University Buffalo

3rd Year Male -- Class 2007

Campus Aesthetics: A+, Education Quality: F

As an English major I fortunately haven't run into the situation of having a non- english speaking TA. However, If diversity is what you're looking for, this is the place to come. You can hardly walk 50 feet without hearing at least one other languauge and usually it's more. This is not an exaggeration. The professors that I've had, have been, on the whole, pretty good although they do make it pretty clear, whether intentionally or not, where they stand politically. This can be frusterating when you have to sit through an hour and a half lecture about why your political views are wrong. They also tend to be slightly condescending. This is somewhat counteracted however, by their accesibility. I have never had a problem getting in touch with any of my professors, and most of them encourage you to contact them if you ever need any help. Although it is a pretty large institution, I have found that most classes are fairly small. As a freshman I was only in two lectures, the rest had a class size of about 20 - 30. Just be sure to attend those classes because the schools attendence policy is straight out of high school. Miss four classes and the campus policy dictates that the instructor has to fail you. This is something that is not taken lightly, as most instructors will take attendence(with the exception of the large lectures). The school is broken into to sections. South, which is the older of the two and is definately the more aesthetically pleasing, is situated on Main street in north Buffalo. This is where University Heights is and all the frats are located and activity happens. North campus on the other hand is like some mutated younger brother. It's just downright, damn ugly. It was built in the 60's or 70's and is not by any means representative of some of the other architectural gems that can be found in the rest of Buffalo. There is also nothing going on there after about 7 or 8 it's really kind of an island as there is nowhere really to walk to. Buses do run in between campuses fairly regularly, although you could be waiting anywhere between 5 and 50 minutes. Unfortunately unless you're going to be a dentist or something, you will most likely have all of your classes in the North campus. I also have noticed that the school is pretty dirty. There's just crap all over the place. I see that big driving vacuum around sometimes, but thats the only cleaning I usually see being done. Napkins and newspapers can be seen strewn all about campus. If these superficial things don't bother you, then by all means, come here. You will get a good education for very cheap, and the school is getting more selective by the year. The libraries are huge with tons of online datdbases and stuff for research and the food isn't all that bad either(there's a subway and a burger king right in the middle of campus and millions of vending machines everywhere you go). Plus, you will never feel like you don't fit in because of all the different people that go here. There is no one typical UB student. After all is said and done, it's a good place that I would reccomend.

1st Year Male -- Class 2007

Faculty Accessibility: A-, Campus Aesthetics: D

(***Edited version of the one I typed late at night. Please delete the review below***)
I did not want my review of this school to be influenced by current mood. This is why I have chosen to defer my write-up until the middle of the summer. Here goes....

THE POSITIVES:
+ Price. UB offers a decent education at a state school rate.
+ The technology and library services are very good.
+ The advisors I have had were helpful and courteous.
+ UB brings in many top-notch speakers. Bill Clinton, Rudy Giuliani, alumnus Wolf Blitzer, Tim Russert, Bill Cosby, Bill Bradley, and many others have given speeches here. Donald Trump is scheduled to come here in September.

+ Many popular entertainers have performed here during my time at UB. Jay Leno, Chris Rock, Wayne Brady, Jimmy Fallon, The Roots, Outkast, LL Cool J, Ja Rule, Nas, Lil Kim, No Doubt, Godsmack, Queens of the Stone Age, Dave Mathews Band, Shaggy, and Tony Hawk are among the many acts that have appeared here in the last four years. Whether these events are worth the mandatory student activity fee of $70 is another question.

+ UB plans on building a village-like strip between Ellicott and the Commons. The preliminary design was impressive.

+ The academic buildings on the North Campus are interconnected (hence the nickname "academic spine") so that students don't have to venture outside during the cold Buffalo winters.

+ The intercampus and intracampus busing services are fairly reliable. My only complaint is that busses never stop for pedestrian crossings (yet signs and NYS law encourages other drivers to stop at crosswalks).

+ People hold doors for everyone. This friendly gesture was completely foreign to me before I arrived at UB.

+ Students are slowly beginning to rally behind the basketball team. They'll probably do likewise for the football team if it ever turns the corner.

