University of Pittsburgh-Pittsburgh Campus Top Questions

I think Pitt is a good size - it's big enough to avoid people you don't want to see but still small enough to actually meet people. I love the campus because it's basically interspersed with all of the other Oakland buildings, but that is definitely a particular taste. It's not a secluded, collegiate area like CMU or some other private schools. I spend most of my time in the Cathedral because that's where all my classes are, and it's also where I do most of my homework and writing. The only complaint I have is that the extracurricular clubs, etc. tend to be really cliquey.

Pitt is a great school, there is always something going on, from sports (pitt bball and football, steelers, pirates, penguins), clubs, city and school events, to parties. Best thing is Sundays during the fall, the city is alive with excitement about the stillers, their results has a profound impact on the city...

This school is a good mix of people from different cultures and backgrounds. You learn a lot and it's a great opportunity to step out of your own comfort zone. There are many good chances to do some really cool things (study abroad, join a club, etc.) if you put in the effort. Oakland caters to students very well. I do a lot of lifting, wrestling and grappling. I have a pretty close group of friends. There is a lot or pride come basketball season. I think Pitt's administration needs a lesson on how to connect to students. Overall, no one is going to do it for you, it takes YOU buckling down and getting it done.

I love Pitt because it's in the city. It always seems like the possibilities are endless if you find yourself with some spare time. It kinda sucks having security guards when you live in the dorms because they make you feel like you're a baby and often times they are more rude than nice. My favorite place to be is at the museums or at Phipps Conservatory. Both are quick walks from campus. There is a lot of Pitt Pride but if you're like me and think people are a little too crazy about sports, they are easy to avoid and it's always nice when almost everyone is at a basketball or football game because it feels like you have the entire campus to yourself.

I love the University of Pittsburgh. I transferred here my sophomore year from a very small, Catholic college in Erie, PA. What I found most attractive was the size of the campus and the amount of things to do. Not only does Pitt offer you a wide variety of extracurriculars and student activities, but Oakland is full of things to do, as well as the surrounding neighborhoods like the South Side, Squirrel Hill, and Downtown. When transferring I was nervous and anxious, but the administration really made my transition a smooth one. All of my credits transferred and my adviser was very friendly and made herself available to me for questions, even outside of registering/transferring my courses. Pitt offers students a good atmosphere, which is why I think students have such great pride in the school.

Pitt takes extremely good care of new students. There are always activities going on for freshmen and every step is taken to ensure the students are comfortable and even proud about their choice to go there. One of the coolest things about going to school in Pittsburgh is how your student ID acts as a free bus pass. Pittsburgh is an exciting city with loads of things to do every day, so being able to get around easily for free is a huge advantage. The Pittsburgh bus system is pretty reliable and most, if not all, of the busses go through Pitt's campus quite frequently so getting around is never a problem. It's kind of annoying how three of the best dorms on campus (Pennsylvania Hall, Panther Hall, and Sutherland Hall) are on upper campus. Upper campus is a huge pain to get to and from (it's all the way up "Cardiac Hill") especially if all your classes are on lower campus. Living in the Litchfield Towers is the ultimate freshman experience at Pitt. The RAs are really cool and they plan fun activities for the residents every week. It's also pretty neat to live in a circular building where walking down your hallway means walking in a circle. The rooms really aren't that small compared to the freshman dorms at most schools. The only sucky things about Towers are the communal bathrooms and the weird elevator system which really screws you over if you're not on every third floor. But otherwise it's very convenient to live there because it's practically the center of activity on lower campus. Plus, you don't have to leave the building to get a good meal! Market Central is the new dining establishment on the lower level of the Towers. For one ID swipe you get all-you-can-eat access to six different things--there's an pizza/pasta bar place, a sandwich place, a diner-style place, a stir-fry place, a vegetarian place, and an unpredictable place that is very random. When it first opened, Market Central was really good and everyone loved it--but they were all sick of it a few months later. By the end of the year, no one wanted to eat there anymore. But I guess that's true for any dining hall--boredom with the choices is inevitable, even if there are as many choices as at Market Central. If you buy a computer right before you start at Pitt, don't buy any software for it--you can get it all here for free! It's a pretty sweet deal. The Cathedral of Learning is a wonderful place. Chances are you'll have a bunch of classes there throughout your time at Pitt, and you might chose to study there too. It's a gorgeous piece of architecture that looks pretty on the outside in any kind of weather, and the inside is really cozy. The Cathedral is definitely my favorite building on Pitt's campus.

