I have lived in the Boston area almost my entire life. I currently live about 6 miles from Brandeis but have never visited, other than driving down South St. a few times. So about a month ago I decided to visit the campus to see if all the negativity about its lack of beauty is true.
i had to remind myself that Brandeis was only founded in 1948 and was largely built in the 50’s, 60’s and 70’s. That was not a good era for institutional architecture. The buildings from that era certainly seem dated but well maintained. Buildings built since 2000 are mostly glass and seem to have wandered onto campus from one of the nearby high tech office parks. There is also the lack of a “center” to the campus: an original quad that remains the ceremonial heart of the campus.
Overall, I would give the campus a C grade, nice but uninspired.