Florida International University Top Questions

FIU is a rather large institution with about 40,000 students. Anyone passing through (except on Fridays) can see the many, many faces that go through the halls and buildings all over campus. Because of its size, the classroom suffers high student-to-faculty ratios (Florida, as a whole, has the worst in the nation, about 31-to-1, according to http://www.tcpalm.com/news/2008/mar/15/30gtis-floridas-tuition-too-low/). I could tell as a freshman that FIU's ratio was a bit poor; I had between 40 to over 100 students in my introductory courses, which oftentimes counted as requirements for graduation (known as the University Core Curriculum [UCC]). But the number of students dwindled as I entered courses more pertinent to my major, and it was much easier to contact and communicate with professors outside of the classroom. School pride is mixed among the student body. It's difficult to establish "solid" pride in FIU within the body at large because it is primarily a commuter school. The general opinion is, "I don't want to stay on campus longer than I have to" - which means students may sometimes be unable to participate in activities and events the university offers in order to instill esteem. It's a rather unfortunate circumstance; the school plans many activities for its students, primarily through the Student Programming Council. But until students see the university on a more personal level - as perhaps out-of-state students see theirs - then this attitude will change. Though venues for student involvement - social organizations, honors societies, service groups - are great opportunities for students to participate in events on campus, and therefore celebrate FIU pride. Mixed emotions about FIU also come through students' general opinion on the university as a whole. Many students feel FIU is "not as good" as other universities, making it less worthy of recognition compared to other schools in the area (in regards to academics and athletics - especially athletics). In some circles, there is some bitterness: "Yeah, I wish I went to [insert university here] instead." (Usually that other school is in the same city as FIU... to give a hint, it's affiliated with a natural phenomenon Florida is all too familiar with.) But over time, I think this attitude has diminished because of FIU's large and recent projects, mainly, the approval of a medical school and the opening/graduating class of a new law school. FIU is homegrown; it is relatively young, so it isn't taken in the same regard as say, Duke University or even the University of Miami (and the latter is only about 50 years older than FIU). The biggest complaint about FIU, is undoubtedly, the parking situation. Though I don't drive, I know through friends and others (even professors) that parking at FIU is like traveling to Hell and back. There are even Facebook groups dedicated to talking about how lousy the parking is on campus. Students are often caught waiting in line for spots, making them late for class or even unable to attend. As long as students are mindful of potential waiting times, they should be fine when it comes to getting to class promptly. (Teachers know about the trouble, but some will probably not accept it as a legitimate excuse for tardiness.)

The best thing about FIU is ther cafeteria. The school size is just fine. People do not react any particular way whenever I tell them I went to FIU. I use to spend most of my time in the library as I had alot research to do. The most student complaint is that FIU makes too many errors where documents are concern.

It is a good school. I enjoy the "realness" of the people that go there, however, it is rather large. The classrooms fit the class sizes, but the parking lot does not. I spend most of my time in class, not around campus. South Florida as a whole does not represent a college town. It's too big a city for that. The administration hasn't done much that has impacted me to have an opinion on, and there has been no controversy, as far as I know. There is not much school pride outside of incoming freshmen, but hopefully with each new wave of students coming in that'll change. Not much unusual about FIU, best experience was Jack's Mannequin in the Pharmed Arena. Most complaints are about the parking situation and final exam scheduling.

I spent most of my time in the graham center and in the library. There is a lot of school pride, but ONLY from the people that are involved in a club, organization or greek organization. I think that the school is getting very populated, so it will have to add more buildings, parking spots etc. I have high expectations for FIU. I think that it is a wonderful institution that can and will achieve great things. It has been able to offer new programs to the community such as, the Law School and the School of Medicine. This offers an GREAT education at a reasonable price, which is hard to find nowadays! There is something unusual about FIU, but it is the most incredible thing about it: FIU is TRULY DIVERSE! It is international, and people are tolerant of one another and this is a great thing.

