Negative things about SLO

<p>i would disagree with previous posters,the cowboy culture is definitely pretty prevalent here. also, though there is an organic farm on campus, the dining plan in no way encourages the consumption of organic food. perhaps im spoiled, as i come from sonoma county, one of the organic food capitals of the worlds, but frankly, the food here is terrible healthwise, and not too appealing from a culinary point of view either. unless you’re a fan of butter butter and more butter (1600 calorie pasta dishes!), you’re pretty much limited to salad (nothing special here) and black bean burgers (which are actually alright), you’re pretty screwed in the vegetarian eating department.</p>

<p>tornados^ I hope you are exaggerating when you say “more than life!” but I do understand that you really want to attend CP. That is hard when you are in Art and Design and you are being considered much later than the rest of the school. I hope they are faster than they said and you hear soon. My niece was in the Design program at LongBeach. She has since changed majors because it was more artsy than she expected, but the program was good. Of course CP is a much nicer location!
hang in there!</p>

<p>@momofmv, oh yes…I was just being exuberant! Life is too special to let any disappointment ruin it. I will be sad, but I will move on if it doesn’t happen. I have been accepted at two other schools and that is reasurring. As for Cal Poly, I am willing to wait for the decisions because I respect the process. I do worry about finding space in the dorms though, that late in the process. They must do it this way every year, so it works out I assume. I think I am the only Art/Design applicant who looks at these boards though, so there isn’t really anyone that I can ask questions of.</p>

<p>tornados, dorm space was an issue in the past but I think that has been solved with additional dorms.</p>

<p>gotpeter…thanks, that is reassuring. I am just assuming they will hold a certain number of places for the Art/Design kids. The housing office must know that we are the last to find out if we are accepted and cannot contact housing until the end of the month.</p>

<p>To easy your mind, you might want to give Housing a call @ (805) 756-1226. I have found them to be very helpful.</p>

<p>tornados - keep checking your email, in the past they have emailed applicants who are accepted within several days after the portfolio review close date. Which concentration did you apply to? My daughter just graduated graphic design last June. She is working too! Cal Poly was her first choice and she felt very fortunate to be accepted, there were only 13 freshmen accepted that year. PM if you would like a little more info!</p>

<p>I’m gonna go ahead and call my shot here…</p>

<p>“PolyArch” and “CalPolyEngineer” are the same person.</p>

<p>^ Hmmm, you could be right. But I think this is still a good thread.<br>
Every college has its positive and negative. It’s up to each individual to weight what is the most important to him/her. For those decide to enroll, they can start to prepare for the negative mentally and physically - bring microwave/small freezer/cookbook :slight_smile: For those decide not to enroll, they can feel their decision is somehow justified.</p>

<p>@ Watermark: True, but it’s pretty obvious our bitter friend created this thread under false pretenses. </p>

<p>To stay on topic: </p>

<ul>
<li><p>No drive thru windows at any fastfood restaurants (prohibited by city ordinance) </p></li>
<li><p>Campus dorms and apartments do not have A/C, which is fine for most of year since it stays fairly cool and warm. But there are occasional 90 - 100 degree days during late Spring and into Summer, which can make sleeping uncomfortable. Bring a fan.</p></li>
<li><p>Food and groceries are expensive (relative to prices found in larger cities). Stocking up at the local Costco helps. </p></li>
<li><p>Not very many dance/night clubs (if you’re into that sort of thing)</p></li>
<li><p>Isolated area, homesickness common among freshman.</p></li>
<li><p>Not much political activism on campus compared to the UCs. This may be a good or bad thing depending on the individual.</p></li>
</ul>

<p>there may not be clubs, but some frats throw some really awesome dance parties!</p>

