Curious about what a Peddie student’s academic lifestyle is like? Answers will vary depending on factors such as course selections or extracurriculars. But one thing is sure to remain the same: No matter who you ask, the rigor of Peddie classes means that studying is inherently a core part of everyone’s educational diet. As students take on more and more challenging courses during their transition from freshman to senior, building and practicing good study habits is key to reaching success. 

And what better way to help facilitate the implementation of these scholarly routines than the Peddie campus itself? Whether a boarder or a day student, almost every Falcon is familiar with the school’s sunrise-to-sunset culture; from participating in vigorous athletic activities to staying late at Math Center, being a Peddie student means being all-in. Coupled with the existence of free periods and study halls, it’s not surprising that both day students and boarders get a lot, or most, of their study sessions in at various spots around campus. 

There are so many unique and interesting spaces around Peddie’s sprawling grounds, some more conducive to productive studying than others. We surveyed the Peddie community to find out which ones they like the most?

Top Pick: The Library

To no one’s surprise, the Walter H. ’27 Annenberg Library rose to the top of the polls by a huge margin — 59.4% of survey users chose this space as their favorite to study at, and rightfully so; it is, after all, the place on campus that is most explicitly designed for academic work to take place. Survey users cited numerous reasons for choosing this option, such as the reserve of snacks available for purchase, physical resources available and the enforced library culture (eg. moderate speaking voices, calm conduct, doing school work, etc.). 

But the library’s most prominent appeal seems to be its diversity of spots within the spot itself. Not only does it have regular work tables that fit six people per table and have charging stations and lamps, comfy couches and armchairs with lap desks, and study rooms for private collaborative endeavors, but it also features a basement floor level meant solely for silent studying. 

The downstairs area allows students to enjoy peaceful, quiet surroundings as they do homework. However, when the main floor is less busy, it allows students to work fruitfully while still being able to collaborate or socialize with peers if they want to. 

Although it is the most popular option, the school library doesn’t come without its drawbacks. Many respondents reported that although the library’s natural environment was attractive, the space often became crowded and rowdy due to its popularity, which inhibited productivity. 

One survey user expanded upon their answer by stating that their favorite place to study was at the library, but specifically in the morning or the evening because there wouldn’t be many people around to create distractions. 

This is still not satisfactory for a significant portion of pollees, including River An ’27. An was one of the few people who chose the library as their least favorite place to study, writing, “I usually don’t get anything done if I go to the library without an intention to work with specific people for a specific assignment. The downstairs area is too isolating, but the upstairs area is too social, especially in a study room.” Instead, when asked what her favorite place to study was, she put her dorm lounge. 

Convenient: Dorms

During the 2023-2024 academic school year, Peddie reported that boarding students encompassed 60% of the student body — that’s roughly 320 students who had to learn to adjust to residential life. For them, the dorm is their home away from home, and for some, it can provide the perfect mix of comfort and practicality. 

For example, An enjoys the dorm lounge because it is an intermediate between the complete isolation felt in places such as dorm rooms or the library’s lower level, and the overly social atmospheres of public hangout areas. 

Still, others find themselves working most productively because of the quiet guaranteed by being in a more exclusive building and appreciate the convenience of having all of their essential belongings right there with them. 

Unconventionally Attractive

When choosing where to study, most people look for the place that is the least distracting and the most comfortable. This criteria can be met by many spaces on campus that are not expressly meant for academic studying. For some, an occasional change in environment can even be helpful. For instance, freshmen aren’t allowed in the library past 8:00 p.m. during study hall and are forced to search for another place to complete their work. 

For day students especially, though, having multiple options on campus is important because of their lack of a ‘home base’ for extended use. Answers such as the History House and its study rooms or the computer science lab were all provided by Falcons who commute. 

However, one space that is not traditionally used for study was the favorite of 10.4% of surveyees, all but two of whom are boarders. Peddie’s arts center is home to a wide variety of rooms and areas that can be appealing to some, such as the couches in Ding lobby, art classrooms, and practice rooms; admittedly, they are so unlike standard study set-ups that it is a turn-off for an appreciable amount of respondents in addition to its distance from center campus/main campus buildings. Many have never even studied in Swig before. 

Perhaps, with more time to spend on campus, boarders are more familiar with the perks that a place like Swig holds (this is a P.S.A. to day students and creatures of habit to explore other places around campus to do their work in! You never know what you might find that will be to your liking). 

Other unselected spots include the Science Center lobby, which doesn’t have great desks but is comfortable and quiet; outdoor picnic tables for warm weather or even Masland, but only when it’s abandoned — trust me on this one. 

Some Places Are Just Better Left Alone (The Greatest Hate)

I’ve personally ventured to Masland and the Grille more than once during my Peddie career, and have been pleasantly surprised to enjoy a productive work session. However, this is not the normal outcome. It’s one thing to not be designed for academic study but another to be completely meant for the opposite. The Grille and Masland Room are notorious for being loud and populated — and rightfully so, because they are the main campus places for casual activities and socialization. Anyone who heads there to do work can expect to accomplish little if the room is in use. 

The Grille, in particular, has a reputation for being extremely raucous, possibly too much so at times. The noise levels make it hard for most students to concentrate, leading over 60% of participants to identify it as their least favorite place to study. 

Other least favorites include both the dorms and any place other than one’s dorm, as well as the library and Swig. Nevertheless, the Grille remains Peddie students’ most chosen answer for a certain question, chosen by an almost equal fraction of both the boarding and day student portion of respondents. 

“While the Grille is beneficial mostly for social hangouts and getting some good food in between classes, the library, in my opinion, is the best place to collaborate with other students while maintaining focus on schoolwork,” said sophomore boarder Angelina Morales ’27 when elaborating on her choices. 

Morales’ comment addresses an important point surrounding the topic of spaces and their functions, as it acknowledges that different areas on campus are more suitable for certain activities than others. Just because a space isn’t desirable for one objective doesn’t mean that it doesn’t come with advantages of its own. 

Peddie’s campus is big and beautiful, with so many wonderful spaces that support the wide range of pursuits students undertake during their high school careers. What’s most important is to find out what spaces work best for you as an individual and be open to the fact that they often offer more than what simply meets the eye.

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Thank you for tuning into The Peddie Poll! The Peddie Poll is dedicated to providing accurate reflections of student interests on a wide variety of relevant topics. We appreciate any feedback, suggestions, input and participation! Be sure to look out for another poll and article featured in the next issue of The Peddie News. 

About the Survey

This survey was conducted through Google Forms with a total of 96 distinct student responses, which is a response rate of roughly 18%. The boarder-to-day-student ratio of responses was 5:3, which is the same as the school boarder-to-day-student ratio from the 2023-2024 school year. The survey followed a generally open-response format; however, it utilized multiple choice selection with a write-in option to facilitate ease of graph depiction. This may have influenced the results of the survey by providing visible selections as students completed the survey. All direct quotes were used with explicit permission from the person quoted.