Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute

First off, RPI is a great school. Academically, I feel that RPI is top notch. I love what I am learning, the classes get better as each year goes by. RPI is widely known in engineering industry as being a top school, and many companies actually put RPI applicants through initial filtering in the hiring process. Graduating in May, I have many opportunities, and I am very glad to be able to have so many doors open to me.

The first 2 years are the worse, the professors don't know who you are, the classes are core engineering. There are opportunities to be involved academically, undergraduate research, TA ... all can be done if one has the initiative to contact professors.

Now the cons: The majority of the students are weird. Meaning, they are the epitome of nerds: no social skills--this results in perceiving the students as being unfriendly. An example: very rare does a student hold a door open for me, or respect professors in the field. Maybe I am nitpicking, but there is a definite generalization for an RPI student. Also, they are very rare for a student that isnt nerdy that also not involved in a fraternity. Frats dominate on campus. With the frats, come some generalization for each frat: every frat party ive been to I get asked with discord- "Which brother do you know?". Other than that, there is not that many things to do on the weekend. Sure, you can drive somewhere, mall, go to friends house and party etc.. but it is no where near the things other students at other schools experience. Then again, this is an engineering school, and you don't go here for the social life.

Troy is a shit show. The high school kids from Troy (called Troilets) hate the RPI student body. Troy can be rough, there are crime alerts about robberies, muggings. But Campus is very safe. Public safety are very good concerning safety.

The reason I said that I would have gone to a different college is that I don't like the atmosphere of RPI. I hate upstate NY, I am sick of the shitty weather, shitty troy. I don't like the nerds, the arrogance of frat members, the typical RPI girl who think they are amazing, and dont give you the light of day unless you are a brother of some frat. There is a "camaraderie" among students, which is a great thing. One must be an RPI student to fully understand what I am saying.

The experience I gained will always be with me. I am glad of the education I got. Maybe in a few years I will change my answer, and choose to No for a chance to go to a different college. The only way I was able to make it through without losing my mind was to tell myself that the sacrifice of today will enable me to have many benefits for my life in the future.

RPI is expanding, I see it becoming very big, more common people will acknowledge RPI. The Empac is a waste of money IMO, but it will bring a more opportunities for prospective students. Also, the athletic village should bolster RPI sports. But as a student in the MANE department, as with every engineering student other than bioengineering, the school needs to spend money on engineering students. The money on EMPAC, athletic village, some of it could have gone back to education, specifically engineering. The department is not looking so good. The space vehicle design senior class has been scrapped. The Aero department is not receiving any benefit from the administration. And that is unfortunate, as I believe the only thing RPI has on other schools is the education.

I may have missed some things, but I believe this is the most honest interpretation on RPI.-from a student without the gloves on.

4th Year Male -- Class 2009

Education Quality: A, Surrounding City: F

To get the most out of RPI, you need to actively get involved on campus. A lot of people will hide away in their dorms, but if you make an attempt to find stuff to do and have fun, there is plenty to get involved in. Also, the work may be difficult in some classes but it is very rewarding.

3rd Year Male -- Class 2008

Campus Aesthetics: A+, Surrounding City: D+