Life at NYU in Manhattan and Brooklyn (2024)

NYU Tisch School of the Arts’ Interactive Media Arts (IMA) program is an interdisciplinary bachelor’s degree that explores digital interactivity. Tisch is based in Manhattan, but the IMA department is located on the Downtown Brooklyn campus at 370 Jay Street. Several other Tisch programs are based in Brooklyn, including Game Design and Recorded Music.

There’s about an even split between the location of major classes. Most major-based courses are hosted in Brooklyn and NYU core classes are typically held in Manhattan. This can vary for different students. Often, there is flexibility with which classes can fulfill major requirements and some of those classes are offered in Manhattan or Brooklyn, depending on available resources. Additionally, if you pick up a minor or a second major, your classes may be more heavily based on one of the two campuses.

First of all, NYU has a shuttle service that runs daily throughout the school year. There are seven shuttle routes throughout Manhattan and Brooklyn. Route A stops in front of the Tisch building on Broadway in Manhattan and 6 MetroTech, the main academic building for the Brooklyn campus. It typically runs about every hour. Sometimes during more popular class times when students may need to go back and forth more often, the shuttle runs every 20 minutes. This service is free to use with your NYU ID, and it takes you right over the Manhattan Bridge with a great view of the skyline! Learn more about the NYU shuttle system.

NYU Safe Ride, which runs nightly from 11:00 p.m. to 7:00 a.m. throughout the school year, is another resource. Through a smartphone app, any NYU student can call for an on-demand ride from any NYU location to another NYU location across Manhattan and Brooklyn. Students can travel around the city late at night and feel safer doing so with this free transportation service available exclusively to NYU students. A benefit of NYU’s location in New York City is that the campus spans quite a few neighborhoods. Because of this, people who live off campus but close enough to NYU buildings can also utilize the NYU Shuttle and NYU Safe Ride to get around the city.

Outside of university transportation, New York City has many public transportation options and is very walkable. Getting to Brooklyn from Manhattan and vice versa tends to take about 20 to 25 minutes, whether it is by subway or the shuttle.

Katy (she/her) is a senior studying Interactive Media Arts at the Tisch School of the Arts and minoring in Technology, Management, and Design at the Tandon School of Engineering. In addition to working as an Admission Ambassador, Katy works with NYU Residential Life as a Residential Assistant on the Brooklyn Campus, as a Technical Assistant at the NYU MakerSpace, and leads the Events Team of Tech@NYU. Born and raised in the Bay Area, California, you can find her exploring NYC, playing board games, reading, and ice skating in her free time.