During my first visit at Bucknell, I absolutely fell in love with the campus. I knew it was where I felt most at home out of all my college visits, but I was also skeptical—what was there to possibly do in the middle of central Pennsylvania? The last thing I wanted was to go to a school where my favorite pastime was staring at the wall and playing with my thumbs. 

That’s the thing about Bucknell. The students make something out of living in the middle of nowhere. 

Bucknell students harvest a “work hard, play hard” culture that can be most clearly seen through their weekends.

Super Saturday is the first thing that comes to mind when thinking about Bucknell culture. There is nothing quite like walking down Seventh Street in a sundress and sunglasses with your closest friends. It is the one time each week that Bucknell students are all invited to come together and be at the same place at the same time.

Describing Super Saturday to my friends that do not attend Bucknell is always a challenge. The combination of nice clothes and a sloppy college darty is an aspect that makes it so distinct from other schools. Bucknell might not have a tailgate culture, but that does not take away from its ability to make the entirety every Saturday almost completely about partying. 

Every Saturday is juxtaposed with a packed library every Sunday. The priorities of Bucknell students seem pretty evenly divided among the two.

I knew very little about the weekend culture of Bucknell when I first committed, but that is very clearly a defining feature of the school. 

The school never officially mandated this kind of behavior from students— the students created it themselves. Bucknell has the potential to be boring given its location and academic status. I had never heard of Lewisburg prior to looking into Bucknell, and, coming from New Jersey, I didn’t think it was possible to live several hours from the closest major city. Further than that, I didn’t know what people who lived so far from “civilization” even did in their free time, other than tipping cows. 

Bucknell culture is the prioritization of all aspects of college, from going out to academics, and doing them all the right way. On weekdays, it’s the typical college experience. But on weekends, it’s the place to be.