Rider University: A Tradition of Excellence and Success
Written: Apr 05 '01 (Updated May 17 '01)
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Product Rating:
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Pros: Warm, wonderful people, small classes
Cons: The place clears out on weekends, no football team
The Bottom Line: Rider University provides a wonderful environment in which to receive an excellent, well-rounded education.
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| dannyzmom's Full Review: Rider University |
After Epinions changed the format of the site, this review got shuffled off to some obscure category called "school overall," where it was of no use to the prospective college student. I am now moving it back to its intended category.
After reading what was, in my opinion, a very inaccurate review of Rider University, I have decided to write a more accurate review and defend my alma mater.
Rider was founded in 1865. Since then it has grown and flourished. It all began in Trenton, New Jersey and has now moved and expanded. Rider now has two campuses, one built on a lush, beautiful cranberry bog in Lawrenceville, New Jersey and the other on a beautiful, elegant piece of property in historical Princeton, New Jersey. I am going to focus this review on the main campus in Lawrenceville.
I spent six years at Rider. Four of those years were spent earning a Bachelor's degree in Psychology and then I continued for another two years to earn a Master's Degree in Counseling. During those six years, I spent two and a half years living in regular campus housing, one and a half years living in on-campus Greek housing, and two years living in on-campus graduate housing. I was active in various clubs and organizations on campus and interacted with faculty and administrators on a daily basis as well as interacting with my fellow students.
During my six years at Rider, it was an ever changing environment. New academic and administrative buildings were erected, dormitories were renovated and improved and the school went from being called Rider College to earning the right to be called Rider University.
ACADEMICS
I found the professors to be personable and caring. They took the time to get to know each student and cared enough to meet with students after class if necessary. The classes were generally 13-20 students so that made it easier for the students and professors to get to know each other. The classrooms were clean and the desks and chairs were in good condition. The psychology department has a beautiful, up-to-date lab available for testing and research and the computer labs are chock full of new, fast computers...and plenty of student-workers hired by the school to assist people in the computer lab who may need help. As quoted from their mission statement, Rider offers "educational opportunities through rich and varied curricula that encourage students to learn deeply and broadly in response to their individual needs and interests"
HOUSING
Rider has twelve student residence halls on campus and six Greek (sorority/fraternity) residences on campus that are campus regulated. One residence hall (Lincoln Hall) is set up as suites. Each suite has wall to wall carpeting, three bedrooms, one toilet, a shower and two sinks. Each suite has its own thermostat to control the air conditioner/heat for the three bedrooms. The rest of the residence halls are set up with approximately 16 rooms per floor and a community bathroom on each floor (3-4 shower stalls, 3 toilet stalls and 4 sinks). Lincoln Hall is the only air conditioned residence hall, although students are permitted to bring their own air conditioning unit to put in the window. There is a Resident Assistant (RA) on each floor and a Residence Director (RD) in each building in the non-Greek buildings. Greek houses are self-governing while overseen by campus security. Nine of the residence halls are situated "up-campus," and all laid out so they overlook the "quad" which is a large grassy area where students can sunbathe in the warm weather and have snowball fights in the winter. The residences are generally kept quite clean with cleaning crews coming through several times a week to maintain the common areas. They are all well secured and require student ID or a key to enter.
SOCIAL LIFE
Rider has always been known as a "suitcase school." This means that most students head home to their parents on the weekends. For that reason, Thursday night has always been the big night on campus for parties. There is "The Pub," on the bottom floor of the Student Center. They are open most evenings until 1am. They serve beer and wine coolers, as well as nonalcoholic beverages and snacks like buffalo wings, French fries and chicken strips. They host various small bands and they have a dance floor with Rider students acting as Deejays. There are approximately 3 fraternities and 3 sororities (this number fluctuates as different groups get themselves into and out of trouble) that host both closed (only fraternity and sorority members allowed) and open (open to all students) functions. There are numerous non-Greek groups to fit into anyone's lifestyle...everything from ROTC to Inspirational Choir. You can find a full list of all of the organizations listed at: http://www.rider.edu/student_life/ontheweb/clubs.htm
The student center has a movie theater that the Student Government Association uses to show somewhat-current movies every Friday and Saturday night free of charge.
FOOD
Rider has Daly Dining Hall that serves three meals a day during the week and two meals a day (brunch and dinner) on the weekends. The food is, well, college food. Heavy, greasy and bland. On the weekends, though, the brunch is phenomenal...eggs any style, omelets, pancakes, French toast, cereals, fresh fruit, you name it. There is also "The C Store." This is the campus convenience store. It has much more convenient hours than Daly's and you can get hoagies, pizza, sandwiches and the basic items you would find in a 7-11 (excluding the liquor and beer).
ATHLETICS
Rider University is best known for the Rider Broncs, the basketball team. But they also have baseball, softball, soccer, golf, tennis, volleyball, wrestling, cheerleading, dance team and several others. The athletic facilities are clean, although a little behind the times. There is an indoor olympic sized pool on campus, as well as a fitness center that offers aerobics and step aerobics classes. Rider does not have a football team, so all of that "fan" energy is devoted to the Broncs, the basketball team. Basketball games are a huge event at Rider with the bleachers often packed to capacity. There is a section in the bleachers when the rowdiest fans sit that is referred to as "The Broncs Zoo."
THE PEOPLE
I looked at approximately fifteen schools when I was applying to colleges. When I narrowed it down to just three schools that I felt could provide me with a superior education, Rider was one of those three. When I had to make my final decision, I chose Rider because the people were so warm. I went through all sorts of emotional upheavals during my years at Rider (as most college students do) and never had any trouble finding someone to help me through. From professors who helped me through family problems that were interfering with my studies, to RA's to talk to at 3am over broken hearts. Even the women who ran the cash registers at the campus book store knew my name and were friendly and caring (one even gave me a free chocolate bar when I was stressing over finals). I made some of my best friends at Rider. My years at Rider University were some of the best years of my life.
THE BOTTOM LINE
You get out of college what you put into it. You can go to college and sit in your room and refuse to make friends or get to know people...or you can meet your neighbors, talk to people in the dining hall, and find the clubs that fit your interest and join them. You can have trouble with a class and sulk because you don't understand the work...or you can meet your professors after class for help or ask them to help you find a tutor. You can sit on the fringes and criticize the sororities and fraternities for having too much fun, or you can jump in with both feet and get to know them.
To take a tour of the campus or to apply for admissions, visit www.rider.edu/
Recommended:
Yes
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dannyzmom
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Member: Carolyn
Location: South Florida
