How is Depaul?

halopower015 · 03-24-2009, 11:10 PM

Alright, so I've heard some great things about Depaul from my parents but some average things about Depaul from a couple of my friends and counselors. Just wondering how any of you feel about the school and what your stats were when you got in. Also, if you could comment about the loop campus compared to the Lincon Park campus b/c I'm gonna apply to the school of Commerce. I'm a junior in Socal and will apply next year.

Thanks

cocacolaaa · 03-27-2009, 06:26 PM

Hey, I'm not there yet, but I'm going to be a freshman next year...
I was accepted with a 3.75 uw gpa, 24 ACT, and decent extracurriculars (played tennis for four years - three on varsity and i was captain senior year, yearbook for four years - was editor for two, and some other little things, but those were my main extra things.) I'm sure if your stats are lower than mine, you would be fine, too so don't worry too much. Mind you, I am a Spanish Education major, not commerce, but here are my opinions:
I visited this summer for the first time and LOVED it. Everyone is unbelievably nice there and there is a ton of diversity, if that is important to you. From the Lincoln Park campus, you are one train stop away from Wrigley Field, which is exciting if you're into baseball (Hell, I don't even like baseball, but I'm sure I will next year.) The Lincoln Park campus is located in the northern side of Chicago and it's in a very safe area, as opposed to Loyola Chicago, which I visited and felt unsafe even during the daytime. There are a ton of restaurants and shops just outside of the campus, so you don't necessarily have to go downtown for those types of things.
The Loop campus is awesome. It is right in the heart of Chicago, just about a block or two from Millennium Park and the lake. Though my major is not taught at this campus, I would imagine if you were a business/economics/commerce major, the location of this campus is awesome since you are right in the heart of the financial district. It's really neat.
I'd recommend visiting first, as you need to get a feel for the campus on your own, but I'm sure you will love it there.
Also, some things to remember: Chicago gets cold! I noticed that you're from southern California and this will be a major change for you, so make sure you're ready for sub-zero temperatures for months on end. Even the summers only get up to like 75-80 degrees. Also, if you're looking for a typical college experience, I don't think you're going to find it at DePaul. Personally, I have never been into the frat/sorority stereotypical college scene, so DePaul works for me, but if you're looking for that, you're better off at a bigger state school.

Hope this helps!

halopower015 · 03-27-2009, 10:32 PM

Hey cocacolaa,

Thank you very much, that was way better that any response I was hoping to get. I'm going to have about a 3.6 or so and will have taken 8 AP classes and 4 honors classes by the time I graduate. Did you take the SAT? If so, did you send those scores in too? I have a TON of great EC's and will most likely have solid rec's and so on.

Thanks soo much!

JaneAusten · 03-28-2009, 01:32 PM

I'd be interested to hear the negative comments that halopower015 heard from friends and counselors. My D loved DePaul when she visited - the location, the diversity - her gut reaction was that this was the school for her. I on the other hand was worried to see that all the TVs in the cafeteria were turned to Fox News and that at the admitted students day event, one of the speakers was implying that writing a grammatically correct email was what they were striving for when teaching great writing skills.

cocacolaaa · 03-29-2009, 10:51 AM

halo - I'd say you're pretty much in. I only had 4 AP and 7 honors classes. I did not take the SATs, so i can't help you there.

janeausten - Don't worry about fox news, it's an incredibly liberal school, or else I wouldn't be going there hahaha.

scout59 · 03-29-2009, 09:05 PM

D is a freshman at DePaul in the school of commerce. She did very well in hs (high GPA and test scores) and DePaul was her safety, but she loved it so much that she eagerly chose to attend even over her match schools. She is doing well but is working her butt off (lots of papers!) At the accepted students day for the School of Commerce, I and my H were very impressedx by the enthusiaam of the professors, the rigor of the schedule, the small class sizes, and the internship/employment opportunities in the Chicago area. Maybe it's a different message at other accepted days......

Fox TV?? Ha ha ha! DePaul is well-known for its liberal leanings, especially for a Catholic school.

scout59 · 03-29-2009, 09:11 PM

Halopower - my D had a 30 ACT, 3.85 UW GPA, 6 AP classes (5 5's and a 4 on the exams.) DePaul gives decent merit money based solely on test scores (either ACT or SAT) and GPA (they used to have a formula on their web site). As I said, the school of commerce does have a good reputation in Chicago, which is where my D wants to work after graduation.

