There’s sometimes a sentiment that Princeton is a small town with “not much to do," but I fundamentally disagree with that—let me convince you why. 

First of all, I will admit that, yes, Princeton doesn’t have the hustle and bustle of larger cities. If that’s what you’re drawn to, all the power to you to prioritize that kind of experience. And don’t get me wrong, there is something very enticing about being young and being in the center of all the commotion. Part of me does want that at times. The exhilaration. The grind. The possibilities.  

That being said, I believe many students feel this sentiment and view it as a binary scale. Princeton either fits into that category or it does not. This has resulted in many students putting Princeton into a box, limiting their own experience to the expectations that they’ve preconceived. If you believe Princeton is a small town with nothing to do, then trust me, it will feel that way. But if you don’t let your expectations trump your experience, there are countless hidden gems to discover. 

For example, have you been to the Mendel Music Library, the Architecture Library, or the Stokes Library? I’m always shocked when my friends haven’t poked their heads into every building on campus yet. I’ve learned to be an “explorer”—a title my dad originated and wears very proudly. He’s always trying to sneak into places that he definitely shouldn't be. His attitude has taught me to have an endless curiosity for my surroundings, and further allows me to take full advantage of whatever environment that I’m in. And through my own exploration during the past two years, I’m proud to report that I’ve curated a list of some of my favorite hidden gems on campus. 

1. The Radio Show (WPRM 103.3 FM)

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Did you know that we have a radio station?! I certainly did not. AND WHAT A COOL SPACE! This is my most recently found hidden-corner on campus. It’s located in the basement of Bloomberg and is probably the coziest place I’ve seen on campus. Access is limited—you probably need to know someone who works at the radio show. But ask around and add it to your Princeton Bucket List. It’s worth a visit.

2. Princeton University Press Courtyard

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This is one of my favorite spots to sit and escape the sometimes stressful environment of Princeton. This beautiful courtyard is right next to the Friend center, and in the summer is filled with beautiful flowers. 

3. My Secret Garden

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This was the first hidden gem I discovered on campus. I found it during my orientation week. Slightly/very overgrown, this garden not only feels hidden but also ancient. 

4. 1936 Garden

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Right next to Nassau Hall, and snuggled between Maclean House and Stanhope Hall, this garden is hidden behind brick walls and ivy.

5. Princeton Town Farmers Market

Most student don’t know, the town has a farmers market from May - November right next to the Princeton Public Library. They have fresh produce, pastries, and a great sale on books if that’s up your alley. While this is technically off campus, it shows how much there is to discover in town as well!

Location: Princeton Public Library Square

And while I’m happy to share a few of my discoveries, I will be keeping my absolute favorite corners on campus hidden. But I hope that encourages you to go and find your own. They’re sprinkled all around campus. 

One of the best hidden gems I have discovered during my time at Princeton is the Makerspace! Located in the basement of the Lewis Library, the Makerspace is a creative technology space which serves as part of Princeton’s library system. The Makerspace provides many different forms of equipment such as 3D printers, sewing machines, 3D scanners, cutting machines, large format printers, video production equipment, and so much more!

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I first discovered the Makerspace in my Sophomore year, after taking a podcasting class, during which I borrowed audio-recording equipment from the Digital Learning Lab. Fascinated by the technology that was made available to me, I eagerly inquired about other creative spaces that were available to students. It was then that I was referred to the Makerspace, and discovered all that it had to offer. 

In the second semester of Sophomore year, I would regularly borrow a DSLR Camera from the Makerspace to photograph Princeton’s cycling team during bike races. Over time, I was able to hone my photography and editing skills, as I learned how to use the equipment. My favorite discovery at the Makerspace, however, was the 4x3-foot Large Format Printer. These printers, which are available for students for one large print job per month, enable me to print out large-scale artistic creations at no cost.

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In my Junior year, I took a wonderful class which merged scientific teaching with artistic expression. For our final project, we were tasked with creating an artistic piece to express a scientific issue that we had researched. My group took advantage of the resources of the Makerspace to create a 6x8-foot collage detailing the adversarial health impacts of pesticide use. Dividing our collage into quadrants, each corresponding to one large-print poster, we were able to create a grand exhibition for our project, which is now on display at the Lewis Center for the Arts. It was so rewarding to present such a magnificent project knowing that we were supported in bringing our ambitious ideas into a tangible reality.

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Learning about the resources that Princeton offers to students has been an ongoing component of my experiences here. It feels like every month, I learn of something new that is available to me as a student. I hope that new students are likewise able to take advantage of the Makerspace and bring their creative visions to life!  

“I wish Princeton felt like this.”

