I’m an NYU student – ask away! Part III

Colleges and Universities A-Z New York University
1

<p>First, a little about me. I’m a CAS junior studying chemistry for a B.A. degree. I’m on the Honors track and I’ve started doing research in anticipation of writing a thesis. I’m also pre-med, currently getting ready for the med school application process, and I’ll be taking the MCAT in a few weeks. This year will be my third year as a Peer Ed at Large for the Office of LGBT Services, and next year I’ll be a Peer Ed in Residence. I’m also a Presidential Honors Scholar. I studied abroad in London during Fall 2004.</p>

<p>If you’ve got a question you think I can answer, go ahead! Feel free to ask about my experiences with my major, housing, MAP courses, being pre-med, dealing with NYU administration, CAS advising, CAS courses, the student body, and anything else you can think of! (I live with two Sternies who do Finance, so I can always ask them questions about Stern, too. One of them used to work in the law school admissions office, as well.)</p>

<p>A few caveats before we begin:</p>

<p>I can’t answer admissions questions for you or tell you why you did or didn't get in. If you’d like, I can give you my stats, but that’s it. I feel that admissions to the best colleges in the country are a bit of a crapshoot, and sometimes, there’s no rhyme or reason to who’s accepted, waitlisted, and rejected.</p>

<p>My experience here is not necessarily representative of other students’ experiences. For a true overview of the student experience here, you should ask a whole bunch of students from different schools and backgrounds.</p>

2

<p>hey
i got into nyu for politics and penn for political science.
can u tell me about the programme in nyu?</p>

3

<p>I got into stern.....</p>

<p>I like to know about </p>

<ol>
<li><p>campus life...easy to make friend etc</p></li>
<li><p>difficulty of the course.......its intensity on demanding...</p></li>
<li><p>curves for grading....cutthroat and competitiveness among the fellow students</p></li>
</ol>

<p>I assume that life other than the business school or the film school would be somewhat different, the warmer atmosphere and the pace is not so threatening fast..yes?</p>

4

<p>hi
my problem now with NYU is actually paying for it. I live in a single-parent household and my mom just doesnt have the money for an expensive NYU education, but I would still very much like to make it happen. And I assume the price tag of NYU was everyone's problem. How did you deal with it? Are you in debt now, did you do a lot of scholarships, etc? I'm also accepted under Communications at Steinhardt, and from what you've heard, seen, and know do you think this program is worth the 120K I'll be in debt for?</p>

<p>I'm also interested in studying abroad, perhaps London, perhaps another country in Europe, can you tell me a little more about it?</p>

<p>Since NYU is unlike others, because their undergrad schools are broken up into 8 distinct schools (although other schools do it too but their divisions are not quite AS distinct and career oriented-- i.e nursing, education, etc) do you think NYU allows room for exploration? Like if I find out after a semester that I don't enjoy the communications program at Steinhardt, would it be possible for me to transfer to CAS, since CAS has liberal arts courses unlike Steinhardt...? </p>

<p>for now thats all. Thanks for doing this!</p>

5

<p>Gehno: I know nothing about political science as CAS, so your best bet is to look at the CAS bulletin (<a href="http://cas.nyu.edu/page/bulletin%5B/url%5D"&gt;http://cas.nyu.edu/page/bulletin&lt;/a&gt;) or the Politics department website (<a href="http://www.nyu.edu/gsas/dept/politics/)%5B/url%5D"&gt;http://www.nyu.edu/gsas/dept/politics/)&lt;/a>. They'll tell you about the major's requirements and classes offered in the department.</p>

<p>crazy4ivy: </p>

<p>1) I imagine it's as easy or as hard to make friends as it is at any other university. I suggest that you hang out with your roommates, the other poeple on your dorm floor, and join a club or two to meet people. You can't make friends if you yourself don't try to meet them.</p>

<p>2) and 3) According to my roommate, the curve's really not that bad unless the class is super-easy - then the curve is pretty tough. Otherwise, she says that it's generally like 20% As, 40% Bs, etc. Definitely top-heavy. Also, the curve isn't at all universal - it's class by class, professor by professor.</p>

<p>As far as competitiveness, yes, you will find students that are rabidly gung-ho and will settle for less than nothing but a 4.0, but you'll also find that if you work hard and manage your time well, you'll be able to earn a 3.7. As for the stories about people stealing their classmates' notes to destroy their classmates' grades... those are not true.</p>

