The fall semester just started up a few weeks ago, and many Northeastern students are still getting a feel for campus. There are the obvious things every freshman and transfer student learns in orientation – like how to find Marino and Stetson East – but there are so many more resources around our school that could take a few years to figure out. In order to help make your life easier, I have compiled a list of some lesser-known Northeastern tips/shortcuts. Below are some alternative options for working out, printing, late-night pizza, inexpensive groceries, the best views of Boston, places to study, and finding out about events on campus.
Gym: Marino is beautifully built and a main attraction on campus, making most people think it is the only option for a workout. However, if you live closer to Columbus or just want to go to the gym at crowded times and not have to wait for a treadmill, head on over to The Badger and Rosen Squashbusters Center. You can check out their hours on the Campus Recreation website. They also have great views of downtown Boston from the treadmills.
Printing: If you have ever needed to print something on your way to class, you know waiting in line for quick print isn’t exactly quick. If you are already in Snell, you can head on back to info commons where they have additional printers for quick print with a much smaller line. If that line is still too long for you, check out your major’s department printing situation. The computer science and mathematics departments both have private computer labs with printers for students in those majors and the journalism school has labs for printing. If you end up printing from your department’s labs, you can even often be able to print for free!
Late Night Pizza: Tired of waiting in line at BHOP with all of the other drunken collegiates for average pizza? There are quite a few other options for pizza nearby that are actually popular with students when they are sober, so next time skip BHOP and check out one of these places instead. If you are over near Columbus Ave, go to New York Pizza on the corner of Columbus Ave and Mass Ave. They have giant slices of thin crust pizza in this popular pizza pie shop. If you are coming from the Fenway/Hemenway area, check out Cappy’s Pizza near the corner of Westland Ave and Hemenway Ave. Cappy’s has very nice owners who work there that are genuinely happy for your business and if you there near closing, they sometimes will hand out the last slices of the night for free to customers eating inside! Lastly if you are walking back to campus from the hill or live in West Village, stop by UHOP. They are much smaller than BHOP so there is not much seating, but this place has delicious buffalo chicken pizza and gets a lot of business outside of drunken hours, unlike BHOP.
Groceries: Before spending all of your money at Wollaston’s on something simple like a box of cereal, head on over to Symphony Market on the corner of Gainsborough St. and Huntington Ave. The owners are very sweet and they even offer a rewards card. The majority of the time, Symphony Market has lower prices and they let you use your husky dollars there as well. Right down the street from Symphony Market is 24-Hour Convenience which also has relatively lower prices and is open 24 hours a day, as the name suggests. Not all of the food at these markets is cheaper than Wollastons but if you are getting more than one item at the grocery store, be sure to check out the prices here first.
Views of Boston: While going to the top floors of International Village or West Village H does offer amazing views, you also have to know someone there to sign you in. Instead of going through that trouble, try heading to the top floor of Renaissance Garage right next to International Village and enjoy a lovely view of the sunrise or sunset over Northeastern.
Places to Study: During midterm and finals season, the library is packed and it’s often difficult to find enough table space needed for studying. West Village G classrooms are often left open during the nights and weekends for club meetings and they’re a great place to study. When the weather is nice in the summer or late spring, Curry Rooftop is also a great place to study or just sit outside and eat lunch. During the spring the rooftop seating area gets pretty crowded but in September when it is still sunny and nice, it has been pretty empty. Just head up to the second floor of the Curry Student Center and there are two doors for roof access.
Events on Campus: In order to get big names on campus for shows, every event needs to go through legal first and sometimes that takes up until a few days before the event to be approved, leaving those in charge of the event little time to advertise. To know what is going on around campus, go to MyNEU Tickets and just see what you can get tickets for. Last spring Judah Freedlander (Frank on the show 30 Rock) came and did an amazing stand up routine. Unfortunately the school was only able to advertise a few days before so not many people showed up for the event. Luckily for those that did show up, everyone had the opportunity to stay after and talk and take pictures with Judah. That show has definitely been one of my top moments at Northeastern.
Do you have any other lesser known tips or shortcuts about Northeastern that I missed? Let us know in the comments section below so we can share!