The best thing about St. John’s is our commitment to community service. All aspects of the university supports this commitment, from academic-service learning requirements for classes, Campus Ministry’s weekly service opportunities, and all organizations participating in campus-wide service initiatives, such as University Service Day and Relay for Life.
One thing I’d change about St. John’s is it’s criteria for prospective students. One of the main reasons why one of the stereotypes of a St. John’s student is being a dumb minority who has their tuition paid for by the government is that St. John’s is not very selective in its acceptance of students and on a campus that promotes intellectual development, those students stick out like sore thumbs. The average GPA and SAT scores of applicants cover too wide a range to properly represent the caliber of St. John’s students.
The size of St. John’s is just right, for the campus is spacious enough to accommodate simultaneous activities and compact enough to give students the atmosphere of a town that contains all one needs. The Residence Village, the array of dining facilities, the library, the D’Angelo Center (the hub of student activity), the buildings with classrooms (whose empty rooms are usually open for independent student usage), the beautiful St. Thomas Moore Church and the sprawling Great Lawn in the middle of campus all provide a premier college-campus experience.
People’s first reactions when I tell them I attend St. John’s is, “Oh, that’s a good school!” or “So you want to study Pharmacy?” St. John’s has a fairly good reputation in the Long Island-Queens area, which is where I’m from. Most people congratulate me on choosing a good school to build a foundation of higher learning and networks upon, especially since St. John’s is generous in their scholarship and financial aid offers.
I spend most of my time on campus in the Residence Village and the various student centers and classroom-containing buildings, due to my employment as a Resident Assistant, my position as co-Captain of the Mock Trial Team and co-Librarian and co-Chaplain of the Voices of Victory Gospel Choir. Since the choir sings at many campus events, I am seen almost everywhere. Most often, though, I am either in class, helping lead Mock Trial practices in the D’Angelo Center or Marillac Hall or rehearsing with my choir in St. John’s Hall.
The town around St. John’s boasts of successful businesses (big and small) and a consistently high level of activity during the school year. St. John’s students are integrated into the already highly populated community by frequenting book stores, local shops, libraries and restaurants. Public transportation cater to St. John’s students by having several stops located around the peripheries of campus and all kinds of services (banks, phone stores, take-out places) are a few minutes away from campus by bus or foot. Since St. John’s is also a Metropolitan university, there are shuttle-buses provided for the students that drive into the city and back several times a day.
St. John’s administration is organized, responsible but sometimes unnecessarily strict. Writing from a Resident Assistant’s point of view, I’ve seen the strict side of the administration when it comes to dealing intimately with the students living on campus. However, being a leader of the Mock Trial Team allowed me a closer relationship with the higher administrative officials such as the Provost and Vice Provost. I’ve seen that they are very dedicated to cultivating the best educational atmosphere for their students and supporting the already existing programs that do so. Being a leader of the choir has shown me how dedicated the university is to the arts and creating a lively and social college experience.
The biggest recent controversy was a newspaper article that criticized St. John’s students for bad-mouthing a school during a basketball game at Madison Square Garden. The students had held up signs and chanted anti-gay slurs directed at the opposing team. This was done in bad taste and the entire St. John’s community was criticized for the actions of a small portion of students. One of my Mock Trial coaches informed us of this article to remind us to represent the vast majority of St. John’s students in a positive light with our professionalism.
St. John’s students have an immense amount lot of school pride. Sporting events are usually filled to the brim with students and St. John’s paraphernalia is worn by many students around campus and the community. Personally, in the organizations that I’m involved in, all the members love St. John’s and show it in all the ways that they can: supporting St. John’s sponsored events, spreading the word to prospective students and wanting to get involved on campus in any way that they can.
The most unusual thing about this school is the variety of interests the students have, partly due to their very diverse backgrounds. Each section of the university is thriving with participants and student leaders, from cultural organizations and Greek Life sororities and fraternities, to the performing arts groups and professional honor societies. There is something at St. John’s for everyone!
One experience I’ll always remember is my very first Annual Winter Carnival: Tree Lighting and Fireworks Display on the Great Lawn. It was my Freshman year and I was singing with the Voices of Victory Gospel Choir in front of the library, overlooking a magnificent display of lights wrapped around all the trees surrounding the Great Lawn, with swarms of people milling around, drinking their complementary refreshments and chattering excitedly about the impending fireworks. Then night became day as colorful lights exploded in the heavens. Students, community members and children alike “oo-ed” and “ahh-ed” as “All I Want For Christmas Is You” echoed across the wide expanse. It was one of the most magical nights of my life.
The most frequent student complaint is that the tuition is too high. However, one way St. John’s tries to remedy this is to award scholarship and financial aid to as many students as possible. Actually, this awarding of aid is one of the most commonly cited reasons why students choose to attend St. John’s.