Samantha
Strong TV community with EIV and the EVVY's. Strong comedy community and alumni. Strong theatre program with a lot of innovation. Lots of independent projects and student gigs to work on.
The social scene is very work centered. Some drinking a drugs, mostly in small parties or to celebrate the end of a project. Not strong on Fraternitites/Sororities. Lots of people stick to their friends. Dating is out of the question but sexual exploration runs high. Strong Gay/Bi community.
Not much of a campus, but when you do live in the dorms there are always people up and always people doing things. It feels like the Emerson student never sleeps. Weekends are spent on shoots or in rehearsals. Boston is our campus and there is lots to explore.
Shelby
Greek life is pretty small. And lame. The fraternity boys are tolerable because they're just really funny, but the sorority girls suck. They're (for the most part, there are exceptions to every rule) bitches and snobby and think they're better than everyone else, and they don't even throw parties like the frat brothers. Overall, it's really like Greek Life is this huge joke, and the people involved in it are the only ones who don't realize it.
PS. The sorority girls usually aren't hot either--think the girls who WANTED to be popular in high school and couldn't, except since nobody who was popular in high school goes to Emerson, now they can pretend to be (but they're STILL not).
Kelly
I don't know about any of this. I've been avoiding Emerson "activities and social life" for four years.
Matt
Emerson's sports are notoriously terrible.
Dave
I avoided them, for the most part. Many of the activities are fairly clique-ish and competitive, although if you can squeeze your way in to one or two, it may be the only way to keep your sanity.
Sean
There is a ton of extra curricular stuff to be involved in at Emerson. There is much more to learn being on a film shoot than there is sitting in a classroom and talking about what happens on a film shoot. Living in the dorms is a great way to meet people for friends or relationships. I met my best friends at Emerson in the first week, and I plan on being friends with them for the rest of my life.
Diana
There are so very many organizations on campus that are great tools to learn from. Also this is a really good way to meet people interested in the same things as you. Emerson is a very social school, especially because it's very network based. Even if you tend to be a shy person, you really learn to open up to meeting new people and carrying yourself with confidence. I know that is something I definitely learned. Living in the dorms, especially for your first year, is an amazing way to meet and connect with people. Dorm living is always fun and really gives you that true "college experience". On campus there is never a shortage of events going on. You either head to the Cabaret to see a comedy show by one of the many troupes on campus, or catch a show in one of the theatres, or pick up the free tickets for another show off-campus that Emerson often likes to give away, or have fun somewhere out in the amazing city of Boston, or just chill with your friends in the dorm, having fun.
Kaitlin
The film groups on campus are big, Frames Per Second being the biggest. There are also many comedy groups. There are dance groups ranging from tap, hip-hop, ballet, and modern. I am a part of Emerson Dance Company which is all student choreography and is lots of fun. If you live in the Little Building people leave their doors open and you get to know everyone on your floor. From my experience this is the better dorm because it is more home-y and you can actually go to the common room and hang out with people. The other dorm Piano Row is all suites and everyone stays in their suite. Therefore you never meet anyone. I didn't know the people who lived across from me until I went to the Castle with them. If you live on campus you will hang out in a floor common room or a suite common room. Or you will just roam the streets of Boston looking for food (NYP is a frequent for late night snacks). Athletics are not popular but they do exist. Theater is huge, go see all the performances. If you don't want to drink just roam Boston and Harvard Square, see lots of movies. There are lots of party on the weekends in Allston as well as in Brookline and the North End.
Brittany
I feel I can't adequately address this issue, as I started at Emerson when I was 27, and have lived off campus (over an hour away) for the duration of my stay. So, I am not involved with the campus activities as a "normal" undergrad would be.