Skip to Main Content
New York University's independent student newspaper, established in 1973.

Washington Square News

New York University's independent student newspaper, established in 1973.

Washington Square News

New York University's independent student newspaper, established in 1973.

Washington Square News

Opinion

Seven students wear masks while sitting at their desks in an NYU classroom. A professor sitting on a table listens to a student.

Opinion: Recitations shouldn’t be mandatory

NYU should allow students to take ownership of their learning.
Molly Koch, Deputy Opinion Editor April 4, 2023

NYU is a large university, with over 50,000 enrolled students, which means class sizes are not always going to be small. Unless you are like me and lucked out with small discussion-based...

The marble facade of a pre-war building reflected in the floor-to-ceiling windows of a modern building.

Opinion: You don’t need an internship this summer

Don’t let your imposter syndrome make you fill a three-month break from school with extra work.
Molly Koch, Deputy Opinion Editor March 31, 2023

As the end of the academic year approaches, it feels like every person I come into contact with asks me what my summer plans are. Excitedly, I tell them I'm studying away in Athens,...

A paper straw with blue stripes in a plastic cup against a red wall.

Off-Third: The last straw: Dining hall paper straws turn students into climate deniers

Save the turtles — or don’t. Just give us our plastic straws back, climate-denying students say.
Naisha Roy, Deputy Opinion Editor March 29, 2023

After spending months grappling with dysfunctional paper straws, some NYU students are rejecting the university’s sustainability measures — and the idea of climate change as...

A tall building complex with a glass exterior and traffic passing in front.

Opinion: NYU’s new buildings represent the death of college charm

The newly-opened Paulson Center is just one example of how the dearth of beautiful Gothic architecture on college campuses is destroying the traditional university atmosphere.
Mia Madonna, Contributing Writer March 27, 2023

On my first tour of NYU, I remember finding it odd how little traditional college architecture there was on campus. Between the daunting, brick behemoth that is Bobst Library and...

A classroom filled with students, who are wearing masks, working on their laptops. An analog clock hangs on the wall behind them.

Opinion: Stop making classes longer than they need to be

Most NYU classes are 75 minutes long. The ones that are longer shouldn’t be.
Naisha Roy, Deputy Opinion Editor March 24, 2023

There’s only one thing worse than sitting in a murky auditorium, listening to a professor lecture for 75 minutes: sitting there for double that time. That’s what I had to do...

Two students at a salad bar with dining tables to the right.

Opinion: Dear NYU Eats, keep more locations open over break

Downstein should not be the only dining hall open during spring break.
Molly Koch, Deputy Opinion Editor March 22, 2023

Many NYU students leave the city over spring break — some vacation with friends, others return home to spend time with family. For those who remain on campus, though, living...

Two people walk past an entrance of an building used by N.Y.U’s Tandon School of Engineering.

Guest Essay: The demise of NYU’s sustainability major

Students in the Sustainable Urban Environments major have been left in the dark by administration, while professors are hard at work fighting to keep sustainability a part of the curriculum.
Elaine Ly March 10, 2023

Elaine Ly is a mechanical engineering student at NYU’s Tandon School of Engineering. After almost a year of little to no communication, students in the Sustainable Urban Environments...

A photo of a computer screen displaying N.Y.U.’s academic calendar.

Opinion: A longer spring break is the simple solution to burnout

With travel, assignments and exams to study for, NYU’s one-week recess is hardly a break at all.
Molly Koch, Deputy Opinion Editor March 10, 2023

Next Monday, NYU students begin their highly-anticipated one-week spring break. The time off is too brief, leaving students feeling like they only have a few days to recover from...

The entrance to N.Y.U’s Upstein dining hall with a sign that reads “Order Ready.” There is a pick-up counter in the background with many brown paper bags waiting to be collected.

Opinion: Unpredictable dining hall wait times make it impossible to plan ahead

Despite the convenience of the Grubhub app, listed pickup times are unreliable, sometimes forcing students to wait up to two hours during peak periods to get their food. 
Abi Rivera, Opinion Editor March 10, 2023

As a hungry college student, I often find myself standing in the bustling Upstein food court, desperately refreshing the Grubhub app and scanning the room.​​ The large monitors...

Two students at a salad bar with dining tables to the right.

Opinion: Crave NYU is better because it has a different food provider

The new Crave NYU dining hall proves that the university can do food right. Why not have Sous Vide Kitchen as the primary provider in the rest of the dining halls?
Naisha Roy, Deputy Opinion Editor March 9, 2023

After the third time I received burnt Cluckstein chicken nuggets, I promised myself I would never eat there again. When NYU announced the opening of a new dining hall in the Paulson...

A hand holds a cup of coffee with foam on top. The cup is white and the person holding the coffee is wearing a beige coat.

Opinion: College hyperproductivity culture normalizes caffeine addiction

In the city that never sleeps, students will do anything to stay awake.
Manami Yamano, Contributing Writer March 6, 2023

Every morning, hundreds of NYU students stop at Pret A Manger, Starbucks, or any one of the other countless coffee chains in the city to purchase their constant companion and faithful...

An image of two levels of Bobst Library, with students studying at tables on both floors. The seats are almost full.

Opinion: For a building so big, Bobst has little seating room

More than four million volumes, 53,320 serial titles, 43,000 linear feet of archives, and yet there’s little room for students in Bobst Library.
Hogan Bingel, Contributing Writer March 6, 2023

If it isn’t the excessive heat or stench of body odor that prevents you from stepping foot into Bobst Library, then perhaps it’s the lack of seating.  Thanks to the donation...