University of Massachusetts - Dartmouth Reviews

"UMD was a wonderful school for what I wanted to get out of it. Professors ranged from highly engaging, knowledgeable and enlightening to lackluster and arrogant. Though I thoroughly enjoyed my college experience and learned a great deal in the realm of world literature, professional writing and film technique, so much of what made my experience wonderful was study sessions with friends I made during my four years and my involvement with the theater company. The outside-the-classroom experience is what I gained the most from and carry with me to this day. UMD is not for everyone, but remember that the college experience is very much what you, yourself, make of it."

"My years at UMass were some of the best of my life. When I started my freshman year I didn't know exactly what I wanted to do, but quickly because involved in the theater company which helped focus me on what kind of education I wanted to have while I was there. The English department was full of fun, interesting and smart professors who helped expand my vision and knowledge of the major I had chosen."

"UMass Dartmouth was an excellent University. Classes were small which allowed me direct guidance from my professors. The campus and buildings are constructed within a circular design so that you daily connect with fellow students from all majors, widening your pool of social interactions. Along with engaging curriculum and supportive faculty, there were excellent job opportunities on campus. These jobs often extended into the summer allowing me to live on campus year round and focus on the responsibilities I would undertake after graduation. The education I received gave me the courage to move across the country 3 weeks after receiving my diploma. I highly recommend this university and encourage a visit to the campus."

"Umass Dartmouth isn't for everyone, but for everyone looking for a good college experience as well as a great institution that will give you a great hands on experience for whatever career path you choose, this is a great choice. The school has a lot of resource centers dedicated to student development as well as career centers. The instructors are down to earth and are willing to meet with you one on one anytime upon request. But like any other college, what you put in, is what you get out. It is good and well advised to get out of your comfort zone and interact with others. In the business world, networking is key, and being able to present yourself is an ability we will need to possess. With Umass Dartmouth, there are opportunities that will be given to you to practice such things and develop yourself. So this school is definitely worth looking into. I recommend it."

"UMass Dartmouth had a very small art history program with many passionate and devoted professors. All of my professors were entirely willing to dedicate their time to help me. Dartmouth offered a lot of scholarships and made my education affordable."

"I could connect, talk with, and develop meaningful relationships with all of the political science faculty. Once you go through the customary phase of hating all the concrete you look up and are amazed by how light it seems."

"Don't judge UMass Dartmouth by its looks! The opportunities for leadership, group involvement, and hands-on learning are definitely worth getting used to being surrounded by concrete. The professors are generally down-to-earth and personable, students tend to be kind, and you get all of the advantages of being part of the big UMass system without sitting through two years of 200 person lectures (you will probably only have a handful of large lectures before you get to smaller class sizes). Specifically, the psychology program does an excellent job of preparing students for counseling through a 3 semester internship track that mirrors graduate-level counseling programs and gives you a leg up when you graduate with a year of supervised experience in the field. There are also abundant opportunities to assist a professor with their research, if you would prefer to pursue research in the field after graduation. Additionally, UMass Dartmouth offers master's degrees in research and ABA, which can make your transition into graduation school much smoother (who better to write your recommendation letter than a professor on the master's program admission board?). The English program is also awesome, with a wide variety of courses to choose from and two distinct tracks that let you decide whether you want to focus on literature (aka, a career in teaching) or writing. The creative writing courses are challenging and intriguing (especially Professor Blitefield's classes!) and tend to be made up of small groups. There is also a 4+1 option in which you can complete a master's degree in English with only 1 extra year, which will save you a significant amount of money and stress in the long-run (but it requires a bit of extra planning, so talk to your advisor about it early!). The English program also does a great job of feeling like a family, with frequent events and trips to local plays, poetry readings, and places of literary significance. UMass Dartmouth also offers a lot of opportunities to get practical experience related to your English degree, whether you are writing for the student newspaper (which pays!), contributing to their literary magazine, working as a teaching assistant, or designing the layout for their semesterly news-style magazine. The department also prepares students for 21st century writing jobs by requiring that you take at least one technology course. At first this requirement seems annoying, but I actually learned a lot about how different writing for the web is compared to writing for paper, as well as skills for podcasts, film production, and wiki collaboration. And believe it or not, I frequently see in job posts a line like "Must be knowledgeable about displaying information for optimum website readability." It's cool to have a project on hand that proves it! A final note: If you are someone who has gone above and beyond in the community service realm, UMass Dartmouth offers some very competitive scholarships up your alley. I personally knew 15 people while I was there who had full rides to the school. No joke!"