A comment from my fellow classmate after my short film (shown above) was screened for my digital animation class.

I think it’s fair to say my animation has quite a calming undertone. I wanted to capture the monotonous yet beautiful moments of my days here at Princeton - the simplicity of studying in Firestone Library during the early mornings, my bike rides across campus, and the much needed coffee breaks at Coffee Club. 

While I love to honor these small moments, I think many students, like my classmate, often experience a very different day in the life of Princeton. What I see at Princeton, which is often a love for these small moments, is not what everyone sees. But what I’ve learned during my time here is that Princeton can be so many things - too much to sum up in a day. 

Incoming freshmen often want a description of what a “day in the life” looks like at Princeton. Of course I could generalize my experience as stressful and overwhelming while simultaneously everything I could ask for in a college experience. It’s hard to describe the beautiful stressors, challenging moments, and new experiences that go on here. Ultimately, Princeton is a very unique college experience inside the “orange bubble” - an almost alternative universe on campus where you're swept up and time passes in odd ways.

But there are so many nuances in an experience. The description above, and further my own animation, fall short of describing so many aspects of Princeton: days where you’re in Firestone from sun up till sun down studying, memory making late night chats with roommates, or even how campus comes alive in spring as students flock to Cannon Green for picnics and frisbee games.

Princeton is too large to sum up in one day or one animation. Further, I think it’s important for incoming students to realize that Princeton is not a “day in the life”. No experience is. Despite being in the same academic and physical environment, everyone experiences college differently - hence the disparity between how I view Princeton through my animation and my classmate’s reaction.
But with this comes an important lesson; the reason we experience things differently is partly due to how we choose to perceive life around us. Our own experiences are ultimately what we make of them. At the end of the day, Princeton is what you make of it. So how do I answer the question: “what is a day in the life like at Princeton University?” It’s up to you to tell that story - my only advice, remember the sky's the limit.

In the past two years I have been at Princeton, I have worked at 4 different jobs. Most of these jobs were posted on JobX — our website for student employment opportunities — and ranged from working at Firestone library to writing for this very student blog. Each opportunity has given me the privilege of acquiring very diverse experiences and I am always amazed at how many incredible people I’ve met along the way. Here are a few of the jobs I’ve worked at since coming to Princeton:

Marquand Library: I’ve worked at Marquand since I was a Freshman. Nestled in Floor C of Firestone, a typical day at Marquand looks like sitting at our front desk, welcoming patrons, and occasionally doing a scan of different manuscripts and books that students, faculty, and staff request. Working here has always felt special to me — not only because it was my first job at Princeton, but because it is the perfect job to get my day started or to end a long day. I can always know what to expect and I enjoy working with the staff, who are all so knowledgeable yet welcoming. Coming in for a shift here never feels exhausting. If anything, this library serves as a home away from home. 

ELA Conversation Partner: I’ve worked for McGraw as an ELA conversation partner for the past year and I’ve been able to meet incredible people through this program. Each week, I meet with two graduate students for an hour and we work on their conversational English speaking skills; sometimes we will grab coffee and other times we will go grocery shopping. There really is no set agenda — I coordinate and plan our activities and each week will vary dramatically. This job has given me the honor of getting to connect and build relationships with the graduate students here at Princeton; learning how radically different yet similar our lives are from one another has truly been a fun experience.

Communications Intern: As a communications intern for the Princeton Entrepreneurship Council, I’ve been able to do some amazing work with some truly accomplished people. The council consists of 5-6 other individuals who each play an important role in their respective ways. My job is to liaison and interview Princeton alumni, students, faculty, and staff so that I can write a story on the entrepreneurial work they’ve done and the impact they hope to achieve. This has truly broadened my perspective on what entrepreneurship entails and the expansive resources Princeton has to offer. At this job, I get to enjoy learning new things and meeting new people.

Admissions Blogger: The blog you are reading right now is a product of my work as an admissions blogger here at Princeton! When I was applying, this job appealed to me because it provided me a creative outlet to express myself. Moreover, this role enables me to share my Princeton experience while also giving back to our community in a small way. As a blogger, I usually attend monthly meetings and brainstorm on potential topics I’d like to talk about. Then, I write the stories you get to read! This job has really deepened my understanding of student life here at Princeton, not just by reading the other student blogs but also by reflecting on my own experience.

Deep within the C floor (one of three below-ground levels) of Firestone Library, you’ll find my favorite aisle, QL. This aisle is home to books on some of my favorite subjects: zoology, wildlife conservation and natural history. Sometimes I’ll find myself wandering down there to check out a book or two, just because. 

