Smith College Top Questions

My social life is entirely centered around my house, so I'll talk about that. I'm involved in my house government, which is annoying sometimes, but good because I want my house community to function well. My best friends here are all from my house, and we eat together, watch tv together, study together. Most people leave their doors open, or are willing to have visitors. There are parties nearly every weekend that I don't go to for the most part, but are however quite popular. The dating scene is interesting, because if you want girls, then probably just staying at Smith is your best option, if you want guys you can go to UMass, but they might not be of the best... quality. Some effort is needed, but it's not that bad. Each year we have a few big events, like Convocation (uhhh, I don't want to scare you), Mountain Day (a spontaneous day off in the fall), Rally Day (a celebration of the seniors and some alumnae), and Primal Scream (the night before finals at 10pm we go outside and let off some steam).

most popular group is probably smith dems. many sports teams are popular too... it depends a lot on the house and community as to whether someone will leave her door open or not. my friends and i hang out around the house a lot, maybe go downtown and hang out there. there is always plenty to do that doesnt involve drinking which is really nice. there are a lot of drinkers and partyers here though.

Some times in the year people are more willing to leave their doors open or take part in social events. As the semester progresses many times people are too busy and stressed to participate, which cultivates the culture of stress Smith is becoming notorious for. My friends and I rarely drink and often watch movies together, get coffee downtown and sometimes go to shows.

Popular teams: crew, rugby, ultimate frisbee. I'm involved in crew - it's fun but it's a big commitment. We wake up before 5 every day and race all day every Saturday. Students definitely leave their rooms open - you know everyone in your house. Athletic events are mostly attended by family and friends of athletes. Guest speakers get varying audiences depending on their topic and how well publicized they were. Theater is pretty available and seems well attended. Dating: girls date girls, some people arrive with boyfriends, a few find five college boys. My closest friends are from my house and crew. Awake at 2 am on Tuesday means you're working on a paper that's due at 9. Traditions: convocation, primal scream, rally day, streaking the cc etc. Sororities are only available off campus. Last weekend I raced, went to an alumnae tea and did homework. Saturday night: go to a party but don't drink, watch a movie with friends, go to the mall (roller skating, laser tag), contra-dancing in Greenfield if you've got a ride, go to a performance. Off campus there's shopping, movies, bowling, laser-tag, roller-skating, ice skating, dinner, cafes etc.

Social life at Smith is what you make of it. There are often too many activites on a given night or weekend between stuff in the houses, campus-sponsored events, music concerts, theater, lectures, free movies, stuff in town, stuff in the other 5 colleges, etc. Your closest friends, though, are in your house. They are your family for four years, automatic community. Smith traditions keep community alive, as well as house governance. On a given weekend, I could spend time loafing in someone's room with a group of close friends, all piled on a bed eating take-out or party-hopping in the Quad. There are always events that do not involve drinking, it is not an integral part of Smith social life but it does happen. Dating can be hard if your straight, but not impossible.

Well, during the week if you are up at 2 am in Gardiner House you are doing one of two things: freaking out about work or drinking. My house parties quite often, however we try to do so in a responsible manner. Smith lacks a party scene (its has deteriorated significantly in the past five years). This is the biggest down fall of Smith. In addition to not having parties, Smith does not provide any alcohol training for incoming students. This could be a huge reason why our first-year students tend to binge drink so much.

i avoid them.

Smith is by no means a "party school", but there are more options available on campus for fun then I had imagined there would be; free movies, speakers, dance and theater performances and dance parties come immediately to mind. I am very involved with the Smith College Democrats and we often leave Smith on the weekends for campaign trips and events, which is a great way to love Smith and not get sick of it.

