Prospective Freshmen and their Parents - Avoid Cooper Union!

Colleges and Universities A-Z Cooper Union
1

I’m a current student here (2nd year), and I’m being honest when I say that this place should be avoided. I’ll also probably be crucified by the school’s administration for posting my name here, so I’m keeping this anonymous.

Think about it, I am so afraid that I will be persecuted by the school, and (illegally) penalized for exercise my right to free speech.

Take what I am saying VERY seriously. Don’t ignore this and pretend it will not affect, because I am sure that it will. I ignored the warnings that I heard when I applied.

Cooper is a good school. A GREAT school, matter of fact. But it’s also extremely messed up. The institution is woefully disorganized. There are many times that nobody knows who is supposed to do what job. This issue is only amplified now, as so many members of the administration have resigned.

Amenities at the school are non-existent, and academic support is woefully poor. If you’re ever having trouble with something, expect to get absolutely no help, even if you ask for it. Lots of professors (Notably the Physics Professor Alan Wolf) are notoriously hostile and difficult to deal with and are hard to reach when you wish to obtain some assistance. There are some exceptions though.

Also, despite the (wonderful) attorney general decision, the school will not be tuition free again any time soon. There are severe financial issues at the institution that will be around for a long time.

The graduation rate of this school is woefully low. Many kids transfer out by choice after becoming fed up with the school, others are forced out without being given a fair hearing. Some were my friends. With class sizes increasing, expect this issue to only get more severe.

If you go here, expect severe institutional dysfunction, hostile learning environments, an administration with no regard for its students, and professors with napoleon complexes. Don’t say I didn’t warn you.

2

Oh yeah, one more thing.

Be aware that Cooper has absolutely no respect for its applicants either. Expect very late notification on admissions decisions, and absolutely no information about what is going on at all times. This issue extends on to all four years of your time at Cooper should you (mistakenly) decide to go.

3

I can corroborate what iyedawg18 has said. I’m a current junior, and I am not alone in sharing the same sentiments that OP has outlined. Cooper is dysfunctional and disorganized.
When I came in as a freshman, everybody’s schedules were disastrous, and one person was assigned to the entire grade to sort out scheduling issues. Many people ended up getting locked out of classes they needed to graduate on time. With the increase in class sizes of the past two years, this issue has only gotten worse.

I would really discourage people from even applying here, let alone deciding to commit and go after receiving an acceptance letter.

iyedawg18, thank you for having the courage to go on here and tell people about the disaster that this institution has become. I can only imagine the witch hunt that will occur when the administration tries to figure out who we are. You have inspired me to finally come forward to voice my concerns about this school as well.

4

“Many kids transfer out by choice after becoming fed up with the school, others are forced out without being given a fair hearing?”

Do you have a source for this? I saw reference to a first year student retention rate of 96%, which is very high.

5

the school is known for its very difficult curriculum, one of the toughest in the nation. It is a good part of why it’s graduates do so incredible well. Having said that, it can be hard on young students to keep up. If a student is not
acustom to being 100% self reliant it can be quite difficult for some. But as for comments about schedules and such,
the same can be said of many institutions including ones that CHARGE 3x as much. Fact is the school acceptance
standards for ALL 3 schools are so high because it is really only those super gifted self motivated students that can hack it. There certainly is a culling process that takes place, especially in the eng school. However, that happens at all the good programs. The admin is there to push students beyond what they think they are capable of but they are not there to hold hands. Nor should they be.

6

@mjrube94
The 96% post-freshman year retention rate statistic is a ruse. Kids who get dismissed are given a withdrawal deadline that is earlier than the cut-off date for when freshman year technically ends, so their withdrawal doesn’t affect the statistic. This is Cooper’s dirty little secret that was brought to everyones attention this summer.

The scheduling issues are severe. There are not enough professors to teach all the kids in the current freshman and sophomore classes. There are people who will have to pay full tuition for a 5th year, just because they got their registration in a few seconds later than everyone else. It’s ridiculous.

There is a difference between the administration pushing the students beyond their comfort zone and gross negligence. The students here are miserable not because of the workload, but because of the drama, infighting, and dysfunction.

7

i have spoken to many current and former students each have their complaints and each know having completed an education at cooper has helped them tremendously. Why do you think that is? The institution is certainly not without its
issues and can get even better, but you need to appreciate the well earned reputation and the value the rest of the world gives to a cooper degree. Maybe they are doing some things very right? focus on the bigger picture of how you can utilize the opportunity. If not you might be better served at another institution and free up space for another .

8

I graduated a few years ago and disagree with some of this. Not all, but some (keeping in mind that I don’t know how things have been since I left). Scheduling was indeed a nightmare a few years ago (back when we had to line up at 6am to register by hand and the order in which students can register was randomly assigned). This got much better since they moved to an online system.

Cooper is very difficult, no doubt about it. My first year, I was extremely stressed out, but that taught me to become more efficient. Transferring wasn’t an option I wanted to consider, especially since they had the full-tuition scholarship back then and there was no way I wanted to give it up. So I had to learn to study and get good at it, quick. I had heard all the horror stories about Professor Wolf before taking physics, but I knew a junior at the time who told me that he’s really not that bad. So I went in with the mindset that he’s not a bad guy. Sure, he pushed everyone and his class was stressful, but he pushed me to stay on top of things and not fall behind. These lessons followed me throughout my time at Cooper and made everything easier in the long run.

I found that things got a lot easier, more organized, and way more enjoyable after the first 2 years. This is when you start diving into your major, and things by that point are pretty organized. The professors know what they’re doing, you’re finished with all the basic math and science, and you get to study what you’ve been wanting to study all along. My advice to anyone at Cooper is to basically push through and look forward to the last 2 years.

Those are my $0.02–if anyone has any questions or comments please PM. I’m not on this forum a whole lot, but a PM should send me an email notification

9

I am also a current 2nd year student. Some of what iyedawg said is correct, however some parts are just blatantly wrong. The administration is extremely disorganized, as the institution has undergone recent change. However, when he states that professors are unwilling to help, he cannot be more wrong. Professor Wolf, who he mentions, can be somewhat of a jerk, but he makes time out of his schedule to offering tutoring practically every day for students who are lagging behind. I know many students who are/have lagged behind and the reason is not because of his lack of teaching skills, but rather because they do not pay attention in lecture nor in recitation. Instead, they blame the professor for their lack of understanding.

I know the students who were kicked out last year. The school has a policy of maintaining a minimum GPA of 2.0, which is a C average. Frankly, if you can’t maintain a C average at Cooper you should be somewhere else, not only is freshman year THE easiest year, but it only requires basic consideration your grades to maintain a C average during freshman year. The years only get increasingly tougher (especially for EEs and Chemes). The students who did get kicked out either did not pay attention at all in class (I know one who played video games in his classes) or partied too much instead of studying. If you can’t make the conscious decision to put away your pleasures and study, I don’t even know why you’d come to any college, never mind just Cooper, in the first place. Furthermore, professors ARE willing to help, but you need to reach out by yourself. This isn’t highschool where the teacher will come to you for help, this is college.

10

If you can’t stand the heat get out of the kitchen.

11

here’s a school with a 8-15% acceptance rate. With a curriculum widely considered the toughest around and that’s in comparison to places like Harvard, Yale , Princeton etc. A meritocracy . And it always gets me when a student is surprised by how difficult it can be. Frankly that’s what happens when you go to your “reach” school . I mean , its supposed to be really really difficult.