<p>micheeatsfish:</p>

<p>Hi. I also like eating fish. :D</p>

<p>I'll be frank with you - the only reason I am enrolled at NYU is because I have an excellent merit scholarship from the school. Without it, I couldn't afford to be here. My parents agreed to pay for my undergraduate education, so I will graduate with no debt. This isn't at all the case for other students - each person has to decide how much their potential NYU education is worth to them. I will say this: when I applied to NYU, it wasn't on my top 3. After I was rejected from their 8-year med program, I figured, "What the heck, might as well have them consider me for RD, 'cause I already paid the fees." Lo and behold, I got a great offer from them, and I took it. Now, looking back, I have no regrets - knowing all that I do now, I would make the same choice.</p>

<p>Unfortunately, I know nothing about Steinhardt's Communication program, so I can't help you there.</p>

<p>I think NYU's Study Abroad program is top-notch. I believe that for all of its "official" sites, NYU owns property there, so you will take official NYU courses - your coursework won't be contracted out to another university unless you are studying a foreign language at a very advanced level. I went to London because that's where the pre-med courses are offered. I have to say, they take better care of you overseas than they do here. :D It's loads of fun - I had a blast, earned a whopping 3.9 GPA for the semester, and even was home early for Christmas. If you're interested in Study Abroad, check out NYU's website (<a href="http://www.nyu.edu/studyabroad/%5B/url%5D"&gt;http://www.nyu.edu/studyabroad/&lt;/a&gt;) and when you enroll, talk to your advisor - planning is a must because you wouldn't want your semester abroad to screw up your academic schedule so that you can't graduate on time. If you plan to go during the regular school year, you won't need to pay any fees, but in the summertime, you will be paying as if you were attending regular summer classes.</p>

<p>NYU also allows room for exploration. I don't think you'll have much trouble transfering between schools if you find it's not right for you, but again, planning is key - you should consider the impact of a transfer upon your degree completion. If it'll require extra semesters and money is tight, it may not be the best idea.</p>

6

<p>How are the classes there? Like based on your observations, how hard is it to get an A? I know this varies from teacher to teacher, but I'm just asking for a general impression.</p>

<p>Thanks!</p>

7

<p>Classes depend on teacher, department, and "level" - is it a freshman, sophomore, junior, senior class? Freshman classes tend to be large, so the grading is generally more lenient. Upperclassmen classes are smaller and more competitive. It's hard to generalize across CAS, but unless you have talent bordering on genius, an A or A- isn't easy to come by. If you're talking about the other schools, I have no idea, but based on what my roommates tell me, Stern is much the same.</p>

<p>If you're worried about your GPA in general, my roommate and I were talking about this a few nights ago and this is what we came up with. If you want a 3.0, show up to class. If you want a 3.5, you'll have to do some study and put some work into projects. If you want a 3.7, expect to work hard. If you want a 4.0... :D</p>

8

<p>Hey Im interested in Pre-Med as well. Can you give me some insight into the program. How are the professors and courses? Is it really alot more work than most other majors? How much do you study on average per night?</p>

9

<p>I know it probably varies from person to person but would would be an average weekday be like? and an average weekend?</p>

10

<p>are you in low cost housing, since you have two other roomates? Which dorm and how do you like it so far?</p>

11

<p>do you know anyone who was a gsp tischie for film and tv? If so, when they transferred when did they take their Tisch freshman courses? sophomore year? over the summer?
thanks</p>

12

<p>Hi, I am delighted to hear that you got a great merit scholarship. My son was not so lucky. Basically, they want us to borrow to pay full freight. My question: do some, many, most of the people you know take out loans to finance NYU? How common is it to carry debt upon graduation?</p>

<p>Thanks</p>

13

<p>2pacalypse:</p>

<p>First, get rid of the idea that pre-med is a major. It is NOT a major - you cannot graduate with nothing but a series of pre-med classes on your transcript. However, if you dislike the idea of taking major classes, minor classes, and then pre-med classes, consider being a Chemistry major. The pre-med classes (with the exceptions of Principles of Bio I and II and one extra English class) are also required for the Chemistry major. Check out <a href="http://www.nyu.edu/cas/prehealth/%5B/url%5D"&gt;http://www.nyu.edu/cas/prehealth/&lt;/a> for a list of pre-med classes and other info.</p>

<p>Unfortunately, the science core classes for pre-med are huge - we're talking 350 kids in a lecture hall. It can be very hard to get to know the professor, especially in Bio I and II. Consider cozying up to your TAs, as well as professors in your major, for recommendations and such.</p>

<p>Pre-med classes are not any harder than non-pre-med classes, but you do spend a lot more hours in class because of the lab courses. I think what makes it hard is the sustained effort required from year to year. If you haven't questioned why you're doing all of this, then you either haven't tried very hard or haven't thought this all through. :D</p>

