Northwestern University Top Questions

Im so sick of this survey

Greek life is huge on campus but not vital to having fun. A lot of students are involved in Dance Marathon. I'm involved in varsity soccer, and as mentioned before, athletes function as a huge clique. We're awesome. Students in Elder (all freshman dorm) are extremely social, especially with members of their own floor. They tend to have a lot of floor pride and move in packs. Performances (ranging from a cappella groups, sketch comics, plays, guest speakers and A&O events) are very popular and tend to sell out quickly. Athletic events don't tend to draw a large or very spirited crowd - we're too busy studying and none of our teams (with the exception of girls' lacrosse - WOMEN'S SOCCER - have very good records). I met my closest friends through my sorority and sports team. People tend to party on Monday and Thursday (bar nights), usually Friday, and generally (but not always) on Saturday. If I'm awake at 2 am on a Tuesday, I'm usually doing homework or watching TV/hanging out in the common room.

Popular groups are Hillel, boomshaka, fusion, dance groups, sailing team, singing groups like Purple Haze...some students in dorms leave their doors open, but antisocial people certainly dont. Athletic events can be popular but usually aren't, guest speakers are pretty popular, and I have yet to go to a theater event though I'd like to. The dating scene is terrible...often what happens is "Northwesternization of the Ego," which is when, because of the lack of attractive people, those who would usually be a 6 or 7 immediately see themselves as 10s and become shallow, egotistical, lose their personalities, and become jerks. So its tough to find someone you're compatible with, or who is attractive and not a total player. Frat/sorority life is one of the only social scenes here so I'd say its pretty important. On a saturday night you can study or drink, or hang out with your friends.

Not a lot of people really date here, it's kind of like a bigger version on high school, there is definitely still gossip about who is hooking up with who, and what stupid stuff people did over the weekend.

Theatre here is wonderful. It's executed wonderfully, and it's very popular. Many, if not most, shows sell out to people outside of the theater community. There are shows pretty much all the time, so there's always something to do! Greek life is a big part of the NU social scene. More that a third of the campus has "gone greek". I definitely recommend it! The girls I have met through my sorority are wonderful, intelligent, strong women. I was against sororities before coming here--I couldn't be happier that I joined. A warning, however: DON'T BELIEVE THE STEREOTYPES! I almost didn't join my sorority because of the stereotype associated with it, and that would have been a horrible mistake. If I'm awake at 2am on a Tuesday (or Wednesday morning, I suppose), I'm either writing a paper, in my hall-mates' rooms, or on the phone (or Skype) with my boyfriend. I have rehearsal with my a cappella group until midnight on Tuesdays, and have a lot of work after that usually.

lots of volunteering, large greek involvement, im in greek life and volunteering, lots of theatrical things, it depends where you live, some athletic events are very popular, some are not at all, not sure, very popular, people either are in serious relationships or just hooking up, my roommate and who lives in my dorm, im studying on tuesday at 2am, not sure of traditions, people that party usually go out about three days a week, frats and sororities are very popular, i went to a formal for a fraternity, not sure, go downtown somewhat often

I don't know how to measure popularity. Socially the greeks and athletes go out the most, but that doesn't necessarily mean that they represent most of the student body. School pride lacks at this school- football games are okay but not many people made it a point to go to them. My sophomore year I went to five football games and was invited to 'meet the coach' because I had shown significant school spirit. This is sad. If I'm awake on Tuesday at 2am, I am in my friends room talking about random shit. Dillo day happens each year and if this might be the day where the entire school finally unites together! As they should considering it is amazing. Last weekend I went to a free open bar downtown and went to a fraternity formal. Hmmmmm if you don't want to drink on a Saturday night you could go to a NU play or a movie in Evanston. There are lots of activities in Evanston you could do. But don't try bowling since its outlawed. You could always study on a Saturday night and feed NU's wonderful reputation.

