<p>Stanford's pretty big so other people
may have different opinions on answers, but here's what I think:</p>
<p>nightlife - There are parties every weekend night somewhere on campus, usually in the row houses. Some are regular frat parties, and others are more theme-based - like the French house has a cafe night every other week or something like that, with french desserts and live music. hmmm what else... if you're into art, the Cantor Center has First Thursdays - so the first thursday night of every month, the museum is open late and has food and drinks and usually some kind of performance. There are tons of other student performances on campus too, so there's definitely enough to do on weekends. For real clubbing, you can go to the city, but its kind of far away.</p>
<p>political atmosphere - mostly liberals or moderates among students, but also a few conservative political groups on campus. if you're studying polisci, the Hoover institution is fairly conservative (thats where a lot of policsci profs do their research) - so I guess more of a mix among professors.</p>
<p>One of the things I love most about Stanford is how friendly and outgoing and generally happy the students are. Maybe its b/c I'm from the east coast and I'm not used to it, or maybe its the california sun, but it is amazing :) I think we're all nerds in our own way, but not in the conventional stay-inside-all-day-to-study kind of way... more quirky and just interested in a lot of things.</p>
<p>I can almost guarantee that you will find a student group and meeting place for any religion or denomination you want to find - and probably a dance group, an a capella group, or something else related to it as well. If you're looking for a specific one, I can look into it for you...</p>
<p>free time - totally depends on the person. ultimate frisbee is big on
campus, as is anything else in the sun, going to SF with friends, hanging out at the coffee house on campus, and also time with student groups or organizations... there's one for pretty much any interest you could have, and if it doesnt exist you can start it pretty easily. on weekends, there are tons of ski trips in the winter, and trips to the beach when its warmer. and of course dorm bonding activities. :)</p>
<p>Science/math classes are generally on west campus, and humanities are on east campus... but in dorms and among friends, there's not really any segregation.</p>
<p>Some people love frosoco, but its way far away from the rest of campus...
good for getting to know a small group of people very well, but more cut off from the rest of the stanford world. I havent heard of PLIME. And I'm not sure how many theme houses are open to freshmen... I would definitely
recommend them at some point at Stanford (especially Casa Italiana and the French House) but I personally strongly recommend the regular freshman dorm experience for the first year. Four class dorms are a little more laid back if you prefer that kind of atmosphere, but it makes it a little harder to really get to know other freshmen.</p>
<p>Laundry service is "free" as in you dont pay for it as you wash clothes,
but it is definitely included in your tuition. :)</p>
<p>dating - tough question :) Again, really depends who you ask. I
personally think its fine - it is tough to find time b/c everyone's busy,
but definitely not too hard. Some people say its mostly random hookups or serious relationships, but I haven't really found that... I met my current boyfriend during my freshman year so I'm pretty happy with the dating scene at school. I think its really what you make of it. And you'll definitely meet a ton of new people through your classes, dorm and whatever activities you do.</p>