Smith has quite a few extracurricular groups, ranging from "Minorities in the Sciences" and the BSA to political groups, debate, sports teams, etc. I have yet to find a group to be involved with, however. We get a lot of guest speakers and various alum panels to discuss industries/majors. My house does not have any incidents of stealing that I am aware of. My door is usually open and I rarely lock it. I am closest to the people I live with. Smith has a lot of events and school traditions, such as Mountain Day and Rally Day, Quadstock, Quad Riot, various house rivalries, etc. A lot of school pride is generated from these events. There is virtually no dating scene. The only typical social events that we have are "house parties," which are excuses for men to show up at the college in order to find easy sex. One is better off getting off campus to the surrounding schools if they want to find meaningful relationships with men/other people. The Rec Council shows movies on the weekends; one can eat in town or see performances/movies; there are usually things going on that would not necessarily facilitate drinking. My sleep patterns have me up at 2 am on most nights.

The Quad is the party area of campus where pretty much every weekend involves wild partying, while Green Street is stereotypically quite and studious. There are many other options for those who do not wish to partake in such activities. During the week, there are many interesting speakers and other on-campus events to attend.

Smith is not real college. There are parties and drinking, but generally not to the extent at other colleges. As a transfer to Smith I was relieved there was both the party scene and the strong academics. You can find it all, but if you want to drink every night you have to look a little harder.

If you're gay, this is the school for you! A great dating scene! If you're straight, you really have to be outgoing and work at it to meet guys. The house system is amazing. I'm very close with the people in my house-- we eat together, hang out together, everything. Most of my friends live with me. Smith gets a lot of really great speakers, and the talks are well attended. Parties are pretty tame and end really early, but they're relaxed and fun if you don't expect too much out of them. In my experience, there's a lot of weed and drinking, but I think it depends on where you live (some areas of campus (Green St.) are known for being more quiet). There won't be wild parties, but if you like chilling with friends, I think the Smith social scene is fun.

At least in my house, everyone leaves their doors unlocked and oftentimes open throughout the day. It's a pretty trusting environment, and it feels like a family. Most people live in the same residence all four years, so it becomes a very tight-knit community with all sorts of quirks and traditions. For example, my house does Big Sis/Little Sis, First Snow Party, Assassins, No Talent Show, and a host of other things every year. It's great.

I'm really involved in my house community, which I love. My favorite part of the house system is Friday afternoon tea, which is definitely unique to Smith. Everyone gets together for some sort of snack (usually pastries, cheese and fruit) to talk about their week. We also have themed teas, ranging from salsa lessons to safe sex to no-talent shows.

Northampton is lame. Nothing going on. Should have gone to NYC school.

Though I don't have a lot of time for extra-curricular activities (too much homework), there is a lot of in-dorm socializing going on all the time. People regularly leave their doors open, or loiter in the halls, so there are plenty of people talking at any given time. Other houses have a lot of communal activity centered in the living room or other common spaces, and often houses organize group trips to larger events.

I never have time to hang out with anyone. My social life consists of meeting up with study buddies and working on chemistry homework. I am social chair of my class so I try to get involved in some way, but any other way is difficult to fit in.

It's lucky my friends here are so amazing because otherwise there wouldn't be much to do. The activities Smith organizes are ok but mostly related to academics. The parties aren't a ton of fun and usually my friends and I end up at someones house just hanging out. Also there's such a huge workload that a lot of the time we're too tired to go out. In the beginning of the semester we were much more motivated to meet guys but there really isn't anywhere to meet them. However doors in houses are almost always open and people from all different brackets of age and grade are open and friendly to each other.

