Just visited Carnegie Mellon University.

Colleges and Universities A-Z Carnegie Mellon University
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<p>Alright so I visited Carnegie Mellon this past weekend and I must say I am quite surprised by what I experienced there. Keep reading if you would like to learn of my impressions of CMU.</p>

<p>So I guess I'll start from the beginning. My parents and I drove all the way to Carnegie Mellon (7-8 hr drive) from the New York/New Jersey area. The ride was grueling and extremely boring. We drove through mountains and farmlands for hours and hours. However, when we arrived at the city of Pittsburgh, I was quite surprised that the city was literally built on a valley/hill. The city itself is beautiful and clean and the people seem very friendly.</p>

<p>Now this is where my experience started going downhill: as we approached the school (CMU), the first thing I noticed was that the school was very very small compared to the other schools I have visited. The next thing I noticed was that the students walking around were quite unhappy unlike many of the student from other schools I have visited. So when my parents found a parking space we got out of the car and took a self-guided tour of the campus. </p>

<p>So while we were walking around, I was able to further note the extent to which the general student body was unhappy. Many of the students were passed were walking alone, looking down on the ground. When I made eye contact with most of them, they just looked away and no one really greet us. We were, however, able to speak to a few students and to keep it short, they really didn't really praise their school. All I heard from them were the negative aspects such as the immense courseload, boring student body, average food, lack of college experience, etc. Not one of the students I spoke to praised the school.</p>

<p>To my surprise, when I asked an engineering student if I should attend Carnegie Mellon this fall or UCLA or University of Michigan, he said "unless you want to do homework all the time then don't come here". Further he said, the education is the only good thing about CMU and that I could get an equally good education at UCLA or Michigan and still have fun, grow as a person, and enjoy college.</p>

<p>So yeah, I just wanted to share my experience just in case any of you guys did not have a chance to visit (live far away, international, etc). But remember, I only was able to speak to a few students and by far this does not represent the university as a whole, but to be honest from what I experience while I was on campus I agree that CMU is not a traditional college. </p>

<p>Lastly, do any of you prospective students/current students agree with my assessment of this university? If any of you guys are attending CMU this fall, I wish you the best of luck and I'm sure you will have fun. Finally, I don't mean to deter anyone from Carnegie Mellon so go where your heart tells you.</p>

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<p>Thanks for the post. From what I’ve observed from this board…cmu doesn’t seem like much fun.</p>

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<p>Probably because most of us have better things to do that post on some college admissions forum? I only joined at the suggestion of a friend who was actually applying here because the whole place is a treasure trove of hilarity. Like when academic perfectionists with entitlement complexes whine about not getting in. Priceless.</p>

<p>Anyhow, around now it’s basically the final haul. It’s currently the final week of classes, and all the final projects and course exams are happening around now, so of course everyone is going to be exhausted and down in the dumps. I don’t know what the weather was like when you were visiting, OP, but it has a massive effect on how the student body can be perceived. Lately, it’s been gorgeous and warm, so everyone is outside having a good time and socializing and enjoying the weather. When the weather is bad or it’s cold, it’s much more somber outside, and all the socializing and fun happens where it wouldn’t be exactly visible to prospective students.</p>

<p>For example, when I visited (in spring of 2005), it was in mid April, a week or so before Carnival (epic spring carnival when the Morewood parking lot turns into, well, a carnival with rides and student-made booths and everything, and there’s much drunk partying), so people were pumped for that, and I happened to be there on a day where it was the first day of really really warm weather (upper 70s), so EVERYONE was outside, hanging out, eating, playing frisbee, etc, and it was pretty much college utopia.</p>

<p>It’s not miserable non-stop unless you make it. Granted, social life takes more work than a big state school, but it’s not impossible as the myth would suggest. If you’re more social than average for the student body and need your life to be infused with it all the time, join a frat or sorority. They have frequent social activities and they do party. But then again, it is a serious school, so it’s not as ridiculous and crazy as is stereotyped.</p>

<p>I just find it funny when prospective students think they know how much fun a school is by just looking at the campus for a day and heeding myths and rumors. I won’t lie and tell you that we’re just as fun as the next school, we do have a lot of work, but it’s real, practical stuff that’s going to serve you damn well in your job searches. Fun and social life just requires a bit more effort to find, and you can’t really ‘see’ it on a campus visit.</p>

