Chyanne
Athletics, greek life, a capella groups and clubs pretty much make up most students extracurricular activities. About 30{4a082faed443b016e84c6ea63012b481c58f64867aa2dc62fff66e22ad7dff6c} of students are greek, most people are only heavily involved in greek life their sophomore year when they live in a house and then they attend less events as upperclassmen.
Rachel
The Greek system is probably the most popular student activity. There are over 40 fraternities and 12 sororities. It's a very tight-knit community. As far as sports/athletic groups go, Cornell Hockey and Lacrosse are pretty huge (our Wrestling team is excellent as well).
Claire
Again, definitely depends on what scene you are seeking out. The Greek scene definitely has large presence, if you are the one looking to party a lot.
Jordan
It's really hard to point out the most popular student activities/groups. The great thing about Cornell is that there are hundreds of clubs you can participate in, so the activities students can enjoy is fairly abundant if they are willing to spend some time figuring out which clubs are good fit for them.
Jessica
There are so many student organizations on campus that there isn't one that stands out in particular. If you cannot find a club that matches your personal interests, it is easy to create your own.
Eve
There are so many activities and groups available and active on campus, it's impossible to say which are the most popular. Greek life is pretty big here, and the party scene happens every weekend, with many people going out to party at frats. It can be fun if you have the time and are interested in greek life. However, t's also extremely easy to avoid the party scene, and it's not all-consuming or loud. I'm involved with Phi Sigma Pi, a co-ed, co-disciplinary Honor Fraternity that is not affiliated with the greek system. It allows me to find so many opportunities to network, develop friendships, and cultivate leadership, all without the social pressure of partying.
I met my closest friends in the dorm. Your hall mates really do become your family, and in the beginning of the year, most people do leave their doors open in the residence halls. It's so easy to meet people freshman year, and that's when a lot of people find their best friends.
If I'm looking to have a good time, it's easy to do so without partying; my friends and I love to go out to dinner or to a cafe in Collegetown or on the Commons, see a movie, go to a concert, anything. I'm never, ever bored here, and I'm not a big partier. The bus system is amazing here, and you can go absolutely anywhere in the area for just $1.50 (and it's free nights and weekends!).
The dating scene here is relaxed and low-key. The majority of people here are not in relationships, but there are many who are (I am). I like Cornell relationships because they're generally founded on some very core values. I mean, think about it: you have about 6,000 undergrads in your gender of choice from around the country and around the world, all here to meet new people and study what they're passionate about. There are a lot of engaging, intelligent, and interesting people here. If you're looking to find love, the campus is so large, and you'll meet so many people, it's hard not to have a crush on someone your first year here. You'll meet all kinds of folks, and there's not a pressure to have a serious relationship or anything; just an emphasis on meeting new people and learning new things. It's a lot of fun, and one of the most exciting parts of campus. Even if you're single and not looking for anything, you'll generally make new friendships each year; and platonic or not, it's exciting to meet people!
Eve
There are so many activities and groups available and active on campus, it's impossible to say which are the most popular. Greek life is pretty big here, and the party scene happens every weekend, with many people going out to party at frats. It can be fun if you have the time and are interested in greek life. However, t's also extremely easy to avoid the party scene, and it's not all-consuming or loud. I'm involved with Phi Sigma Pi, a co-ed, co-disciplinary Honor Fraternity that is not affiliated with the greek system. It allows me to find so many opportunities to network, develop friendships, and cultivate leadership, all without the social pressure of partying.
I met my closest friends in the dorm. Your hall mates really do become your family, and in the beginning of the year, most people do leave their doors open in the residence halls. It's so easy to meet people freshman year, and that's when a lot of people find their best friends.
If I'm looking to have a good time, it's easy to do so without partying; my friends and I love to go out to dinner or to a cafe in Collegetown or on the Commons, see a movie, go to a concert, anything. I'm never, ever bored here, and I'm not a big partier. The bus system is amazing here, and you can go absolutely anywhere in the area for just $1.50 (and it's free nights and weekends!).
The dating scene here is relaxed and low-key. The majority of people here are not in relationships, but there are many who are (I am). I like Cornell relationships because they're generally founded on some very core values. I mean, think about it: you have about 6,000 undergrads in your gender of choice from around the country and around the world, all here to meet new people and study what they're passionate about. There are a lot of engaging, intelligent, and interesting people here. If you're looking to find love, the campus is so large, and you'll meet so many people, it's hard not to have a crush on someone your first year here. You'll meet all kinds of folks, and there's not a pressure to have a serious relationship or anything; just an emphasis on meeting new people and learning new things. It's a lot of fun, and one of the most exciting parts of campus. Even if you're single and not looking for anything, you'll generally make new friendships each year; and platonic or not, it's exciting to meet people!
Jessica
As mentioned before, the Greek community at Cornell is huge. I myself am involved in a co-ed fraternity (not social) that emphasizes community service. Dorm life during the first year is definitely exciting, as all freshmen live on the north part of campus. I am happy to say that almost all of my close friends at Cornell were ones whom I made my freshman year. As an upperclassman the party scene moves to Collegetown, where there apartment and house parties pretty much every night. For those who don't like drinking, sometimes I just like to stay in on a Saturday night and watch a movie.
L
Cornell is a big university, so there are many popular activities and groups depending on what you are interested. If you are interested in the social scene, there are many fraternities and sororities. There are also professional groups, sports clubs, or even ddr clubs.
