Vanderbilt University (2024)

• Senior
• 2 months ago

Rating 3 out of 5

As a Vanderbilt alum, I’ve seen firsthand how the social scene can be very cliquey and heavily centered around Greek life. If you don’t fit into a diversity group or if you like to party but don’t get into Greek life, it can feel like you’re kind of out of luck socially. Your freshman year really sets the tone for the rest of your time at Vandy, which is not ideal because a lot of people tend to stick to their comfort zones instead of branching out and meeting new people. If I could suggest a change, it would be to reform the Greek life system. I think it would be cool if anyone could join any Greek organization and get randomly assigned to a frat or sorority. After a year, if you’re not feeling it, you could enter a lottery to get placed in a new group and meet new people. It might help make things less about who you know and more about creating a broader, more inclusive social scene. Overall though, I would suggest Vanderbilt - I just think a lot of reform is needed.

Rating 5 out of 5

Located in the heart of Nashville aka the Music City, I have great access to city life I've never experienced before, coming from a small southern town. We also have free access to public transportation, which is perfect for a low-income student like me. I can also try out new foods and restaurants within walking distance. Being low-income, I also have the option to go to dining centers on campus. Coming from an Asian household, however, the food is a little bit below my standards, but I'm impressed by their willingness to provide food of various cuisine types, from Greek to Mongolian to Vietnamese and more. I would love to see them try Filipino food as well.