What are the most popular groups/organizations/clubs/teams on campus? Groups and organizations- Student government association, democrats, all the ethnic groups, some kind of art group – whether it is music or theatre, House Council Teams: Crew Team! Rugby, Frisbee, Soccer Tell us about groups you’re involved with? Crew Team: awesome, biggest team on campus, one of the largest division 3 teams in America. It seems like everyone at Smith at some point and time joins the team. Over the past 3 years the team has come in 2nd nationally twice Orchestra: great, just late night practices. We have played at Carnegie Hall which was pretty awesome! Tour Guide: There’s lots of us, I give a tour at least once a week Student Government: I’m involved, this school is run more by students than any other school I know of House Council: There are 35 houses on campus, each house has a council running the house. It’s awesome! Great way to get involved with your house and know everyone you live by. Do students in dorms leave their doors open? While I’m at home yes. Hopefully when you leave the building or at least on weekends no. But in 4 years only heard of one person ever having something stolen from their room. How popular are athletic events? Not at all. Guest speakers? Some are popular. It depends. There are lots of them though. Theater? Somewhat popular. Tons of Theater, music, dance, etc… performing events going on campus all the time. Tell us about the dating scene? If you are strait- what dating scene? If you are gay, I guess there is one. How did you meet your closest friends? I lived in the same house as them, or was on the same team as them. If you’re awake at 2am on a Tuesday, what are you doing? Homework, going to have a snack at the diner, or involved in some serious awesome conversation that is either very intellectual – or just an amazing bonding moment with a friend. What traditions/events happen each year? So many. Go to the Smith website. Email a smith student to ask about more! House Teas every Sunday 4pm, Candle Light Supper every Thursday night, Convocation: at the begging of the school year the night before school starts. We teach all the first years in our house, our house chants, we all dress up in our house theme and go screaming to the main hall on campus our house chants and just make noise the whole convocation about how our house is better than everyone elses. Quad Riots: in first two months of school – huge food fight on the quad Mountain Day: one beautiful day during the first two months of school – at 7am the president cancels all classes for the day. Float Night – look on Smith website Quadigras – carnival on the quad – it’s fun Rally Day – In the Spring Semester – school is cancelled – first time seniors can wear their graduation gowns. Sophomore Push- Sophomores helping out with reunion and senior week and graduation Junior Ushers – Juniors helping out with reunion and senior week and graduation Ivy Day – Day before graduation, and during Alum reunion week. All the seniors line up by the presidents house and on a path leading into the quad where a ceremony is held. All Smities have to wear all white, but those who are alums wear white shoes, all other smithies wear black shoes. All the seniors lining up carry a rose and the alums by class year parade through the seniors by class carrying really funny inappropriate signs. It’s just an amazing moment! Illumination night – Night before graduation – the Whole campus is lit up with japenese lanterns and a cappella groups are set up all over campus singing to seniors and their friends and families. It is gorgeous! Diploma Circle – During graduation – as seniors are organized by house, not alphabetically – they get the wrong diploma. So after graduation they all get into a big circle and hand around diplomas till everyone gets the right one. This takes about 7 minutes. It’s sooo cool! How often do people party? Really depends. For example my first two years – hardly ever – maybe once a month. Junior and Senior Year – on average once a weekend. (Obviously sometimes not at all – sometimes twice a weekend) Really depends on your group of friends, how much your involved in, what your work load that semester is like, what your priorities are, etc… How important are fraternities/sororities? There are none. What did you do last weekend? Stayed in Friday night and studied, then watched some episodes of my favorite tv show with a friend snuggled up in bed, Saturday morning – team practice, Saturday – work, Saturday night – party at Amherst, Sunday work. What can you do on a Saturday night that doesn’t involve drinking? Go to a party or a bar, or a club and not drink, go to the movies at the theater or at Smith, go to some performance art concert or theatre show, go bowling, go to restaurant down town, play games in your house, go to stand up comedy show, go to a concert down town or at Smith of some famous person or up and coming famous person, watch tv with friends etc… What do you do off campus? I go to Amherst or UMass to party off campus, I go to eat off campus down town, I go to shop down town or at one of the 2 malls near by, I go to study at a restaurant down town or at a mall nearby, I go to concerts down town, I go to movies at a mall nearby, I go bowling down town, I go skiing or tubing off campus, I go visit friends at other colleges within 2 hours nearby. There are also great parks near by. I go rowing off campus. I go to restaurants, clubs, and bars down town.

I don't think there is a most popular. I'm involved with the swim team/cross country they are great they kept me from transferring. Some leave doors open....atheltic events arent popular at all....others are. Dating scene:Its way too difficult to meet a guy TOO easy to meet a girl...I met my closest friends on the swim team..tuesday 2 am- engineering HW....convocations.quadriot.rally day you name it....people party all the time...last weekend I did homework/worked out chilled with friends....not drinking and having going to the parties and dancing/watching movies/going to a concert...off campus-eat/concerts/dance/sporting events