<p>Jbursty10: What "average" is depends on the classes you're taking. Many CAS upperclassmen have four, or even three, days of class a week. Tisch students often have many Friday classes. "Average" also depends on how often you go to class and how much time you spend on homework. :D Tabulating times is hard, but I suppose that you can consider your week to be about 40 hours, which includes class time time and homework time.</p>

<p>legionaire: I am not in low-cost housing - I have three roommates in all. I have been in low-cost housing, though. In Lafayette, low-cost housing can be fantastic. If you're in a suite, you have no common room and the kitchen has next-to-no counter space, but the rooms can be quite big. I got put into a low-cost suite the semester after I returned from London, and my room was HUGE. I could've fit an additional three mattresses on the floor and I had a walk-in closet large enough to require its own lightbulb. :D However, my roommate spent that same semester in a Lafayette low-cost studio, and it was TINY. You might find this (<a href="http://www.nyu.edu/housing/payments/rates.html%5B/url%5D"&gt;http://www.nyu.edu/housing/payments/rates.html&lt;/a&gt;) to be helpful.</p>

<p>elvenqueen10: I'm sorry, I don't know anything about that. Try the NYU LJ. (<a href="http://community.livejournal.com/nyu/profile%5B/url%5D"&gt;http://community.livejournal.com/nyu/profile&lt;/a&gt;)&lt;/p>

<p>paulykg: Unfortunately, people don't talk a lot about money or the specifics of their situation, so it's hard for me to know. However, I do know students that carry 100% debt, and there are others like me who carry none. I expect that there are plenty in between.</p>

14

<p>So What is your schedule like day to day? How much time do you spend in classes related to pre-med? Thanks for the help. I know pre-med is not a major I just meant the courses required for med school. I might not even major in something science related just to explore other opportunities.</p>

15

<p>Does NYU accept CLEP credits?</p>

16

<p>"unless you have talent bordering on genius, an A or A- isn't easy to come by"</p>

<p>See.....I'm sort of confused on what you mean by "genius." In high school, (unless you go to a school like Stuyvesant or Montgomery Blair), I think a 1500 would have ppl calling u a genius. However, when the average SAT is like...1430....who ends up getting the As?</p>

17

<p>"unless you have talent bordering on genius, an A or A- isn't easy to come by"
- not true. unless you consider me a genius. i took a summer course in nyu over the summer, aced the class and beat other ivy and nyu kids in the class.</p>

18

<p>2pacalypse:</p>

<p>My schedule, day to day, is a bit different than that of my sophomore and freshman years. I'm currently in Principles of Bio II, which is the last course in the pre-med series that I need to take. For my major, I'm taking Physical Chemistry II. I'm also taking Elementary Chinese II and guitar lessons (through Steinhardt) for electives. On Fridays, I'm in the lab to do research - I'm working on building a library of fluorescent dyes.</p>

<p>Pre-med courses take up a lot of time, especially if they won't count towards your major. Lab periods, which are weekly, typically run three to four hours each, and that's in addition to weekly lab lecture. Then, if you factor in four "regular" courses (including one pre-med), which generally have two lecture periods of 75 minutes each plus one 75 minute recitation... that works out to be about 20 hours a week total that you're in class. If you consider homework time, you could easily devote 40-50 hours a week to school. It's definitely not for those who hate working hard.</p>

<p>If you have other questions about pre-med, please feel free to ask. :D</p>

<p>elliott: I have no idea what CLEP is. You should consider searching NYU's website or calling the advising office of your school.</p>

<p>dylin88: I was too vague when I said that - when I said "genius," I meant "talent." I remember that in Calculus II and III, I worked my butt off - I was in the professor's office at least once a week to asking about homework. Even after all that, I still only earned a B+ for both courses simply because there were a lot of very bright students who didn't need to take notes or come to lecture in order to earn an A. To me, it's obvious that those students just simply had more talent for calculus than I did.</p>

<p>To sum it all up, I've never had a class where an A was within easy grasp. Now, I don't rule out the possibility that other students may find it very easy to earn an A in math or in Writing the Essay, for example, but in general, I think people have to work for their grades. Given two students who work the same amount, but one has more raw talent than the other, the talented student will do better.</p>

<p>legionaire: Please see my response to dylin88. I also don't think summer classes are representative of regular classes' difficulty - however, I haven't taken any summer classes, so I could be wrong. Which class did you take?</p>

19

<p>ahh...ok, thank you so much for your answers!!</p>

20

<p>i took macroeconomics, i might be the one wrong, i'll definetely find out next year when i take courses in the fall. Can you elaborate on WTE course, because from what I hear it is very unpopular? How its graded, the assignments, books, tests? thanks</p>