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| Vol. 18, No. 5 | Oct. 1, 1998 |
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| Vol. 18, No. 5 | Oct. 1, 1998 |
When prospective college students and their parents start shopping for schools, they may turn to such guides as the Princeton Review, the Fiske Guide to Colleges and Barron's Best Buys in College Education for appraisals of the nation's colleges and universities, often based on input from current students.
New editions of three such publications include the University in their reviews, with many positive statements about UD.
According to the Princeton Review, "The University of Delaware has made a huge effort in recent years to develop an 'electronic campus,' connecting students, faculty and administrative offices with each other (through an Intranet) and to the world outside (via Internet access). The results are impressive. Students here report a much lower 'hassle factor' than students at similar, large, state-run schools.... Students find 'dropping/adding/registering for classes by phone a major relief' and so regard the administration as 'very student oriented,' a rarity on large campuses."
In evaluating the faculty, the review said that professors were "generally enthusiastic," with one student commenting that "professors are very accessible," and another saying, "If you put in the effort, the professors will match it."
Discussing campus life, the Princeton Review pointed out that "the majority of UD students are pleased with the quality of life on campus. They rave about 'absolutely the most gorgeous campus anywhere,' a social scene that is 'great,' and 'clubs for every interest imaginable.'"
Sums up one student: "There are so many events on or off campus. You can go from one event to another at any time during the weekdays and weekends."
The Princeton Review especially cites the UD Honors Program with its "small classes that are very rigorous." The review notes that applicants must be "much better prepared academically in order to gain admission," adding that "The Honors Program has high expectations; from what we know, it appears to be well worth it."
Pointing out that many students are from Delaware and the surrounding states, the guide said that "Students report that different types of students seem to come together here-athletes, scholars and artists coexist in our halls and in our classrooms."
The 1998 Fiske Guide to Colleges begins with the statement, "If you're looking for an all-American, traditional college experience, take a gander at the University of Delaware.... The school, founded in 1743, has all that the traditional college portrait entails: solid academics, rowdy athletic traditions, Northeastern beauty and all. Delaware's spacious 1,000-acre campus is an attractive mix of Colonial and modern geometric buildings...."
The guide continues by saying Delaware's "academic menu includes more than 110 different majors" and that "most students find the courses at U of D challenging and rigorous." It points out that the "outstanding honors program enrolls more than 350 students a year and the undergraduate research and humanities semester programs also attract many of the University's best and brightest."
"Most faculty members are accessible and 'outstanding,' " according to the Fiske guide.
In conclusion, the guide summed up UD, stating, "The University of Delaware is a large school for such a small state, and the many programs offer something for everyone. 'Graduating with a U of D degree actually means something!' states a senior history major."
In its introduction, Barron's guide states that the University of Delaware has only closed its doors twice-for the Revolutionary War and for the Civil War. The report continues. "With no major domestic conflicts impeding progress over the last 130 years, the University of Delaware has gone on to take its own distinct place among state institutions. As a hybrid privately controlled university with state support, Delaware is also a quadruple header: a land-grant, sea-grant, space-grant, urban-grant institution, with major research commitments in all these areas. But undergraduate students are more impressed with what Delaware grants in the way of low-cost, usable education."
Under "academics," the guide said "The faculty of 1,016 members includes just 30 part-timers. All teach undergraduates....
"All majors in the College of Business and Economics....are among Delaware's most difficult, but also the ones most in demand, largely because of their excellent teachers and well-structured curricula...The new MBNA America Hall provides blue-chip facilities to match the quality of instruction. Majors in the College of Engineering also are particularly intense, with state-of-the-art equipment, a great faculty and important support from major corporations in the state.... Students in the much-admired Hotel, Restaurant and Institutional Management Program in the College of Human Resources, Education and Public Policy, test out their skills in Vita Nova, an on-campus restaurant. The animal science program in the College of [Agriculture and Natural Resources] offers a rigorous preveterinary medicine program with first-rate facilities and faculty. The education program and the nursing major, as well as the English, biology, criminal justice and geology programs in the College of Arts and Sciences, round out the A list."
The article also praises the library ("considered by students to be among the University's best features") and computer facilities on campus. It also points out that "more than 60 percent of undergraduates participate in research or independent study at some point before graduating."
Another plus, according to Barron's, is "Newark's prime location midway between Philadelphia and Baltimore," with Washington and New York City also accessible in a few hours' time.
In the "Bottom Line" section, UD is summed up by a New York student: "The only students who don't succeed here are the party students who do no work and the close-minded students who are not prepared to be broadened by a large, diverse school. The University has a lot to offer. You just have to know how to get it."
-Sue Swyers Moncure
