<p>I’m trying to find a good entry point for a question about Bucknell. Does anyone have any experience, information, or opinion about the computer science program? Our son is very interested in cs but we’d like to find alternatives to the “best cs school” list where all the school listed are mega-universities: Michigan, UCLA, U of Md, etc. Thanks</p>
<p>I’d suggest a new thread here on the Bucknell sight (although it does not get a large amount of activity) and also on the CC College Search and Selection. </p>
<p>Be aware people are very opinionated on CC and many very elitist. Also many answers are from HS students.</p>
<p>Do not know specifically about Bucknell CS programs. But most of its its engineering programs are ranked in the top five or ten in the nation for undergrqad schools-no graduate program. </p>
<p>Bucknell itself is a top 50 LA (US News and most other rankings) in the nation school and a top 100 most selective schools in the nation (out of many thousands).</p>
<p>So I am guessing its CS program is pretty decent, with smaller class sizes, more personal interaction with professors, etc.</p>
<p>I’m a senior Computer Science & Engineering major at Bucknell. Having joined the program with virtually zero knowledge about computer science, Bucknell has aided me in gaining a solid CS foundation. Is this CS program the most rigorous? Probably not. That isn’t to say that the BA, BS, and BCSE degree programs will not prepare its students for their future endeavors. Most CS degree programs across the nation are fairly standardized, and students from different colleges will cover 90% of the same topics. The other 10% comes from the electives a student wishes to undertake as well as the depth to which a professor wishes to explore a subject. </p>
<p>What’s a specific example in which Bucknell has prepared me for the real world? Last semester, I interviewed for a job opportunity with GE Healthcare, and the candidate pool consisted of students from UMich, Notre Dame, Cornell, Duke, Purdue, and naturally I was apprehensive and intimidated by the competition. All the candidates were asked to prepare a PowerPoint about a technical project that would be presented to a panel. The candidates discussed some of their past internships and research during casual conversation before being interviewed, and everything they talked about seemed more technical than what I had done. However, I knew the one skill that I could use to my benefit was my presentation skills. I have given a multitude of presentations in both CS and non-CS courses, and I knew I could confidently present my PowerPoint in front of the interviewers. Fortunately, I was offered a position with GE Healthcare a few days after the interview and accepted it. While technical skills are important to have, communication skills are as, if not more, important to have, and Bucknell certainly has helped hone my communication skills. To further emphasize my point, during another interview with a different company, a senior manager told me that being successful is 10% technical and 90% communication. So while the powerhouse schools are more likely to better prepare a student technically than Bucknell, they may not fully develop a students soft skills. </p>
<p>Even so, the school a student attends only plays a fractional part in his success. What is even more important is a student’s motivation, effort, and desire to learn outside of the classroom. For example, a fellow CSE major will be working for Amazon which is an impressive feat. Amazon doesn’t recruit at Bucknell, but what made him such a good candidate was his proclivity for challenging himself as well as his enthusiasm for CS. He took challenging electives, participated in programming competitions, read up on the latest tech news constantly, etc. I honestly don’t think the Bucknell name helped him get his foot in Amazon’s door, and, therefore, I believe a person’s own discipline, passion, and merits will play a more significant role than the institution he attends.</p>
<p>Just wanted to chime in here about two things. First, I am surprised about only 1 credit being awarded for a course with 10 in-class hours (the science classes referred to a number of posts up) which is the same amount of credit granted for a class that meets for 3 hours. I have a D at UPenn and 1.5 units is awarded for lab science classes.</p>
<p>Separately, I was interested to read this thread as D2 has applied to Bucknell and I’m interested to hear more about the culture. Helpful to know the reaction around the 2008 election but would love to hear more. For example, a couple posts implied that the school was shifting away from more conservative, preppy–can anyone elaborate by giving examples? I have heard that the Greek system, at least for girls, is highly popular which leads me more towards preppy…</p>
<p>My stepdaughter attends Bucknell and doesn’t believe that most of these respondents do since nobody bothered to mention Obama-protest specifc controversies and LAWSUITS. If the original poster’s son values free speech, Bucknell is not for you:</p>
<p>Bucknell University: University Slams Door on Student Satires of Obama Stimulus Plan and Affirmative Action
Student rights are under assault at Bucknell University, where a conservative student group’s protests against affirmative action policies and President Obama’s stimulus plan have repeatedly been shut down or forbidden by administrators using flimsy or patently false excuses. After the Bucknell University Conservatives Club (BUCC) had three events censored in two months, including the distribution of “Obama Stimulus Dollars” and an affirmative action bake sale, the students turned to FIRE for help. The case is still ongoing. </p>
<p>Case Materials
“Response to FIRE from Bucknell General Counsel Wayne Bromfield,” January 18, 2010
“FIRE 2010 U.S. News Letter to Bucknell President Brian C. Mitchell,” January 7, 2010
“Bucknell’s Response to FIRE’s Fourth Letter,” September 29, 2009
“FIRE Fourth Letter to Bucknell University Administrators,” September 24, 2009
“Red Alert: Bucknell University Hardens Policy Used to Shut Down Student Protests; Student Newspaper Rejects FIRE Ad,” September 21, 2009: A culture of fear appears to be chilling expression at Bucknell University, where even the student newspaper fears a libel lawsuit from Associate Dean of Students Gerald W. Commerford if it were to print a critical advertisement from the Foundation for Individual Rights in Education (FIRE). After Bucknell administrators misapplied and abused Bucknell’s Sales and Solicitation and nondiscrimination policies last semester to shut down the Bucknell University Conservatives Club’s (BUCC’s) protests of affirmative action and President Obama’s economic stimulus, the group turned to FIRE for help. Bucknell has expanded and hardened the language in its policies affecting such protests and still insists that “affirmative action bake sales” have no place in the public areas of the campus. FIRE now lists Bucknell as a Red Alert school, one of only six “worst of the worst” schools in America when it comes to student rights on campus.
