The College of Charleston

disappointing.

The faculty, for the most part, is AMAZING. I have only had two teachers (out of 12) who were less than stellar. The faculty is accessible, caring, and understanding. And with the help of very small class sizes, my teachers treated me like an individual. Sure there are some intro courses which people blow off, and then complain about their poor grades, but it you make the proper effort, you have the potential to well in every class.

The city is incredible, and the campus is easily one of the most beautiful anywhere. Charleston is a vibrant city, which is antiquated and historic, yet modern and bustling all at the same time. There are tremendous internship opportunities, great local restaurants that are student friendly, and fantastic nightlife which includes bars and clubbing options. This is also a runner's paradise, with so many different paths to choose from, such as the battery, or Colonial Lake, or Waterfront Park. And as an added bonus, two beautiful beaches are both within a half an hour drive!

The facilities are usually pretty good. The athletic center is beautiful and well kept, as is the student center. Some of the classrooms are nice, but many of them are very old and dingy with creepy lighting and odd smells. The dorms also vary greatly. George Street Apartments are the best (and most expensive) with every resident getting their own room and full size bed, and every apartment having its own washer/dryer and full kitchen. On the other end of the spectrum, College Lodge has its original plumbing from the 60s and students have gotten sick from the black mold that is consistently flowing out of the ventilation system. Berry Dorm is the worst though. It's a dorm of 700 girls, and there is absolutely no community whatsoever. I literally did not know the girls in the suite across from me.

My main concern is the general attitude of the student body. As a northerner, I felt extremely discriminated against, even though I didn't flaunt it or anything. Once people found out where I was from, they stuck up their noses at me. The girls at C of C are (as a group) catty, overly competitive, and downright mean sometimes. It's almost like high school, with a lot of unnecessary drama and giggling about others behind their backs. The boys, as a stereotype, are immature. Because of the horrendous boy to girl ratio (girls make up nearly 70% of the student body), a lot of boys don't feel the need to treat girls as equals and make it a sport to get with a different girl every weekend. This being said, THERE ARE GOOD PEOPLE HERE TOO. I was miserable my first semester, because people aren't friendly here, like in my hometown. However, I met a small group of people my second semester and we really clicked, and it made a huge difference. You just need to find a group of people that you like, and ignore all the gossipy, two-faced, immature people that comprise most of the student body.

Another big issue is diversity. There are a lot of clones of the same type of people, and the students are all into labeling each other (sorority girl, frat dude, indie, hipster, etc). So instead of trying to transcend these high school labels and meet all different sorts of people, students are quietly forced back into their cliques. There is no racial or religious diversity. Less than 10% of students are minorities. However, there is a very large and active homosexual community on campus which contributes a great deal to campus life.

Overall, there are some nice things and some not so nice things about the College of Charleston, so choose wisely when making this decision. You will either end up loving this place or hating it; it just depends on what's important to you.