Could we do a college thread?

[JennifersLost]

What if everyone listed the college/university they attended or one that they know well - gave a brief summary of likes and dislikes about it:

 

1. Name and location

 

2. What you studied and if you know, what are a few "good" majors the school is known for.

 

3. Likes

 

4. Dislikes

 

5. Any other pertinent info.

 

I'll go first. I went to the University of Pennsylvania which is located in west Philadelphia. It was founded by Ben Franklin and has a mix of old and new architecture.

 

I went through Anthropology and Political Science (both popular majors there) before settling on English with a concentration on Medieval Studies. Other good majors at Penn are Business (The Wharton School), nursing, and I guess all the major humanities.

 

I loved the library, some of the professors, the fact that I could take all kinds of weird subjects like Old Icelandic. I liked that I was near all the major Philadelphia tourist points - the liberty bell, Independence Hall, etc. The university's Museum of Anthropology is stunning, and Philadephia's big museum is amazing, too.

 

I hated being in West Philly where crime was rampant and I felt afraid a lot. Two people were murdered across the street from where I lived freshman year. In later years when I moved off campus I had homeless people living and drinking on my doorstep daily, and my home was broken into. I was nearly mugged once by a crowd of young men and was lucky to talk my way out of being hurt by them. I guess any big city would be the same, though.

 

If I was to give advice to a kid thinking of attending Penn I would tell them to make the most of the amazing professors that are there. Don't just attend class. Hit all the office hours, form a relationship with your teachers. Find out what they're doing being class hours and if you can help with their projects. Wander the library and discover all the amazing old books in it. Try to get into the archives, too. I missed many opportunities by being shy and distracted by other things. It is really an amazing place.

 

Now I want to hear about other schools! Especially anyone who's attended or knows about ones that are off the beaten path a bit!

[Crissy]

Hmmm. I could tell you all about my wonderful high school... :D

 

Or my self-education over the past 20 years. :tongue_smilie:

[Mekanamom]

1. Name and location

 

2. What you studied and if you know, what are a few "good" majors the school is known for.

 

3. Likes

 

4. Dislikes

 

5. Any other pertinent info.

 

 

I attended a few:

 

 

• DeAnza Jr. College (San Jose, CA)

  (Quality of education for a CC was excellent; fast track right into UC Davis, too.)

• UC Davis (Davis, CA)

  (Of course I went there so I could get my Bachelor's degree and then get right into the Veterinary College @ Davis. Very good vet school there. However, I got married to DH who was stationed in Hawaii, so...)

• University of Hawaii at Manoa (Oahu)

  (No vet school here. I went to this campus for 2 years, but the commute was over an hour long to get there. So I transfered yet again.)

• University of Hawaii West-Oahu

  (Finally got my degree in Social Sciences. 3 months before dd #1 was born. Cut it a bit close, eh?)

 

 

Quality of education was good at all of these schools. I enjoyed Davis the most; I'd say it was a bit more rigorous than UH, but the class sizes were also bigger. All of them had a pretty strong Social Sciences program. (Psych, Soc, Anthropology.) UHWO was in the process of renewing their accredidation just before I graduated, so they pushed my class to really perform and impress the accreditors. Hee hee, I always felt I lucked out on that point.

 

Edited to add: Since I already had my AA degree from the Jr. College, I only ever took upper division classes at Davis & UH... that, I am sure, makes a difference in my perception of the quality of teaching at those schools.

 

It also took me 7 years to get my BA degree. Every time I transfered, I had to meet the new school's graduation requirements, and they were all slightly different. In addition, I learned the painful way that quarter units do not directly translate to semester units. And there are some classes you may not, under any circumstances, test out of. LOL. (I think it's all a ploy to keep students in school longer and get more tuition money. ;))

[Jenny in Atl]

1. Name and location - Georgia State University, Atl GA

 

2. What you studied and if you know, what are a few "good" majors the school is known for. I got a BS in Psychology. GA State is know for it's business school (both undergraduate and Graduate). They also have a good Psych dept, especially Graduate.

 

3. Likes Good profs, solid affordable, awesome radio station (at the time), and dynamic student body.

 

4. Dislikes The commute (at the time there were no dorms), parking, and somewhat unsafe surrounding area for night classes. Again all this might be totally different... it has been 18 years!

