So I got asked some things about student life at Brown. A lot of the things I'm noticing and adjusting to here are true to student life at university in general, but I'll try and talk about some Brown-specific aspects as well -

Providence - It's clean! I can see the sky! Yaaay! It's a really walking-friendly town, with a good bus system and clear routes so that you really don't need a car to get around, which I love. I've always been a city girl, but I find that there's enough city here to keep me happy...lots of restaurants on Thayer Street right by my dorm, a giant mall 5mins away by bus to keep my credit card busy and feed my shoe obsession, a whole sprawling downtown I have yet to explore....yet there's still lots of gorgeous grass on campus and no sign of HK-esque smog! I thought the transition from a large city would be a bit difficult, but it really hasn't been a problem at all. (After living a lifetime on the equator, though, the cold is a problem...but not really a Rhode Island specific one :P)

Brown is a really campus-centric school: it's big enough to not be confining but small enough that you can get to most freshman dorms within 10-15 minutes. Most upperclassmen live on campus, but their housing is a bit farther out and more house-esque. I love it because it means that life really centers around the main spaces of the school and it's easy to catch up with different friends at a variety of activities instead of having people constantly "escaping" out into the city. It's a very unifying feeling that's completely opposite from what I think you'd get from schools like NYC and Columbia.

People - are generally very nice! I think we internationals have a tendency to talk up the crappy parts of American life, like the "crap food, crap attitudes, crap finesse", but people really are a lot friendlier here. Part of it is probably because no one bothers to give you the time of day in HK, while people here will have actual conversations with you in stores, wait for you to cross the road, open doors...of course you'll always get some rude or obnoxious ones but generally everyone has been quite sweet to me here :) BUT REMEMBER TO TIP PEOPLE, cause I never remember when it's appropriate to tip...

Food - you're required to get a food plan for a while, so most of social life revolves around the two main cafeterias (nicknamed the Ratty and the VDub, on the two main campuses Keeney and Pembroke). It's great because you'll often find people that you've met during orientation but have never had the chance to meet again afterwards, so you shouldn't skip the whole dining hall experience. (And for cafeteria food it's not amazing but it's not horrible. If you want to avoid the freshman 15, there's lots of salad and chicken and a decent amount of fruit...)

Atmosphere & Attitude - of course with college being college and life being life, not everyone will be hunky dory lovely, and of course there are still cliques and friend-groups and things, but generally everyone is really nice to each other. I introduce myself to new people in classes every day and although it might be a task to remember them, they are genuinely sweet. Whenever I've needed help finding printers in the science library, working swipecards, or even (in once case) manipulating a loudly ticking waffle grid iron, the kids around me are always more than willing to help out and be cool & civil. Again, grade segregation isn't a big deal either, like it is in high school. Lotsa jocks around though, some of them awesome some of them not so much.

Class atmosphere - You get some "I Try Obnoxiously Hard To Be Perfect" kids around here, but overall I don't feel the huge sense of competition I did in high school. Part of it has to do with the structure of college classes, particularly the big ones, who don't usually grade on a curve and therefore prompt independent work for your own self, rather than in comparison to others. But another part of it is just the knowledge that almost - not all, but ALMOST - everyone here is working hard because they want to learn and do well, not because they just want to surface as the best of the best. As classes have just started I've yet to see a whole lot of the "collaborative energy" Brown is apparently known for, but I don't feel like anyone is out to prove they are better than anyone else - just that most of the people around me are genuinely interested in their classes and actually have real things to say. Be warned: A lot of people here are damn smart, so you can't cruise control like I did in high school...but it makes for some great discussion as long as you work hard.

Extracurriculars - a ton of things. I had to remember to balance out the fact that I CAN'T do a million clubs in college like I did in high school, because it would ACTUALLY kill me...but there are definitely a lot of choices! They range from the typical, familiar, and nationality-based clubs to crazy shit like groups dedicated to massage, fantasy gaming, puzzles, and pirate shanties. You don't need to join all these clubs to reap the services they provide, from dance classes to entrepreneurship seminars. We also have the Swearer Center for Public Service, which is basically a huge hub of volunteer opportunities for almost any kind of service work you're interested in. So much to do!

Events - a lot of people who've been here complain that there's nothing to do in Providence. Alright, it is kind of small and over the next four years I may start feeling a bit bored/contained...but if you combine your own work with on-campus events, there's usually something you can find. There are free athletic classes, dance classes (I'm going to beginner's swing and beginner's salsa, sososo fun!), concerts, performances, dances, comedy improv nights, & various events happening all over campus almost every night, and you can always just hang out with friends or get some food downtown. Boston is also a great option if you still need things to do, it's only forty minutes away. It's so incredibly hard to find time for yourself in college, though, so honestly don't worry about ever having too MUCH time :P

Nightlife - so the nightlife kind of sucks, but for you LKF-spoiled, where-i-come-from-the-drinking-age-is-18-but-in-practice-it's-actually-like-12, "House party say what?! I go to clubs, bitch" kids, nightlife in college is ALWAYS going to kind of suck. Brown is not big on Greek life (there are only 2 sororities, 6 frats, and 2 coeds), so although the frats host parties often, it's not the same as it would be at huge Greek-centric school. There are always parties around somewhere or other though, they aren't hard to find although they may not be all that exciting...

There are weekly club parties and some shisha places right next to my dorm - but by Providence law, all establishments have to close at 2AM. Yeah...sort of a moodkill. However Boston is only 40 minutes away & New York is 3 hours away, so if you have friends to stay with you can always go up there once in a while if you feel like partying the night away :)

Depending on who your friends are, there isn't a huge stress to go to parties/drink/etc. There is a LOT of drinking/drugging around here, but you can party dry if you want to or stay in your room...parties tend to spill over into halls which get verrrry noisy but for those who aren't into substances, it's not impossible for you to get away. Sober or not, you can always find something fun to do with people like you for whatever mood you're in.

----

BTW I would recommend all international kids to really make the trek up for international orientation, because it can make a huge difference - meeting new friends in a group of 175 is a little less overwhelming before the influx of white kids pour in, especially as internationals are sometimes much easier to relate to and talk to during an already-tough time. Also you get to move in while the hall is deserted, which is a huge plus. Just remember that although you may already have a close group of friends when the rest of your hall moves in, make the effort to go meet new people too! Don't just stay in your new comfort zone because you happened to get to school a few days early. There are too many internationals who stay EXCLUSIVELY friends with internationals, or kids from their school/home country, and while you should never write them off completely, I don't think you're really getting the full experience if you stick to these boundaries.

Hopefully that answers some questions? If you have any more, you can always email me or comment here for sure, I love answering questions and pitching my school :) It's not perfect, and it may only fit well for certain types of people, but if you think you're like me & would love it here, let me know :D

I just need a whole lot of extra time to do all the things I need to do! I'm REALLY tired all the time these days which is why I should end this post here now. OKAY FORREALZ.

xxloveyvonen