University of Pittsburgh-Pittsburgh Campus Top Questions

What is your overall opinion of this school?

Alex

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.

Sasha

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.

Aimee

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.

Leah

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.

Jen

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.

Alex

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.

Rob

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.

Jenna

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.