Hi everyone, I’m currently a sophomore at the Lincoln Center campus, so if anyone has any questions about anything pertaining to LC, I’ll be more than happy to answer them. If it has to do with a specific major that I am not knowledgable one, I’ll ask a friend if I know one in the major so you can get a more accurate response than just my guesses/assumptions and whatnot. I’ve only taken 1 class at RH so I’m not too familiar with the dynamics/classes/social life there but I’m very familiar with the Bronx if you have questions about the area or NYC in general (I am an NYC native)
Just for reference, I am a Natural Science major and possible Sociology minor, pre-med, a commuter, and a low income URM (in case you need info on HEOP, financial aid, etc).
My Ds were just accepted to LC. They loved our tours and want to be in the city, but are worried that LC might be too “artsy” for them. Any feelings on that as a science major?
Also, I know you are a commuter, but do you have any feel for dorm or night life at the school? I realize it is NYC and there is plenty to do, but they are wondering about getting the college experience on campus.
I have a son seriously considering the LC campus. He would live in the dorms, can you tell us how the food is?
Thanks for the offer! Here are my questions:
- If you look at older threads on Fordham, it seems that there are conflicting views on the Lincoln Center campus. Some call it a commuter school, because 50% of students are commuters, and for that reason it lacks a campus "vibe" or spirit.
- Some also imply that the transfer rate out of LC is quite high. What has been your experience?
- Would you say there is a difference in the happiness quotient between Dance and Theatre majors and the rest of the population at LC?
- How is the new dorm, and have food options improved?
That’s all for now, I may have more later. Thanks!
@corrigg -on our tour in February, we went in the new dorm…at least from a quick look perspective, it is amazing! Beautiful, large room (we saw a triple), with a private bath. Huge windows overlooking the city.
I think all the rooms in the new dorm are either 3 or 4 people to a shared bathroom.
Just want to say thanks so much for all your questions! I hope I can answer you all adequately.
flute1298- FCLC is definitely extremely artsy. The most acknowledged majors are typically theater, dance, visual arts, etc. Students in those majors tend to have the majority of their social circle exist within those majors respectively, and they definitely have presences that are influential on campus. BFA majors also register before everyone else, which is kind of strange in my personal opinion. As a science student, I can’t deny that I feel like our department is overlooked by the school and student body because it’s a pretty small cohort of students and staff. The artsy nature of the students doesn’t bother me, but the lack of recognition towards other departments can be annoying at times. There’s also an issue as a science major at LC with scheduling classes, since all science classes have only one section/meeting time, so having to build your schedule around those classes is kind of hard during freshman year because you end up getting the last pick, yet BFA students get the first pick. I hope I didn’t ramble too much but basically the students being artsy is great and the students themselves are very nice, but the art departments are undoubtedly given more from the school/admin. There are also other departments that are strong though, like the theology and English departments, but the sciences are at the bottom of the list here.
As for the dorm life, I actually don’t have any friends who dorm because most commuters in my year tend to be friends with other commuters (can’t speak for everyone though, of course.) I think that the social scene for dorming students is a lot more lively on campus than it is for commuters. I often hear about RA’s hosting special events for their floor and roommates tend to spend a good amount of time going out and having fun. Other parts of the college experience like sports games and formal events are at RH but lots of LC students take the ram van to attend these events. The LC students also go to homecoming week at the RH campus and tend to enjoy it just the same.
west49- The only food I’ve had at FCLC has been from the Ram Cafe, and it has not really been good at all so I stopped getting food there. There’s a lot of complaints about the dining hall food, even after we’ve switched to another food providing company. Most people eat out because the food is overpriced and not the best tasting. I think freshman residents have to buy a meal plan (unsure about this though) so your son will probably be eating from the dining hall a good amount. I think Fordham’s quality of food is very disappointing honestly especially when considering the cost of attendance and meal plans.
corrigg- 1) I think the biggest reason why there’s a lack of a campus vibe is because there’s not really much of a campus physically. RH is big and has a traditional campus while LC is like 3 or 4 buildings including the dorms. Because I commute, the vibe doesn’t bother me much but I know it can be a potential issue for those who dorm. My best advice for that would be to try to get involved in some active clubs and floor activity because it’s a really effective way to form a community of friends here. That sometimes helps lessen the feeling of there not being a campus or community. As for school spirit, I notice that it’s decreased a little this semester because there’s a lot of tension between groups of students and the administration. However, there’s people who genuinely love Fordham and have lots of school spirit and getting involved with clubs and events is an amazing way to build this spirit. It really enforces a feeling of community and pride here.