+ There are bars on Main Street in Uni Heights with Thursday night drink specials, a popular albeit overpriced strip downtown, and Canada for the 19-and-up crowd. The frat and house party scene is lively as well.

+ It snows here. Expect it, endure it, embrace it.
THE NEGATIVES:
- As has been mentioned many times, UB is a top-heavy school. The hierarchy of importance is as follows: Research > Graduate >>>>> Undergrad - Beware of the secondary fees.

- Parking. Most lots reach capacity before 9 a.m. Arrive any time thereafter and be prepared to stalk fellow commuters as they walk back to their cars.

- Architecture on UB's North Campus is bland and drab.
- The Roadhouse Grill order-taker, SOM Associate Dean Diane Dittmar, some professors, a few UB Micro workers, and the entire staff at the Chinese restaurant in the Commons are condescending (and intimidating in some cases). I have boycotted Bert's for two years now due to numerous incidents involving a R.H. Grill worker and the Bert's manager's refusal to address my subsequent grievances.

- Many students -- especially those from NYC and its vicinity – are arrogant and rude. I despise their lowly ilk, and they probably think the same of me. To be fair, I share a similar contempt towards the commuters from WNY.

- The females here are stuck-up and snotty (unless you look a certain way). To give you an idea of what I mean, picture the girls on MTV's Sorority Life. Those are the DOWN-TO-EARTH ones. The girls I have seen on campus are far worse. Like my friend once told me, "This place is heaven for SWM who like Asian women and hell for SWM who date within their race."

- This school, like many schools in the Northeast, is a haven for liberals. Diversity will be crammed down the throats of students non-stop. The environment here could turn an open-minded liberal or moderate into a hardcore social conservative.

- TAs in the CSE department are not fluent in English. I heard the same is true in the Physics and Engineering departments.

- The 300/400-level classes in the School of Management have smaller class sizes, but do not for a minute consider that an ‘asset'. Upperclassmen in the SOM are treated like high schoolers. There are daily attendance checks, assigned seating, overlapping group projects, and continual check-ups on progress. These classes make me long for the 300-student lecture halls. The best class I have taken in the SOM was the online course with Prof. Simpson. I got to work at my own pace and place, faced no external distractions, and ended up with a well-earned A. I strongly suggest that the SOM's "Accounting and Law" department follow suit immediately.

- Some professors and TAs are self-important and closed minded (I reckon this is the case at any school though). Do not expect objective lectures at UB. Students here will determine which side of the political spectrum their professors stand before they so much as take their first exam. Be sure to take with a grain of salt any message with political undertones. One U.S. History TA would not back down from his stance that FDR's New Deal rather than WWII triggered our economic recovery; he failed my paper in spite of irrefutable evidence to the contrary. He also refused to hear out my take on the gold standard (which opposed his position, naturally). I then left the classroom and the asshole took attendance shortly thereafter.

- Quiet hours in the dorms (err.... "residence halls") is a joke.
- Apathy runs high at UB. This is not the school for those who covet "school unity". I am not one of those types so I don't care. It can be depressing at times though.

- Our athletic teams suck. Everyone knows about our football team. Our men's basketball team caught fire at the end of the season and should be even better next year. Were it not for the hoops and wrestling squads, last year would have been another disappointing one for UB athletics. For some reason UB offers neither hockey nor lacrosse as a NCAA Div. I team sport. Why a large school in the middle of hockey and lacrosse country doesn't offer these sports on a level other than "club" is beyond me.A caveat for prospective students: Before selecting a school, identify your learning style. I prefer the large, impersonal lecture halls to the smaller, more personal classrooms. The latter can be a living nightmare with the wrong instructor. I chose UB over the other schools that accepted me because it was a large public university in which I could blend easily. People like me that favor an individualistic learning style will like UB's general curriculum but loathe their classes as an upperclassman. Finally, if you have taken time to read all thirteen chapters of this review, you should be fully prepared for the onslaught you will face during your college years. =)

4th Year Male -- Class 2005

University Resource Use/ spending: B+, Useful Schoolwork: D+