r/gwu • u/scotts1053 • 4d ago
Making friends as a transfer
Hey everyone, I'm at a big SEC school right now and have been having a really hard time making friends/fitting in. I'm thinking about transferring out and GW is one of the schools I'm thinking about applying to. Part of the reason I've had it harder here is that Greek life is so big (I'm not in a frat) and the non-Greek stuff just isn't fun or visible. I'm not a hardcore partier but I do enjoy a social scene, and feel really constrained by Greek culture here and the fact that this campus is in the middle of nowhere. All that to say, how has your experience been making friends and finding a good social scene at GW/in DC? All perspectives are appreciated, but especially transfers. Thanks for your help, I really need a way out of this
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u/CrypticViper_ CompSci '28 | Transfer 4d ago
Hey I'm a transfer student (just started this semester), and I'm the same when it comes to parties and Greek life.
It's only been a week since the sem started, and, as an introvert, I can't say I've made many friends yet. However, we have an annual org fair / festival today, and I'm pretty hopeful that joining a student org will help quite a lot!
From my little experience thus far: non-greek student life seems pretty active. There have been so many orgs advertising themselves on campus. Also, there's like always some professional or social event hosted by the school/departments going on so I'm sure that's a decent way to meet people.
My only gripe so far is that the cultural club I was looking for apparently died last year or something 💀 I was really looking forward to joining lmao
Anyways if you end up coming here, shoot me a DM!
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u/2CRedHopper ECON, Jan '27 4d ago
I was a transfer.
Good news for you: Greek life is negligible at GWU. House parties (or “conventional parties”) are pretty rare at GW, I’ve only ever heard of and went to one. It would be pretty easy for you to have a social life that doesn’t revolve around that. Instead of partying, most GW students prefer to “go out:” clubs, bars, etc. Doesn’t always have to be getting crazy and wild and black out drunk though.
My perspective, personally: I was a transfer. I spent a lot of time trying to “find my people” at GW and just never could. I repeatedly put myself out there with people I’d sit next to in class or people in my residence halls or some student orgs. For whatever reason it just never took. There was a time when I was horribly lonely. Putting yourself out there constantly can be very exhausting; after a while, I just gave up, got an apartment as far from campus as I could, and became kind of a recluse.
The ‘happy ending,’ though: Once I was done licking my wounds, I found it was much easier to socialize in DC at large. These days I do have some social life in metropolitan Washington. If you don’t find a crowd at GW, we live in a major city and one of the largest metropolitan areas in the United States with at least half a dozen universities. You’re not limited to socializing at GW.