Talk to me about Princeton eating clubs

[Anonymous]

Are they snobfests or just basically dining halls?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Are they snobfests or just basically dining halls?

what do you think? snobfests, all the way.

[Anonymous]

Sign in clubs are just expensive eating halls. If you bicker it’s much closer to snobby frats.

A good option is the apartments with kitchens for upperclassman.

[Anonymous]

If you love the DC competition at Big 3s, go to Princeton.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Are they snobfests or just basically dining halls?

what do you think? snobfests, all the way.

Not really. About half are open to any students who sign up to eat there and some still have a system that’s equivalent to a fraternity/sorority rush. I’m surprised Eisgruber hasn’t put an end to those clubs but I guess they’re important to some alumni.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:If you love the DC competition at Big 3s, go to Princeton.

It’s a different demographic - the school has a ton of money and the head of admissions is a liberal Black woman, so they hand pick talented kids from all over and give them lots of money if necessary. It’s not like going to GDS because your father is a rich law firm partner at Covington or Wilmer.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Are they snobfests or just basically dining halls?

what do you think? snobfests, all the way.

Not really. About half are open to any students who sign up to eat there and some still have a system that’s equivalent to a fraternity/sorority rush. I’m surprised Eisgruber hasn’t put an end to those clubs but I guess they’re important to some alumni.

I think they tolerate because it’s better than students venturing further from campus for drinking and partying.

[Anonymous]

I am more than a quarter century removed from that scene but someone should make a movie.

Doing coke in Ivy would be a good way to start the film. A pretty robust drinking + drugs optional scene

[Anonymous]

what are eating clubs?

[Anonymous]

There would be no other location aside from dorm rooms for kids to drink if they got rid of them. Also they are dining halls and for officers living quarters.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Are they snobfests or just basically dining halls?

what do you think? snobfests, all the way.

Not really. About half are open to any students who sign up to eat there and some still have a system that’s equivalent to a fraternity/sorority rush. I’m surprised Eisgruber hasn’t put an end to those clubs but I guess they’re important to some alumni.

They are important to many alumni who have very fond memories of their times at eating clubs, in large part because many bear almost no resemblance to the snobfest OP and others seem to envision. And as for the few clubs that do somewhat match those images, they are very easy to avoid them if that’s your seen.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:what are eating clubs?

Anachronistic

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:what are eating clubs?

Anachronistic

They are essentially coed fraternities/sororities. In a lot of ways more progressive than the gender segregated options prevent on most campuses.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Are they snobfests or just basically dining halls?

what do you think? snobfests, all the way.

Not really. About half are open to any students who sign up to eat there and some still have a system that’s equivalent to a fraternity/sorority rush. I’m surprised Eisgruber hasn’t put an end to those clubs but I guess they’re important to some alumni.

They are important to many alumni who have very fond memories of their times at eating clubs, in large part because many bear almost no resemblance to the snobfest OP and others seem to envision. And as for the few clubs that do somewhat match those images, they are very easy to avoid them if that’s your seen.

I have fond memories of Princeton, but the Bicker clubs stood out as places where I felt unseen and unwelcome, as a student from a middle-class background lacking the social connections or capital of classmates from fancier backgrounds. Every year a significant number of undergraduates call on the administration to put an end to Bicker as antithetical to the school’s commitment to diversity, and every year Eisgruber comes up with some reason to do nothing. I guess they can ignore how the reputation of the eating clubs discourages a lot of top kids from even applying to Princeton as long as they’re only admitting 5-6% of applicants, but it likely contributes to the significantly lower volume of applications Princeton receives compared to some of its peer schools.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Are they snobfests or just basically dining halls?

what do you think? snobfests, all the way.

Not really. About half are open to any students who sign up to eat there and some still have a system that’s equivalent to a fraternity/sorority rush. I’m surprised Eisgruber hasn’t put an end to those clubs but I guess they’re important to some alumni.

They are important to many alumni who have very fond memories of their times at eating clubs, in large part because many bear almost no resemblance to the snobfest OP and others seem to envision. And as for the few clubs that do somewhat match those images, they are very easy to avoid them if that’s your seen.

I have fond memories of Princeton, but the Bicker clubs stood out as places where I felt unseen and unwelcome, as a student from a middle-class background lacking the social connections or capital of classmates from fancier backgrounds. Every year a significant number of undergraduates call on the administration to put an end to Bicker as antithetical to the school’s commitment to diversity, and every year Eisgruber comes up with some reason to do nothing. I guess they can ignore how the reputation of the eating clubs discourages a lot of top kids from even applying to Princeton as long as they’re only admitting 5-6% of applicants, but it likely contributes to the significantly lower volume of applications Princeton receives compared to some of its peer schools.

I don’t agree with painting all bicker clubs with the same brush and, while some alumni would like the university to get rid of bicker (doing so wouldn’t be that easy), I don’t think anywhere near the majority think the university should do that.

If you don’t like the social scene at Ivy or Cottage, don’t go to Ivy and Cottage. I certainly didn’t.