Stony Brook University Top Questions

I've pretty satisfied with the difficulty of the classes. I am challenged without feeling like things are ridiculous or impossible. A lot of class participation, and the teachers have been very open and welcoming to the students to come to talk to them.

Teachers rarely know your name. Science and math class are the worst. I think it is discriminatory to force you to take courses you really suck at! Class participation is common. Depends on what subject basically and how well the teacher presents the materials. Students are very competative. I rarely spend time with professors outside of class because they usually have office hours when i have another class or on opposite days i got to school. Usually when you schedule and appointment you have to fit their schedule which causes me to either not go or skip on another class to see them.

Stony Brook University is a large community of students, faculty, staff.... you will be able to let yourself know to the professors if you are bugging them constantly as the classes are very large specially general science classes such as biology, chemistry, etc... I trully enjoyed my psychology classes...wonderful professors!!! Please, take "Violence and the family" prof. Kalish rocks!!!

A lot of the professors at Stony Brook are VERY difficult to understand. When it comes to the sciences it is all about how much you can teach yourself, not how well the instructors teach. My freshman year when I took chemistry I had a T.A. who just came to America from China less than 2 months before classes started. He could barely speak English and I got a C in the class. The only reason I passes was because I paid hundreds of dollars extra to have a tutor teach me chemistry the way the professors should be teaching chemsitry. (Stony Brook eventually kicked that very valuable tutor off campus)

I like the big classes that they offer (although theres some of every size) My favorite classes are the ones that are associated with my major, business management. I loved my marketing classes. One of the best classes I've taken, I had to do a marketing plan for a local business and present it to the owner of the business. I really liked being able to use my creative side to help someone els.e

Very high level of education. Every professor is knowledgeable and approachable. I definitely wouldn't trade this experience for anything. I think that no matter what field you are in, there are amazing professors as well as not so great ones but it is up to the individual to decide.

The one thing you have to remember when going to a school this size is that you can't expect your professors to know who you are, and care how well you do. You have to make an effort to make your face known, and get help when you need it. It REALLY depends what major you are in, but I have found that students are (for the most part) very intelligent and competitive. I like the way the SUNY system works, in that you are required to take a number of "DEC" requirements. Most people hate this, but if they stopped trying to perfect their GPA's and stopped to actually learn something, they'd realize that taking a variety of courses actually makes you a more well-rounded, intelligent person. I have found that all of the professors I have had are highly qualified, however some of them are disinterested in teaching. I think this is mainly because Stony Brook is such an incredibly strong research university, that that alone is the reason many of these professors are here to begin with. On the bright side, it is extremely easy to find a research position and dive into the research community, which (I think) is the best part of being at a university!

The professors do not know my name, if you do not go to their office hours or visit them regulary they will only know your face and nothing less. Any class is good if the professor possess a good grasp of the english language, otherwise it sucks. Students spent a significant amount of their time studying, but it varies with the major. Engineering and Science students are much busier then philosophy students. Class discussion is about average, happens a lot in smaller classes but is obiously non-existant in 600 peoople lecture halls. If you have some people you talk to regulary you will generally hear a lot of intellectual conversation as people generally are pretty smart. I wouldn't say that students are competitive, we just don't have that here. I can't name a unique class I've taken as most of them seem pretty typical. Comptuer Science is definitely one of the best departments to be in, the departments makes an effort(all do not always) to provide quality instructors and is probably the only department to hire lecturers whose primary concern is to teach. Of course, you will receive little guidance beyond that. I spent less time with professors outside of class then I should, I do need those reccomendation letters later on. I have no problem with stonybrook's academic requirments, except perhaps the fact that majors are unbalanced, major requirments range from about 32 credits to 110 credits. Its not quite clear if the education is geared towards a job or learning for its sake. In a way the university is trying to get you to get a job yet makes it difficult to understand how these things can be applied to your job.

Certain professors know at least my face, depending on the class size and on how often I visit them during office hours. Students here in Stony Brook are competitive. Those who choose to be on the Pre-Med track, the competition is more fierce and highly challenging. Science lectures are very large, which can have from about 560 to 1200 students for a given course. Since lectures are very large, it is easy get distracted and lose your concentration when there are people talking during class.

Some do, in my smaller classes. I really enjoy most of my DEC classes especiall AAS 102 and EUR 101, as well as JRN 110. Least favorite was AST 101. Some study often, some not so often. Class participation in the larger classes is required by clicker and that's about it. Yes, they do. A lot of students are very competitive. The most unique class I've taken is...JRN 110. My major department is large and oftentimes I find it hard to get things done without being shuffled around or put off. Sometimes. I feel they're setting a great standard. I feel some is towards getting a job, some is towards learning.