LIU Brooklyn

Date: Jun 10 2008
Major: Unknown (This Major's Salary over time)
So, I am a Biology major, and I just finished up my second year. I decided to come here, only after I had a tough decision my Senior year and compared to the other school I was choosing between, this was the better school for Biology. It was pretty much a last minute decision.

And possibly the worst one I could have ever made. The departments and administration have a lot of problems, especially within Math and Science. I think most of the Biology professors are pretty good, likable and helpful. It depends who you take. It's more of the Chemistry, and Physics, where the problems are with Science. Math has a huge overthrow of professors. And everyone knows it. As a story above told, we have professors who have tenure, so they're not fired. However, they fail students left and right. Then, when everyone drops the class, they give those left an 'A' just for remaining in the class. Truly unfair.

We also have one professor, who arrives late to class, every single class (Chemistry, name is Donahue) and thinks it's ok. No, it's not. I PAY over $1000 for the class - YOU SHOULD BE THERE. How much more inconsiderate can you be? Some of the kids whom I thought were really intelligent and bright, who I worked with - ended up failing his class. I was shocked, honestly. And those who passed, with C's - cheated their entire way through the class. They sat in the back for the final and chitchatted away, passed notes, etc.

That's just a taste of what goes on.

If you're trying for the Pharmacy program, and even Nursing, good luck, sincerely. These are the two most cutthroat programs, right now. The programs are also overcrowded, so they constantly try to cut down on the number of applicants, which is acceptable as far as grades are concerned. However, Pharmacy has 200 seats, and they just opened the program to transfer students from community colleges and other universities. Which would be fine, except they've taken away the priority to their university students -

We need to make a name for ourselves.

They sold out their own students? WOW. Nice, really. If you do a double major, they try to lean you towards the other program. They have too many students in Pharmacy and Nursing, and can't handle it.

Forget about the administration and offices. Constant lines out the door, especially "in season." NOTHING is done online. You must go in person. Registering for Biology can be a pain, sometimes. As opposed to other majors, we get to walk in to any Advisor's office, and sit down and register. But, sometimes there's no one there, or you have a bit of a wait, and then you have to run to class, and come back. It's not a set appointment, which can be a downfall. Bursar is always on the brink. They have 2-3 people working there, with a line down the hall practically reaching the next building (we have crossover tunnels to other buildings). Not too many people are approachable, either. And things are quite sloppy too. They always mess up on bills, registration, etc.

By the way, we've tried a lot of things to change things for LIU and nothing has happened, as of yet. Many of the Deans can't seem to help us. Petitions go unanswered. Complaints go unanswered. Then, they wonder why people get into arguments with them at Bursar, and why people walk away from so many offices and administrative things completely frustrated.

One thing they did do, was clean up the exterior of the campus, especially where the Humanities, Pratt, and LLC buildings are. It looks nice, now. Like a little suburb? away from the city, within an urban area. The actual neighborhood, granted, is not the best. If you're not into traffic, congestion, and urban areas, this is not for you. It's not the worst of areas, but it's not Park Avenue. One thing is things are relatively close. The train ride to the City is about 6 stops, depending on the train. There's also many buses in the area. Also, there's a ton of little stores around for food. The Fulton Street Mall is a quick walk, with Macy's and lots of other little stores. And, if you go in another direction, the Atlantic area mall is not far either, and there's Target, and lots of really nice popular stores there, like Victoria's Secret, Mandee, etc. Interior, however, still needs a lot of working on, which they're doing. They're changing the Humanities bathrooms, which are DISGUSTING, definitely. No idea how long it'll be. But, one thing is - it's taking a chunk out of the students' pockets. Tuition has increased pretty high this year. It's about $25,000, now. Financial aid can be a bummer, depending.

We also need a few more resources, within the library. I think we're lacking a lot.

People are alright, you'll love some, you'll hate some. I think that happens within every school. I've met quite the handful of nasty people though. Everyone is pretty miserable and unhappy here, I think. From those I've talked to, A LOT cannot stand it. They only stay here for conveniences and easy access. I also think it depends what your major is. Personally, maybe I'm biased because I'm a Biology major, but I found Biology majors to be some of the nicest people. Lots of Liberal Arts majors, too, like Sociology, Anthropology, Philosophy, Psychology, Media Arts, and those. Those also tend to the BEST professors, as well.

I had the advantage of friends only because I came to LIU with a lot of girls from high school, including one of my best friends. I did make a few friends, though. It's a huge school, and you can get lost pretty easily. I think a lot of people can feel lonely at times. Clubs aren't really a huuge deal here. I've never tried them. I heard there's not too big of an outcome though, depending. I have met quite a handful of randomly nice people, as well though. If you like sticking to yourself, though, I guess this is a good place for you. It's a commuter school, and a lot of people just go to class, and leave. There's a fairly big residency community, and they stick a lot of themselves, because they all dorm, and they all know each other.

After 2 years, I've made the decision to leave LIU. I find they no longer offer me opportunities to advance anymore, and I could find better at another school. My 2 years were pretty good, as far as socially. Academically, there were good things, but also there were lots of downfalls, and this is more of the reason why I am leaving.