University of Pittsburgh-Pittsburgh Campus Top Questions

The university has a lot to offer in terms of diversity, cultural exposure, music, the arts, etc. however students must keep in mind they're in a city. The campus is not isolated from businesses, restaurants, medical buildings and sometimes the school sanctioned buildings are far away from the main part of campus. It will take comfort in knowing the public transportation available and comfort getting to know the campus in a busy city setting.

The classes you take are going to be hard. If you got in, it's because you are intelligent, therefore you probably did have to study very much in high school. It is very different here. Even if you study two nights before the test instead of one, you are not going to do well on the test. You really have to dedicate a lot of your time to homework and studying to keep up. College is fun, but you need to keep up with all of your classes.

I wish I knew how incredibly huge the amount of students attending the University of Pittsburgh was. Because it is a garguntaun university, it is also cold and impersonal. Numerous facualty give lectures about how a student can easily drown in this school. It has many oppurtunities, but they are effortlessly swatched away by others.

How much the quality of the school would contrast with the price.

I wish I would have known to take a deep breath and not to try to impress others, just be yourself and that is where you'll find your true friends. Make sure that you not only study the night before a test, but every day once you come back from class look over your notes to refresh your memory and hopefully it sinks it a little more than just the lecture did. Lastly, don't play games on your phone or laptop during lectures...learn to actually focus and listen, it helps!

I will I had known more about all the opportunities available at Pitt, so I could have started taking advantage of them earlier. Although I was able to experience many off the things Pitt had to offer me, I think I could have found even more to benefit from if I had begun sooner.

I wish I known more about the clubs and activities available on campus. Also I wish I had more advice about what to bring to campus because there was a lot of extra things I had, but also odds and ends I had forgotten.

I wish I'd known cold it got in Pittsburgh! Really though, I wish I'd known more about the dining options. There are good healthy choices for students, but I'd like to see that be the majority. Sometimes providing healthy meals seems like a bit of an afterthought.

I wish I would have know that the name "Cardiac Hill" was not just a joke. Last year I lived in a dorm on top of this huge hill. I chose it because there were private bathrooms and the rooms were bigger. I knew it was on a hill, but I did not know people actually had heart attacks while walking up it. Living on top of that hill was definitely not the best choice I have made, but my calves look pretty nice from all of that walking.

I wish I had been better prepared for the amount of studying that I would need to do in order to do well in my classes. Professors at Pitt hold very high standards for all students, without regard to academic year. Luckily, after one semester I caught on and was able to perform much better academically. The transition from high school to undergrad is always a bit shaky, and I think most students tend to underestimate the amount of work that they will need to do in order to get As. I was not exempt in this way of thinking.

I cannot really think of anything. I did my research when I chose where to go . It took me months to figure out what would fit best for me. I was very hesitant of doing classes online, I wanted to go back and finish my bachelor's degree at my state school. I had two years to go but my current situation wouldn't allow me to finish there, so I chose online classes.

I wish I had known that in arts-related fields, the focus of the programs are more on continuing education and academic success than on preparing students for a job market. I went to the University of Pittsburgh for four years studying Journalism and Communications, but wasn't offered classes in Internet or computer-based Journalism. Classes were focused solely on the craft of writing and persuasion. Now with my B.A., I consider myself a fabulous writer and communicator, but in a tough job market, employers need practical skills to make one more Internet savvy.

Nothing. I came to Pittsburgh not knowing anything. All I knew is what I wanted. I wanted to experience the big school, with a lot of things to do and a lot of clubs to participate in. The amazing science department is just a bonus. There is nothing else I needed to know before coming here.

My high school was small; we did not have midterms or finals and I did not have to study to receive excellent grades. Everything came pretty naturally. I knew I would have to study in college, but I wish I would have known how to. It was hard to adjust to earning grades based on how much I studied. So, I wish I would have been challenged more in high school so I would have known how to study properly. I wish my study skills when I started college were better than what they were.

College requires much more out of you than high school did. You can no longer simply go through the motions like we did sometimes in high school, you have to commit yourself to whatever your learning and learn as much about it as possible. If in high school I had committed myself like I am now I would have learned so much more, making some of my current classes much easier.