2) I had to laugh when I read this question because I am currently in the process of transferring, as are two of my friends. That’s actually part of the reason why I started this thread, because I want to give perspectives of FCLC that I did not receive before attending; my intention is to have prospective students as fully informed about the school before they attend. Fordham truly amazing in many ways, but less amazing in others. I myself am transferring because of the weak sciences at this campus (transferring to RH would be too far of a commute) as well as cost of attendance. One of my fellow pre med friends is also transferring for similar reasons, as well as having some issues with disability services. We are both transferring to CUNYs. Our other friend is transferring to St. John’s; he is a freshman commuter who is also pre med, and he also is unhappy with the sciences here. As for the rest of the students who transfer, I think it probably has to do either with the cost of the school or their major department being neglected by Fordham. Some students transfer between LC and RH but others choose to leave Fordham altogether because their issue lies with the school rather than the campus they are at. This actually gives me a good way to transition into answering your 3rd question
3) I truly believe Theater and Dance majors are at the highest end of the happiness spectrum here. I’m not saying they don’t have any issues at the school but when it comes to departmental satisfaction, they’re on top. I think the theology department is also wonderful here, as well as the polysci, history, and English departments, so I feel like those are also happier on the spectrum. I’ve noticed that students in these majors are pretty involved in school activities too, so it allows for a wonderful balance and relatively higher level of happiness and satisfaction. On the lowest end I’d put the sciences, so Natural Science and Neuroscience (unsure about comp sci). If you are pursuing the arts, I 10000% believe you would be satisfied at this campus. If you want to do science or a humanities major with a premedical concentration, I would suggest looking into all the pros and cons to this very very carefully.
4) I haven’t seen the dorms at all so I can’t speak on that unfortunately, but the food is still pretty bad. I read consistent complaints on FCLC news articles and general online posts. I used to eat at the Ram Cafe during freshman year and I got sick every single time, and I don’t have a sensitive stomach at all. The food also just does not taste very good, especially in comparison to all the food offered in NYC. I apologize for not being able to be more specific or helpful with the food and dorm thing but my friends and I all have limited experience in this aspect of Fordham.
I hope I’ve answered the questions well, if you have any more questions or want clarification about anything at all, please feel free to ask! I’ll be more than happy to help 
Oh, I forgot to add something about the science department stuff. For chemistry lab, orgo lab, and some neuroscience classes, you will have to go to rose hill. Physics and bio labs are at LC. The labs at RH are not very well kept. Lots of broken or faulty equipment. There are no chemistry labs at LC, despite the fact that they just opened up a newly built building that could’ve housed a lab or two. The new building came with improvements for Gabelli, which FCLC is very supportive of. If you want to do business, you’ll probably be very satisfied and happy here (pertaining to the happiness question)
Thank you very much, very helpful!
Yes…Thank you for the “insiders” view…it is very helpful.
I did hear on our tour, that due to fire codes, they could not have chemistry labs in the very tall buildings of the city. Not sure if this is truth, or justification. Just passing along what we were told.
Flute1298- Yes, that’s what we’ve been told as well. However I was really disappointed to see they didn’t add one to the new building since it’s really big and only has about 3 floors; 2 chem labs could have fit on the ground floor but they didn’t try to add one. A lot of science students were really disappointed with this. And no problem, if you have any other questions I’ll be glad to answer them!
