CCSF Review

I justed spoke to a woman at the office for information about the noncredit custodial classes,she does not know if they have those classes at this facility,come on????,I can see that city college is under poor management and when I wet to Evans campus and are all ready full???,they gave me a waiting list form and wait till next year,what a crap if still opens,i am crying now for not getting any help,pobresito de mi.

I enrolled in a calculus course last year. First thing the professor went over was purchasing access to Cengage. If you're not familiar with Cengage it's a "digital learning" platform. This is complete nonsense. The reason I want to take an in-person course is to be in class and learn via lecture. Cengage and similar extortion schemes should be prohibited.

So, first day, we're told class needs to figure out how to purchase Cengage because that's the only way the professor will accept homework. Not only that, it's going to be the only way to access midterm and final exams. Again, this practice should be prohibited for obvious reasons.

I'm lucky enough to be in halfway good place in life where it's really not a burden for me financially. It's a much larger burden when it comes to principles, though! ;-) But part of this financial freedom had to do with learning how to be frugal and responsible with my money. I can only imagine what burden this is for people who have a hard time making ends meet. They want to better themselves by going to school and then have to pony up $120 just to get access to the course material. We don't have enough glass ceilings and financial burdens in society already that we need to create additional ones where they are totally unnecessary?

There are literally more calculus books on this planet than people! Calculus is centuries old. It really hasn't changed that much and there should be nothing the keeps you from using one of the bazillion calculus books you can find on Amazon, eBay or the public library to use as learning material for a calculus class.

I'm going to name names here in hopes of shaming so that this practice stops but I imagine that it's a department policy as well. The professor is Prof Bravewoman. This professor may be good at what she does but I wouldn't know because I dropped the class. Now, if you're thinking to yourself that maybe I'm being a tad extreme, well, perhaps although I don't think so. SF passed a law to make CCSF free for residents not to replace tuition with corporate paywalls.

CCSF should change this policy and allow anyone who wants to take a class the ability to learn from whatever material works best for them and to not be restricted from proving their knowledge with corporate extortion schemes that block students' ability to even take exams.

The registration process and policy seem antiquated for a college in the midst of a valley of silicon. Dig the Rivera mural in the art department though.

is it good? i feel like i don't want to go over there i might just go to brooklyn

great education for people wanting to transfer to a four year college.the broadcasting department is the best in the area. small classes with great staff and a hands on experience.

It's the most wonderful place on Earth Gardens are beautiful the people of Wonderful I just love being there I almost wish I got paid for it being there "

A good university of professors and educational curricula, but there is no cooperation between professors and students

Excellent education! I first went to CCSF in 1964, when it was free, then went on to SF State to receive my BA degree. I went back to CCSF about 10 years ago to study computer technology, photography, web design, filmmaking, design, database, and more. I own Gaslight & Shadows Antiques in San Francisco, and would not still be in business without all the knowledge I have gained at CCSF. I am now also a professional photographer, event coordinator, volunteer coordinator, and filmmaker thanks to CCSF. Quality teachers who are very skilled and talented, the classes are well planned, and adults are welcome.

I got very poor service from Admission Office. One staff didn't want to deal with my issue because she had lots of work to do. Wow...she stopped dealing my issue and said, "sorry, I have a lot works to do." And her suggestion about my issue was illegal in official process. I told her about it, but she didn't listen. Her attitude was like, "don't bother me," Again Wow.... My issue was also one of her tasks.....The staff ruined all the positive thought about CCSF. CCSF Staff won't support students. They just want to go home early.

Now that admission is due to be free, I cannot think of any single item that will benefit the City of SF. more. CCSF is one of the single-most important, government institutions, in the bay area.

My rating is more between like and love it based on what specifically you would like to know.

City College of SF is now FREE TUITION!
Come to the Ocean Ave Campus and take a Free Tour! Ask for Me! I show you a Great College!

CCSF is a great college though overall. I wanted to give it 5 stars because of the professors here, the quality of education students receive; however, the admissions suck so bad. Not everyone working here, but for the most part. The international student admissions are the worst. They do not take responsibilities. Don't ever email them because they will reply five years later. I think they should start changing some employees at CCSF to make it a better school.

The Community Collage gives big opportunities who wants to study !!! There are so many people from over the world. Also it is a good way to study English if you arrived from another country. I had a good experience. I wanna say thanks for my education there. Teachers are so professional. They really like their job !!!

Campus is old and ran down almost looks as there has been no maintenance here in years. Lots of the buildings are being used up but the fact is the front of the campus isn't.

When I was taking classes in CCSF, I was pleasantly surprised by the quality of teaching by most of the teachers. I would definitely recommend it.

This place SUCKS, they rip you off, they charge you for classes you don't even attend.

