<p>Hey yall! I will be visiting Vanderbilt in late november and was wondering what I should do (other than info session and tour) at the university! Favorite restaurants, Nashville must-sees, etc...
We will be there for 2 nights and 1 1/2 days!
Thanks!</p>
<p>Here are some old threads on this topic with lots of good advice. Enjoy your visit!
<a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/vanderbilt-university/846743-visiting-vanderbilt.html?highlight=visiting+nashville[/url]”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/vanderbilt-university/846743-visiting-vanderbilt.html?highlight=visiting+nashville</a>
<a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/vanderbilt-university/1467684-visiting-nashville-soon.html?highlight=visiting+nashville[/url]”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/vanderbilt-university/1467684-visiting-nashville-soon.html?highlight=visiting+nashville</a>
<a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/vanderbilt-university/1124626-what-do-nashville.html?highlight=visiting+nashville[/url]”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/vanderbilt-university/1124626-what-do-nashville.html?highlight=visiting+nashville</a></p>
<p>Thank you!</p>
<p>If you still don’t know which of your colleges is your true love fave, go sit in the main library, the science library and or the Peabody library (where many freshmen study since it is really part of the Commons now). A half hour of quietly scoping out what students seem to be doing re studying helps you factor in academic life and what several evenings a week would be like for you. I would also eat in the main dining hall at a peak hour solo. No one will care that you are not enrolled. Also recommend parking in the Commons with a coffee and simply soaking up freshmen life.<br>
Nashville is a positive…no need to point that out. </p>
<p>We felt son would prefer a wonderful liberal arts college. But once he saw the small venues for dining and so on, he went for bigger school (ended up at Vandy). He looked at one of his majors and realized in the LAC that there were actually very few electives in his interest. Another son saw the performance hall for the Symphony and went gaga for Vandy and his interest in a fine LAC dropped after seeing their smaller performance facilities. </p>
<p>Classroom excellence at Vandy/Emory/Duke may be very similar to other schools that are regional mid sized research institutions. But what matters to you may suddenly occur to you. Don’t get too caught up in tourist things. Although I think the Belcourt Theater in Hillsboro Village was a rather heavy “yes, Check!” for Vandy son who walked down there often with friends to see all sorts of arty films. </p>
<p>Vandy son also realized at some point…late in the spring actually…that he wanted to be a bit more of a smaller fish in a bigger pond instead of the opposite. These are the intangibles. If you can observe a science lab class at Vandy, as one of my son’s did…you may find out that Vandy is much more personal in the applied classes than you might guess.</p>
<p>go after the intangibles that would put a spring in your step</p>
<p>I just heard from parents this weekend that have a kids at Columbia and Vanderbilt how drastically different Vandy felt to them. And they’re just casual observers who visit a few times a year. They say students here actually seem happy. Imagine that!</p>
<p>Vanderbilt has everything. It’s located in an amazing city and most things students need are walkable…the size is perfect. Classes are small and large, depending on what year you are. There are kids from all over the country, which makes it a broadening experience, although the Southern vibe is strong. Greek life can feel dominant, so be ready for that. The academics are stellar. My S did engineering and he like the smallness of the school. He had good relationships with his professors. My D did the 3 years undergraduate and the 2 year master of nursing program for her Nurse Practitioner degree. All the resources and classes were just minutes away (on foot). Housing is really pretty good and most kids live on campus all 4 years. I would say that the social structure can be stressful. Most feel the Greek life determines it. YOu will find people who say this isn’t so, but for the most part, it is. Both my kids belonged to strong Greek groups, but even as members, it can be stressful. My S recently said he wished he had joined a “lower level” fraternity, as it would have fit him better. Vanderbilt is big enough to get whatever out of it you want.</p>
<p>I suspect that most of the people (and parents) who flatly maintain that Greek life dominates social life at Vanderbilt are limited to those for whom Greek life actually does dominate their social lives (or their parents), somewhere around (or slightly less) than half of the student population. There are nevertheless many happy Vandy students for whom Greek life is a small or even non-existent part of their social lives. So while Greek life thrives at Vandy, diverse other (less formally organized and loud) forms of social life do thrive quite happily alongside it. Just depends who you ask, and whether they view life at Vandy through Greek lenses.</p>
