The State University of New York Purchase College

Though I have only been here for a month, I hate it. It's not even one of those things i just "have to get used too". This is not the place for me. Although, if you were a total weirdo reject in High School, you would love it here. Of course I knew I was entering an artsy place, and i thought that would be awesome. I figured everyone would be open minded, and really cool and friendly. But really, i walk around campus finding people staring at me, and judging me. It's weird, cause here it's like some sort of revenge. If you are an athlete/preppy, you will be stared at and frowned upon. If you aren't walking around barefoot or with green hair, you are seen as a weirdo. I belong in the city, not here. And when picking this school I figured it would be easy to get to the city. But no. The bus they provide is SO undependable, sometimes it just won't show up, and sometimes it will break down. By the time I actually get into Manhattan, it's about 2 hours after I left my dorm. Anybody can just walk onto campus, and if someone holds a door open for you, you can easily get into the dorms. The other day, random people from a few towns over got onto campus and got into dorms and stole laptops...creepy? Im in a freshmen dorm and it's dirty and gross. The bathroom hasn't had paper towels or soap since i've been here, and the showers are moldy. Though, the food isn't TOO bad, the hours suck. I can't get breakfast before class. I've been looking at schools to transfer to since i've been here. It really sucks, doing the process of researching and applying to schools, all over again. I wish I made the right decision the first time around. If you're thinking about coming here, come visit on a day when all the hippies are out on the quad smoking, get the real feel. Which reminds me, every single person smokes ciggs on this campus, except for me. I think it's about 95%. At night, when you pull up to the school or just walk around campus, you can smell weed. There are forts in the woods where people do drugs. A lot of people are on acid as well, and people got caught doing coke the other night. I think if you want to like it here, you have to do drugs to do so. My dorm window looks out on the quad, and people are out there screaming all night. it's so annoying and impossible to sleep. If you come here, and you're not a huge partyer and you like a good nights sleep, i'd suggest getting into Outback dorm. It's the wellness center, it's clean, it's bigger, there's AC in there, and 2 kids to a bathroom...rather than a whole hallway to 2 toilets... If you're going to come here, make sure you know what you're in for. I know I can learn to tolerate it here, for day by day im getting more used to it, but i know I will never love it here.

1st Year Female -- Class 2015

Faculty Accessibility: B-, Campus Aesthetics: F

Purchase is probably most enjoyable for people interested in anything art related or LGBTQ studies. It has a great open-minded and diverse atmosphere, and tends to draw people from close-minded small towns. You can really just be yourself here and no one gives a shit, attracting many who identify as LGBTQ. They're a couple of LGBTQ related clubs on campus (like not just one, which is pretty cool) as well as internship opportunities. Gender studies is offered as a major and minor, and lesbian and gay studies is offered as a minor. This school is basically everything a gay person -from a close-minded town where they only knew one or two openly gay people- could have ever dreamed of.

One great benefit especially for college students is that there is a Starbucks on campus. The Hub also sells Dunkin Donuts coffee (but then again you are in Westchester, so that's kind of to be expected.) The campus is pretty small, and you will most likely know your way around in a day or two.

This school is also nice for people who aren't that into partying, since Purchase is far from a party school because it doesn't have fraternities and sororities. But it is a college, so of course it's literally impossible to escape from partying/drugs/alcohol especially if you dorm. People also very openly smoke cigarettes all around campus.

If you are the type of person who likes being in an aesthetically pleasing environment, and want to dorm there, Purchase is definitely not for you. It's a state school, aka you're not paying extra dollars for beauty. Yes, they are currently working on "improving the campus," but please don't let that fool you. The dorms are some of the most depressing rooms I have ever seen. No matter how many posters or decorations you hang up, it is kind of hard to not walk into your dorm and become instantly depressed. The suites are a great option for underclassmen to make friends, however the bathroom consists of one stall and two showers for 6 or 8 people to share. And you have to clean everything yourself, and supply your own soap/paper towels/cleaning supplies, which isn't a big deal. Just expect it to smell like puke a lot, unless you have an OCD suite mate.

The security on campus is pretty... eh. Purchase is an "open campus" so anyone can get in without being checked by security. However they do have state police, which is supposed to make you feel better. There are "blue boxes" which you can press at anytime and campus security will help escort you back to your dorm, if it's in the middle of the night and you don't feel safe enough to walk back by yourself ("no questions asked.") And the rumors about mountain lions getting on campus are true. The "culture shock" once you start moving around campus isn't really existent. I experienced it more when I went to summer orientation, where most of the people I saw were either stereotypically nerdy or gay. Once I actually started school I saw much more diversity.

1st Year Female -- Class 2015

Faculty Accessibility: A+, Campus Aesthetics: D-