It is very sad that City College financing does not increase despite high demand.
Yet residents of San Francisco can enjoy resident discount.

The most incompetent admissions staff imaginable.
It has taken this staff over a month just to get me re-enrolled for a class that their system mistakenly dropped me for, I should mention that they still have not enrolled me into the class, thus my financial aid has been effected. I have made 4 visits to their office, even bringing along my professor to get the formed signed (after they lost it the first time). After this semester, I will make the trip to Berkeley City College to get an education experience I deserve. It completely makes sense that this school is experiencing accreditation issues; they should all be fired or shut the school down completely. Everyone deserves a better education experience than this. Pathetic.

I currently attend City College of San Francisco and the services here are excellent!
The teachers I have are helpful and understandable. They know what they're doing and are always ready to help you learn and review the materials you learn in class. I recommend CCSF for anyone who wants to attend a good community college.

Amazing junior college program, yet a warning to my young bruthas who want to attend here: be careful of the SF cougar's on campus. They will literally mess your life up. I met one back in the early 2000's who looked good from the outside but as our relationship developed she ganked (took) me for all my $$ and aspirations to do something better for my life. She blessed me with a seed and now doesn't allow me to get in touch with this seed at all. Please young bruthas, don't make the same mistake I did. Use your brain, not the other head. Peace and blessings, strive to make this world a better place.

_I know this is a good school and it's my dream to study here... But sad to say its no longer happening. Everyone who knows Bosco Rivas here please tell him I'm so sorry and imisshim a lot. Thank you! Godbless! :)

I LOVE CITY COLLEGE! I love to be part of the broadcasting department. I love the professors and I love my classmates.

Dance classes there are really great! I was taking ballet there for four years. Loved my instructor. And also so many classes to choose from :)

It's a robust Institution with modern day dynamics.

The campus is really run down in a lot of spots. Certain spots even look as if they're abandoned! Also, It seems like everyone working here, aside from the professors, hate their job. They're pretty rude sometimes. Other than that this school is great! The education is the best you can find at a community college!

It's unfortunate that so few people working there actually care about their job and the students they serve.

I love the campus. The gym, the library are great. Excellent resources. Hope they stay open!!!!

I'm not sure any City College/Community College runs perfectly smooth, but CCSF sure makes an effort to make things easy on students. I really enjoyed my time here and took classes at several of the campuses/locations. They made transferring credits to/from easy and I really liked all of my teachers.

I came to get information about this campus and the classes offered, however upon my visit the staff in the administration office were uninformed. When I called and got transferred to the councling department the staff I spoke with seamed as if they didn't care or value my negative experience and they acted as if they had no clue as to where the college I visited was. If the information and knowledge of the staff shows the value of the education that I would be receiving, then this is not a college that I would attend.

Am here a lot and it has made a great improvement in my educational goal.

Just finished with ccsf. Most of instructions are bad. Only few teachers do very well. The counsleours are horrible. Poor planning and poor help to transfer. I had to figure all myself which classes to take. Watch out for instructors who do not know how to teach. You may fail a class and have to repeat due to poor instructions.

I was at the CCSF campus today for Frisco Day, and my experience registering for classes was horrible. At the start, I didn't have a CCSF ID number which had been a problem since when the counselors came to my school and notified me of it, so I got some help with the issue and they got me an ID number in 20 minutes after waiting a month (I still don't know for sure if the counselors could've done that instead of having me to wait). After I got my ID number, I was then told that I could register for my classes, but I couldn't create a RAMID. I spent an hour having people trying to help me but to little avail. It wasn't until later that I found out that I needed to wait up to 24 HOURS to have a RAMID account created for me and NO ONE told me that beforehand. So basically I wasted about 2 hours of my time at CCSF only to have to go back to finally get my ID Card (since I needed to register for at least one class before I could get my card) on my own time. I really hope that this college isn't like this because I'll be here for a least a couple of years.

A great community resources, especially now that tuition is free for SF residents! Like most community colleges, it offers more "hands-on" oriented instruction, and offers some interesting classes. I've taken some evening classes, which i really enjoyed, and never had trouble with parking. There are a good number of places, just off campus, to get a quick bite to eat or a cup of coffee before class.

Its not the place it just to be. They need to work lot more in their faculty.

The professors in this school are fine with me. This school is definitely diverse and there are a lot of resources there to help you get a passing grade. Overall, nice school.

I got the good class. There are good teature in this school. I recommend this school.

Wish I never took classes there. As a school, it's fine. But trying to get a transcript from the school is extremely painful. I attended CCSF in the 1980's and forgot about it until grad schools I've applied to require the CCSF Transcript for the few classes I took. I have gone to request it in person but they lost the request. So 9 weeks later, I followed up and re-request it. Now that I need to expedite it, I can't get through to Admissions to contact the Admissions Director. It's a mess--all the other school administrators have been very helpful--not the CCSF system.

