Academics
Interdisciplinary-focused Brown University in Providence, Rhode Island is dedicated to undergraduate freedom, meaning students must take responsibility for designing their own courses of study via the Open Curriculum. Students sing the praises of the academic flexibility at this Ivy League institution and the accompanying emphasis on social action. “We would not be...strong students and teachers without a proper system in place to encourage that,” says one undergrad. Those who roam these hallowed halls are “constantly questioning what could make the world and our school a better place.” Every person “has their own interests and pursues it without any push from others,” which is why Brown can be a “very intense” place to go to school—not because students are competing academically with each other, but “because there are so many people doing so much and fighting so hard for it.”
Brown’s faculty “are at the top of their fields and are working on research that pushes those fields forward.” The “engaging, personal, and incredibly dedicated” professors are “the heart and soul of our strongest departments.” They “care so much about what they do and connect with students on a very human level.” Undergraduates come first here, and Brown encourages students to “explore their academic interests independently in order to experience everything that academics have to offer.” “No other school I had looked at allowed students to...build their own academic journey without any general requirements,” says one student. Graduates tend to “not just go to the normative career options,” and “career and internship placement has become a top priority of the new university administration.”
Student Body
This “knowledgeable and inspiring” community is made up of people who are “very intelligent, care about global issues, and possess one or two quirks.” The school “has a way of molding people into their best selves,” and the most common trait is “a true zeal for whatever it is that we care most about.” Although this is a liberal campus, there are “a handful of conservatives,” and “the entire body has a general chilled-out vibe.” There is “a prevailing intolerance of intolerance on campus,” and the culture of activism “bespeaks an idealism and a strong moral code that drives a lot of the work students do on campus.” “I’ve never experienced so many people willing to have a conversation about topics that usually make people uncomfortable or that people stray away,” says one student.
Campus Life
Life at Brown can be “exciting, but also filled with countless hours of study.” Though academia reigns over the week, some people “go to house parties, sport parties, or downtown for the weekend,” and there are “lectures, movie screenings, improv shows, dance performances, [and] a cappella showcases constantly.” “Brown is generally a very happy place with many activities and events going on all the time,” says a student. A great thing about these type of events is that “they are rarely exclusionary and the university is trusting of its students.” Many here also do “intellectual activities or athletics over breaks,” and “community clubs and special interest clubs (such as international student groups)” are extremely popular. Students also often go to the lounges in the dorms to watch movies with friends. The campus may be “beautiful,” but when an off-campus breather is needed, students can easily walk one minute to Thayer Street and “enjoy restaurants and excellent dining” or walk twenty minutes to Providence Mall. Boston and New York are very close, but “Providence is busy enough that Brown never completely empties out.”
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