Just beware - the winters there are long and very very cold! If you're from Southern California it could be quite a shock.

JaneAusten · 03-30-2009, 08:56 AM

Thank you so much everyone - I thought Fox News didn't fit in with what I'd heard about the school, but I needed to ask! It does seem a great place. We're from Massachusetts so the winters aren't to much of a shock, but my D had always said she wanted somewhere warm, so we were doubly shocked when she fell in love with DePaul in a snow blizzard.

halopower015 · 04-04-2009, 10:41 PM

Thanks soo much everyone, all this information is priceless. Some of the things I have heard about Depaul are campus security is not real good, the weather sucks (I like the cold though), and The Loop campus is not real nice. I only have around a 3.5 so I'm hoping Depaul will accept me, but I've dedicated an immense amount of time outside of school by volunteering as a youth basketball coach, and a bunch of clubs I have an officer position in. I'm wondering if the college of commerce is very selective for its applicants. Im also a HUGE sports fan and Chicago just seems perfect in that sense. Finally, if anyone know what the essays are on when you applied, I would really appreciate it.

monty_mum · 04-04-2009, 11:30 PM

My D is a Jr at Depaul and her time there has definitely been a mixed bag but the longer she stays the more she loves it.

*not a "typical" college...no football, Greek scene, or acres to walk to get to class. The Linc Pk neighborhood is nice....residential mixed w/ commercial and the campus is compact and easily accessible by walking, buses or El train.

*dorms are great and freshmen have a real sense of kinship with others, HOWEVER, this can all end abruptly when you find out there's no oncampus housing for you after your freshman yr. Now you need to share an apt but the cheaper ones are away from campus and your Brown line station is shut for repairs for a year. Break out the snow boots and ski jacket..it's a long cold walk or long wait for the 2 buses to get to class.

* at least Profs are great...knowledgable, approachable and willing to help. Classes are small and lively discussion encouraged. No TA's teach here, you will get a prof most likely with a PhD and he/she knows their stuff.

* Trying to call someone in an office at DePaul?? Fuggetaboutit! FinAid never returns calls or replies to email. D was abroad last year and it took 2 months for them to find her paperwork and get it filed...they actually had no idea she was in Europe and they told the government loan people that she had QUIT school!
Almost anyone who answers a phone there has ATTITUDE.

*Complaint of too many commuters. Part of the problem is that once your kid (who comes from 1,000 miles away) moves off-campus, DePaul classifies them as COMMUTERS instead of "out-of-state living-off-campus." In this way, the school feels no responsibility for their well-being because they are now commuters just like all the other kids who live nearby and come in by train. It is sooo short-sighted of this school to have built a new Bio bldg instead of much-needed dorms.

* complaints of too many snotty Midwest kids from catholic schools. Private colleges do have kids with money, so not unusual to meet some tanorexic barbie-dolls with fake nails who wear hats that match their scarves and look down on others who don't measure up (uh, that would be D's first roommate.) But then there are the laid-back kids who wear dorm pants and slippers and enjoy going out for hot dogs at midnight. Just find the friends who suit your personality.

***CHICAGO!! Better than and cheaper than Boston. Art museums, zoo, improv, live theater, UPASS card that gets you on every bus and El train. Restaurants of every type...fallafels, sushi & noodles, Molly's cupcakes, deep-dish pizza, bubble tea. Millenium Park, Lake Michigan, Navy Pier....lots to do especially when weather is warm. This place was made for college students.

Hope this gives a more rounded look at what we know about DePaul.

monty_mum · 04-05-2009, 10:03 AM

I read from the Depaul website that 54% of freshmen stay through to graduation. Does that sound low compared to other colleges? There are lots of transfers in and out of this school; D had great friends in her first 2 yrs who were gone by end of 2nd yr. (very discouraging to her).
When kids have to move from dorms to off-campus, they feel disconnected and that's when they end up transferring to other (often cheaper) schools. DePaul is a midwest safety/match and kids leave when they find a better fit somewhere else. Those who transfer into Depaul are often locals from Ill. community colleges who don't live oncampus.

D stays because she loves her major & minor coursework, her profs, and her volunteer/internship programs. And she gets a scholarship too. She's an independent-minded roll-with-the-punches type who sees the silver lining. She made the right choice for herself by coming here but that doesn't mean it was always easy.

I can see that this school is trying too hard to be everything to everybody; they need to focus more on retaining their freshmen and sophomores through to graduation.