I like to think that there is an aisle in Firestone for everyone, regardless of your academic or personal interests, whether it be French cinema or feminism, cellular immunology or ancient Chinese texts. With over 70 miles of bookshelves –– if you laid them end to end they’d reach from Princeton to New York City –– you can always find something to spark your curiosity here. 

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Aside from the extensive variety of genres held within Firestone’s walls, there are several other aspects of the library that I think make it really special. As a Firestone Tour Guide, I give tours of the library to prospective students, and I like to share some of these lesser-known discoveries with my tour groups whenever I can. 

• Personal librarians: Every undergrad at Princeton is matched with a personal librarian. This is someone you can go to with any questions regarding your research or book-finding needs at Princeton, whether for writing a paper for a class or compiling sources for your thesis. I’ve gotten personalized emails from my librarian every semester checking in on how I’m doing, which always puts a smile on my face.

• ReCAP / IvyPlus: Princeton students have access to ReCAP, a storage facility located near campus that holds 17 million volumes. If there is ever a book, manuscript or journal that Firestone doesn't have, chances are it can be found at ReCAP. Requests submitted to ReCAP are often fulfilled within the same day. Princeton is also part of the IvyPlus network, which allows students to have materials sent from Columbia, Duke, Harvard, Stanford and other universities in the event that Princeton does not have them. 

• Data and statistical services center: This center can help with any data processing or visualization needs you might have in any research you do at Princeton. They have specialists on staff you can meet with about any and all questions you have relating to data. 

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• Collaboration Hub: This space on the first floor of the library has Apple TVs, soundproof collaboration rooms with floor-to-ceiling whiteboards and more. I think that this space really reflects the attitude of collaboration over competition at Princeton; working on projects or studying together is common here. 

• Dixon Collection: Something that I think is fairly little-known on campus is that Princeton students have access to thousands of e-books and audiobooks of pretty much any genre for free. Whether you’re looking for a good beach read or the next crime thriller, you can find it here! 

• Special Collections: This is definitely one of my favorite parts of Firestone. The special collections is home to Princeton’s rarest and most valuable books and manuscripts. Through a student tour of the Scheide Library within special collections, I've seen a Gutenberg Bible, an original Bach manuscript, and a recipe in Emily Dickinson's handwriting. Many rare items are available for Princeton students to request, handle, and research, which I think is pretty amazing.

I hope I’ve convinced you that there really is something for everyone in Firestone (or, one of Princeton’s eight other libraries!). Who knows, with enough exploration you just might find a favorite aisle of your own.

I still don't know exactly what my concentration will be. When I applied to Princeton, I thought I was going to concentrate in the School of Public and International Affairs (SPIA). However, in the middle of my first semester, I started to have doubts. I began to seriously wonder if SPIA was the right path for me. A semester later and I am more unsure about my concentration than I have ever been. What contributes to my uncertainty is the fact that Princeton offers so many interesting opportunities that I am torn between so many departments, research and funding options. While I am still unsure about what my concentration will be, one thing is certain, I will write. A LOT!

I remember reading somewhere that Princeton is one of the universities that places emphasis on writing. This is one of the reasons why all students are required to produce a senior thesis before they graduate. This is also why all undergraduates are required to take a Writing Seminar, either in the fall or spring semester of their first year. Writing seminars are intended to introduce first-year students to academic writing. There are several seminars that students can rank before they are officially assigned to one. I attended mine, WRI 167/168: Justice Beyond Borders, in the fall. I remember one day, as we were discussing Kant's main claims in "Towards Perpetual Peace", a staff member walked into the room and introduced us to a wonderful resource: The Writing Center.

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Essentially, the Writing Center offers free 50-minute and sometimes 80-minute one-on-one appoinments to students in which consultants help them work on writing assignments, ranging from 3-page essays to 20-page research papers. Consultants are undergraduate students who are trained to provide guidance on writing assignments. Personally, I see the Writing Center as an accountability checker. I schedule my appointments days (even weeks) before the deadline for my essays. My thinking is this: if I have a writing consultation scheduled, then I need to have something written. There are even times when I don't have an essay to receive feedback on. Sometimes I only have rough outlines or just broad ideas. However, scheduling a consultation forces me to set time aside to at least think about my writing assignment and to get someone else’s perspective on my initial ideas.

The consultants that I work with always listen to me and ask questions that help refine my ideas and push them further. When there is really nothing to think about, they propose exercises that encourage reflection on specific parts of my essay. Wherever you are in the writing process, they've got you! That's the beauty of the Writing Center. In fact, the consultations I found most useful were the ones where I didn't even have a draft. It is important to note that while no two consultants are the same, at the end of every appointment, I always feel ready to embark on my next step in the writing process.

