Why*You*Should*Come*to*the*University*of*Miami

Colleges and Universities A-Z University of Miami - Florida
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<p>The University of Miami is amazing on paper. Among the top schools academically, with amazing nightlife and endless events on campus, including sporting events and neat things put on by student organizations.</p>

<p>But what you can't see on paper is the student experience: the amazing opportunities available here, partially as a result of our location and partially as a result of our leadership.</p>

<p>Here's a brief glance into that.</p>

<p>I just got out of a seminar. The seminar is large, with about 20 students, but every lecture a student gives a presentation (for the whole period) and leads a discussion. Today was my presentation, and it was on a book by Richard Dawkins (only the most famous living biologist, in case you didn't know). I had seen him during my sophomore year when he visited and gave a presentation in the philosophy department, and I met him last night. Last night I was at a professor's house for dinner, and the guest of honor was - you guessed it - Richard Dawkins.</p>

<p>Shortly before I gave my presentation on Richard Dawkins' book, I received an email informing me that he would be in class today. I got an email telling me that the most famous biologist in the world would be watching me present on his book.</p>

<p>It was fantastic. He participated in the discussion, and engaged with the points I made (I was a little bit critical of some of the points he made in his book). It was a ton of fun, and I just have to think to myself, how many students have this opportunity? Dawkins, upon learning about our class, actually rescheduled a meeting with a Professor in another department to come and meet with us (Last night, at the dinner, he spent a large portion of his time hanging out with us students, too. I don't know if he tried the baklava that I made (it was a pot-luck))</p>

<p>Richard Dawkins will also be giving a lecture to all the students at the University on Thursday evening, and he will be holding office hours for Biology students throughout the week.</p>

<p>Dawkins. Amazing.</p>

<p>Moving on, a few weeks ago I had the privilege of attending a lecture by Justice Anthony Kennedy. A week before that, I attended a lecture by Justice Sonia Sotomayor, during which she walked throughout the audience, attempting to connect to us students. She leaned on my shoulder twice throughout the presentation. Before that, I spent half an hour in a room with her and about 10 other students. During this time period we were able to ask her questions about her role on the Supreme Court and her life. Before that, I got to meet her, shake her hand, and she signed two of her books (with a personal note for me), and she told me a bit about what her book meant to her.</p>

<p>Kennedy. Sotomayor. Amazing.</p>

<p>A little while before that, President Obama was on campus THREE TIMES in order to campaign. Mitt Romney visited campus TWICE. All five visits were for the presidential candidates to speak with students.</p>

<p>Of course, most UM Students had already seen President Obama speak when he visited campus the year before. This visit, of course, was a week after Bill Clinton visited campus to lecture to President Shalala's class (yes, the President of the university teaches a class, didn't you know? She's kind of an expert on healthcare... she was, after all, the former secretary of Health and Human Services). Of course, the students in her class had probably seen Bill Clinton already, too - when he was here the year before for his Clinton Global initiative, in which he brought world leaders from all over the world (big names, like the current secretary of H&HS, the current Surgeon General, etc.) to the University of Miami to meet with students.</p>

<p>Clinton. Obama. Romney. Amazing.</p>

<p>Of course, shortly after the Clinton Global Initiative we had Condoleezza Rice visit campus for a business forum, and just a few months later the Dali Lama came and spoke to students.</p>

<p>Condoleezza Rice. The Dali Lama. Freaking Amazing.</p>

<p>The funny thing is that this little spiel comes no where close to describing the full amazingness of my time at the University. There is no way that I could put into words the amazing experiences that I have had with my friends over the past four years, or the feeling when I said my first words over WVUM (to the potential listener based of over 5,000,000 people). I can't describe the feeling when I watched my first UM football game, and, in the last few seconds watched my team halt FSU FOUR TIMES within 10 yards of a touchdown, preventing a loss.</p>

<p>The purpose of this isn't to brag or show off my experiences. The purpose is to show off the experiences that YOU will have the opportunity to participate in if you come to the University of Miami.</p>

<p>The past four years have been amazing. In just a few months, I will be leaving UM to attend one of the best law schools in the country. Yet, I am sure that, there, I will look back and think about all of the amazing experiences that I had at the University of Miami which can not possibly be had elsewhere. </p>

