Should I Go to University of North Georgia

Should I Go to University of North Georgia Madeleine is studying mathematics at the University of North Georgia. She specializes in algebra tutoring, French tutoring, and CLEP tutoring. Read on to check out her review of her college experience! Describe the campus setting and transportation options. Madeleine: I go to school at the University of North Georgia. UNG is a satellite campus, so I go to the main campus in Dahlonega. The campus is nestled in the mountains where students can see a mountain ridge from almost every building on campus. Its in a little town surrounded by forests, hiking trails, mountains, and waterfalls. We have two shuttles that drive around campus and to the off-campus parking lot for commuters. The campus is very rural but it is very peaceful. I feel very safe on campus. The campus is very hilly, so many students do not bike. It is pedestrian-friendly throughout the campus and the adjoining town, so most students only drive to go out of town. How available are the professors, academic advisers, and teaching assistants? Madeleine: The professors are always available and are very friendly. Most have an open door policy, where anyone is welcome to stop by and ask questions as long as the door is open. I never feel like I am intruding on their office hours because most of the professors are very pleasant. There are few teaching assistants because the universitys main campus is so small, but that just eliminates the buffer for the teacher and students relationship. How would you describe the dorm liferooms, dining options, location, socialization opportunities with other students? Madeleine: There are three major types of dorm life on campus. The traditional style dorm is the one that most media portrays: sharing a cramped room with one roommate and a separated room with 8-10 commodes and showers with a full hallway of other students. The traditional dorms are located next to the dining hall and academic buildings on campus.There is also an apartment-style dorm with four roommates sharing a kitchen and two bathrooms. The last option is the suite style with each room having a bathroom, and two rooms with two students sharing a room. The suite and apartment-style dorms are a bit further from most academic buildings because they were constructed after the universitys completion in 1873. There are so many dining options on campus. Excluding the dining hall, there is a Starbucks, Einsteins coffee, Twisted Taco, and an Asian grill called Misos. There is also a Java City coffee shop located next to the library. The P. O. D. (Previsions on Demand) has two different locations on campus and is stocked with a variety of snacks and full-size meals for the student on the go. The socialization opportunities with other students are endless: even with the high quantity of clubs catering to different interests, there are still events that connect students of all majors. Which majors/programs are best represented and supported? Madeleine: The programs that I think are best represented are business and nursing. Most students are either business students or nursing majors. There is a nursing school and a business school on campus under the university. I began to study biology but switched to math three years later. The biology program is great and we had a variety of classes and great lab equipment that paired well with our many research opportunities. How easy or difficult was it for you to meet people and make friends as a freshman? Does Greek life play a significant role in the campus social life? Madeleine: It is very easy to meet people on campus. There are always multiple events sponsored by clubs going on every single day. There is a calendar posted online and a weekly email listing all the events going on in the coming week. As a freshman, I joined many clubs and met a lot of other students who had the same passions I did. Greek life does play a significant role in the campus social life. Many sororities and fraternities use the fields on campus for their events, which is also open to the public. The sororities and fraternities also volunteer on campus and I find them very friendly and approachable. How helpful is the Career Centerand other student support services? Madeleine: The Career Center is a lifesaver. I go to the Career Center to receive feedback on my resume, cover letter, and to get any questions answered. Because the Dahlonega location of the university is so small, many of the faculty and staff have great relationships with the students. There are job fairs as well as graduate school fairs every semester so it is very easy to start planning life after graduation. Throughout the school year, many companies also set up tables to advertise their businesses in hopes of hiring students. How are the various study areas such aslibraries, the student union, and dorm lounges? Are they over-crowded, easily available, spacious? Madeleine: The main study areas are the library and the Hoag center. The Hoag center is nestled between two academic buildings and houses a P. O. D, Einsteins, Misos, Twisted Taco, and a computer lab. Many students will stay in Hoag after purchasing lunch at any of these dining options and study in their class breaks with their friends. Hoag is very crowded during the lunch rush, but it is fairly empty in the morning/afternoon because most students are in classes. The library is on one side of campus. The library lobby is open 24 hours a day and offers restrooms, couches, and desks for the night owl student. The library lobby houses Java City, a great study break coffee shop with sandwiches and cool pastries. The library itself is three floors with a giant computer lab area, group study rooms with whiteboards and projectors, and separate seating areas with comfy chairs. The library also has whiteboards on wheels so it is easy to move it around the floor and even between floors. The study areas in the dorms are quaint with tables and various outlets in the room, but it is hard to study considering the study areas in dorms almost always have other students. Describe the surrounding town. Madeleine: The surrounding town is Dahlonega, Georgia. Dahlonega is about 60 miles, or an hour, north of Atlanta by taking Highway 400. Dahlonega is very small but it has a lot of crown jewels that make living in Dahlonega such a great experience. Twice a year, Dahlonega has insanely interesting fairs with live music, hand-crafted items for sale, and delicious food. The history of Dahlonega is tied in with the gold rush, so there are many gold mining excursions around town. Dahlonega is tourism-ready by putting up tree lights in the public square during the holiday season. Many students walk from their classes to the square to catch lunch at one of the many restaurants or even go to their part-time jobs after their classes. How big or small is the student body? Were you generally pleased or displeased with the typical class sizes? Madeleine: The student body is small compared to most four-year universities. In the general education classes, the classes are 60-70 students. As the student takes more advanced classes, the class size dwindles down to approximately 15-20 students. For example, my upper-level French class had 12 students who were all French majors. As a result, it was much easier interacting with the professor and the other students. Describe one memorable experience with a professor and/or class. Perhaps one you loved the most or one youregretthe most. Madeleine: My most memorable experience with a class has been my upper-level biology class, Ecology. In our Ecology lab, we went off-campus by shuttling with students cars to a nearby stream to study stream ecology and the different number of organisms in the different parts of the stream. My class and I had fun collecting different samples as the professor waded around to different groups to answer any questions. I felt no pressure to act like I knew everything on the subject of stream ecology and I asked many questions to my professor and we had a great in-depth discussion of different aquatic organisms. Check out Madeleines tutoring profile. The views expressed in this article do not necessarily represent the views of Varsity Tutors.