Virginia Tech or Virginia Commonwealth University

brishe
Mon, 07 Mar 2011 12:39:11 +0000

I attended VCU for a year, then ran in the opposite direction. Tech isn’t even my first choice, but I would definitely go there over Richmond. VCU freshman dorms surround Monroe Park, generally filled with homeless people during the day, hence dorm check-in. The surrounding area of Richmond isn’t great, and you regularly hear gunshots at night. One of my good friends was jumped in broad daylight.

Crime rate aside, the school just isn’t that good. There’s no real campus since it’s in the middle of the city. This isn’t important to everyone, but it’s definitely something I look for now that I’m getting ready to transfer again. If you’re not in nursing or art school, your program isn’t anything to write home about. The academics are mediocre, and a TON of classes are in huge lecture halls because the student body is so large. In this way, Tech and VCU are similar (30k+ students).

I know one person’s experience does not make or break a college, but I thought I would throw in my first-hand stories.