Clubs and organizations are great on campus. If you want to go out every night of the week, you could, and you could find someone to go with you. Greek life is pretty big on campus, but I don't feel left out for not being part of it. There are tons of shows, events, lectures, seminars, etc. that don't involve drinking. Of you can go to parties and not drink.

I'm the president of the Polish American Student Alliance. We have about 15 members, even though there are probably more Polish Americans at NU. The biggest cultural groups are probably the Indian and Chinese student groups like SASA and CSA. I think most events on campus are pretty popular and get a pretty good turnout, from athletic events to theater events, etc. I personally have not dated anyone from NU during my time here, but that's my choice by staying away from the "scene". The option is definitely there, and I know many people that date other NU students. In the dorms, more social ones definitely leave their doors open (places like res colleges, or ones with a huge social reputation) while smaller ones are more private. If I'm awake at 2am on Tuesday, I'm either talking to someone, watching tv, or doing my homework that's due at 9 am and I haven't started yet. Sororities/fraternities can be pretty important, if you choose for them to be. I'm in a sorority but I don't like frat parties and my involvement is pretty limited. I'd rather spend time with my friends that aren't involved in Greek life. Saturday night activities that don't involve drinking are seriously limited. There's restaurants and movie theaters,and maybe some on campus events. Of course there might be some dorm events going on, but these may or may not include drinking. People who party do so on different levels. Some people go out consistently every night, or on random days during the week. Others only go out on weekends, and some never go out. I think the beauty of NU is that you have a choice to do what you want to do.

Probably the most visible groups on campus are fraternities and sororities. Because Northwestern is small and (somewhat) nerdy, they are an important part of a lot of people's social lives. I'm a member of Kappa Alpha Theta. Each year, rush is an intense competition between houses to get the best girls or guys, and there are definitely preconceived notions about each chapter (which is most popular, hottest, richest, etc). I met most of my closest friends at Northwestern through Theta. Almost all are members of my pledge class. They are also girls that lived in my dorm freshman year. At the start of college this is an especially important consideration. Proximity almost assuredly determines your first friends at school. In the more social dorms (Bobb-McCullough, Allison), students do tend to leave their doors open and mingle often with each other. The dating scene at Northwestern doesn't really exist. It's mostly a get-drunk,-hook-up-consistently-until-you-have-the-"exclusivity"-talk,-and-then-be-exclusive -long-enough-that-it's-pretty-obvious-you're-dating scene. Athletic events are not incredibly popular. Students wake up bright and early for "kegs and eggs" before Saturday afternoon football games, but many don't make it to the second half. The football stadium is notorious for having more fans from nearby Big Ten schools than Northwestern. That said, club sports at NU are actually quite popular. Each year, lots of students participate in club lacrosse, rugby, crew and sailing. A lot of these teams (especially rugby and sailing) are known to focus just as heavily on partying as athletics. Theater is huge at Northwestern. There are constantly shows of all sizes going on - and the bigger ones usually get great turn outs. The biggest tradition on campus is definitely Dance Marathon. Students dance for thirty hours straight to raise money for charity. It's the largest student-run philanthropy in the country and Northwestern's pride and joy. It is definitely something that all students should be involved in at least once in their college career. Dillo Day is another beloved campus tradition. Each spring on the last Saturday before Reading Week, Northwestern students "go Berkeley" with outdoor concerts on the lake and off-campus barbecues and parties lasting all day long. It is undoubtedly my favorite day all year. This weekend was pretty typical. Thursday, I went to that night's most popular hotspot, the Deuce, otherwise known as the Mark II Lounge in Rogers Park. Friday night I went to a club downtown because a friend was promoting there. Saturday, I spent the day playing in the snow and ice along the lakefill and visiting (for the first time ever) the Norris Game Room for some ping pong. Afterward, my boyfriend and I went downtown to his brother's apartment for dinner and a movie. Sunday, I spent studying!