<p>I know UNCC isn't the most academically prestigious school around. But, upon a campus tour, I was quite impressed with the campus and its facilities. The liveability of the university's campus is really what I care about, because I assume that I can get a quality education wherever I go, so long as I maintain focus on my studies. But that's not what I heard from a certain website (I assume CC won't let me post the website's name). It was one of those sites on which current and former students can write reviews for their school.</p>
<p>Surprisingly, the reviews for UNC Charlotte were nothing short of terrible. The terms "money pit" and "hellhole" were thrown around not quite sparingly. Over 60% of the reviewers said they would not attend UNCC in hindsight, with some even referring to their attendance of UNCC as the biggest mistake of their lives. </p>
<p>I had not heard anything bad about UNC Charlotte before this; I have even visited other websites with student reviews in which the feedback for UNCC was much more positive. The negative comments seem limited to this one particular site, so I am very wary of its credibility. But you have to understand, there were A LOT of horrible reviews on it. Could any UNCC students reassure me that the site in question is suspect and that UNC Charlotte is not a bad institution?</p>
<p>My son started at UNCC this fall. We came on the site and read the reviews and had some concerns since many were negative but he loved the campus, our tour was great, and we heard good things about the computer science program. My son did great in school and had excellent grades and could have gotten into a “better” school but since he didn’t get in at Stanford, his second choice was UNCC. He LOVES it there. We were worried that it was a “commuter” school and he wouldn’t have things to do on the weekend and he wanted a school that he could get involved and meet people. Well, he found that at UNCC. He has a lot of friends, never gets any sleep, is always busy, never comes home because he is always doing things with friends or activities, he just joined a fraternity, he played an amazing game (school wide) of Zombies vs. Humans and lived to see the final battle as a human! The only negative (in his eyes) is that there aren’t a lot of wild parties but he threw his own small party as his “dorm” (one of the Greek houses that isn’t a frat house) and is too busy with friends and activities to complain about missing out on getting drunk at a wild party. He spent the winter break with friends from school, he has plans with friends over spring break, and wants to stay in Charlotte even over the summer with some of his college buddies. His classes are decent, not too much work (but he only took freshman and sophomore classes, this semester is probably going to be more challenging), and I have never seen him so happy. He wasn’t even sure if he wanted to go to college!! So, don’t have any reservations about UNCC. As long as you make an effort to do things (join clubs, go out to places) you will meet great people and have a ton of fun. It reminds me of my college days and I am glad he is having as much fun as I did! I hope this helps… he would never take the time to write … he has far better things to do. I think only the people who are bored and don’t like it write, the rest are out having a great time!</p>
<p>My son is also a freshman this year like Parentofastudent^ and he seems to be enjoying school very much; the classes have not been too overwhelming, he has the nicest dorm (way nicer than what his friends have at UNC CH and NCSU), has good things to say about his academic adviser, and I have good things to say about the university staff in student accounting and in campus housing office that I have corresponded with. As you noticed, the campus is very impressive with several new buildings, there is plenty of parking so that freshmen can have cars on campus, and the school seems to be trying hard to offer activities on campus–movies, live music, comedy acts, intramural sports, etc for students who don’t commute. My son has come home several times but certainly not every weekend. There is not a big party scene which is probably a disappointment for some students; in fact I suspect that campus is fairly quiet on the weekends but I can’t see that would make it a “hellhole.”</p>
<p>I don’t know which website you found with the negative reviews and I can’t figure what they mean by “money pit”? UNCC actually has a lower tuition+ R&B than ECU, UNCW, UNC CH and NCSU. One of the fathers on here seems to have a bee in his bonnet about the money being spent on the new football facilities at UNCC but there is major construction going on at every college I have seen in the last few years so I don’t know why that would make it a “money pit”?</p>
<p>From what I have seen of my son’s experience I would not say UNCC is a terrible institution or the biggest mistake of his life; I can think of a few other in-state schools that he would be trying to transfer out of at this point if he had gone to one of them instead.</p>
<p>I don’t know what website you were on, but I found one that had mostly negative things to say about every school. If this is one that anyone can post on, consider that people most inclined to do so are the ones who are unhappy, and nothing fits everyone all of the time.
Don’t you have until May 1 to decide? To me, the differences between the two schools are more about location and fit than what is available academically. Charlotte is very different from Boone. I think each school has different stregnths. What do you want to study and do you want to be in a large city with many cultural resources or a mountain college town?
For instance- if you were considering business or medicine, the internship opportunities might be more availiable at UNCC, but music is excellent at App. I have heard that UNCC has a good computer science dept. Do you want access to museums, city life, or skiing?
