<p>Why does the Princeton review rank clarkson as having some of the least happy students?</p>
<p>bump!! i saw it as well and was wondering why was it so! based on student reviews Clarkson seems like a very cool place…so if anyone has any thing to say to enlighten us please do</p>
<p>I guess I’m qualified to talk about this. </p>
<p>As I was a senior in high school, I applied to 4 schools (3 ivies and Clarkson, my safety). When I found out I wasn’t accepted to any of the ivies, I knew I was going to Clarkson. The entire half of the year that I was a senior in high school, my friends made fun of me, calling Clarkson a huge sausage fest with a bunch of nerds.</p>
<p>It turns out they were right. My class’s guy-girl ratio was 6:1. It’s a small school, too, so that meant very, very few girls. If you don’t drink, good luck. There’s absolutely nothing to do in the middle of winter except drink in your room or play video games (I don’t drink, so I know). There are good frat parties, from what I’ve heard, in the fall and spring, but even then it’s a far-ass walk and, unless people from SUNY Potsdam are going, don’t expect to see many girls. </p>
<p>In my freshman dorm (Cubley, first floor, no girls), about 90% of the kids were engineering majors. It sucked for me because I don’t drink, I was kind of forced to only be friends with my dormmates, as they’re really the only people you’ll interact with. There are very few clubs and less campus activities. I play basketball a lot, but don’t expect ANYONE to be there on friday/saturday nights and during finals week. Many times I would go to the gym, hoping other people would be there so I could play with them and then finding out I was the only one in the gym for 2 hours. </p>
<p>I’m a physics major, so I can’t talk much about the engineering program, but the freshman general classes were fine. My english class was equivalent to my junior year of high school’s english class (engineers are terrible at english) but for the most part they weren’t bad. </p>
<p>Also, if you really like watching the Division 1 hockey team lose, Clarkson’s right for you. </p>
<p>PROs:
Eddie, the guy who works at the grill in the Student Center, is pretty cool.
There aren’t velociraptors.
Dr. Wick, freshman physics prof, is awesome</p>
<p>CONs:
Expensive school for mediocre education
Very little student clubs/activities
You have two options in the winter: drink or video games</p>
<p>Oh, and my friends and I would drive to Wal-Mart…for fun…</p>
1 Like
<p>yhat is really helpful…it looked like a great school by the numbers but your insider info is invaluable…hey are you transferring??!</p>
<p>The above post is one opinion, from a student that really preferred other colleges. If Clarkson is on your list, do your own research. It is a cool place for the right fit - and ha, you do need to like cold weather.</p>
<p>My husband and I are Clarkson engineering grads from mid 1980s. (He was a transfer after community college. I was there for 4 years). We really enjoyed our time there and got a fine education. Since that time there has been more research and such added, but it seems still still have good emphasis on undergrad education.</p>
<p>More recent feedback - we have friends that sent their son to Clarkson a few years ago. It turned out that engineering was not his cup of tea (that happens), but he loved Clarkson. He switched majors and stayed. That meant he had to carry loans vs opting to transfer to a state school, but he liked Clarkson and wanted to stay.</p>
1 Like
<p>A little late but yes kayakmom, I am transferring. I was planning on transferring to NYU for this fall but I decided not to because of the cost, so I’m taking the semester off and I just found out I got into Stony Brook so I’ll be going there. </p>
<p>And I agree Colorodo_mom, it is just my opinion, but Clarkson is a very unhappy school, so a lot of students agree with me. I don’t want to steer people away without them looking at the college, but I just don’t think many people will like it…you need to have very specific tastes. </p>
<p>And don’t get me wrong, I have a lot of great memories from Clarkson. Just, I feel like if I went to a bigger, warmer college I would have more.</p>
<p>I know this is a little late, but as a graduate of Clarkson in 2007, I thought I would add to the post. I lived on the Clarkson campus for 4 years and loved it. Were there some freshman who transferred after there first year? Yes. But those were likely students that were never a good fit for Clarkson in the first place (Either academically, or geographically). Everyone I knew at school was happy. We worked hard and enjoyed life. </p>
<p>One important note is that Potsdam is not a big city, or even a small city… it’s a town. If you are a city person and love the idea of living in an urban environment, then Clarkson is not the right fit for you. Potsdam is located on the outskirts of the Adirondack state park and directly on the Raquette River. This provides tremendous opportunities for activities like hiking, camping, kayaking, fishing, and other outdoor sports. Yes, it will be cold in the winter, but there are many things to do. You can play one of the many indoor intramural sports (hockey, indoor soccer, basketball, broomball, volleyball, etc). You can also ski, use the climbing wall, or just spend more time with friends. We were never bored at Clarkson. You do not have to be a drinker to entertain yourself at school, despite the previous poster’s comment. </p>
<p>If you are concerned with the male:female ratio, which is probably around 2.5:1 (not 6:1…), remember that Clarkson and SUNY Potsdam are both in the same town. (Potsdam is roughly 60% female… This means there are more females at SUNY Potsdam than there are undergrads total at Clarkson) If you go out on weekends, you will have numerous opportunities to meet new people (specifically of the opposite sex). St. Lawrence is just down the road too. Yes, you will likely have a higher ratio of males in the engineering disciplines, but this is a function of the course subjects and has nothing to do with Clarkson. Its the same way in the working world as well…</p>
<p>There are many clubs on campus to join as well, but most importantly being happy is about surrounding yourselves with people that have similar interests and goals. If Clarkson is the right school for you, you will quickly find that there are many, many people that share common interests. However, if you are the type of student that really wanted to go to UCLA, then yes, you probably are not also a great fit for Clarkson as these schools are polar opposites.</p>
<p>I loved my 4 years at Clarkson, and still get up to visit every year. Give Clarkson a thorough look before choosing a school. Go spend a weekend in Potsdam, visit the school, explore the area. You’ll know if its right for you. And if it is, trust me, you’ll be happy.</p>
1 Like