Hunter has been the greatest time of my life. I have met my best friends, learned so much about who I am, and found out what my passion is here. I've grown so attached to Hunter, that I had no other choice but to stay for graduate school! Below you'll find my favorite things about Hunter along with a few tips all freshmen need to know!

1. Hunter's eighth floor terrace

I'll never be able to explain how beautiful a sunset looks while sitting on the 8th floor terrace. The terrace overlooks Lexington Ave and there is so much available space there, that you'll almost always find a chair/bench to hang out on! Since Hunter doesn't have that many areas outdoors to hang out at, the terrace is a perfect fix!

2. Seeing clubs tabling

Our North and West buildings have tables where clubs set up to recruit new members. It's always fun to see how many diverse clubs Hunter holds, and you can really get the feel of a club's members by the way they table. My favorite types of clubs to see are the ones that hook up a speaker and blast music. Those - along with the clubs that give out free food - are my favorite to pass by.

3. Sitting on the skywalk with friends

This in itself is such a "Hunter" thing, I see more people having lunch together on the skywalk than in the actual cafeteria. There's no other way to explain this action other than "it's just a vibe."

4. Hanging out at Thomas Hunter's Student Lounge

The best way to get out of your head and relax at Hunter is to stop at the student lounge to play ping pong, foosball and other games. The student lounge is also a great place to make new friends!

5. Doing homework at the library

It's a blessing that Hunter's library has so many floors. The peace and quiet is insanely relaxing and you will almost always be able to find a place to sit and do your work. You can even head to the designated "loud floors" with your friends to lounge on couches and do work together while being as loud as you like.

6. The food carts

While I've only gotten food from our fruit cart, I have friends that rave over the food from the other vendors that are stationed outside campus. These carts come in clutch for when you're running late and want to grab something quick to eat!

7. Hanging out at Shakespeare & Co

Get yourself an Arnold Palmer from the Shakespeare's café and grab a book!

8. Hunter Hillel

I met most of my friends at Hunter's Hillel, their club room is so welcoming and almost always has free food for you! Bagel Thursday's have been my best friend!

9. The gym

Being a Hunter student gives you free access to the school's gym! You can go ahead and cancel your memberships elsewhere to save yourself money!

10. The connection to the 6

I love that our campus is connected to the 6 train exit, so convenient when it's raining or snowing.

11. Never take the 8 a.m.

Yeah, you probably woke up at seven in the morning for high school - but this isn't high school. You'll be pulling so many all-nighters that you'll feel like a zombie in the morning.

12. Rate my professor will be your new best friend

Always look up the professor before you take their class. Trust me, you don't want to end up having a terrible one.

13. Aim for a high GPA

I wish I took my first semester seriously enough to aim for a 3.5 GPA. Once you start taking classes for your major they tend to get more difficult, my best advice is aiming for A's in your core classes. (Always aim for A's period, but it's usually easy to get them in your core classes).

14. Join clubs you're drawn to

One of the best ways for you to meet new people is to join clubs on campus. There are always posters around campus (and clubs that table!) detailing clubs looking for members, I'd suggest looking for clubs that you feel drawn too, not clubs that you think will "just look good on my resume."