Jessica
Most students her like attending athletic events. I would say that it is the most popular activity to do. There are always people buying tickets and looking forward to sporting events. Most kids here also play sports, for boys lacrosse and track seem to be the most popular sport. And for girls it's probably volleyball and tennis. People also like to workout and go jogging a lot. I know it sounds like the school it fitness/sports crazy, but there are so many cubs it's too much to talk about all of them, I just know that there is a variety of everything, and above all there's partying. People party about every weekend except during around prelims/finals week. Fraternities and sororities are also really important, a lot of people rushed this year and got in, they are really excited about pledging and joining their frat/sorority.
Jill
I'd say that Greek life is the most popular activity on campus. I'm a member of a Panhellenic sorority and I also served on the board that oversees all of the sororities on campus for a year. (I'm also really involved in Hillel- the Jewish organization on campus, which is really popular among Jewish students at Cornell).
Freshmen definitely leave their doors open in their dorm. People want to be social and to get to know each other. For students who choose to live on campus after freshman year, I find that they tend to be a little more private, probably because they already established their friend group.
Hockey games are huge! Guest speakers are also quite popular- Elie Weisel came to speak last year and it was impossible to get tickets. The same happened when Billy Joel came to speak this year.
I don't find that there is a huge dating scene. Some people date, but I feel like dating is more casual, and people tend to focus more on their studies.
I met my closest friends in my freshman year dorm and in my sorority.
Alex
Fraternities and sororities are a big part of Cornell life, with 30{4a082faed443b016e84c6ea63012b481c58f64867aa2dc62fff66e22ad7dff6c} of the student body involved in Greek Life. Also, club and intramural sports are a large part of campus. I am a part of the club Ultimate Frisbee team, and I love it. We practice together, travel to tournaments on the weekend together, and party together, and the sense of unity is great. Students are usually involved in something on campus. If you are an engineer, a Project Team is a popular option, where students create some sort of project in their spare time, like an underwater robot, a fully functioning drag racing car, or an off-road ATV. Athletic events are not very popular, mainly because Cornell is not very good at athletics. People go to games for every sport, but it is not the same attendance as an SEC or Big 10 school for all sports. There are plenty of options for things to do on the weekend that do not involve drinking. Many people choose to stay in, talk with their friends, watch some TV, play games in the Student Union, go down to Collegetown for a nice dinner, or go to the Cinema on central campus for newly released movies. Off campus there are a huge number of outdoor opportunities around Ithaca, there is Ithaca Commons (restaurants and shops), or a trip to the mall for some shopping.
David
Cornell students are extremely involved in campus-life. One of the largest organizations on campus it the Cornell Concert Commission or CCC. The CCC is in charge of bringing in musical acts to campus and setting up their concerts. This group is extremely important because Cornell is known to bring in BIG acts. Recent artists include Drake, Billy Joel, Passion Pit, Lupe Fiasco, Maroon 5, Kid Cudi, Phoenix and Nelly. Student's typically enjoy dorm life, a lot of social relationships are formed there and each dorm becomes its own hub for relaxing, studying and socializing. That being said, Cornellians do love to party. The greek system is large compared to many colleges, but it's only there if you want it to be. Many students who chose to go greek really love it and embrace the system as a part of their social lives. So many students meet their closest friends through the greek system, through dorm life and in their extracurricular activities. One of my favorite Cornell traditions is Slope Day. It takes place on the last day of classes for the spring semester and is an all day outdoor party where Cornell brings a big musical act to come and put on a show at the bottom of Libe slope and everyone hangs out and enjoys the concert outside. Another fun and quirky tradition is the 'Midnight Scream'. At midnight the night before finals start each semester, the freshman all yell as loud as they can out their windows to relieve the stress of finals. The sound can be heard all throughout campus! On a saturday night you don't have to be drinking to have a good time. Many students enjoy going out to dinner in collegetown, enjoying the Cornell cinema which gets many movies before they come out, go to a capella concerts or theatre performances, hang out in the campus community centers or just relax and play videogames in the dorm. Finding something to do is never a problem and many students are even troubled by the amount of choices! Echoing my previous messages, at Cornell you can do whatever you like, and have a great time doing it!
Nicole
Wow! This is a hard question because there are so many activities and groups that it is hard to pick what would be considered "popular" or even "predominate". Greek life is very present, but people don't have to feel pressured to join it so it is one of those things where you can be involved or have no interaction with it and it won't make change your social abilities. I actually met all of my close friends on my floor from freshman year. There are many academic clubs, sports clubs, political clubs, professional clubs, general interest clubs...so basically a club for everything. Slope day is a big event on campus the last day of classes in the spring semester where there is a big concert on Libe Slope and it is basically an all-day celebration.
Sam
As previously discussed, Greek life is quite popular at Cornell. I am personally in a fraternity, as are many of my friends. My friends who have not joined frats/sororities, however, also have enjoy their time and social lives at Cornell. Athletics at Cornell are fairly popular, especially relative to other Ivy League schools. Cornell's hockey and lacrosse teams are among the best in the nation each year, and during my freshman year, Cornell's basketball team made the sweet 16 of the NCAA tournament, which was very exciting for all of us. Consistent with life at most colleges, students often go out to parties, which serve beer, on the weekends. It is extremely common for Cornell students to go out on Thursdays, Fridays, and Saturdays. Not all students, however, go out to drink on a regular basis, and there's always a substantial amount of students staying in to watch movies or catch up on their work on weekend nights. Cornell has hosted excellent guest speakers and concerts since I've been here: these events include Jon Stewart, Lupe Fiasco, Hank Paulson, B.O.B, Kid Cudi, Karl Rove, Keith Olbermann, Andrew Sorkin etc.
Shannon
#1 HOCKEY (lynah faithful)
#2 HOCKEY
etc.
Frats and sororities are big, but not the only force on campus.
Dating is not common but many people do it.
If you are awake at two am on a tuseday though you are studying not drinking.
SLOPE DAY. awesome tradition.