<p>My only regret is that I have to leave in just two months.</p>

<p>If any future potential students have any questions for me, I am happy to ask them, either here or on a one-on-one basis. If you'd like, you're welcome to email me at robert.rankin.jr (at gmail). I wish you all the best, and to those students who have been accepted, Welcome to the U!</p>

<p>(if a mod could edit the topic of my post to remove the *’s, I’d appreciate it.. my keyboard is messed up and has been doing that…)</p>

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<p>I agree! IllD93 wasn’t there last year so missed those visits but did see Obama twice last fall. The first time she received a ticket after an email went out to the FFs with the offer of one of a small number of tickets designated specifically for that group and she did something very unusual for her - read and answered an email during class in order to respond immediately to the offer. It was a very small venue with very limited seating so she was extremely lucky to get a ticket. The second time she was able to attend the big pep rally when he returned to campus - this time with all her friends since it was at BUC. </p>

<p>She was also lucky enough to see Justice Sotomayor during her recent visit. And she has her ticket for Thursday night’s Richard Dawkin’s lecture - as do I along with my parents who are flying down the night before to spend spring break somewhere that doesn’t have a foot of snow on the way (blizzard due to start late tonight in Illinois) and where they can see their granddaughter of course! </p>

<p>While waiting to meet a fellow parent on campus Saturday afternoon I picked up the student newspaper and saw the Dawkin’s lecture announcement, went online and snapped up three tickets. There was no charge for the tickets - it is all part of his visiting professor gig according to the ticket website “thanks to a generous gift from the Louis J. Appignani Foundation.” I texted IllD93 to tell her I was sorry she was going to miss seeing it with us since she had said earlier she was busy that night - and it turned out that attending the lecture was what she was busy doing of course : )</p>

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<p>May I ask what law school you’re going to next year? :)</p>

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<p>there are so many things that i think are so great for an undergraduate experience that are unique to the university of miami that not enough people know about. </p>

<ol>
<li><p>the campus mentality. At a lot of elite schools, the competition is fierce (see: cheating scandal at harvard) and the students are unhappy. At UM, school can definitely be stressful, and there are a lot of real life problems as there would be on any campus, but the students generally seem happier than other schools i’ve been too and have heard about. Maybe it’s the weather, or the things to do off campus, but people are happy, and happy to be at their school. There’s definitely a LOT of school spirit.</p></li>
<li><p>The size of the school. 10,000 undergrads is a pretty solid size. It’s not so small that any problems you have get magnified, as is the case where the school is so small that everyone knows and talks about everyone else. You can always meet new people, and frequently do. At the same time, it’s still small enough that you’ll at least run into some familiar faces quite often, and if people have similar interests and get involved in things that relate to them (be it quidditch, scuba, or clubbing) they’ll find a crew. Also the size of the students leads to many different ideas for things to do, and there’s enough funding for all of it if it’s popular enough. </p></li>
<li><p>the city of miami. Not only is it amazing being in the fourth largest metropolitan area in the country that also happens to have amazing weather yearround (with the exception of occasional hurricane days), but there are so many tangible career benefits as well. For those in social sciences, Miami is a leading business and political center for the United States to the entirety of Latin America. For those in medicine, research opportunities in the UM hospital system and the larger health district are enormous. For those in marine sciences, we’re the only major city with access to subtropics and coral reefs. For those in engineering, Miami is one of the fastest growing entrepreneurial cities talked about as the next hub of innovation. For those in architecture, it’s one of the only cities with actual major public and private construction projects that push the boundaries of design. This city sure does love its developers…
I don’t actually think the university would teach a subject if it didn’t think there were palpable opportunities to experience it firsthand in the city. The only exceptions I can think of are the Music school, which is ranked one of the top in the nation regardless, and humanities, which is fundamental to being a critical thinker.</p></li>
</ol>

