NYU Liberal Studies Program

Colleges and Universities A-Z New York University
141

<p>Welcome! I’m an incoming LSP sophomore. Let me just warn you:</p>

<p>you are going to be frustrated. You are going to curse the program for being so rigid with the classes. You are going to say you wish you werent in LSP.</p>

<p>But at the same time you will have one of the best college experiences in this program. I was lucky enough to have really GREAT professors who knew what they were teaching and who loved their subjects. As compared to a 300 person lecture hall, it says something when the professor knows your name and you are able to meet with the professor to discuss academic (and even sometimes personal) stuff, as opposed to TAs who are kinda crnky coz they’re teaching basic stuff when they want to learn High-end complex stuff. (TAs are perhaps one of the angriest kinds of people out there)</p>

<p>And besides, LSP trains you for the rigors of college academic life. They give us one of the most difficult programs ever so that we are fully trained to deal with classwork better than other students who immediately rushed into their “specific” fields.</p>

<p>I dunno. Just ranting here. :)</p>

142

<p>Hi I have a question regarding visa to France. I would really really really appreciate if someone who has gone through the process can help me!
So here I was accepted into LSP and will be studying in France this upcoming fall. I need to get my visa to France as soon as possible now because I am leaving the U.S to another country at the beginning of June.
So I went to the France embassy website and it specifically states all these requirements that I need. And there’s this one specific one about France Campus account ID NUMBER?. I registered an account and it says that I need an interview and a lot of other stuff to complete this process.
I was wondering if anyone from LSP has also gone through this process? am i supposed to follow this or is there any other documents that NYU provides us that makes the process easier and less tedious. PLEASE PLEASE SHARE WITH ME YOUR VISA PROCESS!
I already made several phone calls and sent several emails but all they told me is to wait and some ambivalent sentences that don’t explain anything. I can’t wait till the beginning of June for the information package to arrive to get the instructions to get my student visa. PLEASE PLEASE HELP IF YOU CAN! THANK YOU SO MUCH</p>

143

<p>i know it’s going to sound stupid, but. . .get your parents to call. </p>

<p>no, i’m serious. if NYU keeps blowing you off because they think you are a student, get your parents to call them and tell them that THEY need this info so they can apply for your student visa. it’s funny how once parents talk to college administrators, you somehow get all of the answers you need. . .</p>

144

<p>HI! I would really appreciate it if a current LSP student could help me out. I am commited to attend NYU next year as an LSP student. However, I have just found out that I could go straight in to the CAS if I wanted to. The thing is … classes based on the great works sound awesome, I am really committed to the liberal arts and small classes are very important to me. SO. Should I go in to CAS or LSP? Are the classes at LSP really smaller than CAS??? Is there a lot of bad connotations that go with being in the LSP program?? This must sound irritating but PLEASE HELP. I only have until tomorrow at 5 pm to reply.</p>

145

<p>also… at the seminar for LSP they mentioned that often LSP students are better prepared for classes junior year. true or no>?</p>

146

<p>They are not strictly LSP, but contact the Study Abroad office: [NYU</a> > Study Abroad](<a href=“http://www.nyu.edu/studyabroad/contact/]NYU”>http://www.nyu.edu/studyabroad/contact/)</p>

<p>Not only are they ridiculously nice, but they will probably have a lot more helpful information for you. I suggest you contact them as soon as possible, and if they don’t know who to transfer you to, ask for Julie Shurts; she is the contact for NYU in Paris and is also incredibly awesome.</p>

147

<p>Alex, if you’re in at CAS, you should go. I don’t think there’s anything wrong with LSP but really, don’t give up this opportunity. (Btw, I am an LSP parent for one more semester - and a CAS alum).</p>

148

<p>Could you tell me why you feel that way?</p>

149

<p>alex, I got the same email and I chose to accept the spot in CAS. You should consider it very seriously. I personally chose CAS because I am pre-med and have so many requirements for that plus a major and a minor that it will really be helpful to be able to start taking classes toward those things earlier than I would have been able to in LSP. Also, you will have much more freedom in choosing courses in CAS than in LSP. Even though you still have to take the MAP classes, most of them give you a number of choices, where as in LSP you are locked into Cultural Foundations and Social Foundations for three semesters. Also, LSP just has more requirements overall that you have to complete. You can finish most of you MAP classes in your freshman year at CAS, but it takes the first two in LSP. </p>