JaneAusten · 04-05-2009, 02:09 PM

Monty_mum - thank you so much for your postings - really good substantive information which confirmed some of the worries we had about the school but also about some of the positives. DePaul is expensive and we got very little aid - I'm not sure it's worth the money it would cost us. The housing factor is HUGE and I've heard so many stories about the uncommunicative, unhelpful admin staff.

From what you say, I think the negatives outweigh the positives. Only 54% staying until graduation says volumes I think.

scout59 · 04-05-2009, 03:19 PM

I wasn't going to comment on this thread again - but I feel I should come to DePaul's defense (at least in the areas I can contribute to.)

It's true that, if you're looking for the traditional greek-oriented, big-time athletic school, then this is not the place for you. It is also true that on-campus housing is an issue once you get past freshman year. However, 50% of sophomore sudents live on campus. Of those that live off-campus, there are many local students who have always lived off-campus (long-time commuters) and there is a LARGE segment of students who actively choose to live off-campus. (In fact, most kids "assume" that everyone will move off-campus after freshman year.) DePaul is popular here in MIchigan, so I know quite a number of local kids who are upperclassmen. Of these students, I know several girls who lived on-campus all four years, but my D has already said that she WANTS to move after freshman year. She's not a big fan of dorm experience.....

Of course, there are also kids who lose out in the housing lottery and must move off-campus. If this situation bothers you, then don't choose DePaul.

Be careful with those graduation stats. DePaul markets itself to first-generation (and often lower-income) college students. By their nature, this student segment traditionally has low graduation rates. And 54% isn't as low as you might think: it's very similar to large state schools like Kansas and Arizona (60% at both). I guess I"m a little jaded: I know that my D will graduate, so I'm not quite so concerned, especially since I've seen how connected she already is with her profs and her advisor.

Maybe I'm just lucky - but I've never had any problem with the FinAid office. I lost my job right after my D was accepted and therefore had multiple involved phone calls with that office. Never had any problem. (... and our aid package was re-configured.) D and I have both had multiple calls with student services (D wants to take summer classes at home and transfer the credits back to DePaul) and again, no complaints. Now, I CAN complain about some of the Michigan schools about those same summer classes, but you probably don't care about that....

D likes her classes and loves (most of) her teachers. Even as a freshman, she has gotten to know some professors and had dinner with their families. As I said, the School of Commerce has a good reputation and a great alumni network in the city.

However, in some ways, my D sounds like Monty's D. She is quirky, independent-minded, and not at all preppy (think band t-shirts and Van's.) She is logical-minded, driven, very self-motivated. She does not like her dorm because of the partiers on her floor (she's also very straight-edge) - she'd much rather go to hear obscure local bands than go shopping or drinking. For her, the city itself is a huge draw. Whenever she visits friends at other schools she complains that there's nothing there to do but drink... and that's not for her.

At DePaul, she has found a core group of friends (mostly boys) who share her love of music and goofy movies. (.. and yes, all either live off-campus or are planning to move off-campus...) She goes to concerts and museums and the lakefront (even to Obama's rally in Grant Park on election night.) Take home message: it's the right school for the right kind of kid, but not for every kid. You need to know what you're getting into.... it's not a hand-holding kind of place.

Yeah, the Loop campus isn't beautiful - it's just a bunch of buildings in the Loop! But it's the business school, and if you're studying business, shouldn't you be in the heart of the city's financial district?

D's biggest complaints about school: Her first English class was "too much busy work"; she doesn't like the partiers on her dorm floor; the windiness of the weather (duh....). When I showed her this whole thread, she just shrugged and said "You need to know what kind of school this is." It's not a typical campus with lots of school spirit and lots of dorm space. As a parent who went to a "typical"school wieth lots of greeks, parties, and dorm space, I can't say that DePaul would b ethe first choice for ME - but it is for my D.

halopower015 · 04-05-2009, 04:59 PM

Thanks to scout, Jane Austen and monty_mum for the comments, really has given me and some other viewers a good sense of the pros and cons of Depaul. If anyone has any other experiences, good or bad, that they had or their kids have had with Depaul, it would be fabulous to get some more insight, even though many have already shared.

Thanks once again

halopower015 · 04-05-2009, 05:00 PM

Thanks to scout, Jane Austen and monty_mum for the comments, really has given me and some other viewers a good sense of the pros and cons of Depaul. If anyone has any other experiences, good or bad, that they had or their kids have had with Depaul, it would be fabulous to get some more insight, even though many have already shared.

Thanks once again