Most new people I meet are in uni so we generally talk about what we're studying, what extracurriculars we do, if we have mutual friends I might ask how they knew them etc. Very light small talk and then also generally I like asking about places people want to travel to (my uni degree involves an exchange so it's easy to bring it up) and also I'll just generally try to find out more about the person - what sort of TV shows, films, music etc. they like if the convo can build up to it naturally. If the weekend is coming up, perhaps if they have any plans/what they want to do over break is also a very safe convo to have.
It's a lot easier if we have something in common but I find it really interesting to talk to people and see how many different interests and experiences they have so small talk is fun as long as the other person is comfortable to talk to! I try to just go with the flow of the conversation but the above are usually what I'd probably talk about. :D