What is it like to be a student on a large campus? The school I am considering is around 1,500 acres with 30,000 students.
The number of students doesn’t bother me it’s how large the campus is.
What is it like to have a campus that big? Is it scary? Is it hard to get to and from classes?
I have some health concerns that make me weary of attending a school that size, but it has the programme I want, so I’m wondering what realistically it’s like.
Any insight would be appreciated! What you like about it, what you hate about it?
Thanks!
My college has about over 9000 students. There really isn’t a problem with a large campus, but maybe the higher population would be more stressful getting to and from classes, but they probably find a way to make it work out for everyone.
I wouldn’t worry to much about it, but if problems start to occur for you, then I’d find solutions or move to a smaller college.
If possible the best thing would be to visit and see if you can get around easily. Some large schools also have shuttles running so see if that is available at the school you are considering.
Also if you have health issues, talk to the disability services and see if they have any accomodations to help you. Or can you ride a bike between classes or do they have shuttle busses.
It’s really going to vary, each school is different. 1000 acres is less important than whether the walks are direct and whether classrooms are close to each other and food, etc. Shuttles are a nice way to get home if you’re tired but less convenient if you have a narrow window to get across campus, especially if they run on a loop and don’t have a specific schedule you can count on.
I’d post and ask questions of specific students of that school.
I wouldn’t worry about it at all but take a good look at your campus layout.
. The college I went to is 2000 acres. It includes hospitals, grad schools, research facilities, agriculture areas–most of which you’ll never see unless you go into a specialty. All those areas are pretty much self-contained.
Undergrad housing and academic buildings are also fairly self-contained. Most of the campus is easily walked or biked between classes.
Campus my son goes to is 2,320 acres (including agricultural areas) and 24,000 students. He says it is very easy to get around. Bikes are great. Some of the campuses he looked at had the shuttles going everywhere but it isn’t really necessary on his campus. Just go look and get a feel for it.
Depends upon the campus. Some are more compact than others. Topography is important. If it’s hilly, students do mroe walking than biking. Shuttles may go around the perimeter which MAY help you get around a bit (or just add to your travel time between classes). D goes to a school of 1,232 acres and 40,000+ students. If she has back-to-back classes, she has to hustle. Here’s some tips if you are just set on going to a very large school:
- don't schedule back-to-back classes if you can help it. Guarantee you will have two classes on completely opposite ends of the campus, which means you'll be late/killing yourself to get from one to the other. Especially true for your first couple of years as you are getting your core classes done, which will take you to difference departments/colleges all over the campus.
- spread your classes throughout the week (vs. loading up with a M-W-F schedule for instance).
- take advantage of any sort of shuttle or other conveyance.
- find a campus that is relatively flat, so that biking is an option (or less strenuous walking). A good clue: if it's a big bike campus, it's flat enough to make walking easier than a very hilly campus.
Example: D @ Cal - 1,232 acres, 40,000+ students (all levels), and very hilly. Very few bicycles, mostly walkers. “Berkeley Time” (class starts unofficially 10 minutes after the hour) to accommodate everyone having to hoof it from across campus.
At the end of the day, I would definitely visit whatever campus you have in mind and walk it. Watch the other students and see how they get around.
Sorry - rambled and repeated myself in that post 
- you get the idea…
My school has 60,000-70,000 students, but I’m not sure how many acres.
I’m a bigger person that has asthma but generally I am able to walk between all of my classes in a span of 20 minutes; it used to take longer but that’s because I got lost. My school also has a bus system in place that people can use to go from one end of campus to another.
My campus has plenty of places to eat, doctors, counseling centers, all that good stuff. Has a rec center too.
Depends on the school. Some are well organized, others are not. Some have good parking/transportation options, others do not.