CUNY Graduate School and University Center Reviews

"Some great faculty but only a small number of active and supportive faculty compared to the overall number of students. Poor handling of administrative aspects of the program. Provide good financial support, but the administrative hurdles to get the money are frustrating and unnecessary. Good if you are an older student with existing ties in the academia/criminal justice field who wants to study in the city and is already very clear on what your dissertation will be about."

"The MALS Program at the Graduate Center at CUNY allows for a lot of exploration, with the majority being elective courses. The faculty at the Graduate Center is stellar, so you have the opportunity to take advanced classes with excellent teachers and Phd students. The school is committed to providing quality education with affordable tuition."

"Although I find that funding, institutional and outside, for studies in Master's programs are limited to undergraduates and PhD students, I still believe that the linguistics program I'm in has and will continue to provide me with many valuable skills and preparation for a long term career."

"Pros: Brilliant Professors, promising research and resources, and in the greatest city on earth. Cons: cost of living in NYC is very high."

"Brilliant faculty, most of them accessible. Interesting students. Hippest location. New stipends are competitive. Reasonable workload."

"The program needs a more selective body of students. The faculty is great."

"The program is intense and really helps you prepare for the similarly demanding field you get into after graduation. The pros are the tuition - it's a public university, so it's much, much more affordable than Columbia or NYU, with a great set of professors - as well as the program itself, which is great with adapting with the times. The only con is the workload, which is so heavy at times that it feels like you're working for five different news outlets. Sometimes students are stretched too thin and aren't able to give each project the amount of attention it deserves."

"The CUNY SChool of Journalism is great because it is a small program that really is focused on making sure students are better journalists. Not only are the professors there to give whatever help they can, but so are is the Dean. They are very proud of work that their students produce and make a point to showcase that. It's very affordable and right down the street from the New York Times that really help students put their work into perspective from time to time."

"The program is geared towards working as well as working people. But I also feel that it is a program for those who are already employed and have experience in the field."

"It's expensive - it's in Manhattan!"

"What I like about CUNY School of Journalism is that is for people who want to learn more the craft of journalism and all that it encompasses. I like that it's an accessible school for anyone and is not intimidating. You feel comfortable right away through the application process with current students and the admissions committee helping you along the way. The opportunities that school offers is also great. As a journalist is can hard to find steady work and they are there to help us transition into bonafide journalists."

"The professors are top notch researchers, but many are terrible teachers, pedagogically speaking. While the faculty are generally available outside of class, there is next to little support or encouragement from them to do any real professional development until fairly late in your degree plan. For example, I'm a 6th year student in the program and have only recently (this semester) been encouraged to submit my work for a conference presentation. Compare this to my masters program where they were encouraging and expecting me to submit conference abstracts in my first year. In my current program, when I have suggested that I submit my work for publication or conference presentations (other than grad student conferences), the reactions I get from faculty are luke warm at best. The departmental and institutional financial support is practically non-existant. Even if you are lucky enough to receive a fellowship, you have to work many hours a week to fullfill the terms of the agreement. The school offers a tuition remission if you adjunct at another school in-system, but not only is the pay abominable (forcing you to find a second job to make ends meet), but you only get 10 semesters of tuition remission. Plus, the remission only covers in-state costs, making the financial burden of living and going to school here even greater for out-of-state students. Campus life is minimal and the sense of community between students in my program does not exist. You will likely make friends with people you take classes with, but it is difficult to know or meet other students in the program. This is mainly because ALL of the students in the program have to have full-time or multiple part-time jobs in order to afford the high cost of living in NYC. This factor also makes it difficult for students to attend the colloquia that the department hosts. This is a great program where you will grow and learn academically and personally, but it is best suited for self-starters and people who go/make their own way. It would also be ideal for someone who is independently wealthy. Some of the major pros are: the student services offered by the Graduate Center; lots of free cultural and arts activities available in GC and NYC; adequate computer labs and printing abilities; lots of chances to meet and work with top names in the field."

"Little funding and a lot of teaching, but very good faculty and great connections."

"Inexpensive compared to other journalism schools in New York; great faculty"

"I enjoy my Labor Studies program very much but I wish there were more classes offered online on over the weekend. I am a commuter student so it is difficult to make time in the evening to go to class."

"The professors are wonderful, they apply the pedagogy they teach. The material is pertinent and exciting. No scholarships available as it's a fairly new program."

"Great professors at a reasonable rate, but limited funding and support."

"CUNY Graduate Center has a very nice academic atomsphere. My program has many young faculties who bring us the most updated research in a big range of interests. There are also nice seminars."

"Great school, top level, highly competitive and well organized."

"Across the street from the Empire State Building, this beautiful building houses the doctoral-granting division of CUNY. Would strongly suggest the GC to anyone who would like to study in NYC!"