<p>I would say that so much of Greek life is visible that it does tend to dominate. It can bother a student not involved if he/she wants it to. The parties aren’t open, so that contributes to the split.</p>
<p>I had a GDI son at Vandy and a Greek son graduated from Duke. The Duke son continues on in his delusional system (kidding but only partly) that anyone who wasn’t Greek at Duke missed out on the best of Duke on weekends. GDI son had a fantastically rich life in Nashville and on campus at Vandy with non Greeks and of course had many Vandy friends who were Greek…girls he dated, people on Alternative Spring Break when GDIs and Greeks work together far away from campus. However, I will support Swimmer726 (so proud of your kids…sad to know they are graduated!) in the perception I have which is if you are sensitive/likely to feel left out/not very tolerant etc to the reality that a third of the men and half of the women have weekly bookings and obligations exclusive to Greek orgs, Vandy may not be ideal for you. In son’s case, he picked Vandy as less than ideal in this category and over the top great in other categories…he might have liked a Greek free campus to grow up on. My take after 8 years of two sons doing it two different ways: dealing with the Greek scene for independents is a perfectly good way to become a stronger individual ready for a workplace where a percentage of work force colleagues relied on their Greek orgs in college. what makes you stronger…and more able to take charge of your own happiness and social life is AOK.</p>
<p>I was talking to a neighbor who went to his college for his 35th…he said he wish he had been Greek, because he really had no where to go, no where to hang out. I felt rather sorry for him. Statistically, the biggest donors to the universities is Greek men. Those are the facts and probably the reason most schools haven’t eliminated Greek life altogether. Our youngest is at Cornell. Vanderbilt wasn’t for him for all the reasons above. At Cornell, there are 40 fraternities, so there really is a group for everyone. Most brothers are in engineering and are a very diverse group. This is a much better match for this son. Vanderbilt would have been a mistake. I’m glad this son has a small group in a much larger university.He’s busy, but has activities and friends he can count on.</p>
<p>Not to step on anyones toes, but I really only asked about my visit. Lets not make a big Greek- Non Greek discussion out of this. Please and thank you!</p>
<p>errrrr… sorry texasteen…carry on.</p>
<p>I have 2 girls there now, and the LOVE it. Like faline said, a movie and the Belcourt is a popular student thing to do… I think my girls are there tonight watching Rocky horror! Restaurants close to campus that are frequented by students : Cabana (on the meal card) Mcdougals, (conveniently next to belcourt) taco mamacita, and legato gelato for desert. Closer to commons campus is the division street restaurants, Soul Shine pizza, chuys, sliders…all great student places to eat! It may be cold, but check out centennial park across from campus, and of course the honky tonks on Broadway. If the predators are playing, you can take in a professional hockey game! students get very cheap tickets, I think $12? If you’re going to be there over a game weekend, you should definitely take in a home game. You can get tickets cheap on stub hub!</p>
<p>Texasteen–You definitely want to take the student lead tour; then while on campus check out the Commons and Rand Dining Halls, walk around Sarratt Student Center where there are student meeting places as well as quiet study areas and way across campus, look into the nice and recently updated Student Rec Center. As for places to eat in Nashville while visiting Vandy–can’t go wrong with Pancake Pantry for breakfast (warning: long lines unless you are crazy early) or Noshville on Broadway for breakfast which is also on the Taste of Nashville plan that students have. Lunch or dinner at J. Alexanders near the bookstore is also a must for our family. Dinner at Loveless’s Cafe is also another favorite but that is much further from campus. For dessert, the original Gigi’s Cupcakes is near campus off West End towards downtown. I would second the recommendation to visit Centennial Park, in better weather students hang out there and can go to Shakespeare in the Park in the fall. Good shopping at Green Hills mall right down 21st Avenue, my daughter takes the bus there for free with her VU ID. Three other typical tourist spots in Nashville that are worth visiting (and for which the Vanderbilt student government has just announced a Passport to Nashville program for students to visit free) are the Ryman Auditorium, Country Music Hall of Fame and The Hermitage, the home of Andrew Jackson. If you are not into country music, which many, many Vandy students are not, there is still plenty to do, including visiting Cheekwood Botanical Gardens & Art Museum in Belle Meade, although late November might not be ideal for that 
Lots of live music venues around town; one of the more famous is the Blue Bird Cafe near Green Hills Mall which is country music but I do want to emphasis again that not all the places are country music. Enjoy your visit!</p>