Boston College
Reviews

Incredibly Safe

The campus is located in a very wealthy, soccer mom-type suburb. When walking across campus alone late at night, the only thing I think you would have to worry about is maybe the possibility of an acorn landing on your head. We have a very large campus police force, all of whom are deputy sheriffs of the Boston PD (meaning they can arrest anyone anywhere in the state of MA). Safety is definitely not a concern at all. As far as health goes, health services will treat your basic needs, but chances are you will need to see your real doctor if you have anything worse than your average cold/infection etc. But I think this is the case at most universities

Average

There really isn't anything wonderful or horrible about the computers here. They have both Macs and PCs in the lab, and you get 500 sheets of free printing every semester. The internet is a good speed and trustworthy. The only negative is that the printers are in one location, so it is a long walk to get to them.

Best of Everything

BC is located in Chestnut Hill, which is a great town, although there is not too much to do around. There are some restaurants and shops which are all very nice, alone with Newton Centre. But, it is so easy to get into Boston, and everything you could ask for is there. It's great because you aren't in the city 24/7, but it's very accessible when you want to go.

Park Off Campus

Parking on campus is absurd. If you feel you absolutely have to have a car on campus, you can probably find a much better deal in a lot in some of the neighborhoods around campus. Cars are not necessary here, but it can be nice to at least know someone who has one. Trips to the grocery store, Target, etc are MUCH easier if you can take a car there and back. But the T is right there, cabs run through the area, and there are shuttle buses. You won't need a car at all on a day-to-day basis.

Very Comfortable

There are some drawbacks to housing at BC. Freshman year you live in a standard double and share a bathroom with your floor. You can either be put on upper campus, which is part of the main campus, or the Newton campus, which is 1.5 miles away and is reached via shuttle. Obviously most freshmen prefer upper, but living on Newton really is not that bad and actually has some advantages (community, better food, nicer dorms, to name a few). Then sophomore year, about three quarters of the class lives on lower campus in suites, and the other quarter lives in freshman-style housing on CoRo (college road) which is a part of upper campus (where the freshmen live). Obviously no one wants to be in that situation either. Junior year, if you have four years of housing, you live in a suite/apartment on lower campus; if you have three years, you live off campus. Senior year, you either live in the mods or an apartment on lower. Dorms are all very spacious and comfortable though. Some are older than others, but there is really nothing truly tragic about any living situation at BC.

Nothing to Complain About

Campus dining at BC is far superior to most other schools. It is true that they reuse a lot of the same menu items, and there will be times when you walk through the dining hall and there is nothing that appeals to you at the time. But all things considered, food here is pretty good.

Bostonians Are Wimps When It Comes to Weather

It rains in the fall, snows in the winter, and is pretty nice in the spring. I am from nebraska and people complain about weather here all the time and its ridiculous. Buck up North Easterners.

Great Academics

BC has great academics. Professors truly care and are always willing to go the extra-mile with you whether it's being open to scheduling an individual appointment, pushing you to your limits, etc. You will receive a top-notch education here.

Many White Students, but Diversity Still Prominent

At a first glance, BC may seem to be predominantly Caucasian. However, minorities have an extremely strong presence on campus. Although they may not be as large in number, the minority students have a large impact on the BC community via a branch of the student government designed to focus solely on the needs of the AHANA (Asian, Hispanic, African American, Native American) community.

The BC Bubble

If your not familiar with the BC bubble chances are you don't go to BC. At Boston College there are tons of things to do in town because Boston is college town, but I feel many students don't take advantage of what they're given. There's Fenway, local shopping centers like Cambridgeside Galleria, Natick, and Copley. Plenty of bars and places to eat, and even movie theaters.

Beautiful Campus

BC's campus is absolutely beautiful, and there are some really gorgeous buildings. The library is great, very big, with a lot of room to study. There are several different buildings for classes to be held in and they are all top-notch. THe athletic center is a little dated, but it's still great and accessible, with a lot of work out machines/equipment, a pool, and rooms where group fitness classes are held. There are also several dining halls on campus; a very popular spot in Addie's organic cafe, which serves only organic and locally grown food for dinner. All the dining halls are very nice.

