Is NYU or Tufts more fun for undergraduates?

The biggest practical tradeoff is city-integrated freedom at NYU versus a more traditional residential campus at Tufts. NYU gives you New York itself as the social scene, so day-to-day fun often means restaurants, concerts, internships, neighborhoods, and friends spread across Manhattan. Tufts tends to feel more like a contained undergraduate community, with more campus-centered social life, easier spontaneous hangouts, and a clearer sense that most students are sharing the same place.

For a lot of undergrads, Tufts feels more conventionally fun because the social experience is less fragmented. Students often talk about the campus being friendly, quirky, and collaborative, and it is easier to run into people, join events, and feel part of a single student culture. Medford/Somerville also gives you access to Boston without making daily life feel as dispersed or self-directed as NYU can.

NYU can be incredibly exciting, but the fun there depends more on your personality and initiative. There is no classic enclosed campus, and students can experience the school very differently depending on housing, friend groups, finances, and how much they take advantage of the city. Some students love that independence and feel energized by always having something happening nearby, while others find it harder to build a cohesive college-life rhythm.

If your idea of enjoyable is an active campus, easy community, and a student body that tends to feel visibly connected, Tufts has the edge. If your idea of enjoyable is having the entire city as your playground and being less tied to a traditional campus scene, NYU can be more exciting.