 

5. Any other pertinent info. Only that I now much has to have changed since I went, so I would not be able to say whether I would recommend GSU or not. Better schools close by are GA Tech, Morris Brown/Clark/Spellmen, and of course UGA out in Athens.

[Sandra in NC]

I took the Goldilocks approach.

 

U of Rochester, NY was too hard. I've never met such smart people in all my life. I kept thinking, "How do they know all this?" about my felllow students. When I was accepted, my test scores showed I'd be in the bottom 18% of the U of R population. I was.

 

U of Hawaii (I was born and raised in Hawaii so it was my state school) was too easy. Kids would listen to the surf report during class and they had their surf boards propped up against the back wall of the lecture hall for ready access. One girl asked me what "sensible" meant and I laughed because I thought she was joking. She wasn't joking. There were many foreign, unintelligible profs (some quite lecherous) at U of H and I HATED it there.

 

High Point College in NC was next. It was a comfortable, "just right" school. I went there because my gradparents offered to pay for a year there. When I graduated, our economy was in the midst of a recession ('81), so I went to graduate school at UNC- Greensboro.

 

My favorite school was the last. It might just be because graduate school is so much more interesting than undergrad.....

[st_claire]

Some Canadian stuff:

 

University of Guelph: Did my undergrad there for engineering. Good school. Nice campus. It's small, which I liked. You get to know the teachers. Lots of girls (some engg programs are almost all guys). Small town is either pro or con depends what you like.

 

York University: Master's here in CS. Much bigger school. Big city. Easy commuter access. Good funding.

 

 

McMaster University: Dh went there for his undergrad in business (accounting). He liked it. Small school also. Medium size city though. Very working class city. Good business school.

[percytruffle]

U of Rochester, NY was too hard. I've never met such smart people in all my life. I kept thinking, "How do they know all this?" about my fellow students. When I was accepted, my test scores showed I'd be in the bottom 18% of the U of R population. I was.

 

 

I'll have to tell dh you said this. He will find it amusing. His Masters is in Optics from U of R. He decided not to go on for a Doctorate because he'd had enough of that environment! He did do very well though. He did his Masters work part-time while working full-time at Kodak. Yeah, he is pretty stinkin' smart.

 

It is a good school. One of my college boyfriends was an undergrad at U of R in Chemical Engineering. He was a transfer student from Columbia in NYC and found U of R to be quite a bit more challenging.

[Antonia]

Both dh and I attended the University of Central Florida in Orlando. We chose it because it was a good school for computer science back in the day. Dh ended up changing his major to business administration, and I majored in psychology. I believe they are known for their education and engineering departments.

 

When we attended twenty years ago, the university was a few buildings and a bunch of scrub brush. Now, it has grown to be quite impressive including some very nice frat/sorority houses and a huge stadium. They are trying very hard to join the ranks of University of Florida and Florida State. Orlando itself is nice, though pretty tourist-y what with Disney World only twenty minutes away and the beach close by.

 

Fwiw, my dh landed a work study at the company across the road from the college, and they hired him after graduation. He still works for that company twenty years later although we have since moved to CT.

[Hannah]

I attended the University of Stellenbosch, South Africa. It's a beautiful univesity town set amongst the winelands of the Western Cape. It's one of the top 4 research universities in South Africa and has international recognition for engineering and medicine.

 

But, I guess there aren't many on the board who'd be interested in attending there. :)

[Mekanamom]

U of Hawaii (I was born and raised in Hawaii so it was my state school) was too easy. Kids would listen to the surf report during class and they had their surf boards propped up against the back wall of the lecture hall for ready access. One girl asked me what "sensible" meant and I laughed because I thought she was joking. She wasn't joking. There were many foreign, unintelligible profs (some quite lecherous) at U of H and I HATED it there.

 

 

Wow! I can sort of see the student thing (I found that night classes were quite a bit better... more mature students who were there to learn after working all day. And then UHWO was even better because all of the students were more mature.) I had really good professors at both campuses, though. I'm sorry you had lecherous and unintelligible ones! Yikes. I was there from '93-'96.

[Mama Lynx]

I went to Southern Methodist University in Dallas, also affectionately known as "Southern Money University" and "Southern Methodist Country Club."

 

I studied English and Medieval Studies. I believe the university is best known for its art school, as well as its law and business schools. However, their liberal arts school is strong. Science and math were not at all strong when I was there, and I do not know if this has changed.

