<p>My son is a serious student. He's not interested in parties and wants to be with other serious students. He loves philosophy and psychology. Is Tufts a school that could offer my kid what he needs?</p>
<p>Yes. But like most schools there is plenty of partying going on. My son is not a drinker or partier and seems to find things to do.</p>
<p>My son’s main complaint about Tufts is that it has the wrong kind of nerds - ones who read about Mideast policy in their spare time, or talk about how to save the world. He wants to just kick back and play video games. He says the kids most like him end up being the engineers or athletes, with whom he has nothing else in common. (He’s an IR major.) That said, when he wasn’t playing video games or reading sci fi, my son spent at least some of his summer break reading a book about nuclear policy so he may not be that different.</p>
<p>My son thinks there are too many earnest save the world types - especially in his major, but other than that I think he likes Tufts a lot.</p>
<p>You’d probably get more answers if this was moved to the Tufts forum…</p>
<p>There are @5,000 kids at Tufts, so like any college, your child will find their group. Some kids have a few groups of friends: some from classes, some from a sports activity or club, some from the dorms…your S will definitely find kids with similar likes and dislikes to hang out with.</p>
<p>My S1 is a Junior at Tufts (already!) He is currently taking the semester abroad, but is very happy with the school and is quite outgoing, so he does have several groups of friends. There are parties at every school, but it’s not blatant, in your face type of partying at Tufts, if that makes sense.</p>
<p>Have your S get involved with the clubs on campus that interest him and he will find like minded kids.</p>
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<p>Tufts has a great philosophy professor, Daniel C. Dennett. I just read one of his books (“Intuition Pumps and Other Tools for Thinking”) and am in the middle of another (“Breaking the Spell: Religion as a Natural Phenomenon.”). Check him out on Amazon.</p>
<p>My nephew’s main complaint is that the students don’t seem that friendly (he’s from Calif, so used to a more “hey there” greeting when passing others by). </p>
<p>However, he and his friends do hop on the public transportation on weekends to head to MIT for parties. </p>
<p>That said, there are going to be “serious students” and “partiers” at every school except a bible school. Even the best students often seek out a party on the weekends.</p>
<p>“Tuft’s Syndrome”?</p>
<p>Bill Richardson and Lesley Stahl</p>
<p>Tufts is very stong in Government & International Relations, among other things.</p>
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<p>Certainly! Great school with plenty of serious students. One of my former post-college apartment mates and an older cousin are both proud alums. :)</p>
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<p>He would have certainly hated Oberlin when I attended, then. </p>
<p>Comparatively speaking, the Tufts students I met among friends and touring the campus were pretty laid back and mellow in comparison. Nowhere near as much political bickering/heated debating in and out of class or playing “Who’s leftier than thou” games compared with my undergrad experience.</p>
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<p>That’s probably a cultural shock that takes some getting used to. I experienced the reverse with the local town residents in the town of Oberlin where complete strangers will say hello to you in a friendly manner every day. A weird experience in the beginning for someone who grew up in the NYC of the '80s and early '90s. </p>
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<p>Definitions of partiers will also vary depending on the prevailing campus culture of a given college and take on different forms. For instance, the ones at my private midwest LAC when I attended either kept to themselves while being stoned on weed & psychedelics or organized/participated in campuswide on-campus and off-campus political protests. </p>
<p>We also had dorm/house parties…but they were very tame compared with the parties I’ve been invited to/crashed in the Boston area where alcohol flowed and undergrads got much more carried away with its effects.</p>
<p>Incidentally, the Tufts students I knew tended to go off to MIT or Boston for parties as there weren’t as many when they attended.</p>
<p>female1959, My D is a senior at Tufts. She got accepted to several top colleges and when she got accepted to Tufts we decided to go and visit for the first time, just to check out of curiosity (we were almost sure she was going to attend another of her choices). Tufts was love at first site for all of us. We compared it to other fine colleges where she was accepted, and Tufts environment was perfect for her. People were friendly and they looked relax. Since then, she keeps saying that she found a jewel. </p>
<p>My D is also a psychology major and she has found good internships in Boston, took a semester abroad and has now very good friends they seem to be friends for life.
Certainly, my D says that there are a lot of intellectuals there and people who care about the world and want to make a change, and she likes that.
