Mark a survey and Inform Staff

Peer Review:
5.45.80.218:valid:Content Nonsensical, Duplicate Survey, High Vulgarity, High Grammatical Error, Probably Admissions, Content Useless, Malicious Intent/Faked, SPAM, :1
5.45.80.218:valid:Content Nonsensical, Duplicate Survey, High Vulgarity, High Grammatical Error, Probably Admissions, Content Useless, Malicious Intent/Faked, SPAM, :1
5.45.80.218:valid:Content Nonsensical, Duplicate Survey, High Vulgarity, High Grammatical Error, Probably Admissions, Content Useless, Malicious Intent/Faked, SPAM, :1
5.45.80.218:valid:Content Nonsensical, Duplicate Survey, High Vulgarity, High Grammatical Error, Probably Admissions, Content Useless, Malicious Intent/Faked, SPAM, :1
5.45.80.218:valid:Content Nonsensical, Duplicate Survey, High Vulgarity, High Grammatical Error, Probably Admissions, Content Useless, Malicious Intent/Faked, SPAM, :1
5.45.80.218:valid:Content Nonsensical, Duplicate Survey, High Vulgarity, High Grammatical Error, Probably Admissions, Content Useless, Malicious Intent/Faked, SPAM, :1
5.45.80.218:valid:Content Nonsensical, Duplicate Survey, High Vulgarity, High Grammatical Error, Probably Admissions, Content Useless, Malicious Intent/Faked, SPAM, :1
5.45.80.218:valid:Content Nonsensical, Duplicate Survey, High Vulgarity, High Grammatical Error, Probably Admissions, Content Useless, Malicious Intent/Faked, SPAM, :1
5.45.80.218:valid:Content Nonsensical, Duplicate Survey, High Vulgarity, High Grammatical Error, Probably Admissions, Content Useless, Malicious Intent/Faked, SPAM, :1
5.45.80.218:valid:Content Nonsensical, Duplicate Survey, High Vulgarity, High Grammatical Error, Probably Admissions, Content Useless, Malicious Intent/Faked, SPAM, :1
5.45.80.218:valid:Content Nonsensical, Duplicate Survey, High Vulgarity, High Grammatical Error, Probably Admissions, Content Useless, Malicious Intent/Faked, SPAM, :1

Statistical Analyzer:

I'm a transfer student. I came to UH Hilo after a nervous breakdown took me out of college for three years. Luckily that has given me some perspective.

People here love to complain. The usual complaints are that there is nothing to do, and that it's boring. On that point, they are bored because they don't follow this point. Life is what you make of it.

The island of Hawai'i is not big by mainland standards, and you can travel all the way around it. Hilo itself doesn't have a lot of perfect beaches and sunshine. It's a tropical rain forest, with black sand. Hilo is a town more than a city, without a lot of places open very late and without a huge party scene. However I have news for you, if your primary concern is the party scene, you probably shouldn't be shelling out thousands of dollars for school.

The campus itself is a bit old, and you can easily tell where the university expanded. However everything is functional, and while not a lot is pretty, it's in decent repair. The new Science and Technology Building is the best one on campus, which reflects a general trend. The sciences are top of the totem pole here. Marine Science and Astronomy are the best majors, largely because this is an island, and on Mauna Kea are the biggest telescopes on Earth.

If you feel like having some activities, the University runs special outdoor trips every weekend for students. If your social needs are a little more placid, then head down to the benches and chat with other people.

When people are disappointed here, as many are, I think their problem usually is expectations. They either expected to be put smack dab into an episode of Hawaii Five-O, or they thought it was going to be some kind of serious academic powerhouse.

Hilo isn't like that. Manoa is the big trophy for that sort of thing. Hilo is real. Most of the people you'll meet in classes are either students coming in from community colleges, foreign exchange students, or locals getting continuing education.

The population here is very, very diverse in a Hawaiian way. Tongans, Samoans, Hawaiians, Maori, Japanese, Chinese, Korean, Filipino. It's a cross-section of the pacific, but if you think diversity here means black and hispanic, you would be very mistaken, as they are sadly underrepresented.

One other thing before you attend. If you're from the mainland and haven't been here before, please learn what you are getting into. This isn't just another state, like Delaware or Idaho. This was a foreign country. Hawaiian is a race. There are plenty of people here who live very real lives in poverty, and the last thing they want is a white guy coming in and slamming where they live. Please remember you are a guest.

If you can do that, and come to learn, to be respectful, you will find this is a great atmosphere.

My last school was an East Coast elite place. Everyone wore designer everything, and if you didn't have your absurdly priced polo you were ignored as a nobody. Here, you wear sandals and a t-shirt, or you go barefoot. Nobody cares what brand you're wearing. People are very accepting and relaxed here, and you'll appreciate it once you slow down and learn to get along.

In my three semesters here so far, I've butted heads with exactly one person. He was from the mainland. Don't be that guy.

Now as to academics, it's not a really elite place save for astronomy and marine science. Some people probably complain about awful professors, and my sad news for them is this. Almost everywhere you go, the professors of tedious 101 classes will have virtually no talent and assign wastes of your time. You have to move beyond that and get into the good stuff, and community college does just that.

However, there are two stars here. I'm in the history department, and while we don't have a huge department, the faculty we do have are absolutely top-notch, with small classes that enable very close cooperation. The other big success is an education program here that yields teaching credentials in the state.

So go ahead and carefully evaluate just what you want before coming here. Authentic local culture yes, Hawaii Five-O episode no. Harvard with palm trees no, a small school in a low stress environment, yes.