 

We used to say that it's a great school, in spite of the students. This was true. Most of the student body was very concerned with the Greek life. They were kids of rich parents, headed off to be rich themselves. Partying was huge.

 

However, the faculty is *excellent,* and if you are not into partying and all that lifestyle you can get a very, very good education. At least three of SMU's current professors have lectures at The Teaching Company. Perrine is there ("Sound and Sense.") The faculty is just amazing. The yearly lecture series is outstanding. There are tons and tons of fantastic cultural events.

 

At SMU, most introductory classes are taught by full professors. I had one TA in my entire four years. I had very few lecture hall classes. Most classes are small enough for you to really get to know the faculty, and for the faculty to get to know you. Many faculty members live close enough to the campus to walk, and would host dinners and parties at their homes. (In a gorgeous, old Dallas neighborhood.)

 

So yes, I do recommend it for a student who will not be sucked into the party lifestyle.

[Jan in SC]

I went to Clemson University in SC. (Go Tigers!!)

I studied recreational therapy and minored in theatre studies.

 

Clemson is known nationally for engineering and architecture. They also have a very good nursing program.

 

I loved everything about it! It is a large school with a small feel and a great environment.

 

Janet

[Faithr]

I went to Mt. St. Mary's College (now a university) in Emmitsburg, MD. I loved the campus (beautiful and full of history), the location (an hour from home and Washington D.C., right down the road from Gettysburg, 30 minutes from Frederick MD, very close to some beautiful parks). I also had some wonderful professors there who really opened up the world for me. It was a fairly small campus and the professors really cared about the students.

 

I hated the drinking, the drugs and sleeping around. It was supposed to be a 'Catholic' college but I didn't see much virtue going on! I hear it is much better about having a good encouraging, religious atmosphere. I hope so. It was depressing. I hated being there without a car because I loved getting off campus. I was a poli-sci major with a minor in Philosophy.

 

My 17 yo is thinking of applying there, though it is not her first choice. I don't think she'll have problems steering clear of the party-ers and I think the campus has gotten somewhat better about it anyway.

[percytruffle]

I don't know if anyone would be interested in my school because it is a smallish private college, but here is the info:

 

1. Nazareth College, Rochester, NY

 

2. I have a BS and a MS in Art Education with K-12 certification from Nazareth. It is a good school for majors in: education, art, music, nursing, not sure what else it's known for now. It's been a while since I graduated.

 

3. I liked: the size of the school- I never had a TA only professors as teachers, the proximity to some pretty good museums and galleries in downtown Rochester, The Art's Center on campus that would host wonderful performances that students could usher for and attend for free, great art studios and wonderfully skilled art professors, and the fact that there are many other good colleges/universities in Rochester made for a great educational environment.

 

4. Can't think of much really. I enjoyed my experience there. Perhaps the only negative is that although it is a very good school, it is only well known in the general upstate NY area.

 

5. More females than males, Roman Catholic affiliation but very open to all faiths (I am not RC), study floors, not a "party school", in a wonderful, and wealthy, part of the city.

[readwithem]

I went to Southern Methodist University in Dallas, also affectionately known as "Southern Money University" and "Southern Methodist Country Club."

 

I studied English and Medieval Studies. I believe the university is best known for its art school, as well as its law and business schools. However, their liberal arts school is strong. Science and math were not at all strong when I was there, and I do not know if this has changed.

 

We used to say that it's a great school, in spite of the students. This was true. Most of the student body was very concerned with the Greek life. They were kids of rich parents, headed off to be rich themselves. Partying was huge.

 

However, the faculty is *excellent,* and if you are not into partying and all that lifestyle you can get a very, very good education. At least three of SMU's current professors have lectures at The Teaching Company. Perrine is there ("Sound and Sense.") The faculty is just amazing. The yearly lecture series is outstanding. There are tons and tons of fantastic cultural events.

 

At SMU, most introductory classes are taught by full professors. I had one TA in my entire four years. I had very few lecture hall classes. Most classes are small enough for you to really get to know the faculty, and for the faculty to get to know you. Many faculty members live close enough to the campus to walk, and would host dinners and parties at their homes. (In a gorgeous, old Dallas neighborhood.)

 

So yes, I do recommend it for a student who will not be sucked into the party lifestyle.

