Stephen Davis

Review of VCU

In my opinion, there are better schools in Virgini...

In my opinion, there are better schools in Virginia than VCU. The acceptance rate is really high, so as a 4.0 student with higher than average SAT scores, I felt like getting in would be a breeze, which it was, and ended up with a scholarship. As a Virginia resident, VCU was the only in-state school I applied to because of it's PT program (which I decided not to pursue because I lost interest in the field). I was accepted to two out of state universities and stuck with VCU because of lower costs. In hindsight, after a year at VCU, I wish that I would have applied to more in-state schools.

Let me start by saying that if you're not in any of the pre-health programs, or going to be in the theater or VCUarts program, there really isn't a reason to come to VCU, as the other programs are average at best and aren't that competitive or well-known in the state. VCU is known for being an urban campus, but feeling safe was not one of my main concerns as for the most part I felt safe, except for having to walk two blocks from my parking garage at 1 in the morning after hockey practice, down poorly lit streets to the nearest Campus Connector stop.

Moving on to my next issue, VCU Parking and Transportation is absolutely horrendous, and parking is really expensive for keeping your car on campus, especially for the options they provide for undergraduate students. They make undergraduate students living on MCV (overflow dorms) park their cars 10-15 minutes away on the Monroe Park Campus, so for me and many other students, accessing your car when you need it is an absolute nightmare.

One positive thing I can say about VCU is that I have had good professors, both semesters I had professors that do care and look out for you (except for one bad CHEM 101 professor, to which I was not the only one to complain). However, there are too many other things that are making me transfer after only two semesters here, and many of those are listed above. In addition, there really isn't much to do around the campus, and the downtown Richmond area isn't really that well-kept (bad sidewalks, horrible roads). The only things that there is to do around the campus on weekends are house-parties, as freshman aren't required to live in the dorms, and that's pretty much it. Library is really nice and newly renovated, and it's one of my only favorite parts about VCU. WiFi is really spotty and slow in the dorms, and I often lose connection quite often. My advisor told me to sign up for a course that I was unprepared to take and ended up having to withdraw at the deadline. The resources at VCU are plenty, but honestly, if you are pursuing something other than a health profession or something in the arts or theater program, there really isn't anything too special about VCU. And be prepared to hear the word "diversity", it's something VCU is super/overly proud about. Also, be prepared to pay extra if you sign up for more than 15 credits. The university claims it saves you money over 4 years for taking 15 credits but you have to pay an extra fee each semester for being at 15 credits or above.