Boston College Top Questions

Some popular activities on campus are usually centered around sports, as many students often attend sports games. However, there are other activities on campus, such as acapella groups, music groups, theatre clubs, and much more.

BC has about 200 student organizations and there are a lot of different types but I think one of the most popular are the service organization. Obviously students participate in a lot of intramural sports but service is a huge component of extracurricular. We have Appalachia Volunteers which send about 600 students down to the Appalachian region every year during spring break to build houses for Habitat for Humanity and to work in the communities. There are more than 30 service trip programs which sends students to different countries during winter break, summer and spring break to immerse them in a different country. There is over 1000 4boston volunteers, 100 of Loyola volunteers just to name a few of the popular service organization at BC. It is difficult at BC to not volunteer at least once when you're at BC for 4 years. The AHANA community (minority students) is also extremely active on campus and I think show the most presence through the cultural clubs, everyone knows that cultural clubs are pretty intense at BC, especially if you're on an E-board. Besides these popular extracurricular activities, students really take advantage of our location close to Boston. People take weekend trips to the commons and the MFA regularly and we even have shuttles that take students there sometimes. We have a program called "BC to Boston" that provide cheap tickets to shows like Blueman group and the Nutcraker. However, on football weekends, most students are tailgating and weekend nights are often filled with parties and drinking. It's hard to find a quiet spot on campus besides maybe a freshman dorm.

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As a Division I school, athletics are very popular at Boston College. Many students are avid sports fans, and I knew quite a few people who participated in intramural or recreational sports. Many arts-based organizations are active on campus as well, including dance groups, a cappella groups, and theatrical groups. Every spring, BC hosts its annual Arts Festival, a three-day event during which various student groups perform on a stage in the middle of the campus plaza. This was always one of my favorite events. There are also a variety of other student activities at BC, including religious groups and service clubs, though these seemed to attract less attention.

tons of clubs. tons of athletics. tons of things to be an audience member of as well as an active member. tons of service. TONS upon TONS of stuff to do in boston and at surrounding colleges. dont let cultural or religious stuff scare you away, for example, sign up for a retreat called kairos-best experience at BC i have had hands down. its run through campus ministry, which scared me a little at first but if you believe in any kind of faith, structured or not---if you believe in anything---DONT ASK QUESTIONS GO ON THIS RETREAT. its so popular theres a lottery to get in so the earier you sign up the better.

There is probably a club for anything you could want. There are clubs for every hobby and sport. You can also get involved in lots of groups if you are passionate about a certain political or social cause. Students often meet their friends through their dorm situations, through classes, or while partying. I met my friends through a mixture of all three. Freshman year really put everyone on top of one another so that we could bond however worked best for each of us. I continued living with my freshman roommate throughout all four years and we are still in touch. The other people I lived near freshman year became my other roommates and it all grew from there. Partying is a big part of campus life at BC. We all work very hard during the week and we all want to unwind by Friday night. Partying is usually only on the weekends, but by senior year the definition of weekend may blur into Thursday or Monday. Once you have been at BC for a month, you will inevitably know someone who is having a party every Friday and Saturday night. Although we don't have a greek culture, I think that allows us to branch out more often and interact with more fun and interesting people. If you don't drink, life is still fun. I had friends who never drank at BC and still joined us at every event that we went to. Nobody should feel pressure to drink if they don't want to and most people respect someone else's decision.

Here's a look at what Commonwealth Avenue looks like on Marathon Monday! The city shuts down, and students and families from the surrounding area gather to cheer on the hoards of runners that pass by all afternoon. If you get out there early enough, you can see some of the fastest runners in the world, and then stay to cheer on your friends! Did I mention it's another excuse for students to tail-gate all day?

Party scene is decent if you know someone or if you are female. If you are an average male, you will have a very difficult time finding fun parties to go to freshmen year, unless you know people. This was not so much a problem for me, but I still think the parties here are not what they could be. I have been to on campus frat parties at other schools, that people can attend every weekend (to the point where they get bored of them) that are much better than most BC parties. Unless you want things to be ridiculously crowded and hot, you are not fitting more than fifty (this is generous) people into any on-campus party at BC.

A clip from one of the dances at DOBC's spring show.

The DOBC (Dance Organization at Boston College) perform yearly for students, faculty and family. This is a clip of their intro piece.

Like I mentioned before, if you can't find anything here to get involved in (which is probably very rare as there's a club or sports group for absolutely everything) you can start your own. A lot of the students are involved in intramurals, club or varsity sports and going to sporting events is always a lot of fun here. The weekend usually starts on Thursday night and goes heavy til Sunday, especially during football season when tailgating starts several hours before and continues long after the final quarter. And because you're in Boston, St. Patrick's Day, and Marathon Monday are huge events that usually require a week of preparation and recuperation. So while there aren't any fraternities or sororities, don't underestimate our ability to still have fun. Coming from the South I thought that it was going to be a big deal not having that apart of campus life, but I have found that I almost prefer not having them around as it creates a more welcoming and open door policy with parties and such. For those who don't drink, don't fear-there's still plenty to do. There's always some kind of dance performance, student theatre show, or club event to attend. Traditions aren't huge here but there are a few, especially during graduation time that are amazing like Senior week (a week of festivities before graduation), Mod Stock (a concert on campus the last day of classes), and tailgating (football is huge!). You can always expect a fall and spring concert/comedy show thrown together by our undergraduate government program, who have brought Will Farrel, Kanye West, and Third Eye Blind to name a few. During holidays a majority of the students either go home, or find comfort with an "adoptive family" for a couple of nights as most parents tend to expect their kids to bring home any stragglers left behind. If you make it into the programs (which proves to be harder than BC says it will be), the school offers volunteer trips every break to different parts of Central America and in the United States that rumor to be amazing and life-changing experiences. All in all, BC offers a well-rounded experience for their students, and is a great place to spend four years.

