James Madison University Top Questions

What's the most frustrating thing about James Madison University?

Janie

The most frustating thing about James Madison University is the parking. For such a large campus, it is almost impossible to park. I know the University is working on the sitiuation, but for the time being it is horrible. Students try to utilize the buses, but when winter comes its a hassle to stand outside and wait 5-10 minutes for a bus. Even when a bus does come they can be over crowed.

Lauren

The most frustrating thing about James Madison University is the dorms. Not all of them are equiped with Wi-Fi or air conditioning, and some of the housing is located much farther away from the heart of cmpus than others.

Laura

I think the amount of underage drinking is ridiculous. Although the drunk bus on campus is meant to keep students safe, I think that it only caters to their drinking habits.

Erica

The fact that it's not as diverse as I would like it to be. Its an almost all-white school and I feel a little out of place and uncomfortable at times.

Howard

One of the most frustrating thing about James Madison is also one of the most special. It's a relatively mid-sized school which offers students the chance to get to know a greater percentage of the population. This allows limits the amount of exposure and funding required to produce nationally recognized sports teams. We have won a national football championship, but more would be better.

Yama

everyone drinks alcohol even if they don't like it

Sarah

On weekends, you either go out and drink or you don't do much. The campus is also not very diverse.

Caleigh

The fast expansion without thought given to the aesthetics of the campus.

Mariah

The most frustrating thing about my school is the dining hall meal plan. The way the school has it set up is a disadvantage to the students. Many students lose their "punches" or meals because they do not run over to the next week if they are not used. Consquently, many students feel they ought to "get their money's worth" out of the meal plan so they gorge themselves when they eat, which leads to gaining unwanted weight.

Kaye

I find it frustrating to work really hard and get extra help from my professors and put in the extra time, learn a lot, and still manage to get a below average grade. I am working ten times as hard as I did in high school and receiving far worse grades than I did in high school. I also find the girls here that have everything they ever wanted handed to them from their parents really frustrating.

Bea

The most frustrating thing about my school is that there is nothing to do if you do not like to drink.

Sinead

The false perception that JMU is a "party" school. Yes, there is a party and alcohol culture here, but this is found at most colleges. It should also be noted that everyone is not involved in this scene and there are plenty of other fun things to do around campus and in Harrisonburg. Any bad reputation JMU has acquired (mostly a result of the Springfest incident), is not a good representation of this wonderful school.

Lanueres

Staying involved in the numerous clubs and events offered is probably most frustrating. The demand from a student's academic life takes a lot of time out of social and extra criteria. One must sacrifice certain clubs and events often in order to stay onto of the competitive academies.

Gina

Not diverse

Kelley

Our campus is very spread out, so parking and getting from class to class can be frustrating. It is not a very wise campus layout. It can take up to fifteen minutes on the bus, depending on traffic, to get from one building to another on different sides of campus.

Cierra

James Madison University is an unique university and I would encourage anyone who is applying for colleges to look into this one.With 15,000+ students attending here there is one thing that frustrates me. The Harrisonburg Bus system.With students living on and off campus, at centain times of the day there is just not enough buses that can accommodate all the students going to classes and other places. At peak times, for example from 12-2 and 3-4 there just isn't enough room for the students who are trying to get to class on time.

Anthony

Financial aid here sucks. Minimum scholarships are given to transfers and freshmen.

Mari

The way scheduling is set up; the tiered priority by grades and within grades put freshmen trying to get into certain classes at a disadvantage, and students who would like to take certain courses are sometimes unable to because of specific major restrictions.

Kathleen

There is nothing that i dislike about James Madison University. I absolutely love my choice of college!!

Claire

Drinking. The reputation of JMU as a party school has started to outweigh it's reputation as an academic institution. If you are our on a Friday night, you can see why. When the weekend comes students seem to forget the purpose for why they are here, to be students. You often see heavy drinking, sloppy behavior and dangerous decisions. The 65/35 ration of girls to guys does not help. Girls here often feel insecure, and the need to compete for the attention of guys. When drunk, this leads to embarrassing decisions.