I see the Writing Center as a group of students who not only listen to me talk about my ideas, but also help to formulate them into words, and ultimately in a "coherent, sensitively argued and well-written essay" (by the way, these are the comments that one of my teachers made on an essay workshopped by the Writing Center. It really works guys!)

This is just my experince with The Writing Center and while others may have a different take, I can say that it has been a helpful tool for me and it may be helpful to you as well. And who knows, maybe I will be a Writing Consultant by the time you come to Princeton and I will consult your essay!

It’s crazy to me that I graduate this year - and there’s still so much I want to do at Princeton. Here’s a bucket list of everything I have to do before I leave (sob).

Go to the top of Cleveland Tower. The grad school tower is a Princeton landmark, and it’s right across the golf course from Forbes College, where I live. In fact, in sophomore year I’d see it every morning from my window when I woke up. But most people don’t seem to realize that you can actually visit the top of the tower and take in crazy views of campus

Explore Firestone’s extensive collection. I recently discovered rows of graphic novels and comics from my childhood deep in its lower levels, and spent an afternoon flipping through pages rather than studying for my exams. Firestone Library may be a great place for studying and research, but there’s so much more - odds are, they’ve got stuff on anything you’d be interested in reading. And the library itself is so sprawling that there are so many out-of-the-way nooks and crannies. 

Explore all the buildings on campus. Firestone is just the start of it - there are so many buildings on Princeton’s campus that I’ve definitely not fully explored. There are dinosaur skulls and hidden cafes and sixth-floor rooms with floor-to-ceiling windows where you can watch the sun set over campus. Apparently, there are tunnels connecting some of the science buildings…

See a Triangle Show one more time. Every year, I’ve made sure to watch the student-led theater production put on by The Princeton Triangle Club. My sophomore fall, I was actually off campus during opening weekend, and Ubered specifically back to campus just to catch the show. It’s a tradition. Last time I heard “Old Folks Home,” I practically cried. 

Eat at all the dining halls again. Each residential college has a dining hall, and during our first and second years, everyone pretty much eats in one or the other - whether it’s which is closest after class, or which has the best looking menu, or which is closest to the lazy friend you’re meeting for dinner. As an upperclassmen, however, most people begin to eat in their eating clubs, co-ops, or independent plans. But everyone still gets two meal swipes per week at the dining halls of old - I’ll make sure to give each of them a go around for old times’ sake.

There's a lot I'll be doing for old times' sake this one last spring - but I think as always, Princeton will throw new and unexpected experiences my way. The bucket list will probably be a lot bigger - and more checked off - in just a few months. As they say in "Old Folks Home," Princeton is truly first rate.

My best friend introduced me to Chancellor Green Library during our first few weeks on campus.  We quickly bonded over our love of this peaceful rotunda. The library often teems with busy students, including me.  Something about the beautiful atmosphere makes my stress dissipate, at least a little.

Chancellor Green, while a library in name, does not have a circulation desk. There are shelves full of the most random collection of novels and nonfiction books. I’ve seen everything from Toni Morrison’s "Tar Baby", to an outdated guide to getting into law school, to Professor Keith Whittington’s "Speak Freely", the book about free speech chosen by President Eisgruber for everyone in my class year to read before our first semester.

The library contains four oversized brown leather chairs with matching ottomans that are by far the most comfortable chairs I’ve ever sat in. My favorite chair is the one with the best view of the entrance and the stairs leading up to the top level. This makes it easy to spot other friends who also gravitate towards this study space.

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The only noises to be heard in this peaceful abode are the whir of the air conditioner and the occasional whispers. The quietness makes it a productive place to complete my assignments. Full conversations are not exactly tolerated here. Most of the time this holds true, except one afternoon when there was an opera rehearsal while I was trying to study. There are lots of events in Chancellor Green because it is such a beautiful place.

Chancellor Green is also a prime napping location. There have been countless times I’ve come here looking for a seat only to find the comfy chairs taken by students fast asleep. Several times, I entered the library only to find a student napping in my favorite chair. When they got up, someone else sat down and promptly fell asleep.

Words cannot fully describe the magnificence of Chancellor Green. I am already dreading the days post-Princeton when I can no longer sink into my favorite chair and think about how lucky I am to be here.

I live a segmented life of places. At home, I painstakingly arranged my bedroom so that my desk would be as far away from my bed as possible. I wanted a space for work and sleep, but I much preferred working outside my room when I could. I sat at the same seat for my family’s dinner most nights. I liked to park my car in the same spot in my school’s parking lot whenever possible. I hated reading in a new chair at the library, instead preferring to have a dedicated spot.

