Boston University

Date: Apr 11 2009
Major: PreMed and Medical (This Major's Salary over time)
I've learned a lot since I came to BU. My science classes always challenged me, my professors are always assessable (even if the classes are too big), and there are many opportunities on campus to get a job, be involved, or even volunteer somewhere like at a hospital or lab (esp if you are premed like me- i volunteer every week at boston med center). i've meet some close friends here too that help the large size of the school become smaller. you tend to see the same faces in your classes as well. some comments on this site say the students in classes are not very smart. but i have to disagree with that. my science classes are filled with some bright kids, some of whom you can't believe even came to bu in the first place (and probably were rejected from some ivy somewhere too). if you want to be in a city, boston is a good place to start. bu does have some fantastic programs (like the study aboard program) as well.

but bu is by no means perfect. the tuition is too high as many people say. i know people who bu was REALLY kind to in terms of their fin aid package - they got scholarships, good grants, etc. especially if you REALLY REALLY need it. but many times BU fin aid, esp for middle class kids like myself, is rare. im on no fin aid whatsoever even if i have another sibling in college. i know another girl who was raised by a single parent (who has a regular middle class job and is no means rich) and is in the cas honors programs - and she STILL got no fin aid or scholarship. i guess you have to be lucky or really need it to get fin aid.

as for the dorms, yeah some of them, particularly warren, could be so much nicer. especially for the amount we pay. even the food is gets old real fast (keep in mind though, some colleges like stonybrook have worst caferinas. really.). but when you get beyond freshmen/sophomore year, student village apartments, bay state (brownstones, even towers and shelton), and south are good options that open up. i live on a newly refurbished floor on towers, and I like it. The rooms look new, and the dining hall is less crowded than some of the other ones on campus. In fact, towers and bay state road dorms are being renovated every summer. In short, housing is pretty good, and not as bad as many people have said.

the worst thing about this school though is advising. it's so useless, you are pretty much on your own. if you arent on top of things or are not independent enough to figure out your own courses, then BU really isn't for you. and unfornuately BU advising shows that. I came into college with a set goal, but even when I was questioning what I wanted in life and what would I need to get there, advising STILL wasn't helpful. This is a concern among many BU students. Not all schools at BU have such bad advising though. Apparently COM and SHA, because they are more specific and smaller schools, have pretty good advisors. Other than that, CAS students in particular, are screwedd.

Overall, I like BU. It has its flaws (even though they are by no means small) and its perks. Come visit if you truly want to decide for yourself. It's worth it, even if you don't like it. Trust me on that one.

One last thing, particularly for premed students. Being premed here is TOUGH. if you are coming in thinking you are going to get all A's, you be think about switching schools. The BU chemistry department literally is designed in a way for barely anyone to get A's (that in one case is an example of grade deflation). You've considered yourself warned on this ifyou are premed. It's not easy here, but at least grad schools/med schools know about BU's grade deflation problem. so all isn't at a lost.