"UMass Dartmouth is overall a good school. The campus is a little different looking as all the buildings are concrete. Some people find this to be cool looking, others may view as scary/dark. Some of the classes are lecture style so it is best to be self motivated when coming here. I'm not sure if the food has improved since 2010, but it was pretty bad when I was there! Overall, depending on your major this could be a good school for you."

"One major pro of University of Massachusetts School of Law- Dartmouth is the small class size. It is easy to gain a rapport with the professors and know that the professors really care about your success. At UMass Law, you are not just another face in the crowd. A con of UMass Law is more that towards the UMass system, there is a disconnect between the main campus and the law school. As an out of state student, living on the main campus can be a little frustrating because of this disconnect. It would be better if the campus housing provided by UMass Law was closer to the law school. Other than that, coming to UMass Law has been on the best decisions I have made in regards to my educational career."

"Pros: inexpensive but quality education. Cons: heavy and stressful workload, but that is the nature of law school"

"Umass Dartmouth School of Law is a relatively new program with new administration and many new professors from more established law schools. I am a part time evening student and the two nights per week plus Saturday morning schedule is very doable for a student with a full time job. No other ABA schools in MA or RI offer this schedule. Moreover, it is MA's only public law school and in today's job market is truly a good deal if you intend to study law and work in the field. The cons are that because it is not long established, graduates who chose to practice in MA must compete with graduates of such law schools as Harvard, Boston College and Suffolk University. Further, though the Southcoast of MA is pleasant - its very close to the beach, it is a rural area and younger students may find there is not much to do in the area."

"The University of Massachusetts Dartmouth (UMass Dartmouth) is an operating subdivision of the Massachusetts collegiate system; it is located in the center of the South Coast region between New Bedford and Fall River. While the campus itself is aesthetically lacking, the surrounding rural/suburban area with nearby beaches and cities (e.g. Providence, Boston) provides a wealth of attractions. UMass Dartmouth is best known for its programs in engineering, marine science, nursing, business, and Portuguese. I am currently a PhD candidate in the Biomedical Engineering and Biotechnology program with an emphasis on biology. Specifically, I am studying the thermal and oxygen tolerances of large pelagic fishes including swordfish and bigeye thresher sharks. Biomedical engineering and biotechnology is a joint degree program between Dartmouth, Boston, Lowell, and Worcester campuses. Its goal is to offer a curriculum and research plan that seeks to forge working relations between biologists and engineers. The curriculum is still being developed and presently biologists and engineers take the same classes. Unfortunately, this often means full biology courses serve as review for biology students, while engineering students are at ease in engineering based courses. In contrast, biology students often struggle in engineering and engineers in biology. Despite this, the program is accessible to a wide array of research interests and can provide a biology based course load for graduate students like myself, whose research focuses on marine life, but specifically the physiological evolution of vertebrates. My research is at the intersection of marine science, biology, and engineering. At UMass Dartmouth, I have found support for dissimilar dissertation projects among the diversity of faculty interests. These include thermodynamic modeling of heat transfer in fish, biomechanical and biochemical studies of muscle function, anatomical investigations of gills and vasculature, and transcriptomic investigations of environmentally induced gene expression. The faculty is dedicated to the education and success of both undergraduate and graduate students, and the recent hiring of numerous molecular biologists has placed the University of Massachusetts Dartmouth at the forefront of biological innovation."

"Most semesters there is a deficiency of available classes to take. However, the teachers are very accessible, are eager to help you learn and research, and are dedicated to their students."

"Joining the Textile program at UMassD was a great step for me since I am very interested in the construction of the materials. I have learned all the basic methods of dealing with fibers from dying to felting and weaving etc. and I have also experienced 3D conceptual Art making for the first time and I am loving it and the faculty members are also very good and supportive."

"Good quality education at a reasonable price. The technical electives are few and leave something to be desired."

"Tell us about your college experience.This school was perfect for me. I made a lot of friends which is hard for me, I met a lot of people with similar interests.Would you get the same degree if you could start over?Yes, the photography program was awesome. As a freshman, you're required to take intro classes to other art mediums. I learned how to draw, paint, etc which is something I wouldn't have done had it not been required."

"The best part of this program was definitely the professional staff. They were completely committed to student success, even after you are no longer in the program."

"Pros: Its a state school so it offers an affordable education. Cons: No enought public transportation to school"

"The program has a lot of practical value for what you will be doing in "the real world". There is plenty of opportunity for internships and experiential learning. The only problem with this is you have to find your own internship placement."

"This professionally accredited program understands the correlation between student and working professional. This researched based program encourages its students to be reflective practitioners and leaders in the art education field. The class sizes are small which encourage great discussion, however choices of classes available are very limited."