Saint Joseph's University - New York

Overall, I enjoyed my time at St. Joseph's University on Long Island because they always accommodated for me. I am a person of anxiety background so, 4 years at the college was not always the smoothest time. The professors there were amazing and for a private school, I really enjoyed taking the religion courses as an alternative to history courses. The grading was fair. My only problem was that my original degree was Computer Science and I was unable to pass Calc II so I had to change my career path... Read More to CIT. I know other people who got their Com Sci degree without needing Calc II so, that was disappointing for me.

SJC was a small, commuter school close to my home in Long Island. They were essential in helping me plan out my career goals. The academic advising does take the time to help you on a personal level and I could not be more grateful. I studied Speech Communication. Luckily my advisor was one of my professors in several of my classes. She is really who helped me to realize that i chose the right degree. My class sizes were extremely small making it nice to have that personal connection with your professors.... Read More I just wish that my school had a little bit more diversity, but it was still a great school nontheless.

Much like any college, the experience is what a student makes of it. However, the premiere feature of St. Joseph's College is the familial aspect that is only experienced in small institutions. Not just in its cozy setting in a family neighborhood of Brooklyn, but in its people. If what a student is searching for is a place to belong, there is no other place than SJC for its close relationship between faculty and students but also the ability of professors to speak and mentor students at any time.... Read More It also would be impossible to be who I am right now if I had not joined the college newspaper in the fall of my freshman year. It was one of the most important things I have done during college that I take full pride in.

I truly loved my experience at this college. Many people think that commuting to and from campus doesn't give you the "college experience." I'm debunking that belief right now! You can come here for your 4 years (or longer, depending on the program) and have an amazing time. St. Joseph's College (or SJC, as we commonly refer to it) has a variety of clubs, sports teams, and Greek Life organizations. Not to mention, there's often free events on campus (i.e. Fall Fest, Spring Fling, massages/puppy therapy,... Read More etc.) There's even work-study opportunities; For a semester, I tutored in the Academic Center and received a monthly paycheck. The campus is small, as it's a private college, so there's a chance you'll see your friends pretty often. I will note that if you prefer a more bustling campus with many thousands of students, then this would not be the place for you. If you would like to dorm in a residence hall, this is not the place for you (although they have discussed future plans for building dorms here). Something I really liked here was the class size. Classes consist of no more than 30 students, so you receive more individual attention than if you take classes in a large lecture hall. As far as my specific degree program, I earned a Bachelor of Arts in psychology with a minor in speech communication. The psychology program is rigorous and prepared me really well for graduate school (which I was just accepted to). The required courses, including introductory psychology, research methods, statistics, physiological psychology, and senior thesis are typically pre-requisites for any graduate psychology program you will apply to, so SJC makes sure you got those covered. My professors were insightful and my advisors were helpful in making sure I completed my requirements in the right sequence. There are many elective courses in the department as well, including social psychology, positive psychology, lifespan development, and human sexuality, to name a few. I would definitely recommend this school for psychology, or any other major for that matter! You will be challenged, but the professors are there for you. It's as easy as signing up for office hours, sending an email, or stopping by after class. I never felt ignored and any assistance I needed was always provided for me.

My undergraduate experiences at St. Joseph's College had provided me with a sufficient background in coursework in the field of psychology. I believe that my experiences at this school greatly prepared me for my current academic institution at St. John's University, as I am presently pursuing my MsED in Clinical Mental Health Counseling. Although the coursework I had completed at St. Joseph's College had not offered extensive clinical internship experience, I was however able to learn a significant... Read More amount about conducting research, which had helped me succeed at the graduate level. In addition to this, the significant overlap of content reflected in coursework prepared me to a great extent for extending my knowledge regarding what it means to be an effective counselor and theoretical approaches to apply in real life application within my field of study.

St. Joseph's College is a great establishment. It is not the typical big college experience, but if you are interested in actually getting to know your professors, get help when needed, and be in a closer knit atmosphere then St. Joe's is for you. I know first hand the difference between a larger university and a smaller college and for me, I prefer the smaller college. At the larger Universities I found it difficult to track down professors and a majority of time they didn't even know who I was.... Read More During my time at St. Joseph's College, I never had trouble getting in contact with a professor, they instantly knew who I was, and there was not a single professor who didn't genuinely want me to succeed.

St. Joseph's College was the best college I could have asked to go to in order to receive my teaching degree. They greatly prepared me to be a teacher. I was able to pass all of my teacher certification exams on the first try thanks to their program. St. Joseph's also allowed me to be dual certified in general and special education from birth-6th grade, an opportunity that I would have missed if I attended any other program. They made me find my passion in special education and I am grateful for... Read More that. Although I missed three semesters due to medical problems, the teachers there were amazing and helped me to graduate only one semester late. I would recommend St. Joseph's College to anyone interested in the field of teaching.

St. Joseph's College is a accredited college that has given me the tools necessary to be a successful and effective teacher. The quality of instruction was superb as I learned different literacy strategies to help all types of learners. The program is wonderful as it allows students to work individually with students in a clinic setting to apply and practice those strategies that were learned. I would recommend this college to anyone who is interested in the literacy and cognition graduate program.... Read More

Pros: - Incorporates a lot of technology - Professors are understanding and genuinely care about their students' success - Small class size ensures quality pedagogy - Significant alumni grant for SJC undergrad alumni - Flexible for a full-time worker's schedule Cons: - Relatively new program; some unnecessary repetition of basic concepts (i.e. "what is literacy?") - Workload is a bit difficult to balance with a full-time teaching position (several students enrolled in this program teach full-time)... Read More

I thought that I got a better education when I was in Stony Brook for my undergraduate degree. I was surprised because St. Joseph's is known as the "teacher's college." I am about halfway through my program and I am so far unimpressed. I feel like they just make cookie cutter teachers. Everyone has the same 4 certifications with no diversity. There is also limited technology. They have a very limited amount of SMARTBoards on campus. Most teachers present their information via powerpoints. If I created... Read More powerpoint lessons for my students during an observation I would get a zero. The teachers should be modeling best teaching practices.

I have not taken many classes in my program yet, but the ones that I have taken have left me wanting more. My professor wanted us to watch movies more than I liked. The class topic are something that I like and look forward to taking. St. Jospeh's College is known for being a teaching college and some of the actions of the professors shocked me. They were doing some of the things that they have told us never to do in a classroom; I understand that the college setting is different, but I did not like... Read More it. A pro of the college is that it is small, so it is very easy to meet with all the different departments if you needed to. I hope that the rest of the classes that I take at this school get better. I feel like I worked a lot harder to get my undergraduate degree than what I am for my graduate one.