We go to a party school, but we don’t drink
You should try it sometime
As we all know, Vanderbilt is a huge party school. Recently, we’ve made it to the US News Playboy’s Top 10 Party school list, the Business Insider’s 30 Most Fun Colleges in America, and among the “Startclass” list of The Frattiest Colleges in America.
As a huge party school that runs wild with drinking, partying, and more every weekend, how could someone survive here without being a part of this scene?
To answer this question, I sat down with Colleen Gill (1st year, Psychology and Women and Gender Studies), Anuska Dhar (1st year, English), and Cassidy Lenstrom (Sophomore, Secondary Education and English with a minor in Music). Here’s what they told me:
There’s no pressure to drink
While frat parties happen basically every weekend and it seems that most people on their halls go out, none of them have ever felt a pressure to drink.
Anushka said: “I knew it was going to be a party school, but I also knew I could say no.”
All of them choose to not to drink for various personal reasons.
Anuska with friends at a frat party
You form close bonds with others who don’t drink
Sometimes at frat parties, there’s less crowded areas where people stand around and just talk.
Colleen and Anuska grew closer as they were among those who didn’t drink in their group of friends. Fortunately, none of them have had any trouble making friends.
Colleen and Anuska dressed up together
Frat parties are much sketchier when you’re sober
Dark rooms, sweaty people, and alcohol everywhere.
While this does sound like fun for most people, Colleen observed, “I think people would be a lot less okay with the way they’re treated if they were sober. I understand that they’re drunk and their guards are down, but would you be okay with people just grabbing you from the back and trying to dance with you?”
Similarly, Anuska and Cassidy both said it’s always hilarious with other sober people, but they tend not to stay for very long.
Cassidy said: “You get to the point where you’re asking, ‘why am I here’?
Colleen with a couple of her friends before heading out to the “Risky Business” party in the beginning of the year.
“BYX” parties are the place to be
While parties thrown by Beta Upsilon Chi (or BYX as it’s commonly referred to) are rare, they are loads of fun.
Cassidy said: “It’s like a normal frat party with all the dancing but without the alcohol or grinding. And you don’t have to worry about creepy frat boys!”
According to Colleen, they even pass out Capri Sun.
Colleen and Cassidy dressed up and ready to go out to a BYX party
People always ask why you don’t drink
Anuksa put it nicely.
She said: “They always ask why you don’t drink, but we never ask why they do drink?”
Cassidy posing with a friend at a party
Next time you go to a frat party, maybe consider going sober and see it through the lens of these lovely gals. Maybe you’ll stop going? Or maybe not… Either way, catch them at the next BYX party, dancing hard or maybe sipping on some CapriSun!