<p>Still, LSP does have smaller class sizes and a more writing intensive curriculum. If you’re unsure about what you want to do or are planning on a field in the liberal arts anyway, LSP may actually be your better choice. By sophomore year you’ll have more freedom to choose electives and you will go into CAS junior year with all of your requirements taken care of (except for language if you don’t take one while in LSP). I’ve talked to a bunch of LSP kids over facebook and they are just as smart, some smarter, than the kids in CAS. So honestly don’t take stereotypes into account. LSP is just as much part of NYU as the other schools.</p>

<p>So basically it’s up to you. Honestly this actually turned out to be a better deal than straight acceptance to CAS. Since you can’t apply to LSP, this turned out to be the only way to get a choice between the two. Make sure you consider what you want out of NYU.</p>

150

<p>Thanks so much. Basically I am solely interested in the humanities/liberal arts and have no idea what I want to major in so I feel like LSP would be appropriate. And small classes sizes are very important to me… I’m just worried that I’m being irrational to turn down the option that is more difficult to achieve… I don’t want to arrive at the school and be met with - " Are you crazy? why didn’t you get out while you had the chance?" But really, if it is the better fit for me, I should do it.</p>

151

<p>why has your experience with your daughter led you to prefer Cas?</p>

152

<p>For her, it’s been a means to an end. She applied to CAS, wanted to go to CAS, but did not get in. While it’s been a good experience overall, she is excited to be entering CAS in January and is looking forward to only having one more LSP course in September. </p>

<p>I’ve defended LSP, and for kids asking for advice on choice (LSP vs. another college), I’ve said, if you love NYU and it’s your first choice, then go for it, you’ll eventually end up where you first applied. I just can’t grasp why you would choose LSP over CAS. </p>

<p>Yes, there are some large classes in CAS - just plan ahead and don’t get lost in the crowd. Go to office hours - get to know your professor. Make an effort to get to know your fellow students. </p>

<p>I wish you luck with your decision - it is a tough one. Let us know what you decided.</p>

153

<p>The reasons I would choose LSP is because I really do not know what I want to major in, other that it will be in the liberal arts. Because of this I feel that it would be beneficial to take the broad liberal arts curriculum at LSP… rather than try to decide between the many classes at CAS. I have also been told that the subject matter in LSP is intertwined between the classes and they have a curriculum based on the classics and great works… and that it is more writing and reading intensive, which I prefer. Also, I just think that I would do better in a small classroom setting that is more discussion based rather than a lecture/seminar. LSP students that I have talked to have said that they did not have more than 15 - 25 students in their classes… Thank you so much for your input… I really appreciate it.</p>

154

<p>i’m applying for undergraduate admission later on this year, for the class of 2014, and i’m wondering what my chances are. :slight_smile:
international student
SAT: 2170
class rank: pretty high, in an extremely competitive class/school
EC: active from year nine to eleven but not so much in year twelve
probably going to get pretty good recommendations.</p>

155

<p>To alexjd25:</p>

<p>I agree with londonb, I can’t fathom why someone would choose LSP over CAS. To be perfectly frank, there is at least a hint of a stigma against LSP kids, since everyone else thinks that, if it weren’t for LSP, they wouldn’t have gotten in at all. It’s not an assumption that is applicable to everyone (like several of my friends who transferred into other schools and did honors tracks), but it is definitely applicable to some, and the stigma remains.</p>

<p>Beyond that, you have to remember that LSP is essentially a continuation of high school. You say that you don’t know what you want to major in but want to get a liberal arts degree, so why not just go to CAS and spend your first year getting the MAP requirements out of the way (which you’d have to also do in LSP)? CAS MAP classes are on a variety of topics precisely because they help students figure out what they are interested in. For instance, I came in wanting to do politics, and after taking one of the World Cultures classes, I decided to I really wanted to do history as well because I wanted to delve more into what I had learned. If I had taken Expressive Cultures: Architecture of NY Field Study earlier, I probably would have also minored in Urban Design & Architecture Studies. On the other hand, having taken a classics-heavy ConWest class, I realized I wouldn’t want to have to read all the required books for English classes, and my NatSci classes reinforced my belief that science is just not for me.</p>

<p>You say that you want something that is more writing- and reading-intensive, and perhaps you do, but trust me, you won’t want it as much when you’ve got four lengthy papers due in the span of two days (and this is coming from someone who voluntarily took advanced seminars just to practice writing 30+ page papers). In any event, CAS MAP courses, or at least the non-NatSci or QR ones, are also writing- and reading-intensive; my ConWest and World Cultures classes each assigned at least 15+ books to read over the course of the semester, and there at least five papers in each. Expressive Cultures wasn’t heavy on reading or writing, but, then, it was a field study. There’s also Writing the Essay, which, as the title suggests, means you spend an entire semester writing and writing and writing. </p>

