<p>What are the things you hate about Columbia?</p>
<p>The only things I hate about Columbia:
1) My dean at the advising center doesn't know a lot about my major; he's helpful in answering my administrative questions and dealing with stuff like study abroad, but he can't answer more specific questions about my major. (Fortunately, my major adviser is fantastic and complements my dean's input nicely.)
2) The Barnard-Columbia tension gets a little old sometimes. Regardless of what some people say, it's a constant undercurrent of student relations on campus, and you just have to choose to ignore it because some people always make snide comments about it. It's one of those things that shouldn't be as big an issue as it is, and it flares up every year when the new first-years arrive.
3) I love that students here are so willing to speak up and discuss various issues, but this past semester's scandals (the near-return of Jim Gilchrist, Ahmadinejad, the noose at Teachers College, the hunger strike, etc.) were a bit too much to deal with in rapid succession. It would be nice to be somewhere more placid (but, then, that would probably be boring).</p>
<p>Other than that, I love everything about Columbia--the students, the curriculum, my classes/profs, the campus, the location, the resources, and the general excitement that comes with being a part of this community. It's all great (well, except our sports teams), and I know I'm fortunate to be here.</p>
<p>bumpers...</p>
<p>There's nothing to hate about Columbia :-)</p>
<p>Columbia2009 - Are you a female by any chance?</p>
<p>Nope. I'm just observant.</p>
<p>And there is very little to hate, although no college or university is perfect.</p>
<p>I think C2009 actually hit the nail right on the head. I don't have anything to add and those are definitely the top 3 things I dislike most about Columbia.</p>
<p>A lot of people complain about the bureaucracy at Columbia but these people are living in a fantasy world. Although I know plenty of people who will argue with me, Columbia is a corporation and it takes a lot of people to run a corporation with over 6 billion dollars in assets. There is a reason for all the run-around students get when trying to file forms and whatnot: it keeps the machine running smoothly. If you can't deal with it, go to some small LAC</p>
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Although I know plenty of people who will argue with me, Columbia is a corporation and it takes a lot of people to run a corporation with over 6 billion dollars in assets. There is a reason for all the run-around students get when trying to file forms and whatnot: it keeps the machine running smoothly. If you can't deal with it, go to some small LAC
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<p>This analogy is inapt. While you are a "paying customer," you have no leverage to take your "business" elsewhere and Columbia has no incentive to do a good job to make you satisfied in this regard.</p>
<p>I also disagree with the premise that a large institution results in, ipso facto, an inefficient bureaucracy. Students at other large schools do not complain about the bureaucracy in the same way that Columbia students do.</p>
<p>The bureaucracy is the result of a lot of stupid decisionmaking from notsobright people who aren't paid that well and aren't all that experienced/qualified for their positions.</p>
<p>bumpers..........</p>
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This analogy is inapt. While you are a "paying customer," you have no leverage to take your "business" elsewhere and Columbia has no incentive to do a good job to make you satisfied in this regard.
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<p>I in no way mean to say that students are the customers. The corporation aspect of the university and the teaching aspect that students use are two completely different things. It just so happens that the students are forced to use many of the same departments (accounts payable for example) that the corporation uses.</p>
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I also disagree with the premise that a large institution results in, ipso facto, an inefficient bureaucracy. Students at other large schools do not complain about the bureaucracy in the same way that Columbia students do.</p>
<p>The bureaucracy is the result of a lot of stupid decisionmaking from notsobright people who aren't paid that well and aren't all that experienced/qualified for their positions.
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<p>No offense but, really? Do you know a sufficiently large population of people at "large" schools to be able to make this claim? A lot of people from my high school went to UVA, VaTech, GaTech, and other "large" schools and they have complained about the bureaucracies at their schools. Granted it's not the "OMFG I HATE COLUMBIA" that some kids at columbia give, it's complaining none the less. </p>
<p>I do agree that there are a lot of stupid people working the bureaucracy at Columbia but it's not like they need an ivy league degree to work there (just as at any large university bureaucracy). It is for precisely that reason though that I say a) all large univs will have inept bureaucracies and b) you cant complain that much.</p>
<p>I'll second all of C2009s comments, particularly #2.#1 is to be expected, so I just go to her for general questions and direct other questions to department heads.</p>
<p>Also, I really hate those people that camp out in Butler. It's so lame and annoying.</p>
<p>I'm a Columbia hopeful(deferred ED), but I thought I'd list some things I THINK I'd hate about Columbia(I love Columbia for a lot of other reasons though):</p>
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<li><p>The food. Yes, you're in NYC, and good food is only a subway ride away, but it's a pain in the ass to do this EVERY night, when you have papers/projects due. From what I've heard, the on-campus dining is not too great(and I'm a foodie), so I think I'll find myself frustrated when I'm forced to eat most of my meals on campus for the sake of convenience.</p></li>
<li><p>The housing. Not that Columbia is much worse than other schools, and it's nice that first-years get singles, but the housing is in pretty horrible condition from what I hear. I want a single room, in a fairly(but not too) sociable environment, and that pretty much leaves John Jay, which is in pretty bad condition, with tiny rooms. </p></li>
<li><p>The bureaucracy. It sounds like it's a pain to deal with, and I can see how it would hurt students very easily. I'd hate to, for example, tell someone that I needed to drop a class, then find out past the drop date that the person didn't do what s/he said s/he was going to do.</p></li>
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<p>Other than that, I can't think of anything else I'd hate(you're in NYC, you have access to some of the best faculty/research labs/internships during the year, and you take the Core!). Would current/past Columbia students agree with those statements?</p>
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No offense but, really? Do you know a sufficiently large population of people at "large" schools to be able to make this claim? A lot of people from my high school went to UVA, VaTech, GaTech, and other "large" schools and they have complained about the bureaucracies at their schools.