“FIRE’s rejected Bucknell ad,” September 18, 2009
“Bucknell Policy on Sales and Promotions,” September 2, 2009
“Lenore Flower E-mail to FIRE,” September 1, 2009
“‘Counterweight’ Article “Racial Fires”,” August 27, 2009
“‘Counterweight’ Article on President’s Resignation,” August 27, 2009
“Letters to the Editor of the ‘Counterweight’,” August 27, 2009
“FIRE Third Letter in the Matter of the Bucknell University Conservatives Club,” August 6, 2009
“Second Letter to FIRE from Wayne A. Bromfield, Bucknell General Counsel,” July 9, 2009
“FIRE Second Letter to Bucknell University President Brian C. Mitchell,” June 30, 2009
“E-Mail from Wayne A. Bromfield, Bucknell General Counsel,” June 24, 2009
“Letter to FIRE from Bucknell General Counsel Wayne Bromfield,” June 11, 2009
“Bucknell University Slams Door on Student Satires of Obama Stimulus Plan, Affirmative Action,” June 11, 2009: Student rights are under assault at Bucknell University, where a conservative student group’s protests against affirmative action policies and President Obama’s stimulus plan have repeatedly been shut down or forbidden by administrators using flimsy or patently false excuses. After the Bucknell University Conservatives Club (BUCC) had three events censored in two months, the students turned to FIRE for help.
“FIRE Letter to Bucknell University President Brian C. Mitchell,” May 21, 2009
“BUCC Bake Sale Audio Recording,” May 5, 2009
“E-Mail from Judy Mickanis to Travis Eaione,” May 4, 2009
“Affirmative Education,” The Counterweight, May 1, 2009
“Power to the People,” The Counterweight, May 1, 2009
“BUCC donut sale rejected by administration,” The Bucknellian, April 24, 2009
“Bucknell Affirmative Action Bake Sale Shut Down Video Recording,” April 11, 2009
“Event Blockade,” The Counterweight, April 1, 2009
“Back of Obama Stimulus Dollar,” March 17, 2009
“Front of Obama Stimulus Dollar,” March 17, 2009
“Sales and Solicitation Policy,” March 9, 2009
Blog Entries
“Bucknell University Would Thwart AAUW ‘Wage Gap’ Bake Sales,” by Adam Kissel, July 1, 2010
“Bucknell’s General Counsel Abuses the Truth to an Exceptional Degree–Even for Him,” by Adam Kissel, June 10, 2010
“In Which Bucknells General Counsel Calls Me a Big Ole Liar,” by Robert Shibley, June 4, 2010
“Still Looking for a New Year’s Resolution, Red Alert Schools?,” by Peter Bonilla, January 14, 2010
“Bucknell Alumnus Prefers Rival Lehigh on Free Speech,” by Adam Kissel, October 20, 2009
“Do Bucknell Administrators Believe in Free Speech or Not?,” by Peter Bonilla, September 28, 2009: After a Bucknell undergraduate reported that several top Bucknell administrators, including President Brian Mitchell, have affirmed the right of Bucknell students to hold an “affirmative action bake sale” on campus, FIRE has written each of them to verify that they have repudiated Bucknell’s earlier shutdown and censorship of such satirical political protests. Bucknell had prevented the Bucknell University Conservatives Club from distributing “Obama stimulus dollars” on campus and from holding its protest bake sale, earning Bucknell a spot on FIRE’s Red Alert list. If Bucknell affirms that the undergraduate’s report is true and that speech is once again free at Bucknell, FIRE will gladly and immediately remove Bucknell from our Red Alert list.
