which just happened to be really friendly (not so at my bf's dorm!).</p>

<p>It's difficult to make friends at clubs because they don't meet that often. So you meet like 3 people the first day. Then, you maybe see them again after a month at the next club meeting. If you connect with one of them that second time and decide to be really outgoing, you ask them if they've had dinner yet, and maybe grab some dinner. </p>

<p>I have to say, though, that people who are in Tisch have an easier time making friends just by the nature of their majors. They have very extracurricular-ly majors (intense, no doubt) that require them to work together for long periods of time, both during and after class. </p>

<p>I encourage everyone to think carefully about social life before coming here. New York City is not exactly a playground - it can get lonely if you don't have that group of friends to go with, and it's expensive as well. I noticed that the people who really love NYC are the ones who have a diverse set of arts/humanities interests - concerts, museums, plays; as in, you will SEEK OUT these things and they are not just I-guess-I-will-do-them-since-I-am-in-the-city attractions. Or, you have a fake and $100 to blow on a weekend of partying. These are the people who LOVE NYC. </p>

<p>If you honestly consider yourself "shy," please find another college. I have yet to meet a shy person, and even non-shy people struggle with finding friends.</p>

<p>Worth2try, thank you for the advice. I am thinking about applying to NYU for next fall, however, I have never been to NYC, nor the US for that matter.
Would anyone be able to give some sort of advice, or personal experience, on coming to NYC for the very first time?
I am worried that it will turn out to be nothing as I expected, since expectations can be false, and I am worried I will get dissapointed in NY and will regret coming. Although I understand that if one never takes a risk, one will never find out, I am just wondering whether this is a wise decision, since I will probably not have the opportunity to visit the university before applying.</p>

<p>I actually didn't find it hard to keep in touch with most people at all - however, I was in Stern, and since there are only something like 500 people in each class, you end up being familiar with a good portion of them. Also, Stern clubs meet all the time, and you're all in the same classes... However, I also met good friends in non-Stern clubs that I still hang out with even after graduation. </p>

<p>That said, yeah, if you're shy and have hermit tendencies, it's going to be difficult. It seems to work out fine for most people I know, though.</p>

<p>sfkef, if you're paying cover charges you've gotta find a better promoter.</p>

<p>Firewalker what's with the new account?</p>

<p>Lowgpa123 - he's right though, NYU events are a joke. I think most organizing committees here cheer when they get 20-30 people (not counting themselves). There are some popular mainstays, such as Strawberryfest and Tear it Up events, but thats about it. Week to week you won't be heading to the nearest NYU club-sponsored bash. You'll be running away from them.</p>