<p>Okay, so I've heard that NYU "isn't for everyone," but how can you tell if it IS for you? What sort of people tend to thrive in its setting? Which are miserable? </p>
<p>I'm very curious, because it seems like a wonderful school but I'm nervous about the high transfer rate</p>
<p>Well I think there are other factors to take into account that go beyond the school itself. You need to love the city and people for that matter. I mean not everyone likes big cities.</p>
<p>Don’t forget to take an honest look at your financial situation. Will you be able to pay for 4 years of college with ever-increasing prices?</p>
<p>I would say that NYU is not for everyone. You deff need to be able to live, work and study in a big city with ALOT of distractions. You need to be able to afford it. Also, you really need to be open minded. There are students from all over at NYU (Black, White, Hispanic, asian, gay, straight…) You get the point. </p>
<p>I think the high transfer rate has alot to do with living in the city. There are alot of kids who have been to New York once and stayed in a hotel in Times Square and think they love it, where they really haven’t seen anything below 14th street. Living alone in a city is not for everyone, it requires independence.</p>
<ul>
<li>make sure your finances can support you all four years</li>
<li>make sure you are independent enough to live in Manhattan</li>
<li>visit the campus if you can, because the ambiguous campus boundaries can unnerve some people</li>
<li>are you motivated to seek out help if you need it?</li>
<li>do you have enough self-discipline to study in the middle of one of the busiest cities in the world?</li>
<li>are you open minded? we have all different kinds of people here, we are a GLOBAL university.</li>
</ul>
<p>for most people, i’ve found that the “no campus” thing was a killer. people wanted to go to a smaller school. NYU can be big and anonymous, but if you seek out friends and make your own place, you’ll be very happy.</p>
<p>most people also did NOT have a realistic view of Manhattan. they thought it was all bright lights, big city, the Big Apple. it has wonderful museums, clubs, art galleries, music venues and a rich history. but it also has crime, dirt, homeless people, drugs and it can seem cold and uncaring at times. (i’m a lifetime New Yorker and i feel hopeless about my own city sometimes, heh.) if you can’t reconcile that, don’t come to school here. vacation, maybe even spend a summer interning here. but don’t apply to NYU.</p>
<p>missamericanpie, how often does one encounter crime in the NYU/Greenwhich village area? Also, have you ever been a victim of a crime in any way?</p>
<p>I’m not sure whether to carry a gun with me at NYU or not.</p>
<p>Wooah, I don’t think guns are necessary, as long as you don’t travel alone after dark. I think the neighborhood NYU is in is much safer than Columbia, where I spent my summer of Sophomore year. As long as you have some common sense and run when you’re followed, you shouldn’t run into too much trouble. (I’ve lived in NY all my life too)</p>
<p>LOL carrying a gun is a good way to get a one way ticket to jail. i think it’s a felony to carry a concealed weapon. have fun with that.</p>
<p>honestly, just using common sense will go VERY VERY far. yes, there are homeless people sleeping on heating grates near Silver. but as long as you avoid them, don’t engage with them and walk around with other people, you will be FINE, i swear. there are 8 million people in NYC who all live, work and play in relative safety. </p>
<p>don’t walk at night alone.
know where there are open buildings.
get to know where public safety officers/police stations are.
and just use your brain!</p>
<p>and no, i’ve never been a victim of a crime, in my 21 years in NYC.</p>
<p>What if I like walking around by myself?</p>
<p>Don’t carry a gun, carry defense spray (like pepper spray or mace). But look into it, different things are legal in different states.</p>
<p>And don’t spray it on yourself. :p</p>
<p>walk around during the day or walk around crowded places. i’ve walked to catch a cab by myself at 3am in the Village, but there were open bars around me.</p>
<p>and don’t carry defense spray- it can be taken away from you easily.</p>
<p>take a self-defense class if you’re really anxious. knowing to recognize situations and knowing how to escape is half the battle.</p>
<p>I’m a black belt in taekwondo so maybe I wont have to worry as much</p>
<p>I doubt your black belt skill is faster than guns :).</p>
<p>First of all, NYU is in one of the safetest parts of NYC. The area around the square and NYU buildings are very well lit all hours of the night. Some of the dorms are in prime real estate areas of NYC. There is a strong presence of public safety officers and you can get a ride to any of the NYU buildings all hours of the night. My D lives in the dorm and is not from the city, but she has navigated the subways and trains very well on her own. With that said, you must always be aware of your surroundings and be smart when you are at NYU. While there may not be a quad like your traditional campus, Washington Square give it a campus feel. There are many people walking around all hours of the day and well into the night, including students. You will see people from all over the world and hear different languages. The city has a lot to offer, but you have to seize the day. Lots of eateries, coffeehouses, clubs, bars, vintage stores, head shops, bead shops. There is that bohemian feel. Area is one of the older areas of the city so there are some cobbled streets, buildings with a lot of charm, ghost stories and history.
You should definitely visit and get a sense of the place.</p>
<p>You only need one question:</p>
<p>Are you mega rich?</p>
<p>If the answer is no, NYU is not for you. Sorry.</p>
<p>Hahahahaha that was a joke, right? </p>
<p>I guess all the poor people can’t go to college. What are you saying SkepSkap1? The financial aid isn’t the best, but people from all income brackets can attend NYU.</p>
<p>NYU is more generous than they seem. Trust me, I’m a poorass motherf******* lmao</p>
<p>If you want a college with a big contained college campus, with grassy fields, a football team, cheerleaders, traditional fraternity & sorority houses, then NYU may not be the place for you.</p>
<p>As other members have posted above, going to school in NYC is an incredible experience for those who know what they are in for. Going to school in “the city that never sleeps” was something my D dreamed of for a really long time, and she counts her blessings every single day that she “got in”. She loves how she can walk everywhere, does not have to worry about parking 
and having a car altogether. </p>
<p>Yes, you need to learn to deal with the distractions, and be quite independent, because nobody is going to baby-sit you :D. However, this really is true wherever you go. Some people say that NYU is impersonal, and that they feel lost, but that is definitely not applicable in my D’s case. Most of her classes are small, and she has gotten to know her teachers very well. She has made a lot of friends, both in her program, and outside of it. </p>
<p>We live in CA, and as a parent it is a big undertaking to have a child move to “the other coast”, but seeing her so happy and knowing that she is in the “right place” for her has definitely made things really easy.</p>
<p>That was a really good post MTgrlsmom. I was reading this thread and getting kind of scared … muggers, crime, safety, pepper spray, guns … etc.
But, now I’m okay! In response to your first paragraph, I was like, “No, I definitely do not need or want those things.”
And I completely look forward to not having the hassle of a car in the city that never sleeps.</p>
<p>for the sake of New Yorkers, start now: don’t call it The Big Apple or The City That Never Sleeps. they will instantly mark you as a newcomer.</p>
<p>they’re okay for people to say who aren’t New Yorkers. . .but no one who actually lives in New York calls it that. </p>
<p>just sayin’.</p>