The University of Houston

I would first like to discuss the student body. Given the extraordinarily low acceptance standards for this university (i.e. a GPA greater than 2.0 is the ONLY criteria for admission), one will find many unprepared and disinterested individuals perusing the campus. There are a few good students to be found but the overwhelming majority seem to view their college experience as a burden rather than a privilege. A desire to excel is an extreme rarity in this place. As stated above, the students seem much more interested in their social lives, dress attire, and drinking habits than achieving their educational goals. In fact, as evidence to this notion, just yesterday, while sitting in an Engineering Mathematics course, I overhead two students discussing their successful methods of cheating on past exams. As one student so proudly boasted, he entered all of the necessary test information into his programmable calculator and accessed it while sitting for the exam. Unfortunately, such behavior and discussions are commonplace at the University of Houston. A day does not go by that I do not overhear students discussing a recent fight in which they had engaged, their level of inebriation at a recent party, or their promiscuous, sexual activities, all supplemented with loud cursing and swearing.

I have attended other universities and never before have I encountered the type of behavior that I see from these University of Houston students. It makes me sad to be associated with such an institution and I have already made my decision to leave after the conclusion of this semester (i.e. Spring 2010).

Furthermore, security concerns are a very real issue at this university. Knowing that this university was located in the Third Ward of Houston, a notoriously dangerous area, I subscribed to the university's emergency alert system. Since arriving, I have received approximately two dozen alerts informing me of aggravated robberies (i.e. robberies involving weapons) in the campus parking lots. What's truly disturbing is that about half of these robberies have occurred in broad daylight at times like 3 P.M. A student is NEVER safe on the University of Houston campus and if you do decide to attend, please carry a cannister of mace with you at all times to prevent becoming a victim.In the end, I am sure that there are plenty of successful University of Houston alumni that have done quite well in this world. However, if you have the desire to be in an intellectually stimulating environment with like-minded students, the University of Houston is definitely not the place for you to attend.