Before coming to college you need to realize that this is neither the end of your studies, nor the first stop on a straight path. Your decisions matter but rather than simply attempting to pigeonhole yourself into a particular job or career you should better yourself. Most people end up in in careers that hadn't anticipated when they entered college so it would be more productive to try and take classes that really interest you. Learning how to think and write like an adult are more important than trying to follow a prearranged plan to the T.

I wish I had known what sort of time commitment classes really would take. I was use to very easy highschool classes. I also wish I had gotten more involved at the beginning. I was slow to start. I also wish I had more exposure to different types of finicial aid or local jobs.

More info on the buses and the things the school offered - i.e. scholarships, jobs, events, budgeting.

Amount of off campus housing

I wish I would have had more of an experience living in an urban environment.

Pittsburgh is currently facing a possible 'tuition' tax on college students in the city. This action was begun after I enrolled in the school and I wish that I had known this was a possibility before I made my decision.

How much college is and how are it is to get scholarships.

How to cook

The transition that I had to make for studying. I understood the atmosphere would be much different but did not realize how much effort was required to do well in classes. I just breezed through high school but could not do that here. Also I wish I had a little more direction when I headed to school. It took me until my junior year to figure out what I wanted to do and luckily it only took me an extra year to accomplish my goal.

I wish I had known that when you fill out the roommate application, be very dramatic on your scales or you will be stuck with crazy roommates. I wish I had not had all the stereotypical thoughts about college in my head, and I wish I had known how loud it could be sometimes outside.

The amount of work that is truly required of a student to do on his/her own in order to do well in class

That i wasn't going to get any financial aid, and how research oriented the professors are.

You really need to be open to new things and not just sit around. You need to get out there and get involved in everything you can right from the start. If you don't like something try something new. And, if you don't like your roommate ask for a new one. There is no point in trying to live a whole year with someone you don't like.

I wish I would have know that I would actually have preferred to stay closer to home, and that I would have been a better fit with a more diverse combination of classes.

I wish I would have become involved in the radio station and Christian ministry earlier than I did.

I wish I would have known that I could have taken classes during the summer before my freshman year. I would have completed some basic required courses.

I don't wish I had known anything before i came to this school. When I visited the campus the staff was extremely helpful about showing me everything that I needed to know and providing all the information that was necessary.

I wish I had know of the opportunities available for financial assistance. I have found many opportunities for advancement based on extra curricular activities, programs, and research available. However, without a promising way to pay for those services, at times your advancements may seem obsolete. Everything that I have done with the university, holistically, was beneficial. There just needs to be an educational program set up, to inform students of their long term financial commitments to a large university.

that pitt was such a large university that doesn't pay attention to its students

The walking distance from class to class and the time it takes to walk it.

I wish I had known that, contrary to what they said, we have no access to a router or port forwarding, and they make no exceptions or special treatment should you need access to particular ports. Also, you HAVE to have a meal plan unless you live in an apartment or off-campus, and the places you can spend your dining dollars and passes are both limited and overpriced. At least the food's good.

I wish I had known more about Pittsburgh before coming here. It took awhile to get used to things freshman year, but exploring was fun.

I wish I had known that the food services as well as mail room here aren't as accomodating to students needs as I would have liked.

The lack of open minded students to different ways of life.

I wish I would have known how hard it was to meet people on campus when you commute. Classes are very demanding so I don't have time to join clubs or organizations to meet people.

maybe

Nothing.

About the bureaucracy of the school that sometimes makes it impossible to get things done

I wish I would've taken an extensive tour to learn all of the buildings and where all of the classes were.

I wish I had had a better idea of what I wanted to study so that I could have gotten some of the pre-requisities out of the way in my freshman year.

How hard studying was going to be compared to high school. I was a good student that had to study but now I have to study alot more to get the grades I want and need to succeed.

Before I came to this school, I wish I knew that most of my classes would be more than 50 students.

I wish I had known what other schools were going to offer as far as financial aid goes. Also, I wish I would have known NOT to buy books on campus. Other than that not much else.

How much alcohol there was on campus.

I wish that I had known how academically challenging college was going to be.