Mixing campus traditions, Rhode Island adventures and personal goals, some students across campus have made bucket lists with items that they hope will make their time on College Hill feel complete.
For Anna Ryu ’25 GS, her bucket list started in her senior year, when she wrote down a list of 18 things she wanted to do before finishing her undergraduate degree. By the time she graduated in May, she completed “about seven” of them, including some classic campus challenges.
Ryu is just one of many current and former undergraduate students who have aimed to make the most of their time at Brown. The Herald spoke to Ryu and five undergraduate students to learn more about their must-do activities.
Some of the activities on Ryu’s list became highlights of her last semester as an undergraduate, she said. At one point, she completed the “Ratty Challenge,” during which students spend the entire day at the Sharpe Refectory.
“It was such a joy,” Ryu said. “I just ate a little bit every hour and watched all my friends cycle through.”
To knock more items off her list, Ryu also visited the Providence Public Library, explored Rhode Island Hall, learned to ride a bike and even met with the University dietitian. The last one “was more of a personal goal,” she said. “It helped me think about my relationship with food.”
But not every item was completed by graduation. “There are some things that I’ve retired,” Ryu admitted, pointing to the Naked Donut Run and the “SciLi challenges” — during which students spend a night at the Sciences Library or take a shot of alcohol on every floor.
Like Ryu, Zoë Schwartz ’26 has a bucket list that bridges both campus and city life. On College Hill, she hopes to see the Naked Donut Run, swim in the Katherine Moran Coleman Aquatics Center, attend a Brown sports game and visit the Rhode Island School of Design Nature Lab. Off campus, she hopes to explore Block Island and Newport and attend a Rhode Island Philharmonic Orchestra concert.
For Schwartz, bucket list-making is an annual ritual. “I’ve been making bucket lists for the last few years,” she said. “It’s a way to find fun things to do when I’m feeling bogged down by school work.”
Yiyun Li ’26 views her bucket list, which she’s created throughout her time at Brown, as a living document. “Whenever I think of something, I just add it to the list,” she said.
Some of Li’s goals border on the unconventional — showering in the Lindemann Performing Arts Center or buying merch from the Program in Liberal Medical Education even though she isn’t in the program. Others carry a more personal flair, like going on a date at Tea in Sahara, a Moroccan cafe located on Governor Street.
Similarly to Schwartz, Li’s curiosity also pushes her beyond campus. She wants to try the Providence Oyster Bar’s “Buck-a-Shuck Appy Hour,” during which oysters and clams are sold for just $1 each. She also hopes to attend an emo music club night and eat a meal at the Rhode Island School of Design dining hall.
But other items on Li’s list speak to her creative side. She hopes to attend a Brown Ballet Company workshop, make something in the Brown Design Workshop and join a K-pop dance camp, during which students learn from members of the student dance troupe and perform at their spring show.
Like Li, Nitya Doshi ’28 also finds joy in creative pursuits and hopes to take advantage of all the artistic opportunities available around campus. At the top of her list? Taking a class at RISD.
“It’s an opportunity I won’t have once I graduate — taking a class at an amazing art school from such accomplished professors,” she said.
For David Veloso ’26, his highest priority was to play intramural inner tube water polo — a goal he completed earlier this fall.
“It was so much fun,” he said.
Now, Veloso hopes to visit the Free Play Bar Arcade, check out the Johnson and Wales University bake sale during which culinary students sell their tasty creations and take part in a Brown University Relaxation Project massage workshop.
Sofia Kassalow ’26 spent the past summer in Providence, discovering hidden gems across the city. Her bucket list is an ode to local life: waiting in line at the Ice Cream Barn, attending the Wickenden Street Makers Market and going to live shows at Fete Music Hall.
She also hopes to study at the Providence Athenaeum and attend the St. Patrick’s Day Parade in Newport — a “staple” Brown student tradition, she added.
With graduation quickly approaching, Kassalow said her senior spring will be dedicated to experiences.
“Time is short,” she said. “I definitely want to make the most of it.”
