St John’s University-New York Top Questions

I would not recommend St. John's University to anyone who is serious about learning, or to anyone who hopes to experience a traditional college campus.

The best and worst thing about the school is its diversity If everyone were the same we would never learn from each Other. The food is excellent with the exeption of one Dining hall Montgorus. Our campus appears large at first but once you become acclamated with it it becomes Quite small. When I tell people where I go they are astounded and know of it because of The famous Lou Carnesecca. Everyone who goes to my school wears our bright Red and white colors we are St. John's !

This school is a great place for networking and you are presented with many opportunities that I feel you wouldn't get at other schools. When people hear that the school is located in Jamaica, Queens New York, the expression on their faces is priceless because the location is often associated with a lot of violence. The schools location and the atmosphere make it just right for people looking for a school that not too big and not too small. Seeing that it's a Catholic school, those who are devout in their religions would be sure to find a church on campus that respects all denominations. Another reaction I get when I say I go to this school goes along the lines of, "you go to St. John's, home of the Red Storm? That's a really good school you know." Our school is very know for our basketball team and also for our Law school and the different programs we have. Our school might have many great factors about it but one thing that you can always hear about that grind your gears is the good old financial aid. Now every school might have problems with the financial aid building but I feel that ours are the worst. One day you can look at your bill and see charges that you know about and then the next day you go in to pay for them and they tell you that you owe more money. There's always mistakes that they take months to sort out and that can effect your registration and enrollment.You only feel ease when everything is done. When I'm on campus I'm usually in one of our dining halls, Marillac, the D'Angelo Center where all the organizations usually are or in the Library.School administration isn't so bad as long as you know who to deal with. If you have problems there are some administrators you just don't go to. I would like the school to bring back the football team they used to have because homecoming isn't really the same without football. Since our school is Catholic there has been a lot of controversy around students being able to bring an LGBT Organization on campus. If you aren't sure what that is it's and organization for Lesbians, Gays, Bisexuals, and Transvestites.

Overall, I think my school is a great place to be. Honestly, St. John's is the best of both worlds. It's located in Queens, NY in suburban neighborhood, yet its only 15 minutes away from the Big Apple. We are able to experience a real "college lifestyle" with dorms, sport fields, and cafeterias filled with , but also have access to some really cool "amenities" like the Metropolitan Museum of Art, MoMa, and best of all Broadway! St. John's used to be a commuter school, and it still has that vibe. On weekends, many students return to their families in Long Island and New Jersey, but when they are here on campus, they are boasting with school pride: Red and Black (especially because EVERY student has a St. John's hoodie).

In my Sophomore year of college I chose to transfer schools. Like any other student I was very nervous about entering a new school environment. During my first week of classes at St. John's University, I immediately noticed the warm and friendly students and staff that were part of the campus. The professors are extremely accommodating and are always available to help you. The students are diligent and demonstrate a large amount of school pride for our team: Red Storm! Student Government holds several events a week to draw together students and faculty together. The campus is the perfect size. It is not too big or too small, within two semesters almost all of the faces on campus become familiar. I could not be happier with my choice of choosing St. John's University as the place to achieve my undergraduate degree. I look forward to hopefully attending Law School at St. John's University also.

St. John's really helps its students with career preparation and provides the fundamentals and coursework needed in order to enter the professional job market. From my experience I have received complaints from students who go out into the real world after graduation and do not receive the career positions they went to school for. The main reason for this is a lack of organization and campus involvement from the students. There are plenty of opportunities to get involved on campus that meet the interest of all students in some way, shape or form. Companies want to see that a student is versatile and is doing more with their college experience than just focusing on grades. Although grades are of number one importance, organization and campus involvement makes a student well rounded and readily prepared to work with partners, co-workers, and others in a professional high-speed environment.