Not as bad as people are saying

Although I think the BCPD are pretty strict, it doesn't seem like they are the ones usually breaking up the parties. We have a party registering system, which I haven't seen at most other schools which allows you to register a party and the RA's usually won't bother you until the end of the registered time (2am) so it's generally not that bad. It's definitely not as free as other schools, like Yale, but you will definitely have fun without getting caught if you are smart about it, in my opinion.

Do It!

I think that living on campus at BC, although expensive, is definitely worth it. The campus is definitely very residential so most people end up living on campus. The dorms are all okay in my opinion but I've definitely seen a lot nicer (and a lot worse) at other schools like BU and Northeastern. The social atmosphere is what you make of it. Freshmen year I lived on a Multicultural floor and it was the best experience of my freshman year. We always kept our doors open and walked into each other's rooms. Freshmen housing is traditional, with hallway style rooms and a common bathroom on each floor. You can get either Upper campus or Newton, which is about 2 miles away from campus. These freshmen have to take a bus to get to main campus where classes are. I've heard mixed reviews about living on newton campus (I lived on Upper) but the general consensus is that people just deal with it. Some people actually enjoy the "going home" feeling they get, but others hate relying on the bus to get to class. If you miss yours, chances are you're going to be late... Sophomores generally have suites but some have hallway style rooms if they live on College road (shafted housing for sophomores, but closer to classes). The newer suites in Vanderslice and 90 St. Thomas More rd are really nice, Walsh is really old so it's not the nicest, but most of the sophomores end up there. I really enjoyed my time there, but mostly because of the people I was living with. Things become more closed off after freshman year because after everyone moves into suite style living, you lose that community aspect. Juniors usually live off campus but some get suites as well (if they've been given four years of housing). Seniors either get apartment style housing (only real difference between that and a suite is that they get a kitchen). Most seniors wasn't to live in the Mods because that is where all of the parties go down, except they usually end up pretty trashed so I know many people who would rather live somewhere else and just go there to party.

CTRC

The CTRC, or computer lab area, is full of Macs and PCs and it's usually pretty full, but I never have a hard time finding a computer to use. We get 500 free prints and the internet network is pretty reliable. Freshmen dorms don't get wi-fi, at least we didn't when I was a freshman (two years ago) so this may have changed by now.

Everyone Drinks, a Few People Smoke, Not Much Else

Almost everyone drinks (usually thursday through saturday nights) and alcohol is definitely an integral part of sporting event attendance. As far as smoking goes, a good amount of people smoke weed although this is much less out-in-the-open and you'll definitely have to look a little harder for it if that is what you're into. Every once in a blue moon I'll encounter hard drugs at a party. Adderall is also very popular around exam time.

Limitless Options

If you are 21 (if you have a good fake), the nightlife options are almost limitless. One of my favorite things about BC is the fact that there is a very good party scene on and around campus, with the mods, off-campus apartments, suites and dorms that all throw parties on the weekends (these parties become easier to find and get into the older you get and the more people you know), but there is also all of the nightlife that Boston has to offer (bars, clubs, sporting events and other shows, etc). There are also plenty of other colleges nearby whose parties are pretty easy to get into. Nightlife is definitely very exciting and abundant for BC students.

Attempts at Diversity

Although there are numerous attempts to try and create awareness throughout the campus with various talk and discussions, most students are just not concerned with understand the minority (Boston College calls it the AHANA) community. Many of these individuals come from wealthy families around Massachusetts and Connecticut. I am not going to say all of these students that come from wealthy families aren't concerned with diversity and equality issues because that would be a gross generalization, but there are issues on this campus that many aren't aware of nor are they willing to learn about them. There has also been a lot of controversy in the past few years with the way the campus police treats the member of the AHANA community which is obviously a major issue. I am going to give Boston College a "C" because I think Boston College is trying to raise awareness to the rest of the community, but I believe they have yet to face the continuous problems the AHANA community is having with the police though. I think that is a major issue that has to be confronted.

Typical Preps

Overall, everyone at Boston College is welcoming once you know them, but many people look hard to approach. People generally find their own group of friends by sophomore year so it's hard to meet new people unless you're active in clubs, activities, etc. While most people appear to be upper middle class preppy kids, there are a lot of down to earth, nice people.

