Tell me about Fordham

Parents Forum
41

Don’t know much, but Fordham has always has a good reputation for academics, and my d. applied to Fordham as a last-minute safety. (Added to the list after all the other apps were in). Applied to LC campus, was accepted of course, and the school was more generous than I would have anticipated about merit money. (Remember, my D is the one with the good grades and middling test scores, so no chance at NM money). My d. was planning to visit in the spring of her senior year - she had booked a trip to NY during her spring break, when she was also visiting NYU – but she got notice from Barnard just before she headed out east, so didn’t get around to visiting Fordham.

My impression has always been that it’s a good, solid school that takes its academics seriously and certainly worthy of consideration for anyone. We’re Jewish, never had any concern about the religious aspects.

42

I think most schools don’t have scholarships that rise with tuition.

43

My daughter liked Fordham a lot when we visited last summer, and my son has a very good friend who is a freshman there (classics major in fact). The friend took the NMSF scholarship (full tuition, not full ride) over Brown and Berkeley among others, is in the honors college and so far is loving his time there. I saw him over Christmas break and he says they are in midtown about once a week and that it usually takes about an hour on the subway. According to him they do not take the train because it is too expensive, and the Ram van is hit or miss with traffic/when it is running. As far as academic rigor, and realizing this is all anecdotal, he does not seem to be working as hard as his classmates at MIT and Princeton, but he finds his classes somewhat challenging.

The Rose Hill campus is very nice, and as the father of a daughter it appeared to be very safe with gated entries at several points. It is basically one large enclosure within the Bronx, so the campus itself felt open, although it is pretty small if that makes any sense.

As far as academic rep, I am in the wrong part of the country and a grad from a different Patriot League school, but generally I do not think that Fordham ranks quite as high on the esteemed prestigiosity scale as Lehigh, Bucknell, Colgate, etc. Stats wise it would seem to be slightly easier to get in than most Patriot schools (excepting maybe Lafayette). I personally would think of it as more similar to Nova than most of the Patriot League. One area where the school really shines is in the performing arts, and every year there are a handful of kids from my daughter’s various theater troupes who have Fordham on the short list.

44

^^^Lafayette is generally considered harder to get into as compared to Fordham but there certainly is overlap in their application pool. And Fordham’s performing arts programs (dance, acting) at LC campus require auditions.

45

I can’t speak for undergrads, but I am a graduate student at Fordham in their English department working on my M.A., and I’ve had nothing but good experiences there thus far.

The two main campuses are way different. I take classes at both of them. Lincoln Center is basically a skyscraper set up like a high school; the plus for LC is that it’s right off Columbus Circle, two blocks from Central Park, right down the street from Lincoln Center and Juilliard, etc.

Rose Hill, the main campus in the Bronx, looks like a classic university, with Gothic stone buildings and Catholic iconography on the grounds. It may be the prettiest campus I’ve ever set foot on in my life. The surrounding area gets a bad rap, I think. I live south of the campus in Belmont, where a lot of Fordham students live. It’s an ethnic neighborhood with a lot of Albanians, Dominicans, Mexicans, and Italians. The neighborhood has a definite communal feel, and the residents are all nice.

I may be taking this for granted being that I’m a 6’2", 25 year old male, but I’ve walked from the subway about a mile up Fordham Road to my apartment at 1am, when it’s a dead zone, and never encountered trouble. I suppose this could be different if you’re younger, female, physically smaller—but maybe not. If you’re aware of your surroundings, there’s not much to worry about. I’ve walked around Belmont at varying hours of the night and never once been scared of anyone or anything.

Then again, if you’ve spent your whole life in ultra-white Connecticut or the Pennsylvania suburbs (which seems the case for many Fordham kids), then the Bronx is going to be culture shock no matter what. You’ll adjust.

In terms of reputation and rigor, it kind of depends on who you ask. I work as a graduate assistant in the business school, and through doing that, I can say that most of the incoming freshmen are quite bright. As far as reputation goes, it depends who you ask. My uncle, who graduated from Lewis & Clark, considers Fordham to be “just under Ivy league,” although I don’t know if that’s really true. I know it’s a respected school, especially in the liberal arts/humanities, which is part of why I decided to go here. I know that in most all ranks of NYC colleges, it almost always goes:

  1. Columbia
  2. NYU
  3. Fordham
  4. Pace, Hunter, St. Johns, Hofstra, etc. etc.

Based on that, I’d say Fordham is pretty good.

46

NJDad seems hellbent on knocking Fordham as much as he possibly can.

Also, “well over an hour” from Fordham Road to midtown on the subway? You’re wrong. I ride it all the time. On the D train it takes about 25 minutes to get to 59th street and Columbus; add 10-15 mins. if you’re going to 47th/Rockefeller or 42nd/Bryant Park.

It has never taken me “well over an hour” to get from Fordham Rd. to midtown, ever. Either you’re unfamiliar with that route, or you’re not really from New York.

47

I know a friend’s child who transferred out; says the education was “meh” and certainly not worth the cost. Apparently, MANY of the classes there were taught by adjuncts/grad students without terminal degrees. Apparently, their science facilities and programs are lacking as well.

I would think carefully about whether it is worth paying high tuition + NYC cost of living for a non-elite undergrad degree, especially if you have a strong in-state option available.