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<p>Having just sent in my enrollment deposit I am quite excited and hyped up about the []<em>[] and all it has to offer. I visit schools as large as Ohio State and Tennessee and as small as Brandeis and Sarah Lawrence. Schools in the heart of the city (Northeastern) to the Deep South (Auburn) and many more and while other campuses were nice and many of the schools I visited offered great academics and many programs none of them stood out as spectacular. I applied to Miami on a whim, not expecting to go there even if I got it, I hadn’t visited the campus or even the city. This past weekend was the first time down there and I was quite simply blown away. I went to campus Friday around 11 and the campus was bustling, students were walking to class with small children in tow, there were dunk tanks and activities for kids on the patio out side the book store. This was all part of an initiative to show inner city students that if they work hard college is obtainable.
As I wandered around campus with no direction and really no place to be students came up to my family and I repeatedly to see if we needed help or offer to show us to wherever we wanted to go or see. We walked around in awe of the campus, it’s size, it’s charm, it’s spirit. I got to see much more of campus during the SS activities and was more and more impressed by the students, faculty and staff that I met.
There is not a doubt in my mind that the university is going places. Donna Shalala is taking the school to new heights and the students are helping her along. Everyone was excited about their school and proud of it wanting to share their experiences, but unlike many other schools I went to I didn’t feel a since of arrogance at the Miami, they weren’t saying look at what I did and how great I am, it was look at what we have done and what you will be able to do here. It was a fantastic experience and I cannot wait for four more years at the university. It’s all about the []</em>[]!!!</p>

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<p>rankinr: I’m sorry we didn’t get a chance to meet when I was on campus with my DS a couple of weeks ago. I want to add that what we learned about engineering at UM also blew me away. UM is not known for its engineering - perhaps that’s why the College of Engineering went SO out of its way to court him. Yes, court him.</p>

<p>Before our visit, I emailed the CoE just to ask if DS could sit in on a class. The response was that they arranged for us to meet with the chair of the BME dept, followed by a meeting with the admissions dir for the CoE, and then an afternoon shadowing a student (including attending a class with him). Nowhere else did we get a one-on-one with the chair of the dept - and we had a wonderful 40 min meeting with him. The opportunities at UM in the areas of my DS’ interest are extraordinary. The chair called UM engineering “a hidden gem” and he had the information to support that. The admissions dir for the CoE spent about 20 minutes trying to sell DS on UM. He had obviously looked up his info before we met with him. Oh, and they had a personalized welcome sign for my DS. It was so personal, warm and welcoming.</p>

<p>The student my DS met with was great. He had something to do in a lab, so DS went with him (and they were extracting RNA from knee cartilage - something like that). He also went to a biomechanics class which really excited DS. Plus lunch and more.</p>

<p>We also met with DinDunne’s DS (you probably know her from elsewhere on the UM thread as she has two kids at UM). He is an RA in a freshman dorm and was happy to chat with us for about a half-hour - and we met several of his happy residents.</p>

<p>All this on a happy campus, with sunshine and the city of Miami at your feet.</p>

<p>While DS is still waiting to hear from a reach school (academic reach and financial reach), I am fully excited about the opportunities he will have at UM if he attends. It’s always been his top choice but he just has to wait to hear from the reach.</p>

<p>I post this to emphasize that it’s not just about the amazing speakers who come to UM. While I don’t have my own experience from a student’s perspective (yet), the university is no longer just another Suntan U. It is big-time in every way that I can see. Would be thrilled if my DS enrolled.</p>

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<p>Congrats midwesternboy! You are going to LOVE it there! The group you saw on campus Friday showing inner city kids that college is attainable was one of Kids and Cultures events. That is their purpose, and D is very involved in this organization. They strive to show these kids that college can happen for them, and it’s amazing the response they are getting. OP mentioned all of the speakers, but another thing the U is great at is leadership opportunities for freshman and sophomores. You don’t have to be a senior to be an officer of an organization at Miami. </p>

<p>Every person at the U has different experiences, but it is amazing the opportunities there are at Miami.</p>

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<p>Yes, I didn’t mean to suggest that the speakers are the most important reason to come to Miami - I realize it may have come off that way. This is just a really unique thing about UM that I thought I’d share :)</p>

<p>@queso100, I’m about to PM you</p>

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<p>Very exciting!</p>

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<p>this thread seriously needs to be bumped, like a thousand times, forever.</p>

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<p>University of Miami charges over 1600 per credit hour for an undergraduate education… Absent significant financial aid and grants, how could anybody justify going to this outrageously overpriced school over say, the University of Florida or Florida State. UM may be a good school, but it is not an elite school. Its not as if you are going to have any kind of “wow” factor when you tell people where you are going. </p>

<p>I suppose I do not understand how any run of the mill university, and despite its hype, UM is nothing special, can charge so much and why parents out there are willing to pay it. Take the typical Freshman year, english, history, etc. Those courses at UM are going to cost over $4500 EACH. We are not talking sophisticated medical school courses, we are talking the same history course a person could take at a community college, only 45 times as expensive. Or the same course you can not get online for free. </p>

