I'm wrapping up my experience as an English Major at Kean. A lot of it's been good, while some of it's been bad.The best aspect of Kean is my department, the English department. While there are certainly some drawbacks, most of the tenure professor that you will see semester after semester are very nice and helpful. Most are challenging. However, be wary of the writing option. While some professors are very good, others do nothing but come to class for five minutes force you to look at your own and each other's work.
Kean is also decent in terms of extracurricular activities. Though Kean is a big school, most students still commute so very few bother with activities. This means that, while it's very easy to get involved in student Leadership, most groups are essentially cliques run by the same small group of students. Student Government, for example, runs with the same faces unopposed every year.
As far as dorming goes, the best description I can offer is "unpredictable". Dorming at Kean has been plagued by the construction of two new residence halls and the installation of new pipelines, so at least once or twice a semester the power has gone out for a weekend, and the internet is bound to go down for a couple of days. Or, the warm water shuts down for a day or two. When problems like this arise, the office of residence life is generally slow to respond and near unreachable on the weekends.
However, since construction will be completed this summer, I doubt those issues will continue on.
The alcohol policy also creates some problems. Kean is a "dry" campus, and alcohol policy is STRONGLY enforced, yet many resident assistants are members of Greek organizations. It's disgusting how the department turns a blind eye to these things.
In conclusion, Kean is a mixed bag. With academics, you get what you put in. Many students have no problem sailing through Kean while learning nothing. You must challenge yourself and talk to the write professor if you're interested in having a real learning experience. Extracurricular activities and clubs are available and easy to be a part of, but student interest is a real problem most of the time. Finally, dorming can be fun because the dorms are much nicer than those in many other schools, but the ResLife staff seem uncaring (until you're getting in trouble for liquor violations).
Given the same financial situation, I would still choose Kean over other state schools. For me, Rutgers seems to big and impersonal. I don't want to sit in a class with over 30 people. Meanwhile, Rowan is too close to my house to justify living away from home. Kean has a relatively exciting future, and if you're a promising student with a not so good financial situation (like me) it's very easy to become a sort of "all-star" of your department. Since most students are apathetic, it's incredibly easy to make the most of every opportunity the university offers.
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