There are so many activities to keep you busy. Very few international oriented ones ofcourse.

BC is able to attract a wide range of guest speakers, many of whom are well know throughout the country. these events are always packed with students. athletic events are equally as important to students--and its doesnt hurt that BC has amazing teams (hockey, football, basketball...) these events are always a good time. there is always something going on at BC....parties are common on and off campus and drinking is always involved. but whats great about BC is that if that sort of culture doesnt fit you, there are so many ways to get away from that scene because of the schools location.

Sports teams are great to watch, Basketball is up and down but everyone watches football and hockey. Students always leave dorm doors open. My closest friends are kids i met on freshman dorm floor or through orientation. on a 2AM tuesday, I'm finishing up homework I left for 1AM, due the next day and my room mates are watching TV or playing video games. Some people party every night, and fail classes. Others study every night, and go to bed at 9PM. everyone goes out on weekends. There are NO frats and NO sororities. Last weekend was summer, i didn't do anything. Last weekend at BC was finals, so I studied. The weekend before that I visited my friend who has an off-campus apartment and had a grand time! Saturday nights involve drinking. Off campus has parties at various places in Brighton, or one could visit other colleges in the surrounding area of which there are thousands.

Dance groups are really popular for girls and guys alike. Newton campus, despite rumors, is an amazing place to live. You are forced to make friends as freshman because you are all isolated on a separate campus, but these will be your best friends for life. Dating is scarce, hook ups are popular which is not always a good thing. People always complain about the lack of dating, so it's wanted but no one knows how to do that anymore. Not having fraternities and sororities is amazing. There's no need for that added pressure and cliquiness, there's enough partying on and off campus that you don't need a frat row to go to. There are a lot of speakers, theater shows, music performances and places to go in Boston that you don't have to party. Boston is tough with IDs so just wait until you're 21 to go bar hopping, try the mods instead, but beware of BCPD on game days and holidays.

no frats/sorts, though there really should be, the student body would be all over it. of course theres a lot of drinking. people generally party thursday friday saturday, unless its a special occassion (like a football game). first few weeks of each semester (before add/drop period ends) people drink and party every night. if you dont drink, there are activities, though they are few and lame. there are quite a few people that dont drink, mostly the quiet, shy, religious, and asian types. drugs are not commonly used on campus, though coke is becoming (a little) more popular -its still shitty coke though. theres weed of course, but id say only 35{4a082faed443b016e84c6ea63012b481c58f64867aa2dc62fff66e22ad7dff6c} indulge at all, and maybe 15{4a082faed443b016e84c6ea63012b481c58f64867aa2dc62fff66e22ad7dff6c} at all regularly (ie outside of party smoking). Boston is right there though, so you can find what you want if you try. students do not leave the doors to their dorms open -are you crazy? the RAs are bitches about alcohol use (especially in freshman dorms).

The Bc scene revolves around athletics and partying. Students party to go to athletic events and then party after to celebrate. Athletics, however, creates a huge sense of community and pride amongst the BC student body. Unfortunately, due to the huge party scene, the dating culture at BC is nonexistent. Students get drunk and hook up, and occasionally it might turn into a friends with benefits thing, but it is very rare to find many couples at the school.

There are tons of clubs and activities on campus- a bunch of club and intramural sports, and a club for any interest/hobby you might have. Most kids here are athletic and play sports-I played IM hockey, which you actually get to play on the Conte Forum ice. Besides a sport, I'd definitely recommend joining at least one club on Student Activities Day. As for the party scene, BC is a drinking school (what school isn't nowadays) and there is definitely a ton of drinking on the weekends and before sporting events, but if you don't drink, you'll find people who don't either. The kids here are all pretty chill and leave their doors open-everybody's really friendly and open, so you're bound to find your group of friends very quickly. I'm not just saying that either, it really is mad/hella/wicked friendly and open here. Also, I had to mention one of my favorite experiences at BC: for the Boston Marathon, everyone gets up at 9, starts drinking at 10, and then line up along Commonwealth to go crazy and high five and cheer on the runners. DO NOT MISS THAT!!!

BC does not have any frats or sororities so it may be difficult for freshman to find the typical hhuge anonymous "college party" so many often drink in their dorm rooms and in doing so bond with the kids in their dorm. Students don't go out as much as I thought they would (although within certain groups they go out more) and I actually went out more in high schoool. Students really don't go to bars underage and are hesitant to use fake IDs because of Boston's reputation of being tough on IDs. But if you actually try them it's not that tough as long as you venture away from campus a little bit.

There are a lot of community service groups which are very popular, there are also a lot of racial groups, dance, art, etc. I got lucky and met most of my friends from my hall freshman year. at first people try and leave their doors open but after the first month its over. I met people in the communal bathroom, but if you have your own you wont meet many people in your hall. There are always cultural events available such as speakers, shows, athletic events. Almost everyone parties on the weekends but since there are no sororities or fraternities they are usually room parties. There is a non alcoholic option every weekend, it usually consists of board games or some kind of performance. My favorite event each year is the Arts Fest, each group on BC performs something, so you get to see what the group is like, its really enjoyable. There is a limited dating scene, one of BC's biggest problems is its hookup scene.