I love FIU

Best thing about FIU is that we are ranked for Business. - I think FIU is just right in size. - People just see FIU as an avergae school to go to, low prestige. - I spend most of my time in GL. - What College town? - I think the administration stinks, advising is the WORST!!! and FIU is known for losing paperwork and beng unorgainized. - NOt sure of any controversy - Not enough school pride - Very Diverse - The biggest complaint is against advising, and how horrible it is!!!

the best thing about fiu is the students, staff and organizations which make it known for a great research university. I would change some of the professors at FIU because some of them, really do not know how to teach. There is medium school pride. Something unusual about FIU is that it has ducks that is not scared of people! It's the other way around, people are scared of the ducks. i spend most of my time on campus

First and foremost, FIU is very dynamic university, but it suffers from being a state-run university. Specifically, pertaining to its inefficient administration. Surprisingly, one would expect the faculty members to exhibit the same characteristics aforementioned...fortunately, that's not the case. In fact, those that I have come across during my time at FIU were friendly, knowledgeable, and more importantly, willing to share their knowledge and experience with us. One thing I'd change is the inclusion of parking areas in the school's buildings development projects. The campus is too small...not in terms of classrooms seats but in having enough space to accommodate 40,000 car-owner students. Well I have to admit that not many mainstream people know about FIU. That is because for one FIU is only 43 years old and second it does not excel in any sports. Schools are known by the general public in one of three ways: prestige, sports, and academic achievement. FIU has made great leap forwards in the first and the last, but in the sports section there is still work to be done. I spend most of time on campus at the library and Graham Center. The former to study and the latter to meet the world (i.e. FIU possess an extremely diverse group of people -nationalities, ethnic background, etc... FIU is located in urbanized region and is not the center of attention to the neighboring businesses or residents. I greatly associate school pride to sports, and at FIU sports is not main attraction or subject of discussion for that matter. The school student is oblivious of the different athletic teams on campus. Frankly, I barely know the sporting activities that take place on campus. To the question is there anything unusual about FIU? Yes! Have come to refer to the UP campus more as shopping mall or a summer/fall fashion show than a university. At FIU it's not your average grim-looking, poorly dressed students commonly seen in Hollywood productions, but rather a true fashion show. One experience I'll always remember happened roughly two years ago and had to do with the university being on lock down by the police, as I would later learned , a serial rapist had stolen an armed police vehicle a few blocks away from the school and was thought to have seeked refuge on campus. Was a afraid? No, because I was informed about the incident as well as the vast majority if not all of the student body the day after it had occurred. Since then, I have very dubious about FIU's ability to deal with a Virginia Tech-like incident. The most frequent student complaint has to do with the lack of parking areas .

The best thing about FIU is the sense of close knit community when I'm walking around on campus. It seems I know more people than I originally thought; or more people know about me than I knew about? It seems where ever I'm walking to or from on campus there are at least five people I pass that say "HI" or "J-DOGG!" (the name I've acquired since coming to FIU). I believe my school is just the right size for me. When I first told my family I decided to attend FIU they didn't even know what I was talking about; and then after I explained to them where it was and what the institution was like, they told everybody else that I go to Miami University (some day they'll get it)! I spend most of my time at the Graham Center or just hanging around the common areas on campus: the Fountain, the Green Library, the dorm quad (Lakeview and Everglades), etc. There tends to be a lot of school pride in the form of apparell worn by students and at the eve of sport games. However, the main complain I hear from fellow students about FIU is that of the food service. Although these complaints mainly come from housing students and not the majority of commuter students.

cheapest school in south flordia- needs shuttle on campus, major parking issues and scary to walk alone at night- it's very large, but class sizes are okay- i follow "i got to fiu" with "University of Miami doesn't offer my program"- in class, no one spends extra time on campus, all commuters- not near hotspots of miami, 20-30 min drive to Coconut Grove, South Beach, Coral Gables, etc- Administration is a mess- College of Education classes are being cut for summer by 2/3 due to budget cuts yet there is a new med school and the president got a 50K bonus- no- you hear more spanish than english?- how badly i've been treated by registration, student financials and financial aid- the parking situation and how far you have to walk to your car, no shuttle service