New York University Top Questions

academics here is tough, because we aren't one of the super ivy league schools or liberal arts schools so we don't have much grade inflation and we aren't one of the easy-to-get-into state schools, so classes are still hard.

Easy, not nearly as hard as I expected. Someone once called nyu a fake school, I agree.

the academics depend on the professors. smaller classes don't necessarily mean better classes.

I've enjoyed the majority of my class. It really all depends on the teacher, as I've had some non-required classes that sounded amazing but ended up sucking, and some requirements that were so much fun. so really research teachers, either with other students or on websites like ratemyprofessors.com so that you know what you're getting into. the class size varies. most are lectures, in this case you won't really know the teacher (and vice versa) unless you seek them out. it's all about your involvement and participation. but the classes can be really amazing.

The lecture classes really vary in size, I've had a lecture with 100 people, and another with over 300 people, and one right now that can't be much over 60 people. The smaller classes the professors are definitely more intimate, but there are still opportunities in lecture to bond with your professor. Out of this past year, my favorite class has been the Brain and Behavior. It's quite interesting to learn all the different functions that go on every time we do any little thing.

There are your standard 300-person lectures, but only for intro courses that most people get past in their first year anyway. Since sophomore year, I've been in almost all 20-ish (or less) person seminars and classes. Also, the variety of classes is great. I'm in the school of individualized study, and they offer the sort of original "I would love to take that!" sort of classes that you hear stories about. And anyone (not just people in my school) is allowed to take them with us. Getting a job after NYU is probably pretty easy. I'm going to law school, so I don't know much about the process, but just the number of huge companies in NYC, almost all of which recruit from NYU, means that the opportunities must be great.

Don't freak out if you get an accpetance letter say "unfortunately you have not been accepted to the class of 2015 of the College of Arts and Science. However, I would like to congragulate you on your acceptance to the General Studies Program...". Otherwise know as GSP, the General Studies Program, is NYU's program for kids who aren't "ready" for NYU, but will be in a year or so, after this repeat of high school. Its a decent program, maybe not worth fifty grand a year, but hey you get to graduate from the school you originally applied to in the end, if you maintain a B average. If you are thinking about studying sciences though, this probably isn't the place for you. seriously the GSP science program is pretty much a joke. Who else can say they have science lab in the computer lab of the journalism building every wednesday morning at 8am? I would say deffintly take advantage of the freshman study abroad program and enjoy the fact that Writing I and II don't have "progressions" like Writing the Essay and you might even have a gossip columnist as your proffesor.

The thing most people kept telling me was that my classes would all be in lecture halls with upwards of 200 students, and that professors didn't have a clue who sat before them. But I've found that, if you choose the right major it is the exact opposite. I'm in nutrition. I went to orientation in June and met six other freshman who have been in all of my nutrition classes since then. My biggest class right now is about 30 kids, and I know everyone. One of my professors last semester is also my advisor. He knows me by name, and we've gone out for breakfast before. The classes, the professors, and the school are really what you make of it.

Some professors know my name. My classes are getting smaller the more I get into my major. My favorite class is my Swahili class. We've gotten pretty close, and the Professor Alidina is really sweet and very knowledgeable and Swahili and Swahili culture. On the other hand, I hate my Concepts in Social and Cultural Analysis class. It is graded entirely on attendance and participation, and not on performance. There is too much room for subjectivity in that.

I think in my three years here, three of my professors have known my name. My favorite classes by far have been in the French department, and I've heard from other students as well that it's the language departments that offer the best academic experiences, because the class sizes are smaller and the interaction is of a better quality. Class discussion is not very common because class size is generally not small enough to facilitate it, but presentations and more lecture-like participation is sometimes used.