California State University - San Marcos

California State University San Marcos is a great school where the professors care about their students. Class sizes are small, so professors have an easier time focusing one-on-one with students, especially if you put in the effort. The business department works closely with local businesses to provide mentors and project opportunities. They really want the local community to thrive and will teach you a lot. Local community is very involved with this university. The main downside, in my opinion,... Read More is that it is largely a commuter school, so campus life is not as rich as other universities. However, that may be changing because there is a lot of development happening around the area.

Cal State San Marcos is a solid option for a state school that feels a little smaller and more personalized than some of the bigger state schools. They offer a wide variety of majors and I thought the Literature Department offered a good selection of interesting classes with good professors. The campus is nice and modern with the only drawback bring all the stairs. One downside is that since it's such a commuter school, it can be harder to form connections and have the typical "college experience",... Read More but you will definitely get a solid education without going into tons of debt. Oh, the final negative I can think of is that they charge an arm and a leg for parking (several hundred dollars a semester).

If you are looking for the traditional large school with fraternities and sororities and a football team with a huge stadium, basically the stereotypical type of university you would see on TV and in movies, then this is not the school for you. This is a small university - to my knowledge there are no dorms on campus, just apartments around that probably give student discounts. They have sports, but no football team, which is pretty much what most universities are known for. But, you will still get... Read More a quality education there because the staff and professors care about the students and are passionate about higher learning. I personally am not using my degree in my career, but a degree from this school should still open many doors for you professionally.

My undergraduate university was an extraordinary school and amazing experience. It is a small school, but the benefit of that was that I was able to have close relationships with other students, staff and most importantly the faculty. My lower division classes were all about 30 students. That allowed for us to ask questions in class and in many occasions, a discussion among the class would replace the lecture. Then in my major courses and upper division courses I had even smaller class sizes of about... Read More 15 to 20 students. The physics department was extraordinary. The open-door policy that the professors abided by helped me feel welcomed and supported. In fact, I got to know every professor from the department before I even had them for a course. I took advantage of asking them from help on problems and topics that I needed help with and even though I was not officially their student yet, they had no hesitation in helping. My school had no shortage of scholarship, fellowship, and other finical opportunities. The finical aid department, professors, and staff all encouraged us to apply to the campus wide general scholarship application that filtered out the best suited and available scholarships for each individual. Many of the scholarships I received came from staff forwarding them to me because they got to know me so well. My school also had an excellent office of internships that allowed me to partake in a semester long internship at another university and to count it as credit.

My undergraduate university was an extraordinary school and amazing experience. It is a small school, but the benefit of that was that I was able to have close relationships with other students, staff and most importantly the faculty. My lower division classes were all about 30 students. That allowed for us to ask questions in class and in many occasions, a discussion among the class would replace the lecture. Then in my major courses and upper division courses I had even smaller class sizes of about... Read More 15 to 20 students. The physics department was extraordinary. The open-door policy that the professors abided by helped me feel welcomed and supported. In fact, I got to know every professor from the department before I even had them for a course. I took advantage of asking them from help on problems and topics that I needed help with and even though I was not officially their student yet, they had no hesitation in helping. My school had no shortage of scholarship, fellowship, and other finical opportunities. The finical aid department, professors, and staff all encouraged us to apply to the campus wide general scholarship application that filtered out the best suited and available scholarships for each individual. Many of the scholarships I received came from staff forwarding them to me because they got to know me so well. My school also had an excellent office of internships that allowed me to partake in a semester long internship at another university and to count it as credit.

