Portland State University Top Questions

What do you consider the worst thing about your school? Why?

Italia

Something that I wish someone had told me about freshman year was how much I would have to balance work, school, and social life together. I need to plan out every hour of the day practically in order to keep high grades and work to pay my tuition as well as having some friends outside of class.

Jennifer

That there is a lot of miscommunication between administrators and the rest of the school. A lot of our systems that are in place are a lot more complicated then it should be.

Desiree'

The worst thing would be the size. There are thousands of people, so the classes are large and it's not always easy to get to know people.

Alieta

The worst thing for me at Portland State was the lack of interest of guidance counselors unless you were a part of certain programs. I started out in business and changed my mind, eventually leading to a triple minor with a major in Liberal Arts -- no guidance counselor wanted to deal with me, instead I was forced to deal with four different guidance counselors, all of which didn't take my study seriously.

Seleny

I have not been there long enough to know what the worst thing is.

Sarah

A large number of people have been studying at that campus for 7+ years and are not any closer to completing a degree. It is not a traditional university, so don't expect it to look like one.

rachael

The worst thing about my school is that there is a lack of community. I feel like im still in high school except we are not forced to talk therefore its hard to make new friends.

jocelyn

The worst thing about my school is that lately everyone has been worried about the rights of our teachers. Their union and the administration have been going through a contract debate. If things don't go fairly, our teachers will strike and risk Spring term due to the unreaosnable working conditions. We have been having several rallies to pull in staff and student support. The students are ready to back up the teachers, even if it means pausing our degree process. We love our teachers, they have our backs and we have theirs.

Steven

Extrememely large class sizes make it very difficult to get any individualized instruction. Most of the lecture classes are just general overviews of the text. Nothing is learned that can't be learned simply by reading the book.

alvaro

You advisors can leave or quit their job without a notice

Lindsey

The worst thing about PSU is that it is a large institution with a more nontraditional, commuter student population than most public state universities. This makes it more difficult to develop social networks and a unified campus culture, which tend to be especially important for more traditional college students. However, in spite of this, PSU has a lot to offer to all types of students, including: a breadth of academic programs, campus activities, and student resources; great faculty and staff; a progressive and activist campus environment; and an urban atmosphere that is never boring!

Kelly

As a vegan living in Freshman year houseing who was required to have a meal plan, I found the cafeteria selections appauling. Their idea of a vegan entre was a side of potatos.

Hillary

PSU has the largest number od students in Oregon, so classes fill up quick. It can be difficult to get into classes you want/need when you want/need them. Also, class sizes are a large making it difficult to get one-on-one assistance from professors.

Ihssan

I consider the many unhygienic restrooms and classrooms as one of the worst things about this school. I also consider as well that some of the buildings and dorms are very old and really demand remodeling. I must also say that because the campus is especially located in downtown, you will see many homeless and racist people as you pass by. You may experience theft, harassment, being stared at, and being picked on. This experience doesn't happen that much though. You may also find some educators from nearby schools that are ignorant and racist as I have experienced.

Maggie

The worst thing to me is the weather. It rains all the time in Portland and is always overcast and cloudy. Also it's chilly. It's seldom that it's sunny. It can go 2 weeks and the sun will never come out. It was nice in the beginning of fall and in the summer, but in the winter it rains constantly. For me it's a bad thing because I love sunshine and kind of get seasonal depression. I'm getting more used to the rain, but it makes it hard to want to go do anything.

Jaymie

The worst thing abou Psu could be the fact that they don't award Clark County, Washington residents in-state tuition for living so close to campus--this means paying over two times as much to go to school and commute there when you just live across the river.

Maab

Privet transportation is really expensive.

Alexa

There are too many things I want to do/join, I can't pick!

Kaitlyn

The worst thing about my school is that there is very little student-teacher interaction, and the student is forced to teach themselves more than they are taught in class. The lecture style is good for students who can learn that way, but terrible for interactive learners.

Daniel

Because most people live off campus, it is sometimes hard to feel part of the university experience. The wide age range of first time students and older students returning to school, while it makes for a great classroom experience, can make some social situations a little awkward.

Genesis

The worst thing about my Portland State University would be the fact that when the weather is bad out side the inside of the building is full. In other words, the places where you can go to launge and rest get occupied quickly.And so this makes it hard to find a spot just for you and if you do find a place you have to take many steps up and down to find one.

Alissa

People are very guarded and do not talk with one another--in otherwards, it is not the most friendly place. Students do not mingle in class very often and it is difficult to meet and make new friends.

Dallas

I would consider the lack of social activities in the school. Like I mentioned it is not the most active school as far as parties go. Partying isn't everything don't get me wrong, but it is nice to know that whenever you want there is something going on and in PSU's case that isn't the situation.

Aaron

The worst thing about my school, are the learning facilities, not all the classrooms are equipped with state of the art technology, and are in poor condition.

Kim

The worst thing about my school is not being able to take art classes without having the departments approval when you are a different major. Students should be able to have the chance to take art classes as electives without having to worry about the classes not being a part of their major. Students should be able to expand and explore other subject areas that may interest them in the future.

Vanessa

class sized, my biology class had more than 250 students and it was very tough. the teachers are not able to have a personal connection with all of the students as i think they should and you are nothing more than a face in a crowd.

Genesee

I consider the lack of undegraduate research opportunities to be the bigget 'con' to attending PSU. In response to an inquiry to my advisor about how I could get involved with research or projects in my major area, her response was that I am too young in my academic career to have any valuable input on a project. I'm a junior in mathematics and I am sure there is plenty I should be doing.

Carolyn

I don' concider it a "worse thing" about PSU itself, but my commute to get there is a little of a pain. Haven't discovered anything I don't like about my school as of yet.

Tony

The worst thing about Portland State University is the lack of competent counselors. Every experience of mine where I attempted to solicit advice from either career counselors or department counselors was met with frustration. The counselors simply find the answers to your questions in the school bulletin/catalogue, where one can find things on one's own. They had an inablity to provide meaningful elaborations or advice based upon what was found in the bulletin/catalogue.

Tamara

The worst thing about the school is since it is a large, mostly commuter school, the people in your class can live very far apart, so it can make it difficult to get together outside of class either for study grops or social activities.

Catherine

This school is not a traditional campus, it is set in the middle of the city, as part of the city. I think many students find this very interesting and fun, but I prefer a campus set apart, where students can focus on studying, and feel a more acedemic atmosphere around them.

Jaclyn

My school is so large and doesn't have enough money to provide for all of it's programs.