<p>Also noting that CMU was one of the larger schools I visited, and I’ve never had an issue with the size. It’s not so big that you get lost in the shuffle, but not so small that you get sick of the same people all the time.</p>

<p>But really, if fun level and campus size are the highest on your list of priorities, don’t bother, because CMU love its academics and you just have to love them too.</p>

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<p>So…colleclassof 2013, are you a ■■■■■? I had some time to kill and pulled up some of your old posts. Why would you write a post pretending that you just visited CMU for the first time, when you’ve put other postings in saying that you were there before. You are extremely disinterested in CMU and far more interested in girls and the party scene, you have not really even considered this school. So why bother to put in a lengthy negative writeup about it?</p>

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<p>^ He/she just recently visited CMU.</p>

<p>Excellent post Demon Thermos.</p>

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<p>Busdriver, your right that its not my first time visiting. I’ve visited the school a total of 4 times already mostly because my parents want me to go there (they think its a great school academically (closer to home) and it is but the school does not appeal to me as much as my other schools). I just wanted to recount my experience for those who have not visited yet. If you guys don’t want to believe what I write it’s alright with me, I’m just trying to help; just visit the school yourself and see if you can see yourself there. Best of luck to all seniors.</p>

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<p>This same (last) weekend I visited my D’s school (she graduated last year actually but still lives there), State U Party Central. All her friends who are still students were complaining about everything…natural considering finals are around the corner, papers and projects are due. I noticed the mood was somber, in spite of sunny 85 degree weather. So when you visit does matter. I’ll go out on a limb and predict if you walk around MIT, Cornell, RPI, right about now you won’t get too many cheery bright-eyed responses. Most people, especially at serious academic schools, are understandably stressed out and very tired.</p>

<p>CMU definitely isn’t for everyone, I’ll agree, and there’s definitely a lot of serious types, but with 5000+ undergrads it is large enough so you can find your niche. My (very social) S found it by joining and living in a fraternity, and had a gf at UPitt. The city of Pittsburgh is surprisingly decent and offers a lot of options too.</p>

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<p>Well, since there’s been a negative visitation review, I thought I’d post a positive one. :)</p>

<p>My family and I headed to Pittsburgh a few weeks ago. It was warm and sunny a little south of Pittsburgh, but the day we flew in Pittsburgh itself was SNOWING. Right away I was a little perturbed-- snow in April?-- but everyone we met in the city assured us that it was most uncharacteristic weather. </p>

<p>We toured the campus solo that day, without a guide. Most people took the initiative due to the snow to sequester off-campus at the Starbucks on Craig’s, or to hit up campus center (which seemed to be fairly lively and colorful. There were people running around, people having a spin class in the gym area upstairs, couples eating, friends socializing, and even one poor guy sleeping on the floor with a text book open on his lap.) Overall, it looked fairly typical of a bunch of 20-year-olds thrown together.</p>

<p>The next day was bright and sunny and the snow was entirely gone, which was a bizarre kind of overnight change. My tour guide was a current senior and a creative writing major. People were playing frisbee on the lawn by the Fence and hanging out on the grass under the ‘Walk Into The Sky’ sculpture. Up closer to the Fence there were a few tables where people were accosting passerby for various campus causes-- one of them was ‘spray paint your hair a wild color for charity,’ I think. They kept trying to get me to dye mine green. Everyone was very enthusiastic and I could hardly hear anything!</p>

<p>As we passed by some computer clusters in the CS building I saw people either studying intensely or sharing coffee over a word document. It seemed to differ from cluster to cluster, on a passing glance. </p>

<p>In whole, I can say it was definitely NOT boring, sad, morose, glummy, lugubrious, depressing, or any variation of the above. :)</p>

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<p>Colleclass, if you have already decided that CMU is definitely not the school for you, then nothing that anyone can say will convince you. You will disreguard the good comments and focus on the bad, it’s human nature. Visiting 4 times and thinking about it till the last minute is probably enough, this is not what you are looking for. You probably don’t want to disappoint your parents, but UVA, Michigan and UCLA are all amazing schools and will give you that experience that you think you want-and a highly respected degree. You are very lucky to have such a choice. And no matter who is paying…it should be your choice, this is 4 years of your life. These will be some of the best years of your life, too, free from parents telling you what to do, free from high school BS, before responsibility of a job and family. There are some students that will absolutely love CMU, but it’s certainly not for everyone. You need to take a stand and feel good with your choice-all of your choices are spectacular.</p>

