Virginia Commonwealth University

My department is being run straight into the ground. I was in a very competitive IB program in high school and I got a scholarship here and chose it due to financial pressures. NOT WORTH IT! In every way VCU has disappointed me... There is no advising in my department and the teachers and faculty actually HIDE from you to avoid a meeting. I walked in with 22 credits and I am STILL going to graduate late, even though I have straight A's and followed the course plan they published very carefully. VCU has had a few bright spots, but they are swiftly dashed to pieces by the SGA or administrators. There are no traditions, no school spirit and no considerations for anyone trying to succeed. As for the food, they claim to provide healthy options and have expanded the choices a lot in the last few years. However, in typical VCU fashion, most choice are not available for a meal plan swipe except at extremely inconvenient times (early Sunday morning, starting at 3 or 5 p.m. right BETWEEN lunch and dinner) so you end up funneling MORE money into this shithole than you ever thought you should. The police are out to get you because they are on a power trip about being both campus and city cops. I have never gotten in trouble but only because I have studied my rights extensively. If you are expecting to EVER do anything without having to stand in line, you are fucking dreaming- especially if it is to pay tuition or requires a lazy university worker to get out of their damn chair. As for extracurriculars, they are numerous and crop up all the time. However, because the spirits are so broken here, no one stays in any clubs that are not profession-oriented (mostly because you need these clubs to get the hell out of here). God forbid your club attract more then 15 or so members because then the SGA will simply regulate you to death. For instance, the some foreign language clubs were doing quite well until the SGA decided that food should no longer be allowed at club meetings ever, even if it is made by the members at their own expense. Somehow, VCU manages to strangle you with red tape but takes almost no precautions for safety of students.

As for Richmond as a whole, I am a native so I have experience in the constant heart-breaking downer it is to live here. We cant keep a sports team in town because no one wants to leave their fucking house. We have some cool festivals but every year they are filled with more and more unruly children or infants and become less and less about drinking, merry-making and music. If anything fun ever begins to happen, someone gets hurt or shot and everyone is too spooked to do anything for a year (i.e. the balcony collapse in the fan). I am not a person who has trouble having fun and making friends, the trouble is that it is difficult to keep a positive attitude when you are surrounded by such negative people.Therefore, my advice to you is to not only stay the hell away from VCU but also Richmond. If VCU is your only option, do not join the alumni association, cheer for the basketball team or waste your time on sports clubs. You will need to be sitting outside offices all day long to get the information you need to graduate on time or to study abroad for as many semesters as possible. The only worse choice you could make for your education is a Christian-based school or Radford.

3rd Year Female -- Class 2012

Social Life: C+, Education Quality: F