Wheaton College-Norton Top Questions

Wheaton's home of Norton, MA is far from the social-center of the universe. Wheaton's geography combined with its lack of student parking can make off-campus fun require some work and planning. Public transportation allows easy access to nearby shopping centers and malls, as well as the cities of Boston and Providence, where there is never a shortage of activity. Despite its location, Wheaton does a wonderful job of providing on-campus activities for its students ranging from dances, to theater productions, to guest speakers. The Loft is Wheaton's on-campus pub, where students can enjoy a variety of fried foods and drinks, and often listen to live music or stand up comics. There is also the Lyon's Den, and on-campus coffee shop boasting a warm, cozy atmosphere and low-key environment. There are no fraternities or sororities at Wheaton, but there are numerous off-campus "sports houses" that are basically the same thing. There is always a level of partying (and drinking) at Wheaton, but there is no pressure to drink if you don't want to. Additionally, BACCHUS, Wheaton's student-run entertainment group offers multiple sober activities, ranging from theater trips to Boston, to free, big-screen, pre-release movies. Wheaton also has several popular (and entertaining) student groups revolved around music, songs, and dance.

I am involved in Wheaton Christian Fellowship. I get support there and it's nice to do something on a school night besides homework. It's hard to find something to do on the weekends on campus. We usually eat out and then hang out in our dorm rooms. I know there are people who drink, but not everyone does, or not everyone does it excessively.

There is not much to do at night, mainly do the sadness of Norton, but if you want to party, there's generally one that you can find. Most people date off campus. Wheaton was a all-girl's school about 19 years ago, and like most colleges has more girls than guys. The nice thing about Wheaton is that there is drinking-fun and non-drinking-fun to be had. If you don't want to drink you don't have to, and you won't miss out on anything other than drinking. You can see where my loyalty lies. There aren't any greek organizations on our campus. Mostly Saturday night plans focus on going to either Boston or Providence. There is a club on campus, Bacchus, which, despite its name, promotes non-drinking events. They always sponser a free movie on some Friday and Saturday nights. Its a grat way to see movies that are current, but not yet out on DVD, and for free!

Not a big party school. Boston and Providence are both close and accesible. The town is typical small town USA. Wrentham outlets is nearby which is a great place to shop. Dances are usually a hot spot on the weekends.

If I'm awake on Tuesday at 2am I am either in the library or my dorm doing work.

I think people are generally friendly on this campus, but again it's on a person to person ratio. During the early part and the last part of the year I keep my door open to get air and to say hi to people on my floor. During the winter months I close my door to keep the heat in because I hate being cold. I think the events offered at Wheaton are popular to a certain degree. People like going to the student concerts and the student comedians. Other than that, I guess it just depends on the event in question. I met my closest friends because we lived within three doors of eachother my freshmen year and I was roommates with one of them. I pretty much spend most of my free time with them, doing homework together, eating, watching movies, playing games, shopping, or just talking. It is a time where I really don't want to go home on the weekends and during breaks. There are a few traditions that Wheaton has, but the biggest one is Spring Weekend. There are dances, a mini-carnival thing, a band is hired every year, and there is a BBQ. Also, every Thursday night, a different band comes to sing in the little restaurant area called the Loft. These nights are usually pretty fun and there's always free pizza.

Lots of dances, spring weekend is a good time (boat race, lacrosse game, etc.).

What dating scene? We still feel primarily like an all-girls school. The girls seem to be more driven and intelligent than the men that are admitted to Wheaton. Usually you bond with the students on your floor and in your classes. Nearly everything revolves around drinking, and there is not much to do otherwise. If you're not in the drinking scene, your best bet is to do your homework or watch a movie. Off campus is all about Providence/Boston.

There are dozens and dozens of groups to get involved with on campus. And if there isn't a group that interests you, it's very easy to start your own! Dances, a capella performances and free movies are the weekly norm. Small gatherings of friends in a dorm room is somewhat more common than the large party scene, though those are available at campus and off-campus houses. It's easy to get to both Providence and Boston, and while it isn't a regular occurrence, every weekend type of thing, students will go spend a night in either city occasionally with a group of friends. Wheaton also hosts several Boston/Providence Connections which are popular. You will pay $5 or $10 to get a ride into the city, get dinner and see a movie/theatre event. The events differ but it's always a GREAT deal!

There is much to do at Wheaton because the campus is so active. The parties are great and do not exclude any type of student. Students usually leave their doors open in their dorm because everyone in a dorm, especially those on the same floor, are very close. The theater is great, and we often have interesting guest speakers. All of my closest friends live in my dorm and we met because of how close the dorm is as a whole. If im awake on a Tuesday night, im probably at the library studying. Spring weekend every year is usually great, and the entertainment is always good. Most parties take place from thursday night into the weekend, and there are no major fraternities on campus other than Phi Beta Kappa (academic honors society). On any given night, there are always a number of campus sponsored events that students can involve themselves with without feeling required to drink.

There are many different student groups on campus (read the web page for the full list). I'm involved in the Ultimate Frisbee Club Team, the Outdoors Club, the Math Club, and the Physics club. Also, I was a barrista at the Lyon's Den, which is a student-run coffee and am now the business manager. Wheaton is an overall safe and trusting community. Most of my floor mates and I never locked our doors and often leave our dorm building without closing our door. I was lucky and lived on an awesome floor. Though many of my friends from other parts of campus had similar stories of enjoyment in regards to their floor mates and overall floor dynamic. Wheaton has an interesting partying scene. The administration has really cracked down on drinking at Wheaton, which makes partying involving alcohol a bit of a challenge. Also, there is no Greek Life to provide the wild (and often disgusting) parties that many Universities and Colleges are notorious for. Though, this being said, Wheaton does have a party scene if you take the effort to look and/or create it. For underclassmen, there is often room parties in the dorms. Many people find these pretty lame, but I personally enjoy a intimate group of 8-10 people talking and playing games rather than cramming 50-150 people into a house built for 13 people. Though if you like to feel like a sardine, Wheaton has theme houses which host 1-2 keggers a semester. All in all, Wheaton does have a good party scene--it's just not Animal House.

