<p>We had heard from friends that this college in the very close-in Washington, DC suburbs was a pleasant place with good academic, good support, and good athletics. So, we decided to make a quick visit. Here's what we found.</p>
<p>Campus (what there is of it) is charming...pretty brick and stone buildings set on rolling hills...lots of trees and hidden gardens. Campus is very small.</p>
<p>We were told by our tour guide that there is a pretty extreme shortage of housing and that after a few semesters, students are forced into remote campus housing or apartments. The remote area (a mile or two away) is not in a nice neighborhood by any means. I would be uncomfortable walking around the area alone even in the daylight. The off campus area is served by a campus shuttle service. Since on campus parking is really terrible, students would need to rely heavily on this shuttle service.</p>
<p>The business school has an off-campus building in that area. It looks very old and retro (turquoise panels)...like an old Howard Johnson's. Not very attractive.</p>
<p>The campus is fairly near the Ballston Metro subway stop, and so there are a few good restaurants in the area, including The Melting Pot a VERY pricey fondue eatery. On our trip, we saw no shopping within walking distance and little immediately accessible by car.</p>
<p>The buildings on campus looked clean, but very old and rundown. The dorms were, to us, very unattractive. One we saw was very dreary with painted cinder block walls with a large window. Connected to the room was study/storage area designed to serve the two rooms occupants and two from across the hall. I was not impressed by the area. It was cramped and dark and windowless, and certainly could provide a noise issue for the occupants directly connected to the study area, especially since the areas were not carpeted.</p>
<p>Classrooms looked okay, nothing special., though window views of the campus were attractive. No big emphasis on technology that we could see. Facilities looked decent, but nothing to write home about.</p>
<p>We were given lunch passes to the university cafeteria. Fruit bar looked nice. Salad bar looked well-stocked, but some items looked brown tipped and wilted. Entrees were few and VERY disappointing. Although there were staff people present, and it was early summer (not a bumper crop of students), staff did not make themselves available to help or discuss the offerings. I had pork tenderloin...fairly good. Carbs consisted of bread and fries (even with pork loin...yuk!). Vegetables were okay. Pizza was good. My son thought he was getting a cheese burger as well, but it turned out to be what we believe was Stove Top Stuffing shaped into patties in a bun...really disgusting. I can eat just about anything, but I could not stomach that. It looked like recycled, repurposed leftovers. By far, the food served in that cafeteria was the worst I had ever had in my life, and I am not picky. Desserts were okay. Display/presentation of the offerings was unattractive. This is not a place where I believe my son could get a nutritious meal, let alone a tasty one.</p>
<p>Admissions reps seemed nice, as were the tour guide and a person from my son's intended major. As mentioned before, cafeteria staff were cold and unfriendly and unhelpful, although the cashier was pleasant.</p>
<p>During our visit, my son had planned to meet with an athletic coach (my son is a highly recruitable athlete, even though this school is a DIII). The coach was not present (after all it was summer), so we left contact information and were told that he would contact our son soon. The call never came after more than a month. This too left a very bad impression.</p>
<p>In all, we were not very impressed with our university experience. It did not at all measure up to some of the warm and fuzzy comments we had received about the school from a family whose child attends. That said, Marymount University was promptly removed from The List.</p>
<p>Hope this helps.</p>