In celebration of the Hopkins Sesquicentennial Celebration, here are 150 things you should do before you graduate!
A. The basics
1. Wear blue on Blue Jay Tuesday
2. Join a new club at the Student Involvement Fair (or show up to the last General Body Meeting!)
3. Go to class beyond the first week
4. Take a writing intensive course that is not Introduction to Fiction and Poetry I
B. Hopkins core
5. Have a picnic on the Beach
6. Study in Brody till it closes at 2 a.m.
7. Take a golden hour photo with the Hopkins sign
8. Pet Tillie on Tillie Tuesday
9. Bond over the universal experience of Hopkins Groups crashing
10. Wait in line for free food and shirts
C. Hopkins traditions
11. Pick a pumpkin at Hoptoberfest
12. Ride the mechanical bull at Hoptoberfest
13. Get some apple cider and donuts at Hoptoberfest
14. Attend the Hoptoberfest concert
15. Enjoy hot chocolate during Lighting of the Quads
16. Collect all four Lighting of the Quads mugs
17. Watch fireworks at Lighting of the Quads
18. Play carnival games at Spring Fair
19. Go to the petting zoo at Spring Fair
20. Attend the Spring Fair Concert
D. Hopkins traditions (niche edition)
21. Run (or cheer) in the Annual Homewood Holiday 5K
22. Ice skate at the Hopkins ice rink
23. Eat cake during the Edible Book Festival
24. Attend Earth Month Bash
25. Lie on a blanket during Picnic Day
26. Attend spirit brunch at Hopkins Cafe
27. Scream on the Beach before finals
E. Hopkins traditions (cultural edition)
28. Attend Barrio by Filipino Students Association
29. Attend Lunar New Year Banquet by Chinese Students Association
30. Attend Taste of Taiwan by Taiwanese American Students Association
31. Attend Pocha Night by Korean American Students Association
32. Attend Spring Matsuri by Japanese Students Association
F. Hopkins students got talent
33. Attend O-Show!
34. Attend an a cappella showcase
35. Attend a dance showcase
36. Attend a fire spinning show
37. Watch a musical in the Merrick Barn
38. Watch a play in the Merrick Barn
39. Attend a Peabody performance
40. Attend praise night on Keyser quad
41. Attend a Hopkins Symphony Orchestra concert
G. Hopkins students have school spirit
42. Attend a Men’s Lacrosse game
43. Attend a Women’s Lacrosse game
44. Do the crab wave at a lacrosse game
45. Figure out how lacrosse works
46. Attend a sports game that is not lacrosse
47. Attend a tailgate before a game
48. High five the Blue Jay mascot at a game
49. Wear a ridiculous amount of Hopkins merch at a game
H. Locked in
50. Go to office hours
51. Study in Brody or Gilman
52. Study at the Peabody Library
53. Lock in during the Long Night Against Procrastination at the Writing Center
I. Hopkins students touch grass!
54. Sit in a hammock on Keyser Quad
55. Visit the plants in Olin Hall
56. Spot the Hop Fox
57. Have a picnic at Sherwood Gardens during the Spring
58. Get groceries and breakfast at the 32nd Street Farmers Market
59. Visit the Howard Peters Rawlings Conservatory and Botanic Gardens
60. Run a 5K, half marathon or marathon during the Baltimore Running Festival
61. Hike at Jones Falls Trail
62. Join the Baltimore Bike Party
63. Drive a golf cart during Alumni Weekend
J. Things to do besides doomscrolling
64. Visit Special Collections
65. Print a trinket at the Makerspace in the Pava Marie LaPere Center for Entrepreneurship
66. Try all the fancy machines in the Rec
67. Bring a friend to a group workout class at the Rec
68. Do a News-Letter crossword puzzle
69. Attend an event or seminar outside your major for fun
70. Volunteer at a Baltimore charity
71. Go swing dancing at Mobtown
72. Go sledding down the Beach in winter
K. Museum marathon (in order of distance from Homewood campus)
73. Visit the Archaeological Museum in Gilman