I think that what you get academically and socially in either place will be up to you. IMHO, visiting each school again, meeting faculty in your area of interest, and even arranging to stay overnight in a dorm if you can may help you make the choice.</p>
<p>Thank you for the response. Yes, the deadline is technically May 1st; but I’d like to make a decision as soon as possible to get good housing and sign up for an RLC. </p>
<p>I want to major in studio art (I know, it’s a pretty loony major). This is partly where I reach an impass. App State has a strong emphasis on the arts, but the surrounding area lacks artistic resources. UNC Charlotte does not have as strong an emphasis on the arts; but, being in the city of Charlotte, it has many art museums and galleries nearby.</p>
<p>I like warm weather, so Charlotte is better for that. But I also like the mountain scenery of Boone. Both schools have nice facilities (although I think I liked UNC Charlotte’s a bit more). I have not met any faculty from the art department from either school, so I guess I should do so. Thanks again!</p>
<p>I would definitely go meet the faculty in the area you want to focus since there could be only a couple of professors in some specialties. If schools are otherwise similiar in your eyes that would be a deciding factor.</p>
<p>What I suggest to students with hard to support in the workforce majors is do a second major or concentration that will complement it (so you can still use your talent and won’t be a starving artist) . Some potential applications for art would be business, museum work, graphic art, education. Think of what you’d like to do with art and what other classes, internships and so on would work with this. UNCC offers courses in digital art, and even a computer game design certificate so you may want to look at any art-computer combinations there.
Talking to faculty is helpful too.</p>
<p>I have questions about uncc also!
The school seems good but I’m afraid of the crime. I’m aware that ecu has a somewhat high crime rate but I feel very comfortable there. Is uncc more dangerous?
& I’m from a rural area. Should I be afraid to go to a college in a big city? I’ve never taken a public bus and I’ve only been on a metro once. I don’t think I’ve ever even pressed the button at a crosswalk. We don’t have sidewalks where I live.
& are there really motivated students? I heard from someone on here once that they felt like they were surrounded by idiots and not very smart/hardworking people at uncc</p>
<p>Tarheel- from your other posts- you are at the top of the class. If you are considering UNCC, take a look at the Levine Scholarship. I am not as familiar with the honors colleges/programs at the other schools you are considering, but I believe they also have top scholarships and honors programs as well.
Your first choice is UNC-CH and I think you are considering others as “safeties” ( I don’t really like that word- every college you apply to should be one you would be happy to attend, and you can afford) but with your stats- if you keep this kind of record up-, you should be aiming at the honors/scholarship programs at all these schools.
It could be that in the end, one of these scholarship programs could offer you a unique opportunity.
Also consider that some private schools might offer you significant merit aid. If you wish to stay in NC, take a look at Elon, Davidson, and Wake Forest. Also apply to the more affordable in state schools but if you are fortunate to get some merit aid, these schools may be financially possible as well.
For many schools, there will be the “partiers”. If you focus on the honors programs, you may be with more like minded peers there. Also, since you come from a rural area, you might want to spend time on campus to see how comfortable you are. If you want to stay rural, Elon would be a comfortable places, and possibly Davidson.</p>
<p>BlueUkiyo–
scmom has a good suggestion about meeting with the faculty in the art department if at all possible. My friend’s son who is at UNCC is a music major and he met several times with the specific instrument professor and head of the music dept before he settled on Charlotte. </p>
<p>You say you prefer warmer weather but like the mountain scenery–to me that says you might do better living in Charlotte but visiting the mountains–UNCC has a Venture Club that has lots of activities planned thru out the year (for very reasonable fees) where the club goes camping, hiking, rock climbing, boating etc. often times in the southern Appalachian Mts which, while not near Boone, might give you your “fix” for mountain scenery. </p>
<p>Regarding your desire to make the decision soon to nail down housing–I think if you reply before the May 1 deadline you will be alright, at least at Charlotte. It is those who make really late decisions that have trouble finding on campus housing.</p>
<p>There is a huge difference in feel between the two schools: UNCC =suburban vs. AppSt=small town; UNCC=more ethnically diverse vs. AppSt=less diversity; UNCC=Div1 sports Conference USA vs. AppSt.=Div. 1 Southern Conference…etc. A visit to both campuses while school is in session will help you see which one “feels” like you would fit in better.</p>
<p>For what it’s worth, as I mentioned in other posts, my son has been very pleased with his decision to go to Charlotte and I would highly recommend the school.</p>
<p>Hi. Last year I was actually deciding between those two schools as well. I ended up going to UNC Charlotte, and I love it here. It’s great. If your looking for warm weather, Charlotte is defiantly the right choice; App has already got snowed in twice this year. When I visited Boone, I felt kinda trapped there, so far away from everything. In Charlotte you can find about anything. Just some friendly advice, living off campus is a lot cheaper.</p>
<p>You asked about the crime at UNCC. There are so many safety features at UNCC. They showed us all of them on our tour, so please go for a tour if you are concerned. UNCC is on the outskirts of the city and isolated from other areas. When you are on campus you are not “in the city.” At NC State (where I went to grad school), I never felt that I was on an isolated campus area but just scattered among the town. At UNCC, on campus is out of the way of the city and just “on campus.” There is some crime but that happens on all campuses. In fact, I have seen much more crime at NC State and UNC CH in the news than what my son reports or gets email warnings about at UNCC. The only bad thing that happened that I know about this last year is that someone stole his friends computer during a fire alarm drill at one of the dorms. I would not let crime be a deterrent to attending UNCC. </p>
<p>My son is one month away from the end of his first year there and he couldn’t be happier. He has come home 3 times all year and has chosen to stay in Charlotte for the summer with a friend in an off campus apartment that he will be moving into for next year. He has so much to do all the time and yes even weekends! There are plenty of students around on weekends! Some of the teachers have been better than others and some of have strong accents (in the math department) that are hard to understand.</p>