CUNY Hunter College Top Questions

What is your overall opinion of this school?

NYEIN

I think Hunter college is one of the best colleges for science students.

Lira

Hunter is overcrowded. It is difficult to make friends. People are generally dismissive. When I tell people I go here, the reaction is generally positive -- I think because it has been ranked highly by US News Report as a "value college". The instructors are generally pretty good -- unless you get an adjunct, in which case they are difficult to get a hold of. The campus environment is extremely depressing. There is virtually no where to socialize (if you happen to have a friend). The library is generally more of a social environment and the lunch crowd tends to spill into it. It's also very old and warn-down/dirty. The cafeteria food is over-priced and generally heavy in fats and carbs. If you're on a diet, you'll have to lug your own food over with you. It's difficult to get any guidance by the staff here. There is generally not a lot of enthusiasm about the job. Overall -- worst decision of my life.

Aleena

The best thing about Hunter is its diversity, culturally as well as in all other demographics, there is a big age range (because seniors in the area are allowed to audit Hunter classes for free and its quite amusing). In an ideal world I would like to cut down on the red tape too, but more so in the sense to make things streamline and to have more people who are 100{4a082faed443b016e84c6ea63012b481c58f64867aa2dc62fff66e22ad7dff6c} competent and happy to help. Public institutions have different means of hiring people and the income tends to be lower so there are not as many perfect and peachy 20-something aged assistants running around hunter wanting to bend over backwards to help you. Hunter has a main campus that has three buildings, the brand new Roosevelt house a few blocks away, Brookdale downtown and the School of Social Work in Harlem. Technically, there is enough space for everyone but during noon in the main campus it can be jammed, especially on the elevators but thats also because we have a lot of lazy students who use it for one flight. We just funded a green initiative here to promote walking the stairs among other things. There is not a lot of school pride but there are plenty of extra curriculars and clubs for people who want to feel connected. Around 100 registered clubs this semester (the need to re-register every year) and these clubs receive paid funding through the school. There is a lot of political activism as well, especially with Occupy Wall Street.

Victor

The experiences I'll always remember at Hunter is sitting on the stairwell in the drama department, cramming for microbiology exams. Or relaxing with friends on the veranda in the West building on the eighth floor. Some professors hold classes out there during the summer, and it makes class fun that way. Students do complain about the bird-poop there. But they put covers now, so you can even sit out there during rain.

Alex

when I tell people I go to hunter, they look down on me as i come from a well-to-do area where most people go to expensive, private, and ivy league-schools. I think we need more of a close-knit campus, get people invested, to know eachother. I think hunter is amazingly located and more classes should take advantage of that.

Kendall

Hunter is a very diverse school. As an international student, I feel extremely comfortable here. I've adapted well, thanks to the concideration of my professors and peers. I've made a ton of good friends from different parts of the world, not only Georgia. I even met my girlfriend, who is from Austria, here.

Tristan

Hunter almost feel just just another HS, it's small for me ideal college but its located in the city so hey, what'd you expect. I also like how the school is smack in the middle of EVERYTHING. There's a bookstore across the street, the shopping district isn't too far away, the park is right there near the school. Hunter college is in new york city- the center of the world. I'd like to see more interaction between the administration and the students, maybe the dean/president would like to visit randomly selected classes just to participate with the students. I don't even know the face of the person who runs this school. I spend most of my time in the library, it's nice and quiet, although i would occasionally fall asleep from the cold AC.

Daniel

I think Hunter could be bigger. The school could use a better physical activity program. The administration could reduce some of the paper work for clubs if not better explain how things work.

Mel

Way too many people. The escalators are becoming dangerous.

Jennifer

I spend most of my time in the library on the campus or in the language lab. I was told that the old language lab was extremely disorganized and difficult to get into: there were long lines and not enough service. They have renovated it, and now it's the most comfortable and relaxing place in the college. Another quiet place is the upper floor of the library. It's very secluded, so you get a lot of privacy to study.

