Anonymous
Post 03/05/2026 11:58     Subject: Most fun T25 private
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:I know freshman boys struggling a little with the frat stuff at Duke, UChicago, Vandy and Georgetown. either going through the process and just being bogged down by pledge bullshit and academics suffering. or deciding to skip it and feeling out of the loop.

I know freshman at Yale and ND who are super happy.

also happy kids at Williams, Dartmouth, and Bowdoin. I think those are real "fit" schools, you have to know who you are before signing up of those. ND too.


Georgetown doesn't have a greek system -


They definitely have frats. May not be sanctioned, but they are there.
Anonymous
Post 03/05/2026 11:55     Subject: Most fun T25 private
Anonymous wrote:I know freshman boys struggling a little with the frat stuff at Duke, UChicago, Vandy and Georgetown. either going through the process and just being bogged down by pledge bullshit and academics suffering. or deciding to skip it and feeling out of the loop.

I know freshman at Yale and ND who are super happy.

also happy kids at Williams, Dartmouth, and Bowdoin. I think those are real "fit" schools, you have to know who you are before signing up of those. ND too.


Georgetown doesn't have a greek system -
Anonymous
Post 03/05/2026 11:45     Subject: Most fun T25 private
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:I know freshman boys struggling a little with the frat stuff at Duke, UChicago, Vandy and Georgetown. either going through the process and just being bogged down by pledge bullshit and academics suffering. or deciding to skip it and feeling out of the loop.

I know freshman at Yale and ND who are super happy.

also happy kids at Williams, Dartmouth, and Bowdoin. I think those are real "fit" schools, you have to know who you are before signing up of those. ND too.


I have a Dartmouth student and it's surprisingly not fun. Far more geeky, quirky, striver, grinder than Chad in 2026 and you are stuck in the freezing woods at baseline. They are counting the days until summer.


Oh no. Really? I'm quite surprised. Is your student a freshman? Are they considering transfering?


Northwestern's transfer deadline is April 1..... if your kid is already used to quarters might be easy adjustment.
Anonymous
Post 03/05/2026 11:33     Subject: Re:Most fun T25 private
Anonymous wrote:Depends what you want. My sons hate Greek life/douchey finance bro stuff.

They play club sports and have a big social life at a T15 not listed. Really having fun- not big drinkers (or at all).


Where's your kid?
Anonymous
Post 03/05/2026 11:31     Subject: Most fun T25 private
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:From my freshman's HS friends (in this order) - some are T25/30 but all private:

Vanderbilt
Notre Dame
USC
Northwestern
UChicago (surprising to me)
MIT
Georgetown
Cornell (another surprise)
Dartmouth
Penn
Duke (it's fallen a bit - used to be much more "fun")


Agree with all this. I'd add Columbia - my freshman DD goes out every Friday and Saturday.


+1
agree with that list (and order) and I'd put Columbia in after UChicago.
Anonymous
Post 03/05/2026 11:17     Subject: Re:Most fun T25 private
Depends what you want. My sons hate Greek life/douchey finance bro stuff.

They play club sports and have a big social life at a T15 not listed. Really having fun- not big drinkers (or at all).
Anonymous
Post 03/05/2026 11:06     Subject: Most fun T25 private
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:From my freshman's HS friends (in this order) - some are T25/30 but all private:

Vanderbilt
Notre Dame
USC
Northwestern
UChicago (surprising to me)
MIT
Georgetown
Cornell (another surprise)
Dartmouth
Penn
Duke (it's fallen a bit - used to be much more "fun")


Agree with all this. I'd add Columbia - my freshman DD goes out every Friday and Saturday.


happiest kid I know is at Columbia
Anonymous
Post 03/05/2026 11:05     Subject: Most fun T25 private
Anonymous wrote:I would think you'd hate USC, which is only 21% white now


plus it's not a top 25 school
Anonymous
Post 03/05/2026 11:04     Subject: Most fun T25 private
I would think you'd hate USC, which is only 21% white now
Anonymous
Post 03/05/2026 11:03     Subject: Most fun T25 private
Anonymous wrote:From my freshman's HS friends (in this order) - some are T25/30 but all private:

Vanderbilt
Notre Dame
USC
Northwestern
UChicago (surprising to me)
MIT
Georgetown
Cornell (another surprise)
Dartmouth
Penn
Duke (it's fallen a bit - used to be much more "fun")


Agree with all this. I'd add Columbia - my freshman DD goes out every Friday and Saturday.
Anonymous
Post 03/05/2026 10:50     Subject: Most fun T25 private
I know freshman boys struggling a little with the frat stuff at Duke, UChicago, Vandy and Georgetown. either going through the process and just being bogged down by pledge bullshit and academics suffering. or deciding to skip it and feeling out of the loop.

I know freshman at Yale and ND who are super happy.

also happy kids at Williams, Dartmouth, and Bowdoin. I think those are real "fit" schools, you have to know who you are before signing up of those. ND too.
Anonymous
Post 03/05/2026 10:01     Subject: Most fun T25 private
Anonymous wrote:Personal and recent (this academic year or last) anecdotes only?

Please share your freshman / sophomore own experiences as we crowdsource info on school climate, culture and social environment. The good and the bad. No need to sugarcoat.

Hopefully this can be a resource for decisions this April, as well as for junior families looking to make decisions next fall!



As the PP said, very dependent who your child is.

My 2nd year at UChicago has had the best two year ever. Loves the city of Chicago and goes out exploring something almost every weekend. Enjoys the intellectual rigor of his classes. Very kind and thoughtful classmates and roommates.

If he had been looking for a school where football/basketball games were the focus of a weekend or didn't truly love the process of learning, it would be a different story.
Anonymous
Post 03/05/2026 09:44     Subject: Most fun T25 private
From my freshman's HS friends (in this order) - some are T25/30 but all private:

Vanderbilt
Notre Dame
USC
Northwestern
UChicago (surprising to me)
MIT
Georgetown
Cornell (another surprise)
Dartmouth
Penn
Duke (it's fallen a bit - used to be much more "fun")
Anonymous
Post 03/05/2026 09:26     Subject: Re:Most fun T25 private
You might want to define what you view as fun.
Anonymous
Post 03/05/2026 09:21     Subject: Most fun T25 private
Personal and recent (this academic year or last) anecdotes only?

Please share your freshman / sophomore own experiences as we crowdsource info on school climate, culture and social environment. The good and the bad. No need to sugarcoat.

Hopefully this can be a resource for decisions this April, as well as for junior families looking to make decisions next fall!