Bard College Simon's Rock

Date: May 13 2008
Major: Perfomance Arts (This Major's Salary over time)
It's a good place to go, if you're ready of it. It can be intense, and sometimes a bit scary. But i believe most bright people can make it here. You have to want badly to not be in high school. If high school is boring or is not offering you what you want it to, this place is a good start at least. If you want out of high school because you want more freedom and you want to be wild, and not do anything, go away. However if you want more freedom and want to be wild and want to do lots of things (mostly homework, come here now.

DO NOT MAKE ANY ASSUMPTIONS ABOUT THIS PLACE BEFORE YOU COME. YOU WILL BE SORELY DISAPPOINTED.

I have to disagree with those that say the college coddles you. It doesn't anymore. Professors are still understanding, but late work is late work, and most will mark it down for that. Sucking up will get you no where fast with most of the faculty; so if you get by with brown-nosing in high school, think again. The academics are difficult and will make you think even if you really don't want to. Every class is completely passable, just the amount of work one has to put in in order to pass varies (and that is most certainly a personal thing, one class could be very hard for one person and a breeze for another).

The social scene is difficult if you aren't out going. Have no fear though, even the shy kids make friends quickly. There are not always tons of things to do, but you make this place what it is in my opinion. My friends and i enjoy just walking around and going into town, we play chess sometimes and listen to music, sometimes we watch movies. The social atmosphere gets better once you figure out that YOU can MAKE fun happen.

On drugs and drinking. It exists here. If you are straight-edge and think no one else here will do drugs or drink, you're very wrong. You are forgetting this is a liberal arts college in the center of one of the nation's art and hippie culture meccas. Many people here are artists and fancy themselves to be new-age hippies. They drop acid and smoke pot and do other drugs and drink, not because they think it's "cool and everyone doing it", but to "experiment with the mind". Also, in a way, I feel that many people that do drugs here are emulating their intellectual heroes. When you worship Hunter S. Thompson, certain things will appeal to you. Also one thing that i have heard from many users here is that they do it to escape their minds for a while. They say that the academic pressure makes them constantly think about deep subjects. So in order to not be driven insane by their chosen field and constantly thinking about it, they turn off their overpowered brain for a bit and just try to relax.

The key to stoner-straight-edge happiness and harmony is for everyone to live and let live. Straight-edgers: just because that really nice girl in class smokes pot, it does not mean that she will turn into a raving drug fiend in 10 years who does nothing with her life. Also for the sake of not getting into anyone business or being a tattle tale, don't report the nice girl to student life, she will most likely be mad, and not very happy with you "helping" her. Drug-users: not all straight-edged kids are evil, and not all of them are are "narcs". Get over it and be nice. Just because they don't use dos not mean they have never used. (there is a small but interesting community of recovering addicts to many substances here actually). And everyone: remember that you don't have to be exactly like a person and do everything just like them to get along, just because someone doesn't or doesn't do drugs is no reason to avoid them and not make a cool friend.

Over all i have been happy here. There are points when it drives me batshit insane and others when it makes me happier than i ever have been before. Make this place into what you want it to be. This school is only 40 years old so it is still new enough that it is malleable and will be able to conform to you. Use it to make you into a better, more intelligent, well rounded person.