(GMU) Mason is an interesting school

How this student rated the school

Educational Quality	A	Faculty Accessibility	A+
Useful Schoolwork	A	Excess Competition	B
Academic Success	A	Creativity/ Innovation	B+
Individual Value	A+	University Resource Use	A
Campus Aesthetics/ Beauty	B	Friendliness	A+
Campus Maintenance	A-	Social Life	C
Surrounding City	A-	Extra Curriculars	B
Safety	A-

Describes the student body as: Friendly, Afraid, Arrogant, Approachable, Broken Spirit Describes the faculty as: Friendly, Helpful

Male

Quite Bright

Lowest Rating Social Life	C

Highest Rating Faculty Accessibility	A+

He cares more about Social Life than the average student.

Date: Oct 03 2008
Major: Computer Science (This Major's Salary over time)
Mason is an interesting school. Upon first glance, it seems that Mason is just a conduit for (a) semi-motivated, semi-intelligent, out of state kids to get an undergraduate degree and (b) 20-something, business-oriented, "real world" adults to work on either finishing their undergrad degree or working on a grad degree while employed in the area. For most intents and purposes, this is a good depiction of the school.

But this composition of the school, this "flaw", coupled with the presence of some intensely smart faculty generates some very attractive, unforseen benefits.

Initially when I got here, I was (a) disappointed with the general intelligence of my peers and (b) thrilled with my classes and professors. Turning inward, I focused on my studies (contrary to my high school experience) and got great grades. Since the student populace here is mostly comprised of either non-exceptional kids or brusque and professional in-and-outers, I got involved with my department and the professors I met were very receptive and friendly, as if they were refreshed to see a student who was actually interested in the material he was studying.

Eventually, I obtained a job within the department and I was hanging out with professors and grad students more than I was my undergraduate peers, which was made possible by the fact that there are so few students that go to Mason who approach professors outside of class.

The scarcity of excellent students also provides ample opportunity to pick up scholarships from the school, and the metropolitan area begets some high paying job offers.

Sure, there's the Greek drawl and some menial on-campus activity outside of academics, but all of that is sort of subpar with a few exceptions. I've been to some really excellent parties and have drank a fair amount of beer while on campus, but in low frequency. Usually, you have to have a connection to get into a good party, but they do exist. Obviously, if you're seeking for a party school, go down the road to JMU.

I find the campus quite nice; there's a lot of foliage and it isn't sprawling and empty like other campuses I've visited.

The point is, if you don't mind being lonely and you're very serious about your studies, Mason is a great place to be. It's easy for a serious guy to stand out and get a lot of attention from professors.

My only gripe, academically, is that a couple of the classes could be harder. I think some of the faculty dumbs the curriculum down a little because of the average intellectual measure.

Responses

Here is the perfect example of the student who has gone through K-12 and been told he is special, special, special. I have never seen a generation of kids so full of themselves. It’s truly sickening.

Here is a perfect example of a student who is special, special, special because he has the maturity to get the best out of GMU and to write an eloquent and useful review of the school.

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