You need a car. There isn't much to do on campus during the weekend. Dances are pretty lame and parties in dorms are usually broken up. Because of this, many upperclassmen are starting to move off campus--taking the parties with them. This has caused quite a problem with drunk driving that the school does not know how to tackle.

Even though many choose to party off campus there is still always an event going on, on campus. The Art House puts on gallery shows in its living room, a concert may be going on either in the student run coffee house or the late night venue called the Loft. There are also visiting artists, professors, lectures, and musicians that come.

Wheaton has a wonderful theater department which sets up great performances every semester! Amazingly talented students make up these plays and dance performances. Baseball is probably the most popular sport, but vollyball and basketball are also very popular. Dorms are very different depending on where you are. Some dorms will be more quiet, for instance the all female dorm(Kilham). I lived in this dorm and loved it though. Quiet does not mean that you don't make great friendships and have a good time. Every Friday and Saturday night, there is a movie shown in Hindle Auditorium for students who do not want to drink. If you do want to drink you can find a party or drive/take the train to Providence. Every spring we have Spring Weekend. There are activities every day and bands, food, "boat" races across the pond etc. Lots of fun.

We have so many clubs and things to join on campus. No matter which activity you like to do, chances are there is a club that does the same thing. If you find that there isn't a club you would want to join, Wheaton is always open to forming new clubs. Doors are most likely open in the dorm and people are constantly in and out of their room. I found that I met my friends based on where I lived and the activities that I took place in. Most of my friend play sports and we all live in the same area. My two favorite campus traditions is the first night the freshmen move in and spring weekend. The first night the freshmen are on campus we have an event in the chaple and then you light a candle around the pond. All the upper classmen on campus go and make lots of noise for the freshmen. It is always alot of fun. Spring weekend is really great just because everyone goes outside and part takes in the activities that are offered. There are parties on campus and I would estimate that 65{4a082faed443b016e84c6ea63012b481c58f64867aa2dc62fff66e22ad7dff6c} of the students drink. There are always events on the weekends that do not including drinking such as a movie or a dance. We dont have any greek life on campus- no frats or sororities. If campus ever gets boring you can go off campus into boston or providence. There is always something to do in the city.

Sporting events like soccer or basketball or lacrosse are big. Alot of dances are held on Friday nights. There are plently of activities on campus in theater or dance. Dorm halls usualy bond together and are friendly. A lot of people go to the library till all hours of the night. Partying can be done on any day of the week.

Public Safety (PS) is the bane of any student's existence on campus. There is no greek life so the "party scene" is reliant on the campus houses, but PS always seems hellbent on breaking those parties and in dorm room parties at the first whisper of fun (or rather alcohol). And because of this more and more rigorous crack down on on-campus parties (ie underage drinking) people are getting houses off-campus that require a car to get there. Which of course is a great way to avoid the PS problem, but trying to find someone to be DD on a Saturday night is near impossible.

The most popular groups on campus are probably Trybe, the multi-cultural dance group and all the acapella groups. Many students try out for these groups because they create a close group of friends and a fun experience. In most dorms students do leave their doors open and are pretty social. If you want to get work done, go to the library, I find it very hard to get work done in my room. Athletic events are pretty popular too. I didn't realize how sports orientated the school was until I came here. A lot of people play sports and the sports teams are pretty good. The school has a lot of great traditions, such as dimple diving, and jumping in the pond in order to graduate, but there are also many more. There are no frats or soroties but instead there are themed houses that host parties on and off campus. People party at Wheaton a lot because there's not much else to do around the area. There is a group on campus called BACCUS that promotes responsible drinking or no drinking and they usually put on events such as dances, movies, provide fun activities, etc. to students. A lot of students show up to these activities drunk anyways. Off campus is very easy to access if you don't mind spending time and money to get there. Boston is only 45 min away by train and Providence is only 30 min away. Both cities are great resources and have a lot to do.

The a Capella groups are very popular, the GC's and the Whims are the most popular and most talented! The dimple divers (improv troupe) is entertaining but lacking talent and discipline. There is nothing to do one campus because of the strict alcohol policy but the off campus houses have a lot of parties you just have to have a safe way of getting there and an in with someone who goes there regularly.

im a member of the lacrosse team, and i LOVE the athletic department at wheaton. sports events are pretty popular, especially for the soccer teams as they do very well. in my dorm i dont think we locked our door once.. except when we were playing pranks on friends. i met my closest friends actually by being randomly placed as roommates! i met my best friends by running into them during orientation and out on the weekends. if youre awake on a tuesday youre either in the library, hanging in a dorm, or out drinking. but if you dont wanna drink, the campus offers other things to do, theres the lyons den and loft who both have live artists every weekend.. and theres a free movie by BACCHUS (that hasnt been released yet..). Wheatons also very close to providence, a half hour drive or a quick train ride.. and Boston is about a 40 minute drive. we're also about 30minutes from Cape Cod.. so finding things to do off campus isnt difficult.