One of the most unique things about the University of Pittsburgh is that it is in a city; Oakland isn't just a college town, but the tallest building around is Pitt's own Cathedral of Learning. If you go out for lunch at Joe Mama's or The Red Oak Cafe, you'll see other students inside, but chances are you'll run into professionals in suits and scrubs on their lunchbreak, too. And there are plenty of activities and ways to be involved on campus, but there is so much else out there. Pittsburgh is incredibly diverse with a unique history and culture, with nooks and crannies to find if you take a step outside campus borders. We have free access to public transit, so why not take advantage of that? However, there's still a definite sense of community among the students; we still have dining halls exclusively for students and riots when our sports teams beat rivals, just like any other university.

Best thing is the student body, not the prettiest campus though

I really love this school, and in the past few years there has been a dramatic change in the students at the University. For some reason, the students seem to show more pride and togetherness than I have ever seen before. It may be due to the success of the basketball team, or the fact that we just have better students now, but the pride is becoming unbelieveable.

One of the bigger issues with Pitt is the bureaucracy that is implemented by the Administration, its practically impossible to organize any on campus event without filling out pages and pages of paper work, and a part of this issue is Pitt Police .

Pitt is just right in size...it's large on paper (the actual number) but I guess by the campus being spread out, you tend to see everyone everyday, which gets quite annoying...how does that happen w/ a big campus?! Pitt tends to have a great reputation as far as companies go. It's gotten better since just being here in terms of popularity and rep. I spend most of my time in the Union. It's a true college town though..it's ghost town during Summer when students aren't here. Which isn't a bad thing. The administration is an interesting bunch. Working not too far removed, I hear quite a few stories and....they have a lot of ideas. Good or bad? We'll see. The biggest recent controversy I can remember is JuicyCampus coming to Pitt (on the site). A lot of students and staff were affected. There is not a lot of pride at all...it's being worked on. I don't know what's unusual about it really...I'll always remember my Pitt Start experience. It was very representative of what to expect once a real student. Most students just complain that things need to be open later around the campus and on campus (food places, etc). Pitt also severely overcharges on EVERYTHING.

The best thing about Pitt is how cheap everything in the city is. I would change the campus to make it a bit more secluded, so it can feel more like a campus while still being a part of the city. People don't have any distinct reaction to me going to Pitt. I spend most of my time on campus in classes or the computer labs in Sennott Square, David Lawrence, Posvar, and the Cathedral. Pitt is somewhat of a college town because there isn't really a lot going on for young people outside of the campuses in the city. Pitts administration is good. The biggest recent controversy I heard about is; the 'wetback wednesdays' sign outside some bar (I think Town Tavern), but then again things like that happen all the time in Pittsburgh, but usually don't get that much attention. Oh, and juicycampus.com, but I haven't been to the site, so I don't know whats so controversial. I think there is a lot of school pride, but I'm not really involved in things like that. I have a lot of experiences I will always remember, but I can't say any of them are a direct cause of Pitt. The most frequent student complaint (at least as a commuter) is safe rider. Oh, and the wait times at the computer labs can be pretty bad.

I like that Pitt has a lot to offer. Since it is in such an urban environment, there are a lot of opportunities in the arts and cultural events: on and off campus. It is a large school, but that means that are lots of networking opportunities and lots of people to meet. I spent most of my time at the library or the Cathedral of Learning. There is a decent amount of school pride. There is also a decent amount of student involvement in political and social issues, which is a positive thing.