74. Visit the Homewood Museum
75. Visit the Baltimore Museum of Art
76. Cut through the BMA sculpture garden during the spring
77. Visit the Evergreen Library
78. Visit the Walters Arts Museum
79. Visit the American Visionary Art Museum
80. Visit the B&O Railroad Museum
L. Friday night vibes
81. View the stars through the telescope in the Bloomberg Center for Physics and Astronomy
82. Go to an Orioles Game at Camden Yards
83. Cheer at a Raven’s game
84. Attend a concert at the Lyric
85. Attend a jazz concert at Bluebird Cocktail Bar
86. Attend a Baltimore Symphony Orchestra concert
87. Attend a performance at Baltimore Center Stage
88. Go duckpin bowling
M. Hampden circuit
89. Get coffee from Artifact
90. Visit the local boutiques and book stores
91. Go thrifting
92. Visit the Rotunda Farmers Market
93. Watch a movie at Rotunda
94. Get the Neighborhood Bird Bowl from Ekiben
95. Go to Urban Oyster during happy hour
96. Get comfort food from The Food Market
97. Try new ice cream flavors at Charmery
98. Eat a slice of pie from Dangerously Delicious Pies
N. Peabody circuit
99. Visit the Peabody Library
100. Climb the stairs of the Washington Monument
101. Get a drink at Ceremony
102. Get brunch at Dooby’s
103. Visit the Enoch Pratt Free Library
104. Visit the Enoch Pratt House
O. Inner Harbor circuit
105. Take the Purple Circulator to Inner Harbor
106. Try the dragon boats or water taxi
107. Watch the sunrise or sunset at inner Harbor
108. Visit the National Aquarium
109. Climb up Federal Hill to enjoy the waterfront views
110. Eat some Italian food in Little Italy
111. Get a boot-shaped mug at Christmas Village
P. Things to do in D.C.
112. Visit the Johns Hopkins University Bloomberg Center at 555 Pennsylvania Avenue (not to be confused with the Bloomberg Student Center)
113. Get breakfast at the Dupont Circle Farmers Market
114. Do a museum marathon
115. Attend the Cherry Blossom Festival
Q. Journeying off campus
116. Take the Baltimore College Town Shuttle to Towson
117. Go on a Johns Hopkins Outdoor Club trip
118. Visit the Maryland Zoo
119. Go apple picking in the fall
120. Visit Ellicott City
121. Visit Annapolis
R. Eat your way through senior year (ordered breakfast, dinner and dessert)
122. Get a crab dip bagel from La Maison by Cafe Dear Leon in Remington
123. Get the Berkeley sandwich and Breakfast at Tiffany’s from Kitsch
124. Get a matcha from Equitea
125. Get a lamb gyro bowl from the Jordanian food truck
126. Get fried chicken from BRD at R. House
127. Get a fancy smashburger from Mo’s
128. Get fried chicken and waffles from Connie’s
129. Get pasta from Grano’s
130. Get fried chicken and sing karaoke at Kong Pocha
131. Get oysters from Thames Street Oyster House
132. Try a crab cake from Koco’s Pub
133. Get Tia’s Italian Ice (with ice cream on top)
134. Try seasonal ice cream flavors from Taharka Brothers
135. Try Old Bay kombucha
136. Go to Clavel for Margs Monday
137. Try a can of Baltimore lager Natty Boh
138. Try a local beer from Peabody Heights Brewery
139. Go to Asia in a Bite Food Festival
S. Almost Done with Senior Year
140. Actually remember to register for graduation
141. Fix your sleep schedule (briefly)
142. Submit your final final paper
143. Ace your final final exam
144. Recreate a freshman-year photo as a senior
145. Reconnect with a professor from your freshman year
146. Thank someone you are grateful for meeting at Hopkins
T. Finally done!
147. Make your Senior Class Gift
148. See people you have not seen since freshman year during the Senior Class Celebration
149. Enjoy desserts and champagne during Senior Toast
150. Walk the stage during Commencement!
Elizabeth Deng is a senior from Singapore graduating with a degree in Neuroscience and Economics.
