Do I have any chance for Fordham?

ghostbuster
Sat, 26 Sep 2009 00:09:53 +0000

As with anything, you will get a variety of opinions on Rose Hill vs. Lincoln Center. What really matters is your opinion and your experience. Kids at Lincoln Center love it and the kids at Rose Hill love it too.
Lincoln Center is in a very good section of Manhattan, uptown near Central Park and the Lincoln Center for Performing Arts (obviously). Its in one tall building. Fordham is going to expand it with some new buildings, notably a new law school. But the undergraduate program there is rather small (under 1,000 students) and while its the full liberal arts curriculum it does tend to attract more of the theatre/dance students.

Rose Hill is a classic college campus, gothic buildings, athletic fields, large lawns (Eddies Parade), big trees, a huge library, parking garage, student center etc. They are building new dorms on campus now which will be completed next year and more new buildings are planned.

The Bronx is not as bad as some would describe and this section of the Bronx is no exception. Some outstanding restaurants are nearby in Little Italy. But like anywhere, its not safe off campus at night, unless you are in groups. Its a gated campus with 24 hour security. Rose Hill is a safe campus. Some kids embrace the eclectic atmosphere on the nearby streets during the day, either shopping or working in non profit social work settings. Other kids embrace the New York Botanical Gardens and Zoo. Some ignore all of it and simply get on a train and go into Manhattan for their “city experiences.” The Metro North Train stops literally at Fordham’s gate and runs directly to Grand Central Terminal.

The social atmosphere at Rose Hill is like many other colleges…on nice days kids are outside on the lawns, reading, playing frisbee or hanging out with friends. I wouldnt call Fordham an “intense” campus, as in hyper or stressed out. But with a rigorous academic curriculum, its not exactly party city either. You will find people from all over the country, with different perspectives and social-economic backgrounds. There are clubs galore…from arts groups to political action groups to you name it. Debate, club sports, language clubs, etc.

There are no sororities or fraternities at Fordham, which is very typical of Jesuit colleges. Just dorms, and some special apartments they own both on and off campus. All the dorms have a different reputation or theme. Most of them are very centrally located.

You can take classes at both campuses if you desire…like taking Chinese at Lincoln Center. There is a RamVan service between the two campuses which is very convenient, very safe and very inexpensive.

Fordham is very inclusive and you wont have trouble making friends. While Fordham has made strides in improving diversity, that has mostly been with hispanics. More work needs to be done with african americans and asians…which they are doing…but being a Jesuit Catholic school, it may be harder to attain than at a secular college. Just be yourself and you will be fine.

Like all colleges, there will be kids in the dorms who may not live up to your personal standards of responsible behavior. There is simply no way to escape it. It happens everywhere. Thankfully its not a huge number and you can always find friends who share your values, study habits and maturity.

In short, its a fun campus and very vibrant. The faculty are mostly very caring about your personally, and most classes are actually rather small…well under 50 kids, most 30 or less. CBA kids have tremendous opportunities. Both for internships in New York as well as study abroad. Fordham has an MBA program in Beijing and some undergrad CBA kids go over there for a semester as upperclassmen.

They also have a relationship with the London School of Economics.

For students who are very ambitious and have really good study habits and get good grades, the opportunities are unparalleled in my opinion. Fordham offers the Jesuit education and combined with a solid business school makes for a very well prepared and very well balanced person upon graduation.

But you will see for yourself when you visit in October. Talk to students and faculty.