<p>Pomona is better for architecture:</p>

<p>Pomona being close to Los Angeles gets a good share of highly talented design professors. Currently, Michael Fox is a young professor from MIT that wrote and interesting book called Interactive Architecture. You should check it out. In addition, you’ll find that there’s a lot more interesting architecture to study in Los Angeles, such as the mid century modern homes of Schindler and Richard Neutra, whose home is currently owned and operated by Cal Poly Pomona. On the other hand, San Luis Obispo is in a nice coastal setting but it does not draw many talented architects as it is too far from the big cities. It’s highly rated in technical aspects such getting students ready for the workforce and computer stuff, but if you want to get design exposure, Pomona’s a better bet. You’ll have enough time to learn how to draft in the real world.</p>

<p>My friend is currently a senior at Cal Poly and for the most part she likes it. However, she has met many conservative people, but loves going to the beach.</p>

<p>Pomona is better for Architecture? Design Intelligence rankings for Arch schools, 2010:</p>

<p>TOP 10 UNDERGRADUATE ARCHITECTURE SCHOOLS
1
Cornell University, Ithaca, N.Y.
2
Syracuse University, Syracuse, N.Y.<br>
3
California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo, Calif.
4
Virginia Polytechnic institute and State University, Blacksburg, Va.<br>
5
University of Texas, Austin, Tex.
6
Kansas State University, Manhattan, Kans.
7
University of Oregon, Eugene, Ore.
8
Rhode Island School of Design, Providence, R.I.
9
Rice University, Houston, Tex.
10
University of Southern California, Los Angeles, Calif.</p>

<p>mommomon,</p>

<p>I don’t deny that SLO consistently ranks high in the Design Intelligence rankings, but they can hardly be the sole measure for program quality. First of all, those rankings are basically a survey of large corporate firms and SLO being one of the biggest schools in the country and older than Pomona have more graduates which gives them an inherent advantage in getting a bigger share of the vote. This flaw was confirmed by the creator of the survey.</p>

<p>[2010</a> America’s Best Architecture Schools | Features | Architectural Record](<a href=“http://archrecord.construction.com/features/0911BestArchSchools/0911BestArchSchools-1.asp]2010”>2010 America's Best Architecture Schools | 2009-11-18 | Architectural Record)</p>

<p>Second of all, corporate firms are looking for work ready architects that can draw parking spaces and stairs and draft on the computer. This is what SLO is known for, but those are not necessarily the qualities that make for a good architect. Good architecture is good design, which takes a lifetime to learn and requires a good foundation. Pomona, being close to Los Angeles, the breeding ground of contemporary architecture, is better able attract visiting professors at the forefront of the design profession. Good design architects these days can’t afford to take a quarter off from work and relocate to teach a studio out in SLO but they can easily work and teach a course at Pomona. Plus Pomona has a great tradition in modern design starting back in the 60’s when Richard Neutra, one of the most influential modern architects in the world, taught there and left his house to the school to use as a real life laboratory. </p>

<p>A much more objective ranking survey was conducted by Architecture Magazine which analyzed schools by specialties such as design build, digital design and theory. Pomona ranked as one of the top three schools in the nation in Sustainable design, which is one of the most sought after specialties these days. SLO did not make the list in any of the 12 categories.</p>

<p>[Architecture</a> Schools Guide 2009 - Education, Research - Architect Magazine](<a href=“http://www.architectmagazine.com/education/arch-ed-2009.aspx]Architecture”>http://www.architectmagazine.com/education/arch-ed-2009.aspx)</p>

<p>The two architecture programs are different. One is more technical, while the other is more design oriented. A prospective student should figure out which one is more important to them and chose their campus accordingly. SLO may be a better overall university, but that doesn’t mean that all their programs are better, just different.</p>

<p>It’s also pretty boring here. At least for me it is. Sure, at the beginning of the year it was exciting since everything was new and all, but I really, really miss having a big city close by (and by close by I mean 20 minutes, not 200 miles.) I guess if you like the small town feel and don’t get bored of it after half a year, and you’re into nature and outdoor stuff like hiking, you’ll find it more enjoyable here. It just took me a little while to realize that Cal Poly is not exactly the right fit for me. It’s a nice school, but I really don’t think it’s right for everyone, but of course, no school is perfect.</p>

<p>NTKS17 are you going to transfer out?</p>