Nina

The one thing I'd change about Hunter is it's registration process, and times of classes. Many higher level classes are in the evening, and the schedule becomes tiring.

Kyle

When I tell people that I go to Hunter, they react positively because they think, oh that's a nice area it is in. The school is very large, maybe even too large; but it has many places to hang out in, and they are not crowded. The most frequent student complaints is about the vending machines. They break a lot and eat your money.

Marisa

Hunter College's main campus in very convenient with bridges that link the four buildings uptown, and a subway stop entrance within the west building. I would change how the way the nursing school application is announced only through word of mouth rather than mail or e-mail when a student had enrolled into a nursing block from the very first semester as a freshman at Hunter. The school size is just right. Most of the people outside of NYC ask, "Hunter? Where's that?" I spend most of my time in the library. What college town? Hunter's admission is very slow. They were the last nursing school to get back to me about my acceptance when I applied to all of my choices within the same week. The biggest recent controversy is the nursing program control by the Brookdale Campus Vs the uptown E 68 st. campus. The uptown student government pushed for 20 more students to be accepted into nursing to assist the funding while Brookdale nursing professors argued that there is not enough space for that. There's some school pride, but I do not see a lot. No, there's nothing unusual about Hunter that I could name right now. I will always remember the one house clinical I was actually late to during my first semester of nursing school, and how I was panting at arrival after having had to run back home for forgotten supplies. The computers are down and not working after slow freezing screens.

Nina

The best thing I like about Hunter is that it’s easy to get to and hard to miss. It’s right in the middle of 5th avenue, and the train station has an entrance directly into the school. The one thing I’d change is the security. Anyone can go into Hunter without getting checked for I.d. That could be a problem.

irina

The best and worst thing about it is the size, its huge and overwhelming but at the same time provides a huge amount of resources and room to explore because of that. Reactions to "hunter" differ. Some people consider it a dumb school, some are impressed, most people outside of NYC have no idea what you're talking about. "Hunter Honors" usually brings about a positive reaction when people have heard about the program. If they haven't, you have to start explaining how super-special you are, which gets reaaallly awkward. Most honors students will just say they're from hunter and leave it at that. Hunter is not really a campus school, which is one of it's biggest issue (hence, very little extracirricular involvement and no school pride or support). administration, controversy and student complaints can all be addressed with one word- beauracracy. Lots of admin layers, red tape to cut through and people behind large desks who have no idea what's going on. Hunter's location and super-diverse population make it unusual. There was an old couple in my freshman human sexuality class and my night classes are full of really inspirational people who hold down jobs and take on my courseload.