[from Aug 2006]

WARNING WARNING WARNING
Overeducated-snob alert!
* * *

I've taken three classes at City College.
The first -- an intermediate level dance class -- was taught by a very capable and caring instructor, but far too many people selfishly took this class despite (knowingly) not even knowing the basics. "I couldn't fit the beginning class into my schedule, and I wanted an easy 'A'" said one of them. Jerk.

The second was taught by an instructor who was moderately proficient in her subject, but seemed at least a bit burnt out.

The third class was taught by a decently smart and dedicated fellow, but the ambience felt so much like high school, I almost ran screaming out into the parking lot after the first week. Reminders not to chew gum, the taking of attendance... it was clear that a lot of the kids here were just grudgingly fulfilling their language requirement and had no passion for learning another language.

Indeed, that is my biggest gripe about this place. Passion. Walking around campus, sitting in classes... it just feels like folks are going through the promotions. Trying to get into a better school. Taking classes because their parents are forcing them to. Love of learning? I sure didn't see a whole lot of it. And after my mostly-inspiring years in undergrad and grad school... this was all rather bleak and depressing.

* * *

So why THREE stars? Well, I feel that affordable education should be available to everyone. The campus is pretty accessible by public transit. And at least a couple of the CCSF instructors I've met are cool people.

amazing ... all the City Colleges in San Francisco deny access to the College libraries. to the citizens of San Francisco....if the citizen is not a student of the City College....

In all the States that I've traveled in... I have never heard of the City Colleges denying use of school's libraries .. to the public!!

RIP OFF!!

Extremely horrible admission services, they sounded rude, annoyed, and unwelcome. Very GLAD that I am NOT in this school.

They try to provide free education so we applaud them. Do not all cities follow their example? The institute is large and has beautiful buildings ... There are still things to improve from management.

I've only attended as an adult taking individual classes, not for a degree or credit. The teachers and classes are high quality - those get 5 stars, but the college keeps making restrictions on repeating classes not being allowed. This would make sense for undergrads, but for adults taking phys.ed. or dance classes, this is just frustrating! We want to give you our money and take classes multiple times because we get progressively better each time and repeating these types of classes is wanted. It's annoying that the college is putting up barriers to be able to sign up for classes that you want if you've already taken them before. This is why I knocked off a star. City college - please open up the schedule again!

They have a prayer room for Muslim students which is respectable. The first Dean of the Mission campus is Latina (Carlota) and has great book recommendations. Ardel Thomas has great courses and book lists accessible through the student store. Elizabeth Arruda offers a great course in American Women's History.

At any age, you should immerse yourself in education. And CCSF offers opportunities at reasonable rates. My only regret is that I didn't start going back to school in my 40's.

A very old campus that needs to be renovated. Certain classrooms have seen better days. There is a wide selection of classes.

Horrible. One word that describes the veteran office and admissions staff. Absolutely unreliable and unhelpful. Rude, disrespectful, and overall just unpleasant to talk to and work with. One person in specific, Jose Gousen, said he couldn't provide a form required for certification because of a law called FERPA. I live over 3 hours away. Just so everyone reading this knows, you can request a FERPA release form or look it up on the internent. This information wasn't provided by Mr. Jose Gousen, no instead he told me he couldn't send me any paper work because of FERPA. When told I him I live over three hours away his response was "well you're just going to have to make that sacrifice." This is the absolute worst school I have had the displeasure of working with. Horrible information and avoidant staff. I suppose that's what you should expect when you call close to lunch on a Friday.
This is the second semester I'm trying to go to ccsf and both times they have made it incredibly difficult to get certified. I see there's many other veterans who been experiencing the same problem. Stay away from this school. This will be my last semester with such a second rate college. Take your money else where.
EDIT:
The educators at this school are great. Shame it's overshadowed by such a lackluster faculty.

i am a student, my first semester was nerve wrecking because i didn't know what to expect but the teachers and councelors were very helpful and now i feel like a pro. yes i am promoting my school, i'm very proud of city college. i went from not wanting to stay to now not wanting to leave anxious to get my degree. i came with no major in mind to now having one. if you're looking a good community college to attend this the one to choose.

The was hoping to see some paranormal book stacking or recto-plastic residue but The foyer is so nice it almost makes you forget about the exterior view. Upon climbing the steps to the 3rd floor be sure to look up and see the ornate ceilings... absolutely amazing. Seeing the architectural and artistic detail throughout the structure really makes you appreciate the skill and patience of the 20th century designers. "They really don't make them like they use to" has a whole new meaning after this visit. The reading rooms are just as impressive. If I lived in CA I would be sure to make an effort to come here at least a few times a month. After this visit be sure to walk a couple blocks east to see Grand Central Terminal which was equally impressive

Insanely rude staff. I called Admissions because the Matriculation Office's inbox was full so I couldn't leave a message. When I asked the guy in Admissions, he said that I couldn't email my transcripts to Matriculation. But then I made him aware that they had an email address on the CCSF website. He then went on to say "well you know more than I do at this point." How incompetent are their staff members??? This is pathetic. Last time I ever try to rely on them for student support.

