From alcohol to eating club expectations, the Class of 2030’s ideas of fun are as diverse as the University itself. Between nights out and first drinks, Princeton’s incoming class has national academic averages beat in every way —— but are they ahead of the curve in romance, too?
As AI develops rapidly, large language models will significantly impact the education of the Class of 2030. Out of the students who believed that AI models were revolutionary, 90.2 percent used them for recreational purposes while 74.4 percent used them for STEM problem-solving assistance or administrative tasks. 19.7 percent of the students spend 4–5 hours on their phones every day. Compared to the Class of 2029, in which 59.3 percent of the student population anticipated joining an eating club, 67.9 percent of the Class of 2030 intends to join an eating club.
When it comes to romance, the Class of 2030 has a lot left to experience. 40.3 percent of the incoming class has not had their first kiss yet and 72.8 percent has not had sex yet. When it comes to athletes, 45.5 percent of recruited athletes have had sex, 23.43 percentage points higher than non-recruited athletes. Heading into their first year, around 73 percent of the incoming class is single.
Students with either one or multiple forms of legacy are more likely to have consumed alcohol prior to their arrival on campus, with 23.6 percent of students who consumed alcohol before coming to campus being legacy students. Only 11 percent of students who had never had alcohol were legacy students. Of students who have had alcohol prior to arrival on campus, the greatest percentage began drinking in 12th grade at 14.6 percent. The Class of 2030 is more likely to have had alcohol than marijuana, tobacco, or vapes.
Out of respondents who did not receive any financial aid, 81.1 percent anticipate joining an eating club. Out of the respondents who receive full aid, 53.9 percent intend to join an eating club. Multi-legacy students were significantly more likely to join an eating club than non-legacy students, at 94.1 percent compared to 64.5 percent. Additionally, 12.22 percent of students from the Class of 2030 have a fake ID.