“Rejected FIRE Ad at Bucknell Reported by Student Press Law Center,” by Adam Kissel, September 23, 2009
" How Can Bucknell University Get Off FIREs Red Alert List? ," by Peter Bonilla, September 21, 2009
“Bucknell Revises Solicitation Policy after Administrators Use It Repeatedly to Shut Down Student Speech,” by Adam Kissel, September 18, 2009
“Bucknell’s Oppression of Free Speech in Today’s Issue of ‘Human Events’,” by Adam Kissel, September 9, 2009
“Bucknell University Joins Worst Offenders Against Liberty on FIREs Red Alert List,” by Peter Bonilla, August 25, 2009: Bucknell University has been named to FIRE’s Red Alert list after a conservative student group’s protests against affirmative action policies and President Obama’s stimulus plan were repeatedly shut down or forbidden by administrators using flimsy or patently false excuses. After the Bucknell University Conservatives Club (BUCC) had three events censored in two months, including the distribution of “Obama Stimulus Dollars” and affirmative action bake sales, the students turned to FIRE for help.
“FIRE Releases Video about Bucknell Case,” by Jennifer Feden, August 12, 2009
“A Crackdown on Free Speech at
Bucknell University?,” by Greg Lukianoff, June 29, 2009
“Bucknell University Lies Again,” by Adam Kissel, June 25, 2009
“Bucknell President Resigns Effective June 2010,” by Adam Kissel, June 24, 2009
“AP and Wall Street Journal Pick Up on Bucknell’s Violation of Conservative Students’ Rights,” by Adam Kissel, June 23, 2009
“Philadelphia Inquirer on Bucknell Bake Sale Fiasco,” , June 23, 2009
“Bucknell Alumni on Bucknell,” by Robert Shibley, June 17, 2009
“Bucknell to Student Conservatives, Liberty: Drop Dead,” by Robert Shibley, June 11, 2009
“Bucknell University Slams Door on Bibles, Student Satires of Obama Stimulus Plan, Affirmative Action,” by Adam Kissel, June 11, 2009
Media Coverage
“Bucknell should embrace free speech as Lehigh University does,”
by Charles Mitchell, The Morning Call, October 20, 2009
“FIRE blames newspaper’s ad refusal on school’s ‘culture of fear’,”
by Anne Elliot, Student Press Law Center, September 23, 2009
“BUCCing the Bucknell Liberals,”
by Travis Eaione and Peter Bonilla, Human Events, September 9, 2009
“A crackdown on free speech at
Bucknell University?,”
by Robert Shibley, Pajamas Media, June 27, 2009
“Bucknell and the Affirmative-Action Bakesale,”
by Ashby Jones, The Wall Street Journal Law Blog, June 23, 2009
“Bucknell bake sale sparks First Amendment debate,”
by Susan Snyder, Philadelphia Inquirer, June 23, 2009
“Bucknell University requires permit to hand out Bibles,”
by Staff Editorial, WorldNetDaily, June 11, 2009</p>
<p>D1dilemmas, this is absurd:</p>
<p>“My stepdaughter attends Bucknell and doesn’t believe that most of these respondents do since nobody bothered to mention Obama-protest specifc controversies and LAWSUITS. If the original poster’s son values free speech, Bucknell is not for you”</p>
<p>My daughter is a Junior at Bucknell and loves it as do her many, many friends who generally share, value and debate their many and often opposing points of view on a broad range of topics. She tells me that she values the large and diverse makeup of the school which allows for many constituencies to exist and promotes different points of view, as opposed to how she feels when she visits friends at some of the smaller more homogenous LACs. And she certainly doesn’t have any fear of speaking up and expressing her point of view at Bucknell, regardless of what others think. </p>
<p>Your note paints a picture of a student body fearing reprisals for not agreeing with the status quo, as opposed the reality: a large, vibrant campus with a diverse student body made up of smart kids who come from a variety of backgrounds and share many different views, which the university fosters and encourages. The reason no one mentioned any of the articles you cite is that they’re on the fringe, related to a specific set of groups and their activities at the school–which is fine; a good example of the passion for discussion and debate at the school. But to imply that the whole campus is paralyzed by this is wrong.</p>
<p>The student body fearing reprisals? They were FORCED to stop the peaceful Obama demonstration, and to stop the bake sale that called attention to unfair FA policies. A lawsuit sprangg out of this and believe me it had merit. I was directly responding to the person who started this thread who wanted to know dynamics, particularly regarding the President and dempnstrations and such. No offense but your must literally be in a bubble if this went unnoticed, and it is a very small college. Bucknell is also the only school I can think of that has alumnae actively protesting the way the college is run with their own organization and website–ABB stands for A Better Bucknell, and features editorials actually written by graduates who are unhappy with the direction the school is heading and favor rival colleges’ more respectful free speech for students policies. You might want to check it out. If you do not believe in free speech for people with opposing views, you do not believe in free speech at all.</p>