<p>But to each their own. I suppose if you can get a great financial package or money is no object to your or your parents to spend 250K on a basic education you can get elsewhere for far less money, have at it.</p>

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<p>Both UF and FSU are good schools, I can’t refute that. But to say that they compare to UM in terms of quality is just outright wrong. UM is a private institution that has a student enrollment that’s about a fifth of the size of UF and a third of the size of FSU. Yes, it may be expensive, but UM is extremely generous with their financial aid. UM houses the best marine science program in the country, which is also among the top five programs in the world in that field. There’s a reason UM is the best school in the state of Florida, and if you’d actually taken the time to read through the numerous threads here you’d be able to see why. UM attracts many extremely bright, forward-thinking students, from all different backgrounds. It’s a world-renowned research institution, that, within the next few years, I believe will be up there with Duke and Emory as one of the best schools in the Southern US.</p>

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<p>Expensive private-school classes aren’t unique to UM. Yes, UM is expensive, but so is virtually every other private school, especially those in urban areas. </p>

<p>The only school in florida that truly compares to UM is UF. UM has much more momentum though and is commonly regarded as one of the most up-and-coming universities in the country. In a few years I think UM will be in the conversation with schools like Emory, UNC and USC.</p>

<p>I agree that UM isn’t yet a truly “elite” university, but it is getting there.</p>

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<p>davidg:</p>

<p>Don’t “yuck” other people’s “yum”.</p>

<p>First of all, for an OOS student, the UF/FSU comp carries ZERO water. For my son, it would be UM vs Penn State…and I would certainly agree that PSU would be a more cost-effective option to get a good education.</p>

<p>But I will take a 11:1 student teacher ratio (with over half the classes with less than 20 students per class) over a 17:1 student teacher ratio every day. My son did not want a school with 30,000+ students (which BOTH UF and FSU have…right?) - he wanted a school with a more intimate feel. He wanted a school with diversity - a school with an international student body and a global world view…and he wasn’t going to get as much of that in University Park, Pennsylvania. Can you HONESTLY compare Tallahasee or Gainesville to UM from a standpoint of diversity? Huh?</p>

<p>Look - I get it. It is an expensive school…and as you can see from a thread I started on this forum, even though I fortunately have the resources to sen my son to UM, I can certainly understand where - for many prospective students and parents - the economics may not work without significant merit aid. But that is the unfortunate reality of 21st century higher education in this country. And I can tell you that UM is not unique here…many of the other schools that my son was looking at (like Dickinson, BU, F&M, Richmond and others) are in the same financial ballpark.</p>

<p>Given Miami’s ever-increasing quality of its pool (with a 25-75 SAT profile that is above UF or FSU), and its ever-more-selective profile (with a Class of 2017 admissions rate that will likely be around 35-38%), it sounds like the school isn’t having any trouble convincing people to attend…despite your assertion that its price/value is horrific.</p>

<p>Why is that?</p>

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<p>I suppose it is how you judge quality. UM might be worth the dollars if you are going into a specialized program as a graduate student, but for the typical undergraduate student who will be taking the same courses as at any other school, it is highly doubtful the educational opportunities are better at UM than at any other Florida State University, with the caveat being getting great financial aid to bring the price way down. Otherwise, I would recommend any undergraduate in-state Florida resident choose UF or FSU or any of the other Florida public universities over UM any day of the week . . . again unless money is no object. There is virtually no chance UM will give any advantage to its undergraduates that those same students could not get in a Florida Public University. Being private, charging astronomical tuition rates and bring expensive speakers onto campus (where anybody, including non-students can go see them) does not make a University great. It is the students who make a University great. UM has no advantage in that regard.</p>

<p>If you want to spend 250K on an education, save it for Grad School, a top law school or medical school where it might actually make a difference in a person’s career path. My daughter will be going to a State Public University in the Fall. I will send her to any graduate school she wants to go to, but in the meanwhile, she will be getting a quality education for fair value. Not overpaying for a basic college education.</p>

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<p>Why would you post on this thread which clearly states why one should come to the University of Miami, davidg?</p>

<p>Quality is being one of eight kids in a Spanish class (your freshman year or any other) and getting the kind of education that many dream about and forming a wonderful academic relationship with a professor.</p>