Kendall

One of the most favorable things about New York’s Hunter College Situated in the heart of Manhattan’s Lexington avenue, is its design. Hunter is divided into three buildings: North and East and West, which are connected to one another by walkways lined with windows exhibiting the Manhattan skyline, and intersect with the main West building . The West building consists of escalators that lead to upper floors and also down to the entrance level, where the students may exist the college directly into the train station without ever having to step foot outdoors. As opposed to other institutions in New York, such as the Kingsborough Community College campus situated along the coastline of Brooklyn -- which utilizes individual buildings with vast walking distances of each other; Hunter’s compact design allows students and faculty to access departments in all three buildings comfortably, without having to venture outdoors in unfavorable weather conditions. Making it ideal during cold Winter months and New York’s brash variable rains. An unusual array of 'hang out spots' are as overabundant in Hunter as its numeric student body. Most students congregate in the large lunch room in the West Building's third floor.Other's sit on the sidelines of Hunter's walkways, cross legged with laptops in hand, or gazing at the skyline and traffic below, or chatting in small bundles with fellow classmates. Other's lounge around in the library, or stretch across, sleeping on pushchairs in Hunter's seating areas situated on the many floors in the West building. And the college's more memorable qualities include promoters for Hunter's many extracurricular clubs gathering in the North building's hallway, often handing out fliers or cup-cakes for membership, and blasting various music --ranging from Sting to The Cure to Beyonce-- from a portable stereo. Other student's, like myself, who value more quietude, often relax on stairways or windowsills on the top floors of the East building's Anthropology department -- an ideal place for studying or having lunch in absolute solitude . Though buoyant and lively, Hunter's student's do not necessarily encapsulate school pride, at least not outwardly. Most students direct their pride toward individual topics, such as the political, racial or gender topics; many times rallying in the hallways through music or posters or fliers to get their message across. This results in a multitude of information on topics otherwise not addressed or readily noticed. But school pride, is not something I have seen displayed openly, if at all. If it exists, it does so under the current of more outspoken groups, and needs to be more direct or step into the foreground to be noticed by the attending masses. In addition to the languishing school pride, one other thing I would change about Hunter is it's poor ability to deal with paperwork occasionally -- something the admission office will not admit. And is one of the most frequent of student complaints. This issue particularly concerns the financial aid office. Upon first arriving at Hunter, I, myself, had to deal with the financial office’s tendency to lose certain documents, and failure to confirm the validity of others. One such issue concerned their inability to ascertain my citizenship, when I am a native of America! Twice I sent in the appropriate documents, to no avail. Eventually, I had to address the issue on a face to face basis, and only then was the problem resolved. Since then, I had trouble – albeit minor-- with other offices and documentation. However, I found that offices deal with issues most poorly by mail. Most likely, a student’s problem will be addressed and quickly apprehended if he/she visits the office personally. This may be due to Hunter’s overabundant student body -- one of the largest in the Tri-State-- which results in greater paperwork and thus a greater chance for mishaps.

Robby

The best thing about Hunter is the diversity. Age, ethnicity, origins, religion-- we have everything under the sun. One thing I would change is the tedious bureaucracy (don't know how to spell that) I get different reactions from different people depending on their backgrounds when I tell them I go to Hunter. For some, it is prestigious. For most, it's just a CUNY and I must not be anything special.

Owen

My favorite quality about Hunter is its diversity. Not only does the CUNY college have diverse cultures, it is also indicative of the true nature of New York City with its economically and politically diverse students. One thing I would change would be people’s perceptions of non-Ivy League colleges and making people realize what an amazing school Hunter is. When I tell people I attend Hunter, they usually tell me that they heard great things about the school and congratulate me on choosing the college. I spend most of my time in the Undergraduate student government (USG) ofiice, since I am one of the executive board members of the USG. Hunter is in New York City: the entire city is our own town. Hunter's administration tries very hard to work with its students and there are many exceptional people who truly care about the welfare of the students. I believe there is a lot of school pride, because I often meet students whose mothers and grandmothers attended Hunter. The fact that Hunter was chosen as the site for the 30th anniversary conference for the one and only national feminist conference on November 10 and 11, 2007, was unforgettable. One of the chief organizers, Liz Abzug, could have easily chosen Columbia, where she teachers, but chose Hunter for various reasons, including the fact that her mother, the late Congresswoman Bella Abzug is a Hunter alumna.

Jonathan

The best thing about Hunter is its location. It is very nicely situated a meer 15 minute train ride from the hustle and bustle of New York City. It's a very nice, safe area, and is very accessable. I would change that student activities area. Currently, there is only 1 floor committed to student clubs, and I'd like to see more. I love the size of the school, and would even like to see more students coming through the doors. People react very favorably when I tell them I go to Hunter, almost all saying how far Hunter has come recently. I spend most of my time in Hillel, making friends with the people there. NYC is definitely a college town, 100{4a082faed443b016e84c6ea63012b481c58f64867aa2dc62fff66e22ad7dff6c}. There's always something to do, and always someone willing to do it with you. The administration at Hunter serves its purpose, but I don't think it goes above and beyond the call of duty. I would comment that President Raab has done a great job transforming the school. There is absolutely no school pride, partially due to the lack of any semblance of sports.