I have so many negative things to say about this college:1) Spam email - you get tonnes of spam email every week just because you have a gatech.edu or mail.gatech.edu domain. Depending on your department, the number of emails you receive that may not be directly addressed to you can average 5-6 emails a week. Remember ANYONE can and will spam you, because you are a part of the gigantic mailing list of Georgia Tech students (or the students in your department). Maybe all major universities are this bad, but I frankly hated to read what others are doing all the time in my inbox (it's enough to just turn in your own work, many times). Yes, you can make filters, but you will need hundreds of filters to sort through all that useless email, about of which 90% you never have to read. The pro-University propaganda is VERY STRONG in this institution - the spam emails should give you that idea.
2) Constant price increases. Instate tuition is going up to $3500 in Fall 2011. The value provided by the institution however, has NOT increased.
3) Shitty old buildings - check out the Howey and Skiles buildings. If you are an LCC or Math or Physics major, you are doomed to spending all your days in a terrible building with dirty toilets and floors that so obviously look dirty you will wonder why you are there. INTA majors beware, your building is inconveniently so far off from mainstream campus that you will have no life just reaching there and going back. The Computer Science and Biomedical Buildings have the BEST buildings - Klaus and Whitaker are beautiful, swanky and modern. College of Computing, the other computer science building, is AVERAGE but not as bad as Howey or Skiles.
4) Depending on your major, you will have a hard time getting into classes you need to graduate. Non-engineering and non-Computer Science major classes fill up VERY FAST. Math closed class overloads are processed very fast, though, in my experience.
5)Summer term is one of the best times to study - classes are smaller in size. Depending on your major though, you will not get too many upper level classes in summer. The liberal art majors (including Math) offer virtually no major required upper level classes in Summer. Computer Science and Engineering fare much better.
6)If you like to choose your roommates, you can't do that your first year. Everyone has to stay on campus housing as freshmen, I think it is in the rules. And guess what? You don't have much say over who you will have to live with, assignments are based on SPACE AVAILABILITY, not your preference.
7)Don't become one of those students whose whole life becomes Facebook and Twitter, 24/7..wherever you go and whatever you do, posting a status update about that. Sadly, that was what remained of the social life of many Tech students (or WOW, I heard).
8)Students are not all a competitive or unhelpful no matter what the major or how the class is graded (and yes, in some classes the teacher has said upfront, in a morbid joking way - "don't help others - it will affect your own grade negatively if many do well". No matter what class, I had tonnes of students I could ask help from or work with, and some of them really really knew what they were doing. People are scared of the honor code in the computer science classes, though, in terms of collaboration. I would define many Tech students as smart and helpful.
9)Physics I is a very time consuming, required class for all Science and Engineering majors (including Mathematics, Computer Science and Physics.). You are forced to attend lab 3 hours a week (major consequences, including failure, if you miss 2-3 labs). You are also forced to attend lecture 3 hours a week (for 5% of the overall grade, so some might decide to skip that I suppose..). You have homework due on MasteringPhysics three times a week, and 4-5 midterms (AND a final). If Physics is not your passion, you are screwed. Chemistry, Biology and Math majors need BOTH Physics I and Physics II (Physics II is just like Physics I but even harder). You don't have to be passionate about Physics to be a Computer Science, Math or Natural Science major, but people just assume you must be in writing the degree requirements - so they make the most time consuming class ever.
10)Based on 9) you will be able to see - classes with labs are the worst at Tech ever, if you are not into that kind of thing. Mandatory attendance for hours every week, LOTS of group work - some majors are just not cut out for loners here (no matter how capable you are of finishing work on your own).
11)Depending on the class, you have a LOT of homework (obvious from 9 and 10). There might also be professors and classes where you have hardly any homework or tests. The less standardized classes in non-Computer Science and non-Engineering areas are the way to go for that kind of luck.
12)There is no real literary creativity on campus. The Technique is not particularly creative, submissions are often thoroughly edited to follow a very dry format.
13)Housing service is horrible indeed. It might take ages for your maintenance request to be fully processed and acted on (weeks). The maintenance people can drop in anytime they like to do your work, doesn't matter if you were hoping to sneak in some intimate moments with your significant other when they knock on the door or are having a bath. They often enter and do maintenance even if you do not answer their knock (talk about disrespect - they never schedule a time at all according to your convenience). This is as true for the freshmen dorms and sophomore apartments as for Graduate Living Center and Family Housing (heard students share their experience). Also, bugs are everywhere.
14)I've heard horror stories about parking permits. I just know the rules for parking are randomly enforced. A police offer might bother you for stalling out a little too long in a no-parking zone before leaving in your car, just for his own sense of self-importance (not because they fairly enforce rules or stop everyone from doing that).
15)Fire alarms happen anytime of the day or night in housing, so you will have to run out. Sometimes there is a long delay before you can back in. (And yes, have experienced many random fire alarms in my building).
16)Unlike GSU, Tech does not accept any credit by examination or AP's. If you are not such a prestige whore (and just want a degree) go to a place that suits your needs better. See where you can accelerate your graduation.
17)Get used to using Marta a lot or going in other people's cars (taxi can be expensive). A Marta bus might be stopping at a conveniently close location on campus (like the CRC) so watch out and observe when it arrives. You can buy a Marta pass at the student center at a discounted rate (public transportation is quite cheap). If using Marta set aside more time to reach then you would in a car or taxi, unless you depend primarily on the subway rather than buses (the subway is very fast).
18)Don't enter Georgia Tech not knowing what you want to do. There is no general studies major where you can just transfer all your credits in provided you get fed up of your major. If your GPA falls too low, you may find it hard to transfer majors even at Georgia Tech. If you decide to change majors, because of the lack of a more broad general studies major, you will take longer to graduate. Again, look at your needs!
19)Back to 16) - on yes, a lot of Techhies are prestige whores and only in for the reputation for the college, not for a love of learning or even for a great love for Tech. There is no way you can really love Tech. You won't have heartwarming contact with the "authorities" or your professors. Sometimes you will feel policed rather than treated as an individual who is cared about.
20) If you like graduate school, Georgia Tech's graduate schools may be better than the undergraduate experience (cannot tell from first hand experience).
21)Don't be stuck on Tech. Get out rather than remain miserable, you will be happy if you do. There are so many places and ways you can get an undergraduate degree in the United States, far more than any other country. Explore! There may be very cheap options out there even for out of state students. There may be universities designed to be more suited to you and don't also have to cost a fortune (and also don't require you to take out any loans). Don't take aid to go to Georgia Tech if you are not absolutely dead set on research or getting tonnes of contacts in helping you find a job in a Fortune 500 company.
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