Student Blogger Indira – A Typical Week at Brown University

Main Green at Brown University – photo by Indira Pranabudi

About a month ago, I started attending the school of my dreams: Brown University … otherwise known as ‘the laid back Ivy.’ A lot of my friends and family have been asking me about life at Brown, so I thought I’d write it all out in a blogpost. Here goes nothing …

A typical week at Brown would consist of a lot of studying. For me personally, I prefer starting my day early so that I can finish off homework and assignments. Despite being known as the most relaxed Ivy League university, you still won’t be able to pass a class with ease. Of course, each has a different level of difficulty, and there are classes that are easier than others. However, there are also courses in which you have to work your butt off in order to even pass. Personally, I spend at least five hours studying each day, and the number goes up during the midterm season.

Main Green – photo by Indira Pranabudi

What’s great about Brown though, is the fact that Brown provides such amazing support for its undergraduate students. In the Computer Science department, for example, during the evening, there will usually be a lot of TA [Teacher’s Assistant] hours, so if you need help with homework, you can just stop by and the TAs will help you. Not to mention the fact that there are literally so many places to study on campus. You can study at the two big libraries, or you can study on the main green, or at the eateries, or at the coffee shops on Thayer St., or at J. Walter Wilson, or at … you get what I mean.

Quiet Green – photo by Indira Pranabudi

As for food, like a lot of universities, Brown offers different meal plans to students. Or, if you prefer cooking yourself, then you can opt out of it. For me, the meal plan is a lifesaver, as my cooking abilities are nonexistent (as you can see from my Cooking On A Sunday vlog). All you need to do is swipe your Brown ID at the entrance to the all-you-can-eat eateries.

Pembroke Campus – photo by Indira Pranabudi

The two most popular eateries are the Ratty and the V-Dub. Yes, it’s called the Ratty, but the official name for the eatery is ‘Sharpe Refectory.’ They say that after a while, people started calling it the Sharpe Factory, and then the Rat Factory, and then finally the Ratty. As for V-Dub, it actually stands for ‘Verney-Woolley,’ which is the name of the dorm adjacent to it. Speaking of nicknames, the humanities and social sciences library at Brown—the John D. Rockefeller Library—also has its own nickname … the Rock. The Brown administration wasn’t particularly happy with this though, and they sent a letter to the Brunonians, asking us to call it by a different name. Being the creative, yet respectful students that we are, we opted to call it ‘the John’ instead. However, they weren’t happy with this either so they sent us another email, but this time, they asked us to go back and call it ‘the Rock’ instead of ‘the John.’ Oh well. The Rock works fine for me anyway.

John Carter Brown Library – photo by Indira Pranabudi

Another cool thing about Brown is that there’s always something going on during the day, regardless of whether it’s a weekday or the weekend. The week is practically filled with different activities, ranging from talks, seminars, workshops, and also conferences. Just two weeks ago, the Brown and RISD (Rhode Island School of Design) organization, A Better World by Design, held a conference at Brown. People from all parts of the U.S. came to participate in it. There are a wide variety of clubs at Brown too.

Faunce House – photo by Indira Pranabudi

So far, I have truly enjoyed my college experience at Brown, even if it has only been a little over a month. College in general is a great experience, and it is definitely one that everyone should have the opportunity to experience. Yes, the idea of starting a new life thousands of miles away from home might seem daunting at first, but trust me, it will all be worth it.