I asked D about the parties and she said that Tufts parties are not really wild, and the ones who want to party hard go to Boston -MIT parties etc
Tufts is a great school - highly recommended!!</p>
<p>If he needs a school with really smart, engaged, friendly, happy kids, helpful profs, and the choice to party or have plenty to do without partying- Tufts is the best. My sophomore D from So. CA chose the Healthy Living dorm last year and has yet to be at a party where there is drinking. Her big group of friends (girls and boys) find plenty to do that does not involve alcohol and there is no stigma to not drinking. She could not be happier and says Tufts was the best decision she ever made.</p>
<p>Philosophy and psych for a serious student? Yup, Tufts would be a good place for him. As for socializing, there’s something for all types.</p>
<p>Fantastic, diverse, social and learning experience. Pretty campus just outside of Boston and Cambridge!!!</p>
<p>Mathmom - does your son know about these clubs?</p>
<p>Sci-Fi</p>
<p>[About</a> The Club | Science Fiction and Fantasy Society at Tufts](<a href=“http://tuftscifi.■■■■■■■■■■■■■/about/]About”>About The Club | Science Fiction and Fantasy Society at Tufts)</p>
<p>Futurism</p>
<p>[Tufts</a> Futurism Society debates moral, ethical issues of advanced technology - Tufts Daily - Tufts University](<a href=“http://www.tuftsdaily.com/tufts-futurism-society-debates-moral-ethical-issues-of-advanced-technology-1.2815241#.UiqZOdwo5dh]Tufts”>http://www.tuftsdaily.com/tufts-futurism-society-debates-moral-ethical-issues-of-advanced-technology-1.2815241#.UiqZOdwo5dh)</p>
<p>Female1959-
1959 was a good year :-)</p>
<p>Tufts does not advertise as much as some other universities, but here are some top programs that are somewhat unique and related to your sons interests. Tufts is well known for interdisciplinary programs, but the underlying departments in these programs are strong as well.</p>
<p>Tufts has a world-recognized program in Cognitive Science which is an interdisciplinary field that integrates Psychology, Philosophy, Computer Science and Biology.</p>
<p>://ase.tufts.edu/psychology/undergradConcCognitive.htm
[Tufts</a> University Center for Cognitive Studies - Home Page](<a href=“Center for Cognitive Studies | Tufts University”>Center for Cognitive Studies | Tufts University)
[Cognitive</a> Science Ph.D. Program Conference](<a href=“http://cogsci.tufts.edu/conference/]Cognitive”>http://cogsci.tufts.edu/conference/)
[Department</a> of Psychology - Tufts University](<a href=“Home | Department of Psychology”>Home | Department of Psychology)
[Tufts</a> University Cognitive Scientist Ray Jackendoff Awarded 2014 Rumelhart Prize | Tufts Now](<a href=“http://now.tufts.edu/news-releases/tufts-university-cognitive-scientist-ray-jack]Tufts”>http://now.tufts.edu/news-releases/tufts-university-cognitive-scientist-ray-jack)
[Tufts</a> University: Research News @ Tufts](<a href=“http://www.tufts.edu/central/research/ResearchNews/Researchers/jackendoff.htm]Tufts”>http://www.tufts.edu/central/research/ResearchNews/Researchers/jackendoff.htm)
[Daniel</a> C. Dennett’s Home Page](<a href=“Center for Cognitive Studies | Tufts University”>Center for Cognitive Studies | Tufts University)
[Matthias</a> Scheutz | The MIT Press](<a href=“http://mitpress.mit.edu/authors/matthias-scheutz]Matthias”>Author - MIT Press)
[What</a> Would R2-D2 Do? | Tufts Now](<a href=“http://now.tufts.edu/articles/what-would-r2-d2-do]What”>http://now.tufts.edu/articles/what-would-r2-d2-do)
[CINDY</a> - a capable robotic helper - YouTube](<a href=“CINDY - a capable robotic helper - YouTube”>CINDY - a capable robotic helper - YouTube)</p>
<p>Tufts has a nationally recognized program in engineering psychology (human factors design)</p>
<p>[Department</a> of Psychology - Tufts University](<a href=“Home | Department of Psychology”>Home | Department of Psychology)
[THFES</a> - Tufts Human Factors and Ergonomics Society](<a href=“http://ase.tufts.edu/hfes/index.html]THFES”>http://ase.tufts.edu/hfes/index.html)</p>
<p>Tufts also has one of the only undergrad clinical psychology majors in the country (it includes fieldwork/internship)</p>
<p>[Department</a> of Psychology - Tufts University](<a href=“Home | Department of Psychology”>Home | Department of Psychology)
[Department</a> of Psychology - Tufts University](<a href=“Home | Department of Psychology”>Home | Department of Psychology)</p>
<p>Philosophy courses come up pretty frequently on lists of “must take” classes at Tufts… </p>
<p><a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/tufts-university/576755-must-take-classes-tufts.html[/url]”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/tufts-university/576755-must-take-classes-tufts.html</a></p>
<p>A couple of psych courses come up on this list. Also note the popularity of computer science among non majors. From my vantage point (inside the industry), This is very unusual.</p>
<p>[Tufts</a> University Admissions Department](<a href=“http://admissions.tufts.edu/blogs/jumbo-talk/post/15-best-courses-at-tufts/]Tufts”>http://admissions.tufts.edu/blogs/jumbo-talk/post/15-best-courses-at-tufts/)</p>
<p>Mastadon, that’s the amazing Ben Hescott in comp sci.</p>
<p>Though many (or most) might consider this a specious “quality”, you could say that–given this morning’s USNWR 2014 rankings release–Tufts is a school that impressively holds its own against its peers, consistently placing very well among different rankings (USNWR #28, FORBES #25, AC Online Top Colleges for Engineering Majors ROI #19, ARWU US Schools, #53–well above UND, Dartmouth, Georgetown, Wake, Northeastern, BC…).</p>
<p>“Though many (or most) might consider this a specious “quality”, you could say that–given this morning’s USNWR 2014 rankings release–Tufts is a school that impressively holds its own against its peers, consistently placing very well among different rankings (USNWR #28, FORBES #25, AC Online Top Colleges for Engineering Majors ROI #19, ARWU US Schools, #53–well above UND, Dartmouth, Georgetown, Wake, Northeastern, BC…).”</p>
<p>Tufts is a great institution without the cutthroat atmosphere than other schools like Penn, Harvard, Cornell, etc…</p>