Florida Atlantic University Reviews

"One of the pros is definitely the chance of getting a degree in Bioengineering, which allows me to enter a growing field in scientific research. Also, it is a small program which makes easy for students to contact their professors. However, until a semester ago (Fall 2014), the areas of research were mainly based on a dry lab stage (computational, programming). Thankfully, new faculty members were hired, whose research is more involved in molecular biology and biomedical work. Also, I think that in order to have a better foundation for the master's program, there should be a major in Bioengineering which is not established yet, unfortunately."

"I love my experience at Florida Atlantic University. I have had some excellent professors who have been extremely helpful in achieving my academic goals. My problem started when I started the finance classes and dealing with the finance professors. I had a very bad and unhappy experience in that department."

"I believe that my graduate program has a great communications requirement that is integrated throughout the courses. It is very unique and forces me to be professional in my oral and written communication skills, which I know will benefit me in the long-run. On the other hand, I feel that I could be challenged a little more in the assignments I am given and how they are graded."

"Having only attended one graduate program, I can only speak from my personal experience at Florida Atlantic University The faculty is extremely helpful and invaluable in supporting experimentation and growth in the Art Department. I am encouraged to integrate difference disciplines (digital, printmaking, sculpture, ceramics, photography, etc.) in my work. I was able to attend Graduate School in large part to the Graduate Teaching Assistantship, which covers my tuition. Grad School is hard work and it's often hard to find time to be in your studio while TAing and a full time course load. Be prepared to forgo having a social life and really dig. You'll be glad you did!"

"I am currently a Master's student at FAU obtaining my degree in Biology. The biggest advantage of attending graduate school at FAU for science majors is the opportunity FAU gives you to gain valuable lab experience. FAU collaborates with Max Planck Institute and Scripps Institute (which are two well established research institutes) and give students doing research a chance to collaborate or even join labs at Max Planck and Scripps. Another advantage is the classes that FAU offers. FAU offers a lot of hand on lab experience courses that train students in fields involved with biotechnology, neuroscience and molecular biology. When I complete my degree I will have gained an enormous amount of experience in these fields and will have a lot of job opportunity. FAU also has a great school environment and is located 15min from the beach. The biggest disadvantage (and this mainly goes for science majors) is that the labs are located in Jupiter campus while the courses are taken at the Boca Raton campus (which is 45min way from each other). So the commute is pretty tough especially at the beginning of your degree when you have to take a lot of courses. Towards the end when you mainly focus on research, you end up spending majority of your time in Jupiter, so the commute is not bad. Besides that I recommend it to anyway interested in doing research."

"Very modern campus working to improve its quality of education."

"FAU is dedicated to seeing their students excel. The professor's go above and beyond to equip you with the tools you need to succeed, both in the program and after you graduate. I'm so glad I decided to bite the bullet and go back for an advanced degree. Now the career opportunities are chasing me down..it feels great..liberate yourself. ..advance your education. You won't regret the investment...the return is guaranteed."

"Excellent upcoming program, with a vast amount of support from the faculty and staff."

"FAU has a great Ocean Engineering program with extremely educated professors and opportunities to succeed. FAU also has an abundance of organizations to join to help bring your extra curricular to the next level and get involved with the community."

"I loved the university as a whole. It has several beautiful campuses and even though it is considered small, had a great student life. I was very active in many different activities and had some great experiences. But, I really believe that the architecture program needed to do more for it's students. We learned inside an imaginary world and I feel like I did not learn skills for the outside world. I had a couple fantastic professors, who really encouraged and inspired. While, there were some professors who really suck the enthusiasm out of you. I mean I am the one paying for this education and experience, but they would act like you owe them something. I was and still am fairly let down from the degree i have received. I gave my heart and soul for a degree in Architecture and I am still recovering. It is important to chose a university with great student life, because it will help you grow. But, the school must have a degree program that inspires and gets you ready for what comes after graduation. This is what we are paying for! Maybe the program should help integrate real life work experience as a college credit or course, or maybe it is as simple as finding the right staff to inspire the next generation. I do not know, but I think a lot of universities struggle with the same things and students are finding themselves lost on the outside, with huge amounts of debt, and for what?"

"FAU is more of a science field based school so for my major another school that placed more value on my major would have been better, but in the long run an undergrad degree at any 4 year school is good, a degree is a degree as long as the school is accredited. Beautiful beach close by so who would not want to go to a paradise school."

"One of the biggest Pros of the program is the small program size. This allows graduate students to become close to their professors and mentors and gain additional chances to learn outside of the classroom setting. Another Pro would be, because of the program size, the high chance to grab an Assistantship position within the program. Stipend is not that great, but the fact that tuition is covered does help a lot. One of the major Cons is the course work. Many of the classes that you need to take to complete the degree are not really that great in comparison to other school's programs. Students really do need to work on their own to make connections with faculty in order to participate in department activities or research to further advance their knowledge and experience in the program."

"I had an excellent experience with the program. The teaching assistantship covers two years of tuition waiver and financial support, and includes 2 semesters of teaching experience as the main instructor on record. The course schedules is good, despite not being as flexible for TAs (who must get their 18 credits in WST in order to teach during the second year). The program also has three different tracks: thesis, internship, or extra credits."

"Overall, graduate student experience here is great. The professors are very good. The faculty and staff really care about the students' well-being. So, far the courses I've taken have been taught by excellent professors. They were available after class for questions and always treated me with respect. The workload sometimes feels excessive, but then again, it's graduate school, its supposed to be that way. There is a nice mix of cultures in the group of grad students. Everyone gets along. What the program lacks is more financial help for the student. The support they provide is enough for the bare essentials. Other than that, my experience has been a very positive one."

"The program is a great way to improve your resume for health professional schools such as medical school or dental programs. Also, the teachers and faculty are very accessable and timely in their responses which I found to be very helpful. The TA internships for this program are very limited, however you can be put on the list for left over TA positions in the Biology and Chemistry department. Searching for scholarships is difficult however worth while. So far I am enjoying this program thoroughly. The parking on campus is horrendous however, and it doesn't look to be improving much. I would look to live on campus if I wasnt getting married and ditch the car all together. This is definitely not a college town, however I love how close you are to the beach, about 5 minutes!"

"Pros: I want to spend the rest of my life in Florida (most of my family lives there). It has a small class size and collegial environment (facilitated by pass/fail). The facilities are incredible, especially the simulation center. Cons: Cost"

"I have just begun the graduate program, as of not everything is a positive, although the con may be the workload I have a lot to finish within a year."

"Great school located in a safe community. The program provides me with the academic challenge I need to improve and supporting professors to make sure that I succeed."

"I think that the graduate program at Florida Atlantic University is built to be very interactive and challenging, however the students often are not pushed to maximize their potential."

"I feel that my graduate program has equipped me with the tools and skills I need for a good future in research. I have learned a significant amount from my courses and my professors and advisors are always available to help me. Additionally, the network that FAU has created with the Max Planck Institute and Scripps Florida has opened many doors for me, fellow graduate students and recent graduates, as we are now able to collaborate with scientists and researchers at these institutes and find jobs once we complete our graduate degrees."