<p>Quality is being taught by a Nobel Laureate in a chemistry 101 class of 30 and then visiting and getting to know the professor during office hours.</p>

<p>Quality is being able to take advantage of phenomenal speakers and visitors to the U on a weekly basis, free of charge. Or going to any sporting event or concert free of charge.</p>

<p>Quality is getting the classes you want, when you need them to advance in your major and not having to go to school during the summer to graduate in 4 years.</p>

<p>Quality is living in an environment with professors also living in your dorm who are your mentors on a day to day basis. </p>

<p>Quality is having access to a career center like no other, a study abroad center like no other, over 250 clubs and organizations to join or the ability to start your own. </p>

<p>The small class sizes alone are one of the many reasons to come to this wonderful university. </p>

<p>The fabulous scholarships offered by this university appeal to the many great and diverse students who matriculate there. Many pass up ivy league caliber schools to go to the U. UM does have the advantage of being ranked first in the state. </p>

<p>These are some of the many reasons that the U is the top school in the state!
Go 'Canes!</p>

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<p>Why would I post on this thread? I suppose I am one of those cynics who believe that outrageously expensive universities actually hire people to pump their universities at this site. With a non-elite school like UM, that offers nothing over a public college other than the hype reflected in your post, it needs to convince people to be willing to part from $250,000 to give their children a “quality education”. I don’t believe for a second a Nobel Laureate will teach a basic chemistry class, and if he does, the chances of your child getting in that class are virtually nothing.</p>

<p>Education in this country has become a bubble and many college students and/or their parents are being scammed out of their money for a purportedly better education. Complete nonsense and an unjustified expense for any but those who can easily afford the same. Most people can’t. And those that can usually know enough people or have enough dollars to get their kids into the ivy of their choice. At least then, you may not be getting a superior education, but your kid is probably going to find many of his fellow students pretty intelligent and you get out with an ivy pedigree. . . for what that is worth at the undergraduate level.</p>

<p>This is the way I see it. There is that very rare child who is truly gifted. Maybe a perfect score in the math SAT. Maybe a literary genius. A child like this should be going to MIT or Harvard where he can be challenged and take his unique talents to a higher level. Schools like UM are nothing special. It’s a pretty campus. It attracts a diverse student. But the students who go there are nothing anymore special than virtually any other decent university in the country. The only real difference is how well the school markets itself so that it can try to justify the tuition it charges, so it can pay all of those large salaries to those professors who have little interest in teaching the children of the parents paying their salaries. Like I said. I am a cynic.</p>

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<p>davidg: I’m not sure what your purpose is here. From your other posts, it looks like your DD is deciding between other Florida schools: FGCU vs. UCF vs. Flagler vs. Community College. </p>

<p>Everyone has their opinion about what they want from college, where, what kind of atmosphere, and yes, what they are willing to pay. There’s no reason to judge what other people want to do. Your DD chose not to consider UM and that is fine. We like UM. What’s wrong with that? Whether I just won the Powerball or am paying fully through private loans, why should anyone care. It’s my choice.</p>

<p>You sound like you’re very bitter about something, and I feel bad about that, but that’s no reason to badmouth a school.</p>

<p>And this –></p>

<p>

</p>

<p>Are you kidding? I can’t even begin to explain how ridiculous this is.</p>

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<p>Well, three years ago my DS did have the Chem 101 class, honors, with a Nobel Laureate as his professor, as a freshman, first semester. This same professor offered to write him a letter of recommendation, which he did, and I have a copy of it. These are the types of profs at the U. Willing to support the students and propel them forward to greater things. My DS has used that letter to get a job, 2 internships, etc. </p>

<p>I am not a hired person here to pump up a university. I have 2 kids there currently! And I’m proud of them and their accomplishments there. </p>

<p>There are many proud parents like me out there and hopefully they will chime in. </p>

<p>We all are entitled to embrace what we like and discard what we don’t. Your posts sound angry, whether you are or aren’t. How others to choose to spend money is not your business and judging their choices is not fair and perhaps a bit cruel. Not every student learns best in a large, overcrowded or online class. Parents and students have free will to choose a university for their own personal reasons. </p>

<p>You may not appreciate UM as an option, so just move on…Your very strong feelings on this subject might find a better audience on the financial aid page.</p>

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<p>LINYMOM, you and I think alike! Congrats on the newest acceptance for your DS!</p>