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Education Quality   A-
Collaboration/Competitive   B+
 

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Quite Bright
Bucknell is definitely a name recognition school that attracts a lot of "ambitious/competitive" kids. Unfortunately I would not characterize it as being an "Intellectually" ambitious culture. It is more of a "Socially" ambitious/competitive culture.

Being in the middle of nowhere has a detrimental effect on the school. Without other outlets in the surrounding communities or towns students have no alternative but to pour all their energy into a one-dimensional social scene. That leads to an excessive use of alcohol and drugs on campus. Maybe it has changed since I was there but the habits were absolutely reckless.

I realize all colleges have this to a certain extent but when the frat scene is literally the ONLY outlet for a highly-driven student body it devolves into an exceedingly unhealthy subculture - one that is the exact opposite of what a well-rounded intelligent person would hope to get from a higher-education experience. Forget about character-building, you are more likely to be more inconsiderate and juvenile when you leave than when you arrived.


I will say that the name "Bucknell" has helped me in my career. But then again, many "top school" names could have also done the same. If small-circle social ambition and getting mind-blowingly wasted are more of your drive than intellectual development and personal growth you may find Bucknell to be your place - certainly a good number of people do. But if you are looking for a well-rounded higher education experience with some diverse experiences and opportunities to stretch your character, I would highly recommend going somewhere else.
Preparedness: D+, Reputation: A
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Jan 29 2013 Alumnus Male -- Class 2000 
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Not so bright
As a senior, my opinion of Bucknell has changed a lot. My freshman year was a blast. My sophomore year so-so. My junior year I spent abroad. And my senior year was miserable.

Academically, I wouldn't describe most students as being particularly intellectual. I would definitely agree that in general, they are bright but that's as far as it goes. Bucknell is definitely not Reed College, but frankly, it would be nice if many Bucknell students cared more about their learning. I have had several classes that are nice and cozy, but honestly, most of the time, only about 4-5 people out of 12 the whole semester participate substantially. There are some people, who seriously don't think about what they're saying and other people want to roll their eyes.

The professors are great, but some of the less difficult professors, unless they teach core classes, are very lenient because they want students to enroll in their courses. The academic rigor in these situations suffers.

I think there is great support for extra curricular activities, but I feel oftentimes students choose to concentrate on their participation in Greek life. For student activities, there is an abundance in funding, but I've observed that oftentimes, clubs don't necessarily use the funds they've requested. This is public information to other students with access to Netspace.

Formerly being Greek, I definitely get the appeal of Greek life. As a warning for those who aren't interested in going Greek, I think this school is difficult to navigate socially unless you are willing to put forth a substantial amount of effort. Effort that wouldn't be necessary if you went to a more culturally diverse college.

During my sister's senior year of high school, I didn't recommend Bucknell. She's the type of person, who likes hanging out with a bunch of different kinds of people, uninterested in practices of snobbery, is academically very capable, etc. And I'm glad I didn't. She goes elsewhere at a top 10 university and enjoys it.There are a lot of reasons why I really liked Bucknell in the past. I've had a lot of great experiences here. But for $50,000 per year, there are a lot of options. And many of the experiences I had at Bucknell I could have had at another decent liberal arts college. To be real. You really have to like the social life at Bucknell and everything that comes with it. Otherwise, those things (the Bucknell Bubble that makes it "unique") might be precisely why you hate it.
Faculty Accessibility: A+, Surrounding City: D
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Apr 29 2012 4th Year Female -- Class 2012  
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Quite Bright
As a third year student, spending maybe too much time at Bucknell and with others who are also at least a little "Bucknell", I've come to really value my experience here. I mean, say all you want, but ultimately there will be a marginal difference between Bucknell and its peer schools. The academics are great, and the professors are really quality all at the accessibility to a low student:faculty ratio. Bucknell doesn't always give you a full load to juggle, but it definitely gives you in terms of academic work, a real intellectual challenge. Of course, strategically you can completely avoid this, but at the same time, it's not hard to find. And it's really not hard to find people who value learning despite the lack of apparent seriousness on campus toward intellectual work. This is not Reed College.

Apart from having good academics and a very beautiful campus (not to mention great services and extra curricular resources that we pay tons for...), Bucknell by essence of what it is can teach a person or at least reinforce some great life skills. Learning how to be presentable at all times, speaking clearly, not being completely under-socialized, juggling fraternity/sorority life, friends, the gym, school work, extra curricular activities all at the same time and doing it well. It's definitely a useful kind of pragmatism to get used to.And really you get attractive people with at least some extent of a stupidity filter on--it's not perfect and doesn't filter for people who don't have common sense, but you typically don't have to deal with your obliviously average bro or dumb sorority girl on a regular basis as you would see at any run of the mill college.
Education Quality: A+, Surrounding City: B-
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Nov 30 2010 3rd Year Female -- Class 2012  
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