<p>Hofstra Rep (and others, too!!), if you have time to answer, we are from California, visited Hofstra last August. Can you tell us a little about the 5 year MBA and also the Honors Program (my son is admitted to it). Also, a little about safety--I know campus itself is very safe, but we would like to hear a bit about the surrounding community safety (more than we might read just by Googling). We appreciate anything you can tell us "why" Hofstra as my son makes his final decision soon. Thank you!!</p>
<p>Hi lynjobes, </p>
<p>We are very excited that your son is considering Hofstra’s 5 Year MBA and Honors Program. We have reached out to our counselor from California to help you with your questions. She is currently recruiting but should be getting back to us shortly. </p>
<p>Although let me assure you that the campus is very safe. We had a few incidents off-campus but intiatives have been started to make sure our students living off-campus are safe, including an overnight shuttle, more lighting around the area outside of campus and a fuller partnership with the Nassau County Police Department. Your son’s safety is of utmost importance to us and we will ensure that he has a safe and fulfilling time at Hofstra. </p>
<p>HofstraRep – we attended the admitted student event in the SF Bay Area and were extremely impressed. Hofstra is absolutely in my son’s top 2 or 3 at this point. The Honors College and housing sound phenomenal. I do appreciate your comments on safety to reinforce that. Thank you.</p>
<p>We just received a message from our California counselor Jane LaRocco, who you probably met at the SF Bay Area event :). </p>
<p>“We love Californians at Hofstra! There are more than 300 students from California on campus J We offer numerous dual degree programs. These programs enable students to achieve both a bachelors and a masters degree in a particular field, in a shortened amount of time. Shaving one year of study saves you one year of cost too! Students make application to these programs after they are enrolled at Hofstra. Our 240 acre campus is located in a suburban, residential area. We are surrounded by single family homes on three sides, and share a border with a local community college and the nearby shopping mall. We have a great town and gown relationship with Hempstead. Students feel comfortable navigating campus at all hours of the day (and night). We’d love to speak with you more about Hofstra. Please feel free to give us a call at 1-800-HOFSTRA and ask to speak with me. I’d enjoy chatting with you :)” </p>
<p>My son is currently attending Hofstra and living off-campus near the school. He couldn’t be happier with his choice of school. The classes are challenging, the professors are very knowledgeable and are available if he has any questions, he has made great friends at Hofstra. The campus and surrounding community are safe, but like anyplace else, use common sense. If you wouldn’t walk the streets alone in NYC or LA at 3am flashing cash and your iphone, don’t do it in the areas by Hofstra. There is a bus that picks up students from spots around the school at night if they go off campus on the weekends. Hofstra Public Safety, Hempstead Village Police and Nassau County Police all that patrol that area. The school offers a lot of clubs and activities and there is always something going on around campus. It’s a quick trip on the LIRR to NYC. The office staff is incredibly helpful - and the campus is just beautiful. About 20-25 minutes from the beach, about 1 1/2 hours to wineries and farmland - LI is a great place to spend 4 years. : ) </p>
<p>S is bio student. Loves the school. Loves his dorm. One of his suite mates is from CA. I can’t say enough great things about this school. Hoping my d chooses Hofstra too.</p>
<p>Hi everyone! I am a current Hofstra student so if you have any other questions about Hofstra or the campus you can privately message me! Talk to you soon! :)</p>
<p>Hofstra’s surrounding community has many single-family homes that are NOT owner-occupied. It is an economically depressed community and the area immediately surrounding the community has had several violent and highly publicized crimes. The new shuttle bus is in direct response to the shooting of a Hofstra female at a house immediately adjacent to campus. The Roosevelt Field Mall is not adjacent to campus. The seedy bars that line Hempstead Turnpike adjacent to campus cater to underage drinking and the Nassau County police and campus public safety turn a blind eye to. Several years ago (2011) WNBC News 4 New York reported on a “machete-wielding” robber that was preying on drunk students leaving these same bars. Hofstra offers little or nothing in the evenings that are a alternative to these bars: Dizzy’s , Nachos and the rest. Hofstra is trying to improve its ranking and be more of a national-recognized institution. I get that. Yes, the immediate campus is safe–albeit WIDE open to anyone – but the surrounding area is not safe, and offers slum lord “owner” who stuff kids into houses. Oh, and one had a fire about 5 years ago. Need I go on?</p>
<p>My son currently attends Hofstra. To be candid, we have been somewhat disappointed with his experience. If your son chooses to attend Hofstra you should be aware of the following.</p>
<ol>
<li> The quality of the faculty is uneven, some are very good, some are not. Some departments utilize a great many adjuncts and they can be particularly problematic. If your son chooses to attend Hofstra, it is imperative that he uses RATE MY PROFESSOR. Of course, not every comment there is valid, but if he notices the same concerns expressed again and again over a period of years, it is best to steer clear.</li>
<li> Our experience has been that Hofstra is somewhat dysfunctional administratively and bureaucratically. My son’s advisement has been abysmal; however he has yet to declare a major and is therefore dealing with the general academic advisement. Since your son is going directly into the School of Business, he may have a departmental advisor, so that might not be an issue. </li>