 

WOW thanks so much for this!!! We're moving to Dallas this summer and will be within walking distance of SMU. I've strongly encouraged my dd to start there (at least she could live at home - maybe - and avoid all the roommate issues we've discussed here).

[Mrs Mungo]

1. Name and location-University of Oklahoma in Norman, Oklahoma

 

2. What you studied and if you know, what are a few "good" majors the school is known for.-I majored in Literature and minored in Anthropology.

 

I have "represented" a couple of times at college night for military posts and have information:

in 2007 it was named a "Best Value" college by The Princeton Review. It is first per capita in enrollment of National Merit Scholarships and among the top five in the graduation of Rhodes Scholars. Named one of the top 20 "Most Wired Colleges" by PC Magazine. Classified by the Carnegie Foundation as a research university with "high research activity."

 

It has some great museums and one of the winningest football teams in the country. The last time I did college night it had one of the top ten literature programs in the country. It's also noted for Meterology, Native American studies, Geology and Engineering.

 

3. Likes:

I LOVE Norman, it's a *great* town! The campus is lovely. It's a big school but still has a small-town feel to it.

 

4. Dislikes:

When I attended it was a party school. I wasn't into that scene but now OU is a dry campus after a couple of tragic incidents (I think both were fraternity related). I wouldn't encourage anyone to join a frat or sorority at OU, it's all about the partying (my experience, ymmv).

 

5. Any other pertinent info:

I probably gave all of that up above ;)

[Mama Lynx]

WOW thanks so much for this!!! We're moving to Dallas this summer and will be within walking distance of SMU. I've strongly encouraged my dd to start there (at least she could live at home - maybe - and avoid all the roommate issues we've discussed here).

 

Within walking distance? Oooh. I so love many of the houses in that area. I'm jealous. I would love to live there so that I could go back for a master's. When I went there they only had the Medieval Studies minor. Now I'd go back for that MA in a heartbeat :)

 

I lived on campus. My roommate issues were only terrible the year I had a Japanese exchange student for a roommate, and we just could not adjust to each other. (I had a different Japanese exchange roommate the next year, and she was fabulous and we got along very well.)

[Anne/Ankara]

I graduated from University of Notre Dame, in 1983 (only a few years after the first women graduated from there). My father had graduated from there, as did my five siblings-- it's a school that attracts large Catholic families. I studied English and liked it very much; beautiful safe campus, lots of fun activities and sports, great faculty, lots of school spirit. Precisely the right school for me at the right time...

[JenneinCA]

1. Name and Location: Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI), Troy NY

 

2. My Major: Mechanical Engineering

Good Majors: Anything Engineering

 

3. Likes: There were tons of other geeky people there. And best yet, it was okay to be geeky and a women. I liked the snow (from Los Angeles, CA). I was introduced to ice hockey and thought it was amazing.

 

4. Dislikes: The whole Fraternity scene. A huge percentage of the students were members of one frat or another.

 

5. Other info: The Ratio (men to women) is important. While I was there it was about 4:1 freshman year. It was about 10:1 by senior year.

[Mom2legomaniacs]

I'll have to tell dh you said this. He will find it amusing. His Masters is in Optics from U of R. He decided not to go on for a Doctorate because he'd had enough of that environment! He did do very well though. He did his Masters work part-time while working full-time at Kodak. Yeah, he is pretty stinkin' smart.

 

It is a good school. One of my college boyfriends was an undergrad at U of R in Chemical Engineering. He was a transfer student from Columbia in NYC and found U of R to be quite a bit more challenging.

 

When was he there? My DH got his PhD in Optics from U of R! We were in Rochester from Sept. 1990 to Dec. 1997!

[Tess in the Burbs]

NC State, Raleigh NC I was a Chemistry major, then Zoology. I transfered after 2 years...

 

East Carolina Univ, Greenville NC I was here in Nursing for 1 semester. I transfered again when I realized it would a year before I could start clinicals with no other needed classes...

 

UNC-Asheville, Asheville NC I graduated from here with a Biology degree.

 

I did also do a semester at Cascadia Community College in Bothell, WA before getting pregnant. I was studying classes to become a software tester.

[percytruffle]

I think we talked about this on the old boards, it is sounding familiar! He was gone by the time your dh was there. He finished in 87. I remember discussing Rochester with you because I am from there and you have lived there. Small world!

