<p>I’m too days away from deciding where I should be for the next four years. The one thing preventing me from being 100% sure that Stanford fits me is the duck analogy (stanford students are like ducks- calm on top, and work hard underneath to keep up).
Some people tell me that Stanford students do work really hard, while others say that the campus can be too relaxed at times. A friend’s sister goes to Stanford and hated freshmen year because she didn’t find the social support to study. I’m the type of person that absorbs my environment. If people around me are working hard, I will likely do the same. But if people are more relaxed, I might slack off as well. So current students, how relaxed are Stanford students generally. Is it taboo to want to stay in Friday night to work on psets, rather than go to a movie?</p>
<p>Thanks!</p>
<p>(i’m only a 2011er, but i went to aw and have talked to many students and seen friday nights in action)</p>
<p>the cool thing about stanford is also diversity. on friday nights, from what i can tell, there are myriad of activities for students to choose from. while there were parties, there were indeed kids workin on problem sets on friday nights. but obviously, these same kids workin on problem sets still found time to relax and chill with friends but they did do work on a friday night. this is what i saw when i went to stanford. </p>
<p>basically, there are a bunch of options and kids know when to work hard and play hard from what i can tell. </p>
<p>go to stanford no doubt!!</p>
<p>I believe it does depend who you’re around, but I have had a great experience and have not felt pressure from the “duck” mentality. As cali said, whatever you want to do, you can find a place to do it. You can party, watch a movie, do your homework, watch a play… even within your own dorm, you are likely to have groups of people doing very different things. Also, I have never felt pressured to do anything; people don’t scold me for either studying too much or partying too much. You can do what you like and find others to do it with you, if you want :)</p>
<p>I am actually doing pretty well in school due in large part to the various study groups I am a part of. I think it’s wonderful that people want to help each other do well; we don’t steal each others’ lecture notes or grudgingly answer homework questions. I’ve really enjoyed working with others on an article analysis or a chemistry problem set. In addition to my friends, I’ve found that TAs and even professors are helpful and welcoming if you’d like some help or just want to chat.</p>
<p>In short, I don’t think Stanford is too relaxed, nor is it a campus of burnt-out workaholics. I think it’s a great place with enough diversity that you can find your balance and surround yourself with others who feel the same way.</p>
<p>It DEFINITELY depends on where you live. Live in FroSoCo if you want to be around people who are really interested in looking less like the duck analogy. FroSoCo also has a higher “nerd percentange” i.e. you have to step over people writing books and playing speedchess in the halls. I, personally, will be choosing FroSoCo for this very reason. The all-freshmen dorms are a little too relaxed for me, by far.</p>
<p>I agree with barberconcerto. Four-class dorms are somewhere in the middle - not too crazy, not too quiet. I personally find this mix wonderful because the freshmen lend energy to the dorm and help bring a sense of community while the upperclassmen bring advice and a quieter maturity 
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<p>However, even when I lived in an all-frosh dorm and didn’t like all the loudness and running up and down the halls, I was still able to do things quietly as I liked without pressure.</p>
<p>Personally, I believe that every freshman should live in an all-freshmen dorm their first year at Stanford. I have lived in both an all-frosh dorm and a four-class dorm, and they are worlds of difference apart. An all-frosh dorm is simply a much better environment for freshmen for so many reasons. Because there are so many more freshmen around you in an all-frosh, it tends to be easier to find your “niche” and make really strong friendships. While the freshmen in the 4-class dorm I’m in this year stick together, there just isn’t the same sense of comraderie and “looking out for each other” that there was in my freshman year dorm. Furthermore, I think it is easier to form study groups in an all-frosh dorm, because more people in the dorm will be taking the same classes you will be taking. </p>
<p>But to address your question specifically, yes, Stanford is laid back, but students here are first and foremost students, and that means that many people do study insanely hard (walk into the 24-hour study room at the library at 4 am and people will still be there). You will have no trouble finding the environment you need to encourage you to study hard. Furthermore, people definitely study on Friday nights here, and you won’t be labelled an outcast for doing so ;)</p>