Life at New College

There is something at New College for everyone. Join a club, or create one. Get active, get creative, or relax. Take advantage of all that Sarasota and Bradenton have to offer. Want to see what Life at New College is really like? Come visit us and find out!

Have some fun here!

Discover countless student activities and fun things to do around campus.

Live Right on the Water

New College campus is on the Sarasota Bayfront with onsite water access and our own private beach, where you can swim, kayak or paddleboard, or even join the sailing club.

Clubs & Organizations

Explore dozens of student clubs and organizations, with interests ranging across hobbies, sports, community advocacy, and future professions.

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Athletics

New College offers a dozen intercollegiate athletics teams competing in the NAIA’s Sun Conference.

Explore the Suncoast

Sarasota is famous for its beautiful beaches including Siesta Key, plethora of arts and cultural institutions, restaurants, and year-round warm weather. Located an hour south of Tampa and St. Pete on Florida’s Gulf Coast, Sarasota is regularly ranked among the best places to live in the U.S.

SAuCE Office

The Office of Student Activities & Campus Engagement strives to create a vibrant, purposeful, and supportive college community where students make a positive difference, develop healthy and meaningful relationships with others, are empowered to take action, learn about themselves, and develop leadership and lifelong skills. We like to say you can experiment with different ingredients, and create your sauce!

Campus Highlights

Socialize with friends in Palm Court, hear a band play on Z Green, admire the sunset from the steps of College Hall, or take a dip in the pool or outdoor hot tub. Located in Sarasota on the former estate of circus magnate Charles Ringling, New College is spread over 110 acres and organized into three campuses: Bayfront, Caples and Pei.

Historic & modern architecture

College Hall is the historic mansion of Charles Ringling, circus magnate, and is the welcome center for prospective students and families.

Built in the 1920s for Hester Ringling, Charles Ringling’s daughter, Cook Hall holds administrative offices including the office of the President and Provost. The original dorms (below) were designed by legendary architect I.M. Pei.

Academic facilities

The Pritzker Marine Biology Research Center makes us the only liberal arts college in the US with a marine research center and research boats located on campus!

Sainer Fine Arts Pavilion is the heart of music, sculpture and the fine arts on campus, with indoor and outdoor performance spaces.

The Public Archaeology Lab facilitates studies of archaeology and historic preservation for Sarasota and Manatee counties through ethical, community-based research and public engagement.

The 56,000-square-foot Heiser Natural Sciences Complex includes teaching and research labs for chemistry, biochemistry, biology, bioinformatics, computational science, mathematics and physics.

Jane Bancroft Cook Library provides academic success services that support discovery, creation and preservation of knowledge.

Creative spaces and stages

The Black Box Theater is a flexible creative space for students, holding workshops and theatrical productions throughout the school year.

The 257-seat Sainer Auditorium is used for music, theater and dance performances by students and visiting artists. 

Hang out, have fun

The New College Bayfront is a great place to hang out with friends, read under an oak tree, or catch the sunset over Sarasota Bay.

The Waterfront Program and Boathouse located on Caples Campus has kayaks, paddleboards, and sail boats for your use, and its own private beach with wifi!

Walk through Hamilton “Ham” Center at any time of day, and you can find students playing ping pong, shooting pool, checking their mail, grabbing a bite to eat and meeting up with friends.