<p>I'm reading a lot of reviews and getting second opinions from people who have transferred out of Stony Brook, and they have a lot of negative reviews...I only want to go there because of the Chem research opportunities, but if it's that bad and I won't be able to get research opportunities, then I won't bother going and try for Buffalo instead, even if their Chem department is inferior since I'll at least have a chance to do some research as opposed to going to a school with good research programs and not being able to get into any of them.</p>
<p>It’s not necessarily bad, it’s just not extremely competitive. It has great research opportunities, and the low tuition is a plus! I also applied there and got in, but for a lot of people, especially at my school, it’s a safety school. I’m sure that Stony Brook realizes that it’s a safety for a lot of kids. Anyway, good luck!</p>
<p>What exactly have you heard makes Stony bad?</p>
<p>I heard that Stony brook is a commuter school , where 20-30% of the student body would return home from Thursday to Monday, making the campus a bit dead. But overall, I heard that the academics are pretty good for a reasonable tuition price!</p>
<p>Stony Brook is definitely what you make of it. First of all, if you are a resident on campus, you’ll be sure to find other residents on campus who still stay on the weekends and hang out. Yes, weekends can be a little dead but if you make friends with out of staters, and people in general who stay the weekends, you’ll be just fine. For some reason, Stony Brook gets a really bad rep. The academics are top notch (especially the math and science classes here) and the tuition (coupled with financial aid and various scholarships) makes it a really good school.</p>
<p>My one piece of advice would be to pick your housing very carefully and submit your housing deposit as early as possible (if you’re planning on being a resident) as that could be the difference between living in a very social quad as opposed to a very muted one.</p>
<p>Well I’m about to graduate. I love the Brook. A resident for the past four years and I’ve had a great undergraduate experience. Its a diverse school, many different type of people. Some are able to fit in into the diverse environment and have a great time, others refuse to get out of the comfort zone and have a reaaaally bad time. Its all what you make of it. Also, I have noticed that experiences vary a lot depending on what resident quads you’ve been placed. I lived in Mendhelson and H-Quad (corridor style) throughout my years with friendly people looking to socialize. Some of the suite-style quads lack the spirit and life that the corridor styles have. </p>
<p>Commuters? Yep, there is plenty. Stony Brook still has a strong base of commuters, the percentage is going down little by little as the school continues to grow but its still on 35-50% I believe. The university serves the people of Long Island and its understandable that those that live close by won’t reside in campus. With more residential halls in the planning stages the commuter base will become even less significant.</p>
<p>People go home on weekends? Yes, some do. I go home once every month since I live in NYC. Others go home every other weekend, and then you got losers like my roomate who go home every chance they get (from thursday to sunday) and then blame the school for being “boring” even though he has never stayed a single weekend. Despite some students leaving I have never had a problem with that. I keep my self active and always have friends around. Attend the football games, etc or party on the weekends. The malls, movie theaters on the area are close by and buses provide free service to the mall on weekends.</p>
<p>Its arguably the top SUNY research university so if you are thinking of going to a public school in New York don’t bother to go all the way to Buffalo to get similar or inferior education. A quick look on the rankings confirms that the schools is great for the Engineering, Applied Sciences, Natural sciences, medical and the Behavioural sciences.</p>
<p>Good Luck!</p>
<p>yeah! Stony Brook is pretty good, but I myself can’t decide between Stony Brook and Seton Hall… I’m going for Political Science, and I’ve always planned on being a lawyer…</p>
<p>Stony brook would save me some money, be closer, but not too much closer than Seton Hall. and Seton Hall gave me a pretty good scholarship so the difference isn’t too much… It’s just that I can’t decide! gah</p>
<p>and if this is any consolation, I myself would go home about once a month to twice a month only because I live in NYC and I find the transition to living with only people my age from always taking care of my baby brother drastic. :/</p>
<p>It is true that Stony Brook is what you make of it. It is also true that it is a safety school for people. It was my safety school but then when I didn’t get any good financial aid offers from my top choices (University of Michigan, Syracuse, Carnegie Mellon) I decided to go to Stony Brook. I would highly recommend coming here if you are an engineering or science student. There is a lot of research on campus and it is not hard to get involved. A huge plus is the proximity of Brookhaven National Lab. </p>
<p>I am a chemical engineering major and I currently work at Brookhaven and it is a great experience. All of my classes were really small in number so I got to interact more with the professors. I would definitely recommend Stony Brook and you do get a good bang for your buck.</p>
<p>Don’t feel discouraged by the idiots (coughdesibeatscough) who refer to it as a safety school, as there is a lot of stuff going on here and it is what you make of it.</p>
<p>I am entering a top 5 graduate program in chemical engineering in the fall and I am an NSF graduate fellow with almost no debt. Thanks for the cheap but great education safety school!</p>