This is the worst school ever I am saying from experience it is so depressing so dark so old this is not the place if you want to study..
Very bad Campus very bad staff so grumpy and the students are so ghetto if you have a big dream don't waste your time there and kill your dream..

Parking really sucks and its pretty expensive. some buildings get really crowded at times.

Terrible.
School openly discriminates against Veterans, allows attacks on them from other groups, allows their vehicles to be defaced or destroyed, and does nothing.

Since I'm a veteran I have to go see the veteran counselors, met with some woman whose name started with a C...celia?

Numerous veterans have complained about her, from GWOT vets to Nam vets, she has an open contempt, hatred, and dislike for veterans, and Men in particular(funny how that's 90% of the people she sees)

She likes to pass on her judgements on to the Veterans that defended her and kept her safe while she condescendingly insults them.

Craig Newmark said he donated money to the Veteran's alliance there, but the money went to the hands of the CCSF foundation(who pocketed all of it - $15,000 worth)

FORGET THIS SCHOOL AND STAY AWAY YOU WILL REGRET IT. THEY WILL ONLY TRY TO TAKE YOUR MONEY.

This school is political correctness taken so far that it spoils everything and ruins it.

I went here many years ago in 1973. I had some very good professors including Paul Hewitt, the author of Conceptual Physics. I also took Psychology, Art, Martial Arts and Jazz Dance. Many happy memories.

Incredible value for your hard earned money. At $46.00 per unit, this is a bargan basement price for the quality of education that is being dispensed in all departments. Generally, teachers are student oriented and dedicated to their department objectives.

I think that any student who tries to learn and is of average intelligence will gain critical skills needed for career advancements and for their general growth as productive members of our society.

This an excellent college due to high quality for teaching edu such as English. However, the class' material too old, and the restrooms so bad because students didn't rush after finishing.

a year ago, I got rejected from Columbia and decided to go to ccsf; quite frankly, I don't know who I would be if I had not attended. Most diverse campus ever, I just wish people were more down to do stuff. faculty is always open to helping you if you seek it. Best on your journey !

Great school, wonderful teachers, and met many good people and classmates here. City is free now so take advantage of the programs here!!They changed their website and registration navigation sucks now./

My child development class has been a blessing. GOODLUCK TO EVERYONE!!!

Good for San Francisco! We have a community college that offers free education. As it should be. CA has always been one of the main trend setter states. This is the type of trend setting we need.

ccsf rocks.acreditartion is a must. keep the school for ever.. help by spreading the word.

Came here for school. One of the best places for STEM majors.

I had to go and change my review since I've been here for the last 2 months and I have to admit what I said about the quality of Education here is absolutely correct the staff the teachers are wonderful. However here are a few things that you should know that they don't actually tell you in orientation. Rule number one if you were an out-of-state resident go someplace else. If you have previous student loans you may not be able to get financial aid here or at least a long portion of it. The school has a $20,000 aggregate loan limit for financial aid. And the one thing that they don't tell you is that the real person who actually runs the campus has to be the actual police chief and if you think this is a joke it's not. Hours from things like libraries and so forth are very limited. The other thing that was really all this is that they actually have a proxy server that limits your ability to go ahead and use the network services like for example log me in remote login services that you may need for some of your classes. I honestly have to say if they got rid of the campus police I would absolutely give this place four and a half Stars. However if you're an actual resident of California this place is a complete five-star Institution. However with the recent meetings and the last guy that actually broke both of his wrists and was actually punched in the back of the head I would highly discourage taking any of those political studies courses here, it's not a good idea.

Such a great school. I have heard many stories of students coming from all over the world, who were able to do what they do because of starting at city. The staff that support international students have been great, often knowing me by name and remembering me, or just giving me all the information that I needed to help with VISA's and coming and going out of the country. Thank you. Oh and the class were great too.

Free city college for residents of San Francisco! However the classrooms are falling apart and the bathrooms are in much need of renovation. There s a trash problem; it s piled up in corners where the wind blows it, and nobody bothers to pick it up for weeks. Still a beautiful campus - it s just seen better days.

If your looking to commit crimes of identity theft, this is the place, they don't check proper i.d in the financial aid department., I have filed police reports and still nothing has been done to correct the issue. I've gotten the run around for almost a year now. Dr Corria never returns calls neither does any one else in the offices.