Brigham Young University Idaho

Date: Sep 05 2012
Major: Computer Science (This Major's Salary over time)
Academics in this school are, astonishingly, very good. I was quite impressed and surprised at how intelligent and experienced my professors were. All of them are very down to earth and very focused on student success. Looking back, it makes sense that this school has so many great professors, because the Mormon Church is able to pick the top Mormons from around the world and have them teach at their schools. I had a couple professors who graduated from Ivy Leagues and a few others from very prestigious schools. The quality of the education that this school offers is definitely nothing to worry about.

Being an LDS Church sponsored school, this school contains mostly Mormons. This probably comes as no surprise to anyone reading this. There are many people that have transfered to BYU-I from BYU-P or have chosen BYU-I over BYU-P. I've heard many reasons for this but the two most common are: the people at Provo can be very arrogent, and that Provo contains more 'super Mormons'. That being said, it's not that Mormons at BYU-I are more laid back about the rules and their beliefs, they're just not as flamboyant about it.

This school has a 97% acceptance rate and with that high acceptance rate comes something very terrible: there are A LOT of unambitious and generally unintelligent people here. There is no competitive drive in academics. It seems that an education is secondary to students here. Many are here primarily to date and get married or to kill time before going on a mission.

Students usually have a very closed mind, and are not open to discussion of alternative ideas or opinions. Students are quickly offended by ideas that oppose the LDS Church's standpoints, often leaving holes in class discussions and throttles what would be open learning environment. I am not really able to find anyone with interesting opinions and views, because everyones opinions and views are very, very similar.

Boy-girl relationships at BYU-I are unique. The girls are very dateable. By that I mean that girls are usually open to going on a date with pretty much any guy at least once (if they're not already taken) and they are very friendly. I've heard girls say that they have been told by their church leaders to always say yes if a guy asks them on a first date. However, it is weird dating here, because everyone is dating with the goal of getting married (sooner rather than later). People get married left and right at BYU-I. I've been told by some of my older roommates that they have been told that their main purpose for being at this school is to get married. Keep this in mind if you are going to this school and don't plan on getting married for a while. You might start dating someone only to find that they are expecting a ring by the month's end. If you are a girl, expect to be proposed to every time you step outside.

I come from the suburbs of a large city so Rexburg was a big change for me. The town is extremely small and is surrounded by farms. Most of the town begins shutting down after 8. There are a few places on Main St. that aren't constantly devoid of life, but those places are one of a kind in Rexburg. Most of the food is fast food with Applebee's being the fanciest restaurant in town, so that can kind of give you an idea of the range of food options here (the food on campus is great though). There's a ton of fun to be had if you have a car and don't mind driving places, but much of that fun dies once it get's too cold or if you do not have a car. There are some good ski resorts nearby but they can be quite expensive and getting out there is challenging without a car. There are no cities nearby and the tallest building within 50 miles is the Mormon temple (don't quote me on that), which is fitting I guess. And the color green does not exist outside of the campus; the color palette of Idaho is mostly brown. Personally, I really dislike the town. I'm a city person. I like tall buildings, noise and everything being within walking distance. Also, coming from the east coast where everything is green and hilly, it was a change I did not like at all.

I'm about to head back to my second year at BYU-I and I'm looking to transfer to another school after this year. My experience there was not one that I was looking for. Academically, this school is surprisingly awesome and I'm really looking forward to the classes I am taking this year. However, the ack of academic drive in students, the extreme focus on religion, the focus on marriage, the boring town of Rexburg and the climate are what did me in. Don't let my experience make you think that this is a bad school because it's not, some people love this school very much and I can definitely see why, it's just not for everyone.