Portland State University Visit Report by DennyAlaska

Visit Activities:

Admissions Interview: No - n/a

Information Session: Yes - This session, which immediately followed the tour, was long, tedious and without any useful information, and was offered in a crowded, stuffy, too-small conference room.

Campus Tour: Yes - Long, crowded, overly rushed. It did *not* present a very favorable impression of PSU. The only + was the use of individual hearing devices; we were able to hear the guide clearly and easily.

Overnight Visit: No - n/a

Classroom Visit: No - The tour guide never offered to open or present a classroom. Why?

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Campus:

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As this campus is located in downtown Portland, it was difficult to tell students from residents from passers-by.

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Half were helpful; half were obviously fulfilling work/study assignments, with no concept of "selling" the university.

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It's hard to judge a "campus" that is located amid non-campus buildings.

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Buildings seemed old and "tired." Most building had the appearance of detention facilities, with bars and wire mesh on most windows and openings.

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One, viewed from the outside only, and referred to as a "sleeper," looked like a Hollywood-created flop-house. Another, high-rise, looked from the inside exactly as I imagine a prison would

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We literally stepped over vagrants making our way around campus. As mentioned, all buildings had bars and screens on windows.

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What campus? When the city (Portland) grows around, under and through your "campus," there's little to impress.

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Off-Campus:

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Congested, run-down, sketchy residents: not the best impression.

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Portland depicts itself as "green and growing." The section of the city we stayed overnight in, and the campus of PSU itself, say "tired, overrun, sketchy and in transition."

Campus Visit Notes for Portland State University

Visit Description:

My comments about PSU are uniformly negative. Had I been able to mark negative numbers in the rating categories (instead of 1-5) I would; for us, it was that bad.

Our tour guide set the tone early in the walk-about: the commentary centered on "transgender studies," and "unisex bathrooms," and PSU's LGBT "outreach initiatives." That's fine, but what about teaching science, engineering, liberal arts, languages? Uh, not so much commentary in those areas. And we thought it odd that no classrooms were shown.

The PSU campus has been swallowed by the city of Portland, and it makes for a very disjointed, piece-meal campus, although it is really difficult to describe it as a "campus" at all. Academic buildings are set amid residential/office buildings; certain facilities (athletics) are several blocks distant (and were not on the tour).

This section of Portland is, well, very unwelcoming. We literally had to step over individuals asleep on the sidewalk, or in building entrances. One several-block section of "campus" had park benches full of "sleeping" individuals, and the smell of cigarette smoke was constant, even inside some buildings. Portland's rail system runs right through campus, which may be handy for residents riding to classes, but its activity and blaring horns were a bit much.

We couldn't escape noticing that almost all buildings had barred windows. One dorm building had barred windows and stair wells all the way to the top of its 10-floors. Dorm rooms gave the distinct impression of a prison; very claustrophobic.

My 16-year-old daughter said "no," just as the walking tour commenced. Agree. As a parent, I would not feel comfortable with her attending PSU.

Hotel/Lodging Recommendations or Comments:

There are several nearby hotels. All reflect the area of town where the PSU campus is located: locked and barred windows, congestion, constant 24-hour street noise. Use of a GPS is required.

Dining/Restaurant Recommendations or Comments:

n/a

Other Comments (Transportation, local attractions, parking, etc.):

Parking was abysmal.