DePaul University

Date: Jan 11 2010
Major: Accounting (This Major's Salary over time)
DePaul University has been quite an experience. It was not my first choice, but I'm certainly glad I ended here. I'm an international student from Central America and saw this as an opportunity to step out of my comfort zone and take part of this "big city life". Albeit the weather in Chicago can get a bit drastic at times, I love everything else about it.

Classes at DePaul range anywhere from 10 to 40 people. I've never been taught by a TA, and teachers generally know my name. Coursework varies, but I've found that I'm getting my money's worth. I've had the pleasure of having some truly exceptional teachers. Tuition prices, in comparison to other private Universities are reasonable. Although I believe they could be more generous with their merit based scholarships (as international student?s we?re not eligible for any kind of financial aid that isn?t academic based).

On-campus life is average, it certainly could be better. I chose to live on-campus my first year and that helped secure a group of people I'm still close with. (By the way the dorms are pretty amazing). DePaul is like many have mentioned, a commuter school, a lot of the suburban kids leave on the weekends and it felt like ghost town sometimes. Other than that, I chose to move off campus after my first year and it cut my housing costs in half, plus I certainly wasn?t going to miss the on-campus food. Certainly worth the extra ten minute commute.

It?s easy to get involved at DePaul. There are tons of active organizations that foster campus life, diversity, etc. Most people are friendly and I have not found it a problem to expand my social circle beyond dorm life. Also, DePaul IS an extremely diverse university; I have friends from different ethnicities, socioeconomic backgrounds, beliefs, etc?

Lastly, the best thing about DePaul is location. If you get bored in Chicago, you are choosing to get bored. I love going out to try different restaurants, plays, stand up shows, etc? most at reasonable prices. Through DePaul I was also able to get an internship after my first year of college, and already have another one lined up for this summer. I?m VERY excited; summer in the city is pretty exceptional.

I didn't want the typical college experience, and that's why I chose DePaul. If you are big on Greek life, tailgating, sports and crazy parties you might want to reconsider. That's just one of the trade-offs of being an urban campus. On the other hand you are getting back quality education, great teacher support and better opportunities that come with living in the heart of a city. This foreigner is proud to call DePaul my alma matter.