How hard is it to get a good gpa as a science major there? I want to major in the same thing, but a lot of people have said it really hurts your gpa.
cusnew- With the professors that are currently part of the department, it’s very hard to have a high GPA. For example, there’s my chemistry class, which has been cut in half since last semester because of so many people failing. It isn’t because they were all lazy or didn’t put in the effort. Many of them worked so hard and went to office hours, did extra problems daily, etc. They still failed because of our professor who wasn’t the professor a few years back when one of my friends graduated from FCLC and took chem. This current semester is going far worse for our class than last semester. I genuinely believe a lot of us are at high risk of failing chemistry this semester. I have heard similar complaints about orgo here being extremely/unfairly difficult. Getting a C or B- is amazing here because the science classes are unfairly difficult. C’s and B’s translate to a low GPA. Also, there’s no curving, at least not with the science professors I’ve had thus far. There’s also an overload of courses at once. The premed advisor has us all taking 19-20 credits each semester this year, which translates to 5 classes and 2 labs that are hard enough to be standalone classes. It’s very hectic and overwhelming all at one time. Fordham really is not a science school and I don’t really see them changing anything about this in the near future.
Would you mind telling me a bit about your other classes? My girls are going for sociology and the “new” New Media Digital Design program. I don’t see them taking Chemistry…so just wondering about general grading/teachers in the other areas? Is grade deflation a thing across all classes?
Thanks in advance!
flute1298- The sociology department here has some very good professors, and some not so great ones. I’ve taken quite a few sociology classes (1 class away from fulfilling the minor if I was staying here) and I’ve had generally good experiences with the instructors and classes. Grade deflation hasn’t been an issue in this department in my experience and the classes range from being fair to easy (no ridiculously difficult classes.) I don’t have any knowledge about the media major because I have no friends in that major and none of us have taken classes given from that department.
Since there’s such a robust core, your daughters will be taking classes in a lot of different departments. Theology and history classes are generally good but there’s some grade deflation there. English, political science, and any arts departments are pretty good as well. Math and economics are definitely hit or miss, as there are some really poor professors but a few very good ones in those depts. They will also have to take a science course from the natural science department, so I recommend they look into detail about the professor before signing up for the class. Non major science courses tend to be easier and less intense but some of the professors are still very bad since they’re the same ones who teach the major courses. Grade deflation is very bad in those classes. Other core classes include philosophy, where grade deflation is dependent on the professor. The one department I’ve had only positive experiences with is the African American studies dept; though it’s small it is made up of brilliant and fair professors. They will also have to take a language but I have a language exemption as a science major so I can’t speak for the professors or grading in those classes. I have one friend who took Arabic though and she really enjoyed the class and said the professor was a fair grader and great at teaching.
Grade deflation is a thing in many but not all classes. Professors are emailed to be reminded that they should not have many As or Bs in their classes, with the median grade being a C or C+. This is something a lot of professors don’t like but still follow because it’s enforced by the school.
Thank you so much for taking the time to give such a well thought out answer.
I hope my girls meet students like you!!
It’s no problem at all! I’m more than happy to help, and if you find yourself having any other questions I will gladly answer as best as I can And thank you I appreciate that! I hope they have a very positive and enjoyable experience here!
@EmB1997 - reading your thoughts about the sciences at LC are pretty much on point. And you hit the nail on the head about RH (where my daughter is and dropped out of prehealth) and the labs. She cried when she saw the cutting edge stuff in Gabelli. And getting a C and B in Chem/Bio/Orgo isn’t going to look good when applying to med schools not matter what your MCAT score is like. And she was thisclose to losing her scholarship. But withdrawing gave her life (and health back) because she was literally a walking zombie on campus. Her friends who are either Gabelli or Liberal Arts majors couldn’t understand all the work/time/effort she put into her work she was only pulling a C. Meanwhile, a friend who was a Philosophy major made up a dance to help her remember things in her Core biology class. My daughter just laughed at that, because it was no where near the level of work she was doing.
@flute1298 - Sociology is pretty good. Very interesting and she enjoyed it. I know she has friends who are Sociology, Anthropology Majors and they love it. She only took the Intro to Sociology and found it very enlightening. The only reason she took it was because she needed it as a pre-requisite for med school admissions.
Foreign Language-deflation. Though my daughter was exempt from that requirement when she was prehealth, she had to do a lot of catch up to fulfill the requirement when she withdrew. As stated above, research online in regards to professors. When it came down to choosing one, it was the less of two evils and even then it’s turning into a disaster.