 

So, that makes your dh really, really stinkin' smart!:thumbup:

[Mom2legomaniacs]

I think we talked about this on the old boards, it is sounding familiar! He was gone by the time your dh was there. He finished in 87. I remember discussing Rochester with you because I am from there and you have lived there. Small world!

 

So, that makes your dh really, really stinkin' smart!:thumbup:

 

Ok, it is coming back to me slowly. I have a real sieve for a brain sometimes! Yeah, dh is really stinking smart (at a lot of things). But he needs me to do the multitasking of running a house and being the finder of his head, which he would most definitely lose if it were not attached! LOL, must be a physics brain thing because I have 2 uncles the same way in the same fields!

[Krista in LA]

1. Name and location

Penn State at University Park

 

2. What you studied and if you know, what are a few "good" majors the school is known for.

I studied Electrical Engineering. It is a good school for a lot of things.

 

3. Likes

PSU has a lot to offer in many areas. The last I knew, they had the largest student run philanthropy in their dance marathon, Lots of fraternities and sororities too

 

4. Dislikes

It is so big, it's easy to get lost, a little too much of the party life too.

 

5. Any other pertinent info.

University Park is the main campus and is harder to get into than the smaller satellite campuses. I took a couple of summer classes at Berks Campus, and it seemed far easier to me.

________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

 

1. Name and location

Iowa State University, Ames, IA

 

2. What you studied and if you know, what are a few "good" majors the school is known for.

I transferred there after 2 years at PSU as an Electrical Engineering major. When I had one year left, I decided that I proved that I could be an engineer, but I didn't really like it so I changed my major to MIS. They are a great engineering school, anything to do with agriculture is big there too along with VetMed. Believe it or not, they have a pretty good College of Design. And it's supposed to be a very good in education/teaching too.

 

3. Likes

It had the amenities of a bigger school, but wasn't quite so huge. I definitely felt like I belonged there and mattered. Great education with an out-of-state tuition comparable to many school's in-state tuition.

 

4. Dislikes

It still is a good sized school and looking back on it all, I think I would have liked an even smaller school.

 

5. Any other pertinent info.

Iowa State was the first land grant institution to adopt the Morrill Land Grant Act. It was also home to the Atanasoff–Berry Computer (1941), the first electronic computer. They also have the largest (it was when I was there anyway) student run celebration called VEISHA, which stands for the original 5 colleges within ISU.

 

I loved ISU.

[Sandy in Indy]

Trevecca Nazarene College, Nashville, TN

Loved the city...school was a bit confining. (I'm not Nazarene and was "wild," meaning I watched movies, played cards and danced!) My major there was pre-physician's assistant. Decided it wasn't for me. Went home for 2 years.

 

University of Indianapolis, guess where???

Indiana University/Purdue University at Indianapolis

Purdue University

Majored in Elementary Education

Ventured back to school after a two year break and wanted to finish ASAP. Summers were at IUPUI and PU. Not much of my first year transferred, but I completed the degree in 3 years anyway. U of I is a good liberal arts school--dd is there now. IU is known for med school, law school and basketball. PU is pharmacy, engineering and vet school...and basketball. Welcome to Indiana.

 

University of Central Florida

Masters in Ele. Ed

I honestly didn't know much at UCF, except that it was 20 minutes away and offered the masters program that I needed to hold onto my Indiana teaching license. It has grown into a very large school.

[percytruffle]

Yeah, dh is really stinking smart (at a lot of things). But he needs me to do the multitasking of running a house and being the finder of his head, which he would most definitely lose if it were not attached! LOL, must be a physics brain thing because I have 2 uncles the same way in the same fields!

 

 

"Physics brain", lol. That explains it! My dh is the same way. Good thing they have us.:D

[Rebel]

Midwestern State University in Wichita Falls, Texas

 

I majored in music education. Both the education and pre-med programs are great.

 

I liked the small size of the campus and class size. I don't remember every having a TA except for labs. Wichita Falls is a medium-sized city (110,000) and fairly safe. The college is a good price if you are a Texas resident.

 

I grew up in Wichita Falls so I was living at home the first two years and married the last two so I can't speak about the dorms, but I heard that weren't very nice. Some people say the math department is too hard. Lots of students end up taking the same math class several times before they pass. (I wasn't one of those.)