Tufts University Top Questions

I think the great thing about Tufts is that it's sort of what you wanted high school to be like but never was. It's filled with everyone who really took school seriously (they wouldn't be there if they didn't) but who know how to take a breather once in a while. The size is perfect, for me anyway. I wanted a school bigger than my high school, which was a little over two thousand. I looked at and applied to a fair number of the excellent small liberal arts schools, but I think they'd just be too small. Tufts has a little over 5000 undergrads and around 9000 with grads -- no where near a state school and large university, but still enough that you'll always be meeting new people. I guess the first thing that drew me to Tufts, as shallow as it is to say, is its name. I'm a sucker for rankings, though I feel that Tufts deserves to be higher than it is. It's a tough school to get into and not so easy to do well -- but I think the students going there realize this and want that challenge. The environment is pretty good. I wanted to be in a big city, and Boston definitely has a lot to offer, although I can't stand Red Sox fans. They're absolutely awful. Tufts itself is in walking distance of Davis Square. Davis Square itself is alright -- good restaurants but not much else unless you want to go into Boston, which is only about fifteen minutes away by T. Unless you want to go to parties, though, there's not much to do on campus on the weekends, but there has been a huge initiative to change this and improve "community."

Tufts kids tend to be pretty active, so there are plenty of events going on all the time, but many of them are geared towards a pretty narrow audience, and uninteresting to just about everybody else. A couple times a semester there will be some decent music or a comedian, and some lame speakers. A lot of our facilities are pretty outdated. Some of the science labs are nice (but not all), but we don't take very good care of our athletes. The basketball gym isn't qualified to host an NCAA tournament game. Nobody as far as I know goes to watch any of the football games. School spirit is pretty low. Kids don't leave campus very much. There are a couple bars nearby that will fill up on a Tuesday night, but that's about it. People will say Tufts is "in Boston," but its a good 10 minute walk and 25 minute train ride to get into downtown, and since it's pretty cold most of the school year, most kids don't even bother. The frats will through parties almost every weekend, but it's not always easy (or possible) to get in. As an upperclassmen, there start to be more house parties as kids move of campus.

There is always way too much to do on campus. I love it. Its truly great

I wish the student body had more school spirit. We're really big on the arts, though so there is usually something happening on campus. I think the size is very nice. Most people in the Midwest don't know what Tufts is, but I've noticed that the really educated people tend to know about Tufts. I spend most of my time in my dorm because of the sense of community there.

I love Tufts. I loved it from the moment I took my first tour. It is the perfect size school- not to small and not to big. In one day you can see many familiar faces and also many that are not familiar. Its nice to be able to go into Carmichael Dining Hall and know that you will recognize someone but not everyone. Tufts campus is beautiful. It is a suburban campus that is also so urban- only miles from Boston. The located of the campus is perfect; you have a smaller suburb, Harvard Square, and a booming city. Being an athlete, I have been subjected to school spirit more so than other students. I'm a biased opinion when it comes to this because I see the spirit first hand being on a team but many other students don't even know what sports teams we have. I think each year the school is paying more attention to sports and people are starting to follow them more often. School spirit lies most heavily with our mascot Jumbo, not our football team. In fact, at homecoming I went down to tailgate the football game, but didn't even see it. As my freshman year comes to an end I have so many new amazing memories and I don't think I would be able to pick my favorite. I can say that the things I remember most are the loads of freshman out on the res-quad playing Frisbee during orientation, my first college class, my first frat party at ATO, and my first swim meet.

A lot of people have heard of Tufts in passing, but don't know where it is. I think the board is trying to change that, so we do have a bigger presence in the household. A reliable source did tell me that Tufts is well-known among the Ivy Grad schools - which is a good thing! I love Tufts. It wasn't my first choice, or my second, or my third. To be honest, when I first arrived, I was not excited. After talking to people, however, my opinion has completely changed. The people has are not pretentious, down-to-earth, and really motivated to pursue their interests. I've heard a lot of inspiring stories from students. I have a love-hate relationship with the campus. We're "the light on the hill". This hill can seem like Mt. Kilimanjaro on certain days. Walking from the gym to my dorm takes about 10 minutes, which can seem like an eternity in the bitter cold New England wind. During the fall, though, the changing leaves was absolutely breath-taking, and the Academic Quad is gorgeous! Landscaping needs some improvement though as does the general architecture.

The best thing about Tufts is the people I have met here so far.I've been able to meet unbelievable people that I never would have had the opportunity to get to know elsewhere. I would definitely change the residential life services here if I could change one thing. Tufts is the perfect size; with about 5000 undergrad it's large enough that you don't feel constricted to one field or group of people, but it's small enough that you see familiar faces everywhere and have a clear sense of community. Tufts' size was a definite factor in my choosing to attend it. On campus I probably spend most of my time in my room during down time during the day. At night during the week I usually hang out with my friends in a neighboring dorm. Boston is not FAR from Tufts, but that doesn't make Medford a college town by any means. Davis Square in Somerville is a nice place to go to get away from campus or go to dinner and the T takes you right into Boston from there, but other than that there isn't much here. Most students complain about the food, which is good but gets old as any cafeteria food would after a while. There are also a lot of complaints about Residential Life.

Most people don't really know what Tufts is, and until the "peer" schools, meaning the Ivy's, start to see Tufts as an equal, most people won't really know what/where Tufts is.

I think that this school is pretty small - there's a huge division between "uphill" and "downhill" so if you live in either place those are the people you will see all the time. When I tell most people from California that I go to Tufts they have no idea what I'm talking about.

Coming from London, not many of my English friends knew the school, but parents knew and definitely people in the States are impressed. The school can be a little on the small side. if you don't know someone, you know someone who does. and the same people go out to parties, so you see the same people a lot. however, boston and all its schools are right here, so there's plenty to get out and see. as an upperclassmen i spend my time on campus in the campus center (also as i work there). a lot of seniors live in houses surrounding the campus, so evenings are spent hanging out there. There is a surprising amount of school spirit considering going to school games is not the thing to do. i love having the city right next to us, yet feeling like a liberal arts college. the most recent and large controversy is the Student Activities Director embezzling money. The weather can suck in the winter and there are no towels in the dorm bathrooms.