Kayla: So, Samir, why did you choose St. John's anyway? Samir (chuckling): Well, to be honest, I got a really great scholarship. I know that's silly, but compared to the other schools I applied to.... Kayla (also chuckling): No, that's the same for me! Erin: Seriously? I felt bad, like I was the only one! This is the typical dialogue that you hear floating around among the students in response to why they chose STJ. The one thing you don't hear though? That it ended up being a totally killer fit on top of the "great scholarship." For me too, it started with the scholarship. Once I saw the campus though, in Spring of all times when the campus looked like a lush, cached garden tucked away in a small corner of Queens, I was more than excited to become a student. This sounds silly, but that was just the aesthetic response. Intellectually, I loved finding out that the class size stays around 20-30, and as a junior undergrad getting deeper into my major, I love that today more than I did two years ago because I find myself fostering discussions in the middle of class that I never knew I could be apart of. I think it speaks for myself that I love my school, but I feel it's also palpable from the university body itself. The student section bleachers are packed during soccer, lacrosse or basketball games; each day strolling around campus you find some club or another with a banner and a table of cupcakes trying to inform you about their cause; and it's rare that on your way to class you don't walk into a friend or classmate with a smile or wave. I don't mean this in some kind of creepy Stepford Wives-y sense, but the camaraderie of the student body is linked by a mutual pride for their school and forms the strings that will hold them together long after June of their senior year, sporting alumni sweaters in front of the TV together rooting on their Johnnies. If there was one thing I'd change about St. John's, it would be the student involvement with administration. I personally feel that the administration claims to poll the students on their opinions about the general politics on campus, but they don't get as far as they could. The student government is great for what it does for the STUDENTS, but I would love to see more cohesive decision-making within the administration, perhaps while working in conversation with the students themselves. I believe it would greater benefit the decisions that the administration is generating. This goes hand-in-hand with what I'd say was the most "recent controversy" on campus, which was a few semesters ago when the administration decided to change the format of the daily class schedule. The students were deeply upset for not being consulted and pitched rally of complaints to the administration, most of which were ignored. I think that everyone by now has adjusted to this changes, but it's not to say that more feedback could be integrated with the administrations decision making to form a deeper student-faculty relationship.

My overall impression of St. John’s is great. Unlike many other students, I transferred to St. John’s as a Graduate Student. I met many students, who love the university and remain for many years. The best thing about this school is its warm environment. Unlike the somewhat competitive atmosphere, present at NYU, (my Undergraduate school), the students at St. John’s are friendly colleagues. This mainly has to do with the campus size; it is not too small and not too large, which fosters a tight knit community. The campuses don’t entirely stand apart as “college towns”, but they are convenient for commuters. Despite, it being a commuter school however, many activities are held to encourage school pride; these include sports games and clubs. I enjoy the setting of this university, but if I were to change one thing, I’d want a bigger library. Generally, students complain about the lack of printers or number of computers available. My preference would be to increase the reading selection. Thanks to interlibrary loan, most of the time, this problem can be addressed. However, it’d be nice to have direct access to multiple resources. The library is where I spent most of my time, on campus. Because I was a commuter, it was a productive haven where I could do my homework, between classes. The library staff, like the administration, is generally extremely friendly and supportive. This friendliness extends to all aspects of campus life. My greatest experience has been my participation in varying religious events on campus, somewhat extraordinary and unseen by me at other colleges. I recall watching the lighting of Christmas trees, serving of hot chocolate, caroling, and fireworks around the Christmas holidays, as well as reading Rumi poetry, the day the Muslim Student Association celebrated the Prophet Mohammed’s birthday. This revealed to me the diversity and tolerance, present on campus. With its outstanding reputation, many people are impressed when I tell them I’ve attended St. John’s because it is an academically stimulating school. It has earned a rank among the best National Colleges and has accomplished professors; these aforementioned factors make it an ideal college choice for prospective students.

Overall, St. John's is a school you will either hate or love. How you utilize what the school has to offer will affect the outcome of your experience. If you simply plan on going to classes and leaving campus, you will not enjoy your college experience at St. John's. However if you become involved, join clubs, become a leader, tutor, intern, you will make your undergraduate experience unforgettable.

I have enjoyed my experience at St. John's and the most amazing thing about being a student here is the study abroad program. I did Discover the World in my Spring 2011 semester and had the most amazing experience of my life. I would recommend that to any prospective or current student. One thing I think St. John's needs improvement in, though, is having more housing available to meet the demand of all students. It's definitely a big school but not too big, in my opinion. You won't know everyone but I'm not the type who wants to. I'm in the School of Education, which is a relatively small portion of the school, and all the administrators are helpful and most of us students know each other which is good.