Pitt is awesome. The school is big so there are opportunities to do anything, teach, do research, volunteer, be in any sort of club, study abroad. I can't think of something I'd change. Pitt is quite a large school, but I like it that way. Some people, especially those from around Pittsburgh don't think that going to Pitt is anything special. Others, particularly those who are in the medical field or the sciences, react very positively. I spend most of my time on campus in the library, the Cathedral of Learning or in Chevron (the Chemistry building). Pittsburgh is somewhat of a college town, there are tons of young people in the immediate area around Pitt as well as the surrounding neighborhoods. Pitt's administration is pretty good..some times there is some bureaucracy. I can't think of a controversy, some of our professors have been criticized for being too liberal or expressing their liberal biases. I have never experienced this though. Pitt students have school pride but its not obsessive. Its definitely there though, everyone has Pitt gear, gets excited for basketball etc. Something unusual...Pitt has a great deal of "green space" but at the same time is extremely urban. There are four lanes of traffic on Fifth Ave right sandwiched in between the huge Soldiers and Sailors Lawn and the even bigger Cathedral Lawn. They even converted a parking lot into a park! I'll remember..everything..probably the awesome times I had freshman year. People always find something to complain about, perhaps having a bad adviser or experience with scheduling.

Location is the best thing about Pitt, there's so much to do. Pitt is a good size. Definitely "what college town?" I hate the safe rider/bus system. The drivers are all really rude and always late. Pitt has a lot of school pride for sports but other than that I'm not sure I see it. I hate the meal plan system. It is absolutely awful.

Pitt's administration can be a complete pain in the ass. The Financial Aid dept doens't have a clue and looses everything. They're really good at giving you late fees for no reason and then when they realize it's their faul, which they always do, it takes six months to get your money back. They're particularly bad at handling government grants. The biggest complaint that I'm aware of from anyone who isn't an engineer, med, business or pharmacy student is that Career Services doens't do anything at all. I've been there several times seeking help and they just revise your resume over and over and over and don't actually do anything to help you find a job. Bottom line: if you are an arts and sciences student at Pitt, expect to make your own way into the job market, because the university doesnt' care about you once you stop paying tuition. I find myself spending most of my time on campus in the student union. It's a comfortable place that is conveniently in the middle of everything. I've also been the president of a student organization for a while and all student organizations operate out of the union so that might influence me. My greatest memories at Pitt are of walking around with a big group of friends late at night from place to place with no particular destination or time frame to worry about. Pittsburgh is a really nice place to make recreation out of long walks. I've never felt like Pitt was much of a party obsessed campus so there are a lot of really fulfilling and different things to do as long as you're creative. The entirety of the city of Pittsburgh is a college town. There are something like 8 schools downtown, so everything is really college friendly if not directly geared to college students. School pride at Pitt doesn't really ezist, not like Penn State or Ohio State or UVa or Rutgers. No body really cares too much about sports or anything enough to make a big deal or expend any extra effort.

The best thing about Pitt is its access to the city. Its not too far removed from the city and we're provided free bus passes. If I could change one thing it'd be the registration process, I would make it possible to do everything online. Undergrad advising is garbage. I'll always remember 13-9, the Ramon buzzer beater to beat WV by one, beating #6 Georgetown, super bowl 40 and walking around campus in the spring.

The best thing about Pitt? There isn't just one thing... I love the fact that it is small enough to intimately get to know many of the students and staff, but big enough to be able to avoid seeing that guy you hooked up with last weekend. I also love that it is so closely located to so many great things: other schools (CMU is not even a mile away from my apartment), great museums, good places to shop...and it is also close enough to Ohio and Maryland so that you can take roadtrips to visit your friends at other schools very easily. I spend most of my time in the library, or in the sorority suite when I am on campus. People don't always react well well I tell them I go to Pitt, but I really don't care because in the end of the day I am the one who goes here (and loves it). Pitt is a perfect mixture of a college town and a city environment. There is a campus, yet you still feel like you are in an urban environment. There is plenty of school pride.