Saint Louis University

I came to this school stuck between two choices- UCSD's Engineering Program and the Med Scholars program here. I can say that the campus is generally nicer than UCSD, but the surrounding areas aren't so nice. In general, I think the professors here are nicer than those at UCSD, and there are a lot of nice places on campus to study. I can't speak to social life, since I invoked some exceptions and got to live off campus as a freshman. However, the area surrounding SLU doesn't seem all that friendly; a Crime is reported by email every 10-12 days. That being said, if you're coming to Missouri from the West Coast, prepare to be surrounded in a sea of conservatism and horrible infrastructure planning. This probably won't be much of a problem for Freshmen living on campus, but commutes can be horrible experiences with traffic and horrible drivers. As for the teachers, they really do care for you... I registered late, so I was expecting to get the worst teachers of General Biology and Chemistry, but the teachers were great. I briefly considered living in dorms, but for the price and quality (and the fact that you can't live on campus for breaks) really killed the deal.

"Justice" is a huge buzzword on campus (which is kind of ironic if you know anything about the Jesuits) but don't expect to actually see any differences (from the west coast). Tuition is about 40K, but I got a 20K scholarship, which makes tuition the same price as UCSD's, and I can safely say the campus is maintained much better. If you're paying full price, don't come; you can get much better college options anywhere else. There are a lot of on-campus options including Panda, Chick-fil-a, Subway, and Panera (Called Saint Louis Bread Co.), but Panera seems to be the only "Healthy" option. There's also buffet-style meal halls, which aren't so bad during Lunch- but dinner tends to be leftovers of Lunch.

Coming from the either coasts, Life outside of the campus and stuyding is kind of boring. Living in the midwest can be gloriously quaint ("There are horses in the backyard!") but wears off quickly. There isn't a booming tech scene, and although Saint Louis is technically a "big city," you'll actually have to go to the city to see anything. There's also a place called "Forest park" which features a free zoo and science center. If you come from any other place in the midwest, however, I think you'll be fine. In conclusion, visit campus before you commit to this college. Your high-school counselors may have spoke about "Fit" before, and SLU can be either a great college, or annoyingly hypocritic and mind-numbingly boring. If you don't get money, don't come- you're better off transferring from a community college.

1st Year Male -- Class 1920

Education Quality: A+, University Resource Use/ spending: C-