The biology department at San Marcos was great. I felt like the majority of the professors cared about their students and were willing to help. I experienced difficulty in a few classes, but much of that was due to the demanding subject. It was difficult to work and get good grades while taking such challenging classes. I do feel that there was not much help in regards to registering for classes and being enrolled versus waitlisted. I had to extend my studies an extra semester because a graduating... Read More senior could not get enrolled in a biology class that juniors were taking. Instead of adding an extra spot or taking someone that could take the class at a later date out, I was forced to take the class the following semester. This threw off everything I had planned and the staff at San Marcos did not care. I think if you can get enrolled in all of your classes and study hard you will be good to go, but do not rely on the professors to help you get off a waitlist. The guidelines for which classes I needed to take were clear and concise, but the electives for upper division were not always offered. This was frustrating and you often times just had to take an elective you had no interest in to stay on track. Overall, I am glad I attended San Marcos and am happy with my degree. I do believe that going to community college first would have saved me a lot of money so I highly recommend that option as college is extremely expensive.

I attended CSUSM for six years taking classes part-time as I worked a full time job. I quickly discovered that staff and faculty at the university are very helpful and committed to their students. The professors are very caring and are always willing to help. CSUSM is a smaller very diverse commuter campus of about 17,000 students. I was in the Human Development program which is one of the largest programs on campus with over 1,000 students. Graduates seek careers in diverse settings, from non-profit... Read More and state agencies to counseling, health-care and educational programs as counselors, social workers, teachers, health-care workers and related positions. The curriculum of the B.A. in Human Development facilitates many opportunities for students to become more familiar with service to the community, both locally and globally. In addition, Service Learning is included throughout the curriculum which culminate is 90 hours of field work that is equal to an internship. This is where I had first hand experiences on situations that helped me define the areas of interest I would like to pursue. During this field work I was personally challenged in many ways which helped me grow stronger as a person. I am glad this field work was a requirement of the program as it makes us as students more competitive in the job market. In addition to gaining exposure and experience in the field, it also provides an opportunity to see if the particular career field is the right one based on getting personal experience in the field. Lastly, completing my undergraduate courses in Human Development I realized how dedicated the professors are and make every effort to make the classes as interesting as possible. Human Development professors bring in multiple guest speakers and have presentations that are very relevant and interesting to the class topics. Furthermore, the professors make every effort for students to gain a clear understanding and knowledge of what life can be out in the professional field. I am very grateful for all the professors I came in contact with. I learned a great deal from them and had a positive learning experience. Such that I am now pursuing a Master of Public Health degree. Thank you CSUSM.

The Master's in Sociological Practice program offers the opportunity to engage peers and faculty on topics that can be sensitive in nature, but ultimately encourage growth as an individual and as a scholar. The Sociology's faculty department is diverse in background and experience, which allows for a variety of perspectives to be brought into discussions. The cohort model of classes ensures that you can build lasting relationships with your classmates and facilitates a sense of trust in and out of... Read More the classroom. Overall, CSUSM is a great campus with wonderful faculty and I highly recommend it.

CSU San Marcos is a very beautiful campus situated in the North County part of San Diego. I am a current graduate student in their first Master in Public Health cohort. Professors are well versed in their academia and you can find an array of classes being offered under various disciplines. This is definitely a commuter school with most of the activities and liveliness occurring much during the day. Now in regards to my MPH program, since it is a new program there has been a lot of trial and error,... Read More and it is also an accelerated program meant for students who can dedicate full-time to their studies. Although, you have the option of switching between part-time/full-time. The campus has a lot of staircases so you can say that you get a workout as you walk to class. The diversity is noticeable with the majority of students being either Caucasian or Latino(a). Love that they have a Cesar Chavez statue!

California State University San Marco's Masters of Sociological Practice is a very critical program. The professor are very engaged in social justice and have a strong liking to critical race theory, queer theory and others that challenge students. The program is designed to explore the challenges of society and explore the true meaning of what we can do to foster change. The professors are very engaged in the lives of students, and come from a diverse population. They truly push students to think... Read More deeply and critically at the issues that society is facing. They also push you to be a better writer by teaching the meaning of concise. The resources that are given to us by the University and the CHABSS Department are amazing and beyond the resources, the loving support that we receive is what keeps student engaged in the process of change.