Media—I can’t speak for LC but at RH it’s great. So when my daughter was struggling just trying to save her GPA living in the library studying for Chem II, her friends are making Dean’s List and getting great internships at media outlets.
Hi
Just letting you know this might be really long
So I recently got accepted into Fordham Lincoln center and I read your review above about the departments at Fordham and so I decided to request a change to my college (Rose Hill instead). I know you attend Lincoln Center but I am just concerned about the social life at either campus as a commuter. I know more commuters go to Lincoln Center but I was wondering if it is even worth it to attend. I still have to make a visit to the school but I applied to Lincoln Center first in fear of being a lone commuter at Rose Hill. Being a private, Fordham offered me a great need-based scholarship with transportation. However I was wondering if the financial aid packages generally stay around the same or if they offer in school scholarships at Fordham since it is a private. There might be a change in income (goes slightly up and having a job) next year and I am afraid that I won’t be able to afford tuition the following year, if I attend. Lastly, I am stuck between Fordham (paying around 5.6k throughout the year if I make enough money over the summer to pay off one of the loans) and Hunter (paying much less of course). I have always wanted to go to a big school and get the college experience but being a minority and having diversity at a school. I plan to attend admitted students day at Fordham and Hunter before making my final decision.
Which one do you think would personally be better in the long run? If you could give a thorough explanation or opinion it would be greatly appreciated! Thank you and if you have gotten to this point of the comment I cannot thank you enough.
@JoCor Hi, first off sorry for the late response! Where will you be commuting from? If it’s near the Rose Hill campus I feel like you will have less of an issue with social life as you’ll be closer by the school and the places that students tend to go off campus. Social life at RH is very influenced by who people dorm with and stuff so as a commuter you will probably have to try to join clubs or meet people in class. I think there used to be a commuters lounge that is now known just as the students lounge, but I’m not 100% sure. As for financial aid and tuition, I think it’s only worth it for certain majors/fields. I definitely think that going to a CUNY is more recommended than going to Fordham for a lot of majors, but not all. Hunter is a great school, it’s one of the CUNYs I considered transferring to. I think that in the long run, considering debt and the overall experience, I would choose Hunter in your situation. I personally don’t feel like Fordham is worth the debt for most of the majors (theater, dance, theology, and philosophy are just some of the ones I think are worth the money.)
Financial aid packages usually stay the same but tuition goes up every year of course. I’m not too sure about how much your financial aid will change once you start working so I apologize for not really being able to help with that. There are some in-school scholarships that are mostly academic based, if I’m not mistaken.
Also, about diversity, I am also a minority and I feel like Fordham tries to portray itself as more diverse than it actually is, in both racial and economic diversity. I am often one of the only people of color in a lot of my classes and it’s sometimes hard to make other poc friends without joining certain clubs and stuff. Fordham also has a quite a lot of issues with the way they handle a lot of race based incidents and it’s something that made me feel extremely unwelcome and unsafe here, which is part of why I’m transferring (also contributed to why one of my friends is transferring); if you want I can elaborate more on this because it’s a pretty serious topic.
Hunter is really a great school. It’s not too small, has a good amount of classes, has some wonderful professors, and it’s really affordable. It’s also predominantly a commuter school so it’s not like you will be missing out on an on-campus social scene made up of dorming students. Hunter, like pretty much all the CUNYs, is diverse too, since that’s another aspect you’re considering. There may not be as much of a big college campus feel, but I feel like it’s still worth sacrificing. However, if going to a more traditional campus style school is something you 100% want, then RH will be better in terms of getting that campus experience.
If you have any other questions or you want more details about anything, please let me know! I’ll be glad to help
Sorry for the late response as well @EmB1997. Thank you giving me the honest truth, I really did want that college experience but I think its worth sacraficing, if I am paying much less to go to a school that is closer to where I live, I live in Harlem by the way. Honestly reading my own review I have started to realize that diversity and money are the issues I am most concerned with. In terms of finding my major I have no idea what I want to do yet which is another reason why I am considering Hunter. Also I hope everything goes well with your college transfer (fingers crossed you get your first choice). Also if you don’t mind what was the incident that you came across at Fordham, if it’s too personal I completely understand by the way.