<p>I’m sorry, but D1dillemmas entry is just ridiculous. </p>
<p>A “case” is mentioned. What case? And there are references to emails and blogs. Huh? These are just opinions. And there are a bunch of parenthetical titles with dates that have no reference.</p>
<p>What I got from this entry was that there is a very angry step- parent of a daughter involved in a conservative group engaging in activities that the BU administration obviously felt was more derogatory than informational.</p>
<p>My D also is a junior at BU. This event is not only not paralyzing the campus, it is probably not even noticed by most of the campus.</p>
<p>Ironically, Bucknell is often accused of being too conservative. </p>
<p>But like nsdad said, Bucknell is
</p>
<p>I detailed the issues in my first entry in this thread so you can cut & paste to read and learn if you’d like. I was directly answering specific questions to the person who started the thread. I am glad your kids like Bucknell but I would never describe the campus and large and diverse when there are only 3500 students…</p>
<p>D1dilemmas, I’m also a Bucknell alumnus with a bunch of other friends who are alumni and talk regularly. None of us are even remotely concerned about the issues you’re raising or have had any conversations about them. Actually, we’re all thrilled with the direction the school is taking and many of us hope to send our children to the school. To your comment about Bucknell’s being small, it’s actually the largest of the liberal arts colleges, which was my point about it’s being more diverse than the other LACs. </p>
<p>I’m afraid you’re really out of your depth on this one. It seems to me, though, that if you/your child are so unhappy with Bucknell, you should look elsewhere. There are plenty of other talented kids who would love to be there and contribute positively to the community.</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>Well then, you are not thinking too hard. I know of another elite LA college that has actively protesting conservative alumnae. My Colgate graduate S regularly gets info from such a group.</p>
<p>I suspect this is more common than you think.</p>
<p>To author/Post #30: Maybe Bucknell should have a reading comprehension course. For the last time, I was specifically addressing an Obama demonstration/Bucknell concern expressed by the person who started this thread. Once again, so happy your kid is happy there, and that you are a proud alumnus. Are you proud of the following contribution to Bucknell’s fine reputation? Lewisburg’s Daily Item: </p>
<p><a href=“http://dailyitem.com/0100_news/x691267398/Ex-professor-paid-25-000-to-convict-to-settle-lawsuit?keyword=topstory[/url]”>http://dailyitem.com/0100_news/x691267398/Ex-professor-paid-25-000-to-convict-to-settle-lawsuit?keyword=topstory</a></p>
<p>hahahaha i just saw this post. i actually witnessed the bake sale in person my freshman year.<br>
it was very clear that they just wanted to make a scene instead of a political point. also, absolutely no one on campus outside the conservatives club cared (i don’t know if thats a good or bad thing about our environment, but the truth).</p>
<p>The fact that you have decided to stray from your original point reveals a larger bias against the University. </p>
<p>There isn’t a school out there that hasn’t had an employee at some level engage in inappropriate or criminal behavior. It isn’t even clear from the article that Bucknell participated in the settlement; it sounds more like the arrangement was between the professor and the victim.</p>
<p>D1dilemmas, you should get some help. How can it possibly be worth it to spend so much time gathering up these articles and being so angry about the university. If you’re so unhappy, why not move on to a different school?</p>
<p>I am a graduate of the Bucknell CS program and ilmor’s assessment is pretty spot on. Having also received a Masters of Engineering from Cornell in CS, I can attest that the Bucknell CS education is very solid. I was intimidated during the first few weeks of class at Cornell, but that quickly faded once I realized that I could definitely compete.</p>
<p>To be fair, Bucknell doesn’t attract the bigger players in software engineering (i.e. Microsoft, Google, Amazon - don’t know about Facebook because they didn’t exist when I graduated =D), so the job hunt may take more of an aggressive approach by the student. However, now that I’ve been through school, worked for one of those big players mentioned above, and moved on, I am really happy with the education that I got. I’m glad I went to a Liberal Arts University for undergrad and got to study religion, music, sociology, etc, and didn’t just spend 4 years in a computer lab.</p>