<li> Hostra’s website is also dysfunctional and confusing. This can be particularly problematic when students attempt to calculate their credits and sign up for classes. In addition, Hofstra has a habit of eliminating classes days or hours before the beginning of a term without bothering to inform the students who registered for that class that it has been eliminated. When the students finally realize that the class that they registered for no longer exists, they then have to scramble to register for another class at the last minute when the pickings are somewhat slim in terms of availability and the quality of the professors. My advice to you is to be involved, at least initially. Insist on having the password and username to his student account so that you can help him navigate Hofstra’s dysfunction. Most inexperienced 18 year olds are not wise in the ways of academia. There may be some at Hofstra who ill try to label you a helicopter mother and embarrass you out of doing this. Ignore them. If your son received a merit scholarship and loses it because his GPA is not high enough, they will not be paying the differential in tuition, you will. If he does not graduate in four or five years, due to lousy advisement, they won’t be writing the check for tens of thousands more in tuition. </li>
<li> While the university itself is fine, Hempstead, the area surrounding the university is not safe. I would not be comfortable with my children, male or female, walking in Hempstead late at night. Likewise, I would not be comfortable with my kids coming to the Hempstead Long Island Railroad station late at night. Long Island lacks a vibrant nightlife. As a result, many young people here go into Manhattan on the weekends via the LIRR. They tend to come back late at night or in the wee hours of the morning. That’s fine except that the service on the on the LIRR is somewhat sporadic and uneven especially at night and on the weekends. Parking at many stations is impossible. You have to have a parking permit or you will get a very expensive ticket. There are safer LIRR stations not too far from Hofstra, but your son would need to double check that there is service from Manhattan at the hour that he wants to come back and he would need a way to get back to Hofstra from the station. There are cab stations at some stations, but that varies too. Bottom line, he needs to familiarize himself with the LIRR service in daylight with others to help. Hopefully other kids at Hofstra will know the drill. </li>
<li> Unless your son is ok with spending all of his time on campus, he will need to have a car at some point. As with much of California, a car is essential in order to get just about anywhere on Long Island. There is no adequate public transportation.
Since I am giving unsolicited advice, here is one last piece. Before you make a final decision about Hofstra, check this and other websites to get an idea about what other students think about the university and their experiences there. Good luck with your decision.</li>
</ol>
<p>and the area around the campus is NOT safe: <a href=“DA: Officer Nikolas Budimlic won't face charges in fatal shooting of Hofstra student Andrea Rebello - Newsday”>DA: Officer Nikolas Budimlic won't face charges in fatal shooting of Hofstra student Andrea Rebello - Newsday;
<p>District Attorney’s report: <a href=“Long Island News Stories - Newsday”>Long Island News Stories - Newsday;
<p>I don’t have a kid at Hofstra, so no dog in the race. However, the school is well considered by those I know around here. I know many grads from the school, and they truly have great things to say about the school. From what Hrh88 has to say, points 1 &2 have been issues in just about every school I know including top 25, for sure and even top 10. I don’t mean the anecdotal problems that crop up either. I would say that most all of the large state schools fall into this category One has to luck out in the actual professors and advisors one gets I am still very resentful of the outright BAD advice and lack of knowledge of the advisor my one son got that really cost him when he followed her advice instead of mine with predicted outcomes. I would love to see that person fired. And this is at a top 25 national university, and this happens a lot. </p>
<p>Point 4, well… even the absolute top schools, are in dicey areas. I went to a school, DH did too, in areas that were not safe. I think Hofstra, (and I know the area VERY well, have been there a lot in the evenings) is not bad comparatively to even some Ivy League schools Do check the crime stats and compare to some other schools, and see what the issue is, but offhand, I do not think this is an extraordinary problem. Many of the great schools are in areas that are not primo, and where one has to be aware. I’m feeling a bit uneasy about DS staying the summer in his college off campus digs as it is some distance from his school, and there isn’t the student density in the summer as there is during the school year, and his job is quite a walk from his apt. Believe me, the area around Hofstra is no worse. </p>
<p>Point 3 is an issue that needs to be investigated, as that would really upset me as a parent, if a school is unable to commit to a slate of coursed on a regular basis. I suggest meeting personally, with the dept head and other key people in your son’s dept and with his advisor and voice your concerns. Check out the record of his program and courses, completion rate, job placement. How is that 5th year being financed? I don’t know the particulars of your award, but it looks pretty good to me. </p>
<p>My son will be applying to Hofstra next year, as some very close friends who are recent grads and their parents have great things to say, and he does know some kids going there as well. But I think this is a very underrated school for what it has to offer.</p>
<p>@hrh888 </p>
<p>@hrh888 </p>
<p>I agree that the area to the west of Hofstra is not good but Hofstra has added shuttles for the students. We have been visiting different schools for years and the majority of them border unsavory areas. Also, there are other nearby train stations other than Hempstead. </p>
<p>I am a student here at Hofstra and I have nothing but a great experience. Although the Hofstra campus may not be in the best area, I still feel comfortable on campus and the turnpike surrounding it. Where most people run into trouble off campus is when they disregard their common sense. It is not a good idea to walk alone at night on an unlit street corner, but that is something you should never do anywhere. How Hofstra is really helping their students though is the new Night Shuttle! This shuttle drives through the surrounding neighborhoods between the hours of 10p.m and 5a.m, so students are not walking the streets at night. Also on campus, Hofstra has a blue light emergency system where if the button is pushed, Public Safety will be to where you are in seconds. The great thing about this system is that you can see another emergency system from the one you are standing at, so you always have access to safety. Overall, I feel that Hofstra really does everything they can to keep their students safe and this concern is only getting better with time, as Hofstra is working more with the Nassau Police Department. </p>