Is NYU really as notoriously bad as it seems?

Colleges & Universities New York University
21

<p>Stern has some of the best teachers in the country, they regularly steal professors from the ivies with large pay raises. That being said, the CAS classes I’ve taken have had some horrendous teachers. </p>

<p>Be careful trusting advice from freshmen, they’ve been here for 3 whole weeks, and can’t even come close to a wholistic understanding of NYU.</p>

<p>The fact is your education experience changes drastically depending on which NYU school and major you choose. I.E. Finance and Drama majors, or even Finance and liberal arts majors can’t be compared AT ALL; even within schools there is drastic differences…we have a great philosophy department (number 1 in country), but the politics department is a joke (subjective, personal opinion). </p>

<p>Socially…If you are good at making friends, and enjoy bars/clubs/shows/exotic food etc, you will enjoy NYU. If you want a community spirit sort of college life where you’ll automatically make friends through a frat and want to look forward to the whole school showing up for a sport’s game, you won’t like NYU. Nearly everyone who hears this advice ignores it - thinking it doesn’t apply to them - and then come and complain about it. NYU has the most ability to maximize fun, but you have to take initiative/enjoy what the city has to offer.</p>

<p>I personally like NYU…i like the diversity of people (most overused word ever, I’m using it differently). I’m a finance major, but personality wise I fit in better with people in Tisch and Gallatin; if I had gone to another university, I’d be stuck talking to pompous conservatives/people who study whole weekends. There’s alot to do…I’d get incredibly bored of going to a frat party every weekend. My biggest complaint about NYU is probably people *****ing about how they hate NYU for reasons they should’ve known before accepting. As another poster said, if you have a problem with tens of a thousands of dollars of debt each year, DONT COME TO NYU. It may not be fair, but we don’t live in a fair world…suck it up and go to a place you can afford; or take out loans and accept it. NYU has low coffers and huge expenses, and there is nothing they can do to change this…all this complaining does is lower morale and cause even less contributions.</p>

22

<p>I don’t know about the other departments in CAS, but the econ department has top-notch professors.</p>

<p>Basically, CAS is tops in econ, math, english, international relations, philosophy, and the pre-med program is supposed to be really strong.</p>

<p>Stern is tops in finance and international business.</p>

<p>I don’t know why anyone would pay 50k a year to pick up a major in Tisch (unless you’re extremely talented and have a realistic shot at making it big), Gallatin, or Stienhardt, but that’s just me.</p>

23

<p>Granted, I’ve only been here for a month, but these are my observations so far.</p>

<p>NYU is amazing. I honestly can’t imagine myself being happy anywhere else. The location is ridiculously perfect, my classes are all very small (my largest is 17), it’s been very easy to make friends, the food is good, the facilities are nice, and so much more. I love it here so far. </p>

<p>I can definitely see why it may not be for everyone, though. I did my best to make NYU “smaller,” if you will.</p>

<p>I’m in Gallatin, which has only 200 freshmen. I live in Goddard, the smallest freshmen dorm and the Residential College, which has a whole host of awesome activities planned through 7 intellectual streams throughout the building.</p>

<p>People say that it’s hard to make friends, but I haven’t noticed this at all. Maybe it’s still the “honeymoon phase,” but I feel comfortable talking to basically everyone in my classes and everyone in my dorm. Everyone is very welcoming and friendly. You definitely can’t be afraid to go out there and actively participate, however. Some people were shy at first, which hasn’t done them any favors in the friends department.</p>

<p>Overall, I love it, and I hope it continues to be this amazing.</p>

<p>You’re probably going to laugh at my naivety, firewall, but that’s okay, lol.</p>

24

<p>Oh, and financial aid isn’t ALWAYS as bad as it seems.</p>

<p>I received 31,000 dollars a year in renewable scholarships, and I know several students who received nearly as much or even more than me.</p>

<p>Don’t not apply just because you’re afraid you won’t get aid.</p>

25

<p>PosterX…you don’t even go to this school and as usual, your comments are always tied to rankings. I don’t evaluate a school based on rankings, but that’s just me. Like any college, NYU is not for everyone. I agree with those who made some comments about having maturity and a sense of independence to do well in this setting. </p>

<p>I happen to have a daughter who attends NYU and started there at age 16. She is now 18 and a junior in Tisch. She landed in Manhattan coming from a rural town of 1700, living on a dirt road in the mountains, where we don’t even have a street light in the entire town. There were almost as many residents of her freshman dorm as our town’s population. :D</p>

<p>I understand what those say about the cost and about financial aid. My D receives a wonderful financial aid package and we are middle class. She won a large scholarship for four years that is a part of that package, and then loans that we have. </p>

<p>To say she is having a phenomenal time and deliriously happy there would be an understatement. The school fits her perfectly. It may not fit someone else. She is learning a great deal and has had some fantastic teachers. She has had amazing opportunities both at the school and through the school. She has many friends both in her program and out. </p>

<p>As far as class size, I believe most classes she has taken have been under 20 and I think she has had 2 or 3 larger classes that had smaller sections. Currently she is in ten classes and all are small. She takes nine and is auditing a 10th. She also has a sense of a smaller school within a large university. First, she has her musical theater studio, CAP21 where everyone knows everyone, and the faculty all know you as well and her advisor is the head of the program. Then she is also in Tisch itself, which is bigger than her studio but still not a big college and she mixes with students from all of Tisch. Then she has her CAS courses and those friends. She also leads an extracurricular group…she is musical director for NYU N’Harmonics and is very closely bonded with that group. She was selected to be a Tisch Scholar and is bonded with that sub group/activity. She went on a free trip to Brazil and another to Appalachia with that group. Then she is in the various productions put on at NYU…has been either a performer or a musical director. Her schedule at school goes from early in the AM until 11 PM or later and that is before homework starts. She has been given opportunities outside of NYU through her connections with faculty. She is mentored by particular faculty outside the classroom as well. As far as the gyms go, she uses them a lot and I have never heard a complaint but rather, " this is great…a gym for 'free"…LOL." Her life is so full and every call is full of relating all the great happenings in her life at NYU. Even after the first day of classes this year, she called to say it was the most amazing day and she was so grateful we were paying for her to go (and will be for years to come with all the loans!). She loves it so much that she doesn’t even want to leave NYC in the summer. </p>

<p>Is NYU worth it? It sure has been for my kid and then some. Is it “bad” as this thread is asking? It has been great for my kid. And she was always a top student and craves challenges. I couldn’t be happier as a parent to know that my kids are thrilled with their colleges. It isn’t a matter, for us, which school is the best in the land, but rather which school is the best for our kids and I am pleased that each has found a school they really really wanted to go to (this particular child has wanted to go to NYU since she was 12), and that once they are there, that they are so happy with their experience. To me, that is what college is about, not comparing what school is the best in general.</p>