<p>If you go to a challenging school where you don’t want to be, it is likely that you won’t do well. But I’ve seen a number of people party too hard and flunk out of public colleges-so validate your decision to your parents by having a great time but doing well in college too. It is easy and possible to do both. Good luck to you.</p>

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<p>I too have visited Carnegie Mellon and I got the impression that the students there do indeed work very hard especially the engineering students. That being said, I agree with Colleclass that some of the students there do not seem too happy, but I met a good number who love their school. The school itself is very close knit so those who want to attend a smaller private college will definitely feel at home at Carnegie Mellon but like what others have already said, Carnegie Mellon is not for everyone. Definitely plan a visit. Personally I liked Carnegie Mellon, but since I came from a small private high school from the east coast I felt that a change in location and school type would give me the new experience I needed to grow as a person. So for me I found myself choosing between U Michigan, UCLA, UNCCH, UVA, U Chicago, and a few other schools. In the end I felt UCLA would give me everything I desired in a college and more (great academics, diverse student body, change in location, etc). So basically choose the school that you can see yourself attending, where you will be happy. Don’t let rankings make your choice although I feel really bad that I gave up a great education at U Chicago.</p>

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<p>my best friend is a freshman this year at CMU. she HATES it. most reasons already here</p>

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<p>I visited Carnegie Mellon last week and liked it a lot. But, a hardcore curriculum is very much what I’m looking for (I was freaking out exitedly when I saw that one of the problems in the first problem set for CS 251, Great Theoretical Ideas in Computer Science, was an IMO problem [albeit one of the easiest IMO problems]).</p>

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<p>It isn’t for everyone…but, for those looking for academic challenges and who are not hesitant to be involved with campus life, it can be a great fit. It is for D2…despite the heavy workload… ;)</p>

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<p>Visited yesterday, loved it. Hope I get in off priority wait-list!</p>

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<p>Isn’t that a coincidence that as we come closer to May 1, threads that are depreciating universities get more often? Since there are so many waitlisted students who are hoping for people to refuse their offers to get off the waitlist?</p>

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<p>Does seem like an unusual coincidence, doesn’t it? Hard to tell who is actually trying to be helpful and who is trying to be misleading so they can get off the waitlist!</p>

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<p>Does seem like a coincidence right…but I’m sincere with what I had posted. If you guys don’t believe that I was accepted I can type up my acceptance letter or tell you guys what’s in the fat packet. </p>

<p>Like I said, I’m just trying to help. When people say you should visit a school before you attend, CMU is an excellent example of why. </p>

<p>By the way does anyone know how to turn down CMU offer of admission. I’m having trouble finding it and I know today’s the deadline to tell them.</p>

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<p>I don’t think anyone was talking about you, you seem very sincere about not being interested in going to CMU. I know you’ll have an amazing time at UCLA.</p>

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<p>Thanks busdriver11. Just out of curiousity, would you rather have your son/daughter attend CMU or UCLA and why?</p>

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<p>Well, colleclass, that is a choice he never had to make, as he didn’t apply to UCLA. When it came to criteria for choice of school, the ONLY thing he cared about was the strength of their computer science and technical programs. And why bother to apply to MIT or Stanford, with a 5% acceptance rate! He figured he would enjoy himself wherever he was, didn’t care about what the weather was or about the location. He loved everything about CMU when he visited, found people to be friendly, bright, intense and interesting. He is the type of person who will work very hard and enjoy it, as long as he’s doing what he wants. We visited Princeton and Cornell-and his comment was, “Well, I can’t find anything wrong with them.” But something, or everything about CMU just looked perfect to him. CMU has a good rowing club, alot of appealing student activities, and when he worked at Microsoft last summer, they really seemed to love CMU students.</p>

<p>If I had that choice as a kid, I would have been more interested in a bigger school, sunnier spot-and whatever is easiest, I’m lazy and would go for where I could work the least (not saying that UCLA is like that, though, I have no idea). UCLA would be alot closer to home. But we agreed that CMU would be the best place for him-he is very job oriented, and therefore that is why we are going to pay massive amounts of $$. There are very few schools that we would have been willing to pay this kind of money for. But in this case, we think it’s worth it.</p>