A Little Tough

It's a bit difficult to get the amount of aid you want at BC; however, you will always get the amount of aid you need. I had to go back to the office numerous (6?) times to complete my financial aid award. Persistence is key.

A for Academics

The core curriculum (mathematics, social science, natural science, fine arts, cultural diversity, etc.) is one typical of a liberal arts university. The workload is intense, and worthy of a Top 50 national school. Registration isn't too bad; you're bound to get a "bad pick time" at some point in your 4 years, but professors and departments can be flexible if you're persistent enough. The Carroll School of Management and Connell School of Nursing have some of the busiest, most involved students on campus. All in all, I'm very satisfied with the breadth and difficulty of BC's academics, and believe it's a great place for a student to narrow their interests while keeping a broad view of the world outside BC.

Biology and Studio Art

I'm a bit of a nontraditional student because I'm a Biology major with a Studio Art minor. That being said, I find these subjects to be quite manageable at BC, and I've found amazing professors (and peers!) in both areas of study. Biology majors have 12 required classes, but the spring electives are always really interesting and inspire students to take on more. Facilities are great, but I've found that if you're not a 4.0 student, it's difficult to find work in a professor's lab. BC has a really thorough premedical program, including advisors, the committee, and presence through e-mail and premedical meetings. Though BC is not known as an art school, the faculty of studio art is really wonderful, and open to a wide range of talent.

Boston College: Ice Cream, Frips, and Fin's Takeout

As one of the most fit universities in America, Boston College knows how to eat. Whether it's the local sushi bar, the nearby Thai restaurants, the quick slice of pizza or Newton Centre's lovely cafes and restaurants, the students here never go hungry. In addition (and I know this because I'm a resident assistant), BC Dining has done an impressive job to improve on campus dining as well. "Frips," BC's special potato chips, complements any "Chestnut Hill panini" or "Tuna Delight."

Really NOT That Strict

All of the other reviews on this site in this category make it sound like BC is some kind of prison, and that every party that ever occurs on campus gets broken up within half an hour. This is not the case.

Ok maybe we have some obnoxious RAs and a campus police force that probably has a little too much time on its hands, but as long as you're smart you shouldn't have too much of an issue. I frequently attend parties on campus and off campus, and I think there has been maybe one party I was at that was broken up by the cops, and it's not something that I hear about happening often. If a party does get broken up, it's usually because a) it was not registered or b) it was truly causing a disturbance. Dorm parties are definitely the norm for underclassmen, and as long as you pay attention to which RA is on duty and try to keep things to a dull roar once quiet hours start (midnight on weekends) then you're fine. And even if you're caught drinking/hosting a party on campus, you aren't in any 'real' trouble. Housing probation is such a joke. Marijuana is decriminalized in Massachusetts, so if the cops catch you with an ounce or less, they just make you dump it and slap you with a $100 fine.

Considering that BC is a Catholic school, the fact that guys and girls aren't prohibited from living in the same buildings as each other and from visiting each other at all hours of the night puts us miles ahead of most other Catholic schools. Technically we have a 'no cohabitation' rule that says that guys and girls aren't allowed to sleep in the same room as each other, but this is a rule that exists in writing only. Since people aren't required to sign themselves or any guests in and out of any of the buildings, how could it be enforced? Overall, I don't think BC is as strict as people make it out to be.

Good Housing

Freshman dorms are pretty nice. They are coed by floor, as the whole floor shares a bathroom. And being housed on the Newton Campus freshman year is not the worst thing ever. The upperclassmen dorms are all coed and are suite and apartment style. These are all pretty nice, very spacious. Most of the dorms at BC were built within the last twenty or so years, so they are pretty modern and comfortable. The only thing that kind of sucks is the housing lottery can be a very stressful process.

Excellent

BC does have a lot of core requirements, but these courses are oftentimes very enjoyable and make for a very well-rounded, liberal arts education. Professors are very knowledgable and very dedicated to what they do. If you take the initiative to get to know your professors, you will find a lot of support and will be challenged to fulfill every ounce of your potential as a student.