<p>Secondly, even if a CAS MAP course is large, it will have a recitation, which is a small class of about 10-20 students that meets once a week to discuss the material. You won’t be left to float around in the abyss by yourself, as TAs tend to be much more approachable and have more accommodating schedules than professors. They will also often be the ones grading your papers (but probably not exams), so developing a solid academic relationship with them is beneficial to you. By the way, the biggest course I ever had without a recitation had 50 people in it, which seems like a lot but is really not since about half of the people in any given class will never raise their hand anyway.</p>

<p>The final thing is that, if you start in CAS, even if you spend most of your first year getting all the MAP courses out of the way, you’ll be able to start taking major-specific classes much, much sooner than in LSP. Hence, you’ll have a lot more flexibility to take electives later on, double-major, or even change your major if you realize the department’s just not for you. And, several of the MAP courses are cross-listed to majors, so you can get a head-start without even realizing it.</p>

<p>Anyway, I hope that helps.</p>

156

<p>Thank you… Would you say that the main advantage of CAS over LSP is the freedom of course selection and the lack of a negative reputation? Is there more that I should know about?</p>

157

<p>Thank you… Would you say that the main advantage of the CAS over LSP is the freedom of course selection and lack of a negative stigma? Is there more that I should know about. The thing is that if those are the classes I want to take anyways and I do want smaller classes I’m failing to see why it would be better to be in the CAS.
Again, I really really really appreciate your input.</p>

158

<p>Well, like I said, it’s not just freedom of course selection, it’s the freedom to dabble in courses based in certain topics that are relevant to majors. If you have no idea what major to take (but have at least some inkling of what you may want to do), taking such classes can assist you in seeing how taking an introductory class in a specific major might be like. The reason is that CAS MAP classes are more particularized, while LSP classes are extremely broad–again, like a continuation of high school, or, as NYU itself says, like getting an associate’s degree at community college (except for infinitely more money). In fact, look at it as if you went to a community college, got your A.A., and transferred to NYU for your B.A., with the operative difference being that you can take some non-LSP courses your sophomore year. If you feel that you need that broad liberal arts foundation and don’t yet want to do particularized classes, then go for LSP. If you feel that you are prepared to take a class that examines a certain topic with more specificity (though not as much as most actual major classes), then go for CAS. </p>

<p>My overall point from this is that the LSP curriculum may very likely not help you choose a major just because your classes will be so broad. The possible issue is that, once you really get into a major junior year after completing LSP, it might be too late to change majors. If you’ve looked over the LSP classes and believe that they will help you determine if you want to do one major over another, then this shouldn’t be a problem. Also, actually, remember that some majors require workshops AND seminars, which have prerequisites and require department approval; by waiting until junior year to take more advanced classes in a major, you might have to cram these workshops and seminars into your senior year. Again, it might not happen, but I am risk-averse, so I wouldn’t want to risk it. If you think you’ll be able to “confidently declare a major at the end of sophomore year” (as the LSP site states), then you don’t have to worry about it.</p>

<p>And, again, you’ll have recitations that facilitate discussion. You have to remember two things as well: 1) eventually, you will have to take a larger class anyway (since it is NYU, and there are thousands of students); and, 2) a smaller class doesn’t necessarily mean you won’t be lectured at the whole time. Yes, a smaller class may mean more individualized attention and more discussion; personally, on a broad subject, I find that class discussion can quickly hamper the progression of the course (while on a specific subject, I welcome discussion), but obviously you might feel differently. I also am the type to seek out professors no matter what, but if you feel you won’t do that in a big lecture, then a smaller class may be better.</p>

<p>Oh, and by the way, the entire MAP curriculum is based on the great works, not just the LSP curriculum. It’s why every ConWest class reads the Odyssey and a whole slew of other Greek tragedies, and then whatever type of ConWest class reads classics from those periods.</p>

159

<p>what type of choices do LSP students have in selecting classes? one of my old professors teaches writing I in LSP and i’d really like to take his class… is there any chance I can indicate a preference for teacher or choose the specific class i’ll be taking?</p>

160

<p>Hey guys, I recieve a letter from admission office said that I can start my first year in NYU instead of London, and I have to reply it befor may 11th. </p>

<p>What do you think about it?</p>