As someone who loves exploring the city, I’ve been lucky enough to visit many of New York’s museums. Through my years of roaming, I’ve learned that each museum has a distinct energy reminiscent of the many schools at NYU. Some are meant for science lovers obsessed with stars and snakes, while others are for cinephiles and creatives who hope that one day, the works being admired by museumgoers will be theirs. Here’s the museum that’s perfect for you, based on your NYU school.

CAS: American Museum of Natural History

As the university’s largest school, it’s only fitting that the College of Arts & Science gets a museum that matches its range. Whether it’s dinosaurs, oceans, insects, human origins or gemstones, the American Museum of Natural History visualizes topics across nearly every field of science. For those interested in the humanities, the museum also has halls for different regions of the world, art created and curated by indigenous artists and an exhibition all about names. Like CAS itself, the museum thrives on intellectual variety. 

Gallatin: The Museum of Modern Art

This school is known for encouraging students to focus on a little bit of everything — and so does The Museum of Modern Art. The MoMA’s collection spans iconic works by Salvador Dalí, Vincent van Gogh and Andy Warhol along with contemporary sculptures, paintings and video art. Some things within this museum are easier to understand than others — like some concentrations at the Gallatin School of Individualized Study — but it doesn’t matter who understands them, as long as they can express themselves.

Rory Meyers: Whitney Museum of American Art

Students at the Rory Meyers College of Nursing may have a laundry list of assignments to complete — but when they finally get some time off, exploring this museum should be their first stop. Located in the Meatpacking District along the Hudson River, the Whitney Museum of American Art is home to breathtaking exhibitions and views of the Jersey City skyline. As many of the Whitney’s exhibitions are temporary — current works include “Claes Oldenburg: Drawn from Life” and the lively “High Wire: Calder’s Circus at 100” — they serve as a reminder of the importance to slow down and enjoy art when you have the time.

SPS: Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum

Sometimes it’s not about the art itself, but everything around it. This holds true for the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum — though it holds renowned modernist, impressionist and abstract works, seeing the iconic spiral ramp is an experience of its own. Since many students at the School of Professional Studies major in hospitality, real estate or sports management, the beauty of the school is how these distinct fields of study work in harmony — making the Guggenheim, a museum creative at its core, the right fit. 

Silver: The Frick Collection

Just like the Silver School of Social Work, The Frick Collection is small but mighty. Known for its European sculpture and Old Master paintings, the Central Park-adjacent museum is selective and tight-knit — perfect for a school with only about 40 to 50 undergraduates. In addition to its elegant atmosphere, The Frick also has plenty of picturesque spots for you to stand in front of for the perfect shot.

Steinhardt: Museum of Ice Cream

When most of us picture the Steinhardt School of Culture, Education, and Human Development, it’s hard to nail down what exactly the school is all about. With niche fields of study such as educational theater, studio art and food studies, Steinhardt is a colorful mashup of students with youthful, vibrant energy, seeking to teach something new or let creativity flow in unconventional ways — a great fit for the Museum of Ice Cream, which gives students the chance to act like a kid again. Plus, who doesn’t like unlimited ice cream?

Stern: The Metropolitan Museum of Art

This school’s reputation of prestige parallels that of The Metropolitan Museum of Art. Both are glamorous and revered in their respective fields — the Stern School of Business ranks fifth in the top 10 business programs in the country, while the Met similarly takes No. 5 on the Museum World Ranking. People from all over the world come to New York City to study business at Stern or gaze upon art at the Met, making it only right that Sternies head to this museum for their next weekend outing.

Tandon: Brooklyn Museum

While students who live in Manhattan might feel like the Tandon School of Engineering is another world away, it’s just as cool as any other school — and more than deserving of the Brooklyn Museum. Tandon students, who can create anything they set their minds to, will resonate deeply with this museum next to the Brooklyn Botanic Garden, which is all about innovation, community and celebrating art that inspires.

Tisch: Museum of the Moving Image

Ask many a Tisch student, and they’ll tell you that the process behind creating art is what matters. This is exactly what the Museum of the Moving Image is all about: Not only are several of its areas interactive, but the Queens museum also shows how famous pieces from movie history came to be — inspired cinema studies majors can look at Jim Carrey’s mask from “The Mask” and a replica of the possessed girl from “The Exorcist.”  

Contact Alessa Alluin at [email protected].