After visiting Hopkins, I knew it was the school for me. I really liked the PILOT tutoring program, small class sizes, friendly environment, and the abundance of greenery on campus. I knew, however, that there would be more to discover when I actually enrolled in classes and moved in—and I was right! So here are five Hopkins hidden gems that surprised me after moving in and starting classes.
1. How Good the Food Is
It’s no secret I love the dining halls on campus, so this had to be number one on my list. I continue to be amazed by the huge amount of variety and fresh food options available. It’s not uncommon to see fancier options either like steak, shrimp, salmon, and imitation crab. If you’re in a rush like I usually am, you can grab two to-go boxes or go to Charles Street Market (aka CharMar) and get a meal-in-a-minute. These have a bunch of fun options and they’re a great way to use meal swipes if you need to get rid of them at the end of the semester. Juniors aren’t required to purchase a meal plan, but I did because of the convenience and quality of the food.
2. Really Nice Teachers
I can’t speak for every single teacher here, but I’ve had great experiences with my instructors so far. During my first year, I wrote an essay about homesickness and my professor wrote a note on my paper saying I could talk to him if I ever needed to. My sociology teacher changed our assigned readings after students said they were overwhelmed, and even made videos explaining some of the readings we were having the most trouble with. My biology teacher let me take our final online so I could travel out of town and see my sister’s graduation, and my psychology teacher gave our class a chance to argue different answers for test questions to get points back. Some of my teachers have even changed the grading scale at the end of the semester to make it just a little more forgiving for us. Needless to say, I’m still shocked at how supportive the professors here are.
3. How Quickly I Can Get to Places on Campus
I’ve really enjoyed having a small campus size because once I realized where everything was, I discovered I can make it almost anywhere in 10–15 minutes. This includes classes, my apartment, the library, and the dining halls—literally everywhere I need to go. Even grocery stores are a quick walk away. The proximity of everything means I can schedule my classes with 10-minute gaps between them. This is super convenient because it allows me to get everything out of the way in the morning. If I can’t avoid an awkward gap in my schedule, then I come back to my apartment and take a nap between classes—my favorite!
4. There’s a Club for Everything
This probably sounds obvious, but there’s literally a club for anything you can think of. And if it doesn’t look like there is, there probably was and you just need to reactivate it. I still remember walking to club basketball practice at night and seeing a bunch of people twirling batons that were on fire. I couldn’t believe it! And everyone walked by like it was normal. Eventually it became my normal to see the Entertainers Club practicing, but I still can’t help myself from staring at how cool it is.
5. Research Opportunities are Everywhere
I’d heard that getting involved in research was easy before I enrolled, but wow, the rumors were true. Occasionally professors will mention their research in class and tell you to contact them if you’re interested (that’s how I joined my lab). My cognitive neuroscience class even had a paragraph in the syllabus for what you should do if you’re looking for research. The pre-med newsletter constantly has research projects for students or opportunities to join labs and ForagerOne they’re looking for. It might take a couple emails to get a response, but if you want to do research here, you absolutely will be able to.
6. Bonus—Dogs!
My list isn’t complete without an honorable mention of the number of dogs I see walking on campus or nearby. It always improves my day when I see them playing on the quads or my personal favorite—wearing clothes! Little puffer jackets and Christmas sweaters are common to see in the winter. Sometimes I even see dogs holding tennis balls in their mouths when they cross the street. Needless to say, the dogs here are pampered and I love to see it!