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<p>I should have tailored my post specifically to private schools. People at other Ivies and the other top privates don't complain about the bureaucracy in the same way that Columbia students do. All the schools you mention are state schools, which I agree are by their nature inefficient.</p>
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I should have tailored my post specifically to private schools. People at other Ivies and the other top privates don't complain about the bureaucracy in the same way that Columbia students do. All the schools you mention are state schools, which I agree are by their nature inefficient.
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<p>Ok, I can agree with that. Other schools lessen their bureaucracy by splitting up the student body and giving one person more control tho (yale's residential colleges or cornell's plethora of different colleges).</p>
<p>My point tho is that the bureaucracy at columbia isnt really THAT bad. Sure it's something to complain about but I still say a lot of people whine too much.</p>
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I'm a Columbia hopeful(deferred ED), but I thought I'd list some things I THINK I'd hate about Columbia(I love Columbia for a lot of other reasons though)
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<p>the 3 reasons you posted are all hearsay, mostly from these boards. In the order you posted them:
1) the food thing really has gotten MUCH better. I went to john jay with my suitemate who is a sr and he was amazed at the improvement. Yea it's not cornell but personally it rivals the best food i've had at both yale and brown (both of which i've had many times)
2) again, blown out of proportion. for every floor in JJ there might be one room you could label as being in "poor" condition and even that number might be stretching it. the bathrooms arent the best but they are cleaned 5 times a week by a surprisingly able staff (at least my floor was fine 90% of the time). carman is another matter and furnold is a highly sought after dorm for sophmores because it is so nice (and singles).
3) been dealing with this for 2 posts now.</p>
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My point tho is that the bureaucracy at columbia isnt really THAT bad. Sure it's something to complain about but I still say a lot of people whine too much.
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<p>It's pretty bad. But it's not intolerable; you'll eventually get your way / what you need if you fight hard enough. At some of these public schools, in contrast, you might have to wait a month to even get a meeting with some useless administrator who will ultimately refuse to help solve your problem.</p>
<p>We're pretty much on the same page, it seems.</p>
<p>I recently toured the ivies with my little brother who is applying for the class of 2012, and Columbia was definitely one of his favorites. He and I personally thought the whole bureaucracy thing was overexaggerated after our visit, but of course, we have a pretty narrow perspective.</p>
<p>I'm not sure how you would have ANY perspective -- one way or another -- on the Columbia bureaucracy based on a campus visit.</p>
<p>I went to Columbia twice (as an undergrad before transferring, back for grad school). The bureaucracy is ridiculous. Its like dealing with the federal government, only worse. My other undergrad school felt like it was run by carebears compared to Columbia. Kent Hall feels like communist russia.</p>
<p>^^^ lol to carebears and communist russia. that just made my day :)</p>
<p>yeah, slipper, i think given that you transferred to Dartmouth, your perspective could almost be predicted in advance.</p>
<p>There's a lot to be said for small, elite LACs that don't have many (or any) graduate schools. One of those things is the bureaucracy, which (since it deals with many fewer schools and students) is simpler and more customer service oriented.</p>
<p>However, in my experience there are certainly departments that are VERY student-service focused, and who go out of their way to help students (even those who show up with dumb problems). Housing is one. CCE, while not perfect, is probably another. The other side of the spectrum - the people who remind you of the Department of Motor Vehicles customer service - is mostly things like the registrar and bursar and the like. Yeah, there are sometimes hoops to jump through, or delays that don't make sense, but even with those departments you very rarely get "screwed". There's always some professional officer of the university who's managing behind the scenes, and if you get in to talk to them and sound reasonable, they have never failed to help me out.</p>
<p>Essentially, going to Columbia teaches you how to deal with a complex and annoying, but essentially rational, bureaucracy. It's a skill we all ought to learn at some point. At least, that's my post-hoc justification =)</p>