Although the pandemic upset this segmentation, this semester, I have been able to create new relationships once again between places and mental states or activities. This has been a delight on a campus as small as Princeton’s. Things accrue meaning as we assign it to them. Here at Princeton, each time I visit a place, it gets a specific meaning related to what I use the space for.

Every morning, I get breakfast at the same dining hall and sit at the same place if I can. McCosh Hall, where I have the pleasure of taking a “Worlds Made with Words: Old English Poems that Perform” has become a place of linguistic contemplation, a lovely morass of caesuras and alliteration and translation problems. 

As a humanities student, I rarely make it down to the math and science buildings. However, this semester, I have Semantics in the physics building called Jadwin Hall which has thus become a spot for challenging headaches as we seek to create a logical system to encapsulate the way English works. Robertson Hall, where I have an introductory African American Studies class, is the place I associate with the most captivating lectures.

I know the brisk nighttime walk to and from Prospect Avenue, where Princeton’s eating clubs are located. I have a favorite place to study in the basement of Gordon Wu Hall. My single dorm room in First College has become a space of relaxation and sleep, as often as I can manage it.

Princeton’s small campus allows my mental geography to map onto a real place. I walk everywhere I need to go, which helps me grow my map visually. The walk to each class or library primes my brain to do the work I need to do there. Of course, I try to explore the campus too and break out of my routine, even as I experience and re-experience places of familiarity. But the physicality of places here is something that I try to celebrate every day.

By now, many members of the Great Class of 2025 are excitedly planning out their first-year fall.  Although planning for a new chapter in your life is certainly exciting, there is a lot of information out there about Princeton University and trying to memorize it all is impossible.  Tiger Bloggers, Patrice and Grady,  hope that this post will put some of your anxieties to rest, by letting you know what you do and don’t need to know, from current Princeton students.

Before arriving... by Patrice McGivney

Do: Think about what you’ll bring to campus.

Consider what you will want on hand in your college dorm room, what you have room to take with you and what you can purchase once you get here.  There’s lots of sample dorm room packing lists all across the Internet, and a post by fellow blogger Naomi Hess, so I won’t repeat anything here. If you live very far from Princeton, be sure to consider differences in climate and environment. This post I made earlier will hopefully help you out! 

Don’t: Plan out all four years.

It might be tempting to plan out your next four years in advance, but to get the most out of the college experience, you’ll want to be open to new ideas.  Many students discover a concentration they never would have considered in high school, take up a new sport or hobby, or find an unexpected employment opportunity during their time here.  You’ll also have plenty of faculty, staff and peer advisers to help you plan once you get here.  

Do: Spend time with friends and family.

Especially if you’re moving far away, your time might be limited with good friends from high school and your family once you’re a college student.  Make the most of your summer, whatever that looks like for you, and take plenty of pictures to hang up in your dorm room to remind you of your loved ones.  

Don’t: Be scared!

The transition to college is a big one, and it can be nerve-racking.  But Princeton is a wonderful and welcoming community, and you’ll do amazing things here!  

When you’re here... by Grady Trexler

Do: Try all the different dining halls.

There are six dining halls at Princeton: four residential, a graduate dining hall and the Center for Jewish Life. For the first few weeks of the semester, I just ate at Wilcox, which was closest to my dorm, but I quickly learned to try other options. Each dining hall has a different vibe, and some nights, I’m just in the mood for a Whitman dinner.

Don’t: Ask other students if they’re also first-years.

This was more embarrassing than I expected it to be — you meet someone new, you think they look just as confused as you are, so you ask them the dreaded, “Are you a first year, too?” only for them to tell you that they are a senior. Mortifying for everyone involved. Try “What's your class year?” instead.

Do: Form study groups for your more difficult classes.

This was something I didn’t do a lot in high school, preferring to get my work done alone, but I quickly felt out of my depth in some of my harder classes. The earlier you can form a study group with your peers, the better.

Don’t: Walk to the library without your computer.

A companion piece of advice — don’t get all the way to the library and realize your laptop is back at your dorm (or, for that matter, your notebook, your pens, etc.)

Don’t: Get locked out of your room.

At Princeton, you carry a “prox” everywhere you go — a student ID card which accesses buildings (including your dorm) and holds your meal swipes. Don’t leave this inside your dorm room or you, like me, may find yourself locked out of your room on a 30 degree Fahrenheit night in February, having to trek down to Public Safety to get a temporary card.

Well, there you have it — our nine do’s and don’ts for your first semester. Are we experts? Not at all. But here are just a few things we’ve learned!