We visited Lafayette during the winter so it was hard to get a sense of the feel of the school. Can any current or former students or parents give me a sense of the social life on campus? Is it active? Is there a lot to do? How does the Greek presence impact the school? Anything would help.
I have two different daughters- one is a first year at Lafayette and it’s perfect for her- she and her large group of very diverse friends are involved in many organizations and a typical weekend could be- movie or theater on or near campus, then frat party, next day sporting event, go to gym, study with friends at library, club meeting, dinner in Easton with friends, hang out with friends in someone’s room, late breakfast, some kind of club or school event , more studying, movie night in friends room.
Every weekend is full and they’ve gone to parties at Lehigh, festivals in Easton and even twice to concerts in in a lNYC.
This daughter loves the close knit feel and variety of things on campus.
Her sister would have transferred out of Lafayette by now. She goes to school in a large city and wants museums, big concerts, brunch out, lots of shopping and big sport events.
Fortunately both girls know themselves somewhat and have gravitated to the environment right for them. There is plenty to do at Lafayette, not enough hours in the day to do it all, but it is not a school in a bustling city nor a huge state university so as long as that isn’t what you’re looking for, I think you’ll find Lafayette’s social life very robust.
My D recently graduated from Lafayette. For four years she always felt very busy on campus. From what I gather it was a combination of things — small parties with friends, bigger get-togethers either un-officially or officially associated with an on campus club (ex. ranging from an official sorority party to an unofficial party with her theater friends after a production), school run events, activities she was involved with, sporting events (Lafayette-Lehigh rivalry is big), etc. She surprised us and pledged a low-key sorority so that added more to her social calendar.
As noted above Easton is not a major city but it has turned into a nice college town and the relations with the campus seem very good and the students feel welcome in town. Sometimes they would go off campus to Easton for a meal, to a movie, to the mall, to walk by the Delaware River, go to the Easton Farmers Market etc. I’d say she took advantage of Easton more and more as the years went on.
And my kids were the same as @myjanda My S wanted a mid-sized urban school and ended up in NYC and my D wanted that close-knit LAC environment and ultimately both kids landed in their own perfect spot. And FWIW Easton has an adorable brunch place down the hill called Quadrant (a used book store and brunch place) that my D misses even though she is now in NYC!
I’m currently a student at Lafayette. Greek life is fairly prominent here. On the website it says roughly 35% of all students are involved in greek life, but that number is actually much higher. That includes all students, but rush doesn’t happen until early sophomore year, so no freshmen are in a fraternity or sorority. Sophomore year pretty much everyone rushes, but some drop out of the rushing process and don’t end up in a fraternity or sorority. Parties are typically off campus but there is activity in the dorms every weekend, especially freshman year. If you don’t like to go out, Easton is only a short (and cheap!) bus ride away from NYC, and there is a lot to do in the city of Easton itself (Bacon Fest, movies, awesome food, the Crayola factory, etc). Although most of our sports teams aren’t too great at the moment, the Laf-Lehigh games are always a ton of fun to go to. In the fall there’s an activity fair where you can sign up for alllllllll the clubs and groups on campus. Club and intramural athletics are always a hit with students here, as many of us are or were athletes.
I am a current first year at Lafayette and I think social life is really what you make of it. My weekends range from movie nights and hanging out to going to parties(mostly off campus) and spinning. Greek life is definitely very present on campus but there is also a lot of other things going on. We have things ranging from concerts and performances to movies and creative events like condom bingo. Most people are part of clubs, teams or groups which also add social events to the calendar. There is also always the option of talking the night(or day) away. I think there is something for everyone to do and for every mood.
@TrishaAgarwal Agreed. If you’re into partying, there is no shortage of those, but know that many of them will be Greek parties and thus more difficult for freshmen to get in. If not, the College sponsors stuff every weekend that you could go to.
Current first-year here.