Worcester Polytechnic Institute

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Student Life Events

WPI's student body stages a number of regular weekly events that students can enjoy. Some of them are listed below.

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• Friday Night Gaming - An event sponsored by WPI's Science Fiction Society (SFS). The SFS has a stock of various board games in a library at the basement of Riley Hall. Every Friday (even during term breaks and summer vacation), these games will be brought to the Wedge (the space between Morgan and Daniels Hall) so that students can play. It usually starts at 5-6 PM and can last to 2 or 3 AM.
• Sunday Movies - Hosted by SocComm's Film division. Every Sunday, a new film is shown on the WPI campus.

In addition to regularly scheduled campus activities, WPI is host to a number of annual events. These events usually only attract students, however, some events are large enough to draw in off-campus visitors. Some are listed below in order of occurrence.

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• Gaming Weekend - A bi-annual three-day event hosted by the SFS. It is the first major campus event of the year, usually taking place around Labor Day weekend. It is also held in the last term of the year. Gaming Weekend attracts a number of students and alumni, sometimes as many as 50-75. Games such as Magic: The Gathering, Care Bears: Call of Cthulhu, and Duck, Duck, Goose are all regular features.
• Homecoming - sponsored by the Office of Alumni Relations, this fall event brings numerous alumni back to campus to celebrate the past, present, and future of the University.
• Dragon Night - A annual celebration hosted by WPI's Chinese Student Association (CSA). Dragon Night usually features Chinese food, lion dancing, and other elements of Chinese culture.
• Anime Fest - An annual showing of Japanese animation hosted by the SFS. This is one of the largest events held on campus during the year, attracting in upwards of 100 people. Attendees include students, alumni, students from other Consortium colleges, and even people from Eastern and Western Massachusetts. Anime Fest only shows licensed anime with permission from their respective companies.
• National Day of Silence - Every year, BiLaGa and other organizations lead an effort on campus for students to observe the National Day of Silence, an event created to raise awareness about those oppressed by various ideologies, such as bigotry and political correctness.
• Ugly Man on Campus (UMOC) - Hosted by WPI's chapter of Alpha Phi Omega. Students nominate themselves to compete for the title of Ugliest Man on Campus. Votes are done by putting money in the student's collection cup. Whoever raises the most money wins the title and chooses which charity the funds go to. UMOC usually coincides with QuadFest.
• QuadFest - The largest event held on campus, hosted by the WPI Social Committee (SocComm). It takes place during the final week of the WPI school year. Events include musical acts, movies, and special booths created by WPI clubs and organizations.