Every college has a flaw, in most cases more than one. Saint John Fisher balances its flaws with the overwhelming opportunity to work in one-on-one situations with the professors. Students are encouraged through these individual sessions to find their voice through their work; furthering their ideologies past graduation day and into the work force. The college is small, but a tight nit community in which professor devote time to ensuring their members receive the attention needed to succeed. In addition, the administration staff works for the well-being of the student by assisting and guiding them through the correct paper trails to graduate. A majority of my time is spent is the Mac computer lab because it is a central point of the college. Being in the Basil building, with a majority of the professors, permits me to work on papers while having the ability to access my professors on a frequent basis.
The college is of Christian origin, which can put off prospective students who do not wish to associate themselves with a particular religion. However, I have found my experience at the college one that is absent of religion. It is the student's choice to bring religion into the mix, the college has no opinion either way. Even with its sister school, Nazareth college, right around the corner, the two schools form a small community within themselves encouraging the education of future minds without the pressure of religion.
The largest controversy at Saint John Fisher is the course work. A majority of the undergraduate classes are simplistic to the point that students do not feel as though they are preparing for under level courses. The work load is fairly light at the beginning of the semester and escalates to a point that is almost unreasonable for students, such as myself, who work full time, in addition, to full time classes. There are few professors who assign major research papers which can be a hinderance when entering into Capstone courses who assign a 20-25 page paper. Without that experience in the past of completing at least a 15-20 page paper the task can be extremely challenging to the point of collapse.
Even though there are flaws, the school spirit is not effected. Saint John Fisher college prepares its students as best as it can for real life obstacles. My internship this past year through the college is something I will always recall because it prepared me to except that a college classroom is not the same as a job. They are extremely different. Students appreciate that opportunity to learn first hand.
Therefore, overal the college is good match for students who desire to travel, gain the experience of internships and the one-to-one student/professor relationship.