Anyone go to or know someone from the Univeristy of Minnesota Twin Cities?

[seg4527]

Hopefully it's going to be where I am, come this fall, and just wanted to to talk to someone who goes there, and maybe help me ease in to it a bit. I'm coming from 1100 miles away, and it might take some getting used to, I'm thinking. So I'd appreciate any help I can get.

You can reply to this or PM me, or even e-mail me [e-mail] if you'd like. Thanks.

[bobbieinok]

1. way past my college years - univ seems very impressive but

such high enrollment. I can't imagine what it would be like to be a student in such a large school.

We used to drive up to Minneapolis from IA a lot. The non-academic 'campuas town' aspects appeared to offer a lot.

[ayeshahaqqiqa]

2. I have friends in Minneapolis

I don't know if Karima went to that University for her degree or not, but she got it only a couple of years ago. If you are interested in cross cultural relations, check out her website at :

http://www.bridgebetweenworldviews.com

You can email her from her website as well. She may be able to help you find people who have gone to the U of M.

Good luck!

[Dudley_DUright]

3. I did my Ph.D. there

It is a very big school, but there is a lot to do in the twin cities and I think you will enjoy all the cultural opportunities.

[Lydia Leftcoast]

4. My niece is just finishing her freshman year there

and I have taken classes there on and off over the years.

My niece lives in one of the dorms, which is grim and institutional, and the food is dreadful. (This has not changed in the past 30 years, which is how long ago it was that I stayed over in a U dorm.) I know that students always say that college food is bad, but in this case, it's really true. Fortunately, there are a lot of good restaurants around.

Depending on what you study, your classes may be anywhere from ten to three hundred people, but even in the biggest classes, you'll have sectional meetings with TAs. Be aware that certain courses that freshmen often take, such as beginning biology, are "flunk out" courses, designed to weed out a certain percentage of the students.

The Minneapolis campus, which is the one I presume you're going to, is on both sides of the Mississippi, a couple of miles from downtown Minneapolis. You are on a direct bus line to both downtown Mpls and downtown St. Paul. There are three business districts surrounding the campus: Dinkytown and Stadium Village on the east bank and Cedar-Riverside on the west bank. All three have the usual student-oriented businesses. As at most large universities, there is every imaginable kind of extra-curricular activity, and if that's not enough for you, you have two large cities side by side, so if you can't find something to do in your spare time, there's no help for you.

I would say that the U (which is what everyone calls it) is best for highly motivated students who know exactly what they want to do, especially if it is in an unusual subject area, not so good for an unmotivated student who has no particular intellectual interests.

I hope this helps.

[seg4527]

5. Thanks, that's great information

And I am pretty high motivated. I'm quite excited, I'm going to be majoring in Political Science, although I might eventually switch to Journalism.

[mac56]

6. I was a Journalism & Mass Com major there.

I concur with the earlier poster who says it's a great place once you've set your priorities.

[Viking12]

7. Go Gophers

I earned my PhD there and taught while a graduate student. The PoliSci program is decent but very quantitatively oriented. The JComm department is also decent but there are better schools to get training as a working journalist. If you want to study media theory & media sytems and do media criticism, it offers some nice opportunities.

As for the school and the campus: As others have pointed out, its location in the heart of a metropolitan area offer many opportunities, educational and social, that comparable institutions can't provide (i.e. Purdue, Penn State). It can be intimidating if one allows it to be, but if you're an outgoing, proactive person you can easily find a way to be more than a face in the large crowd.

[playahata1]

12. Why not major in BOTH.

If you are going into journalism, it helps to have some background in another discipline. I understand that some journalism/communications programs REQUIRE their majors to minor in certain disciplines (the social sciences, English, business, etc.). Who knows, you may be covering politics someday, so be prepared. If you don't want to do the double major, at least minor in one of the two areas.

My feeling is that the more and more broadly educated journalists are, the better journalists they will be.

[seg4527]

8. Thanks for all the info so far

I really appreciate it.

[myrna minx]

9. You will love the Twin Cities...

You may be able to reach many more TC folks in the Minnesota forum. I know we have many college bound MN-DUers. :hi:

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_topics&forum=160

[seg4527]

10. Good idea! I'll repost there.

eom

[Twillig]

11. Learn the below ground ways to get around campus when it's warm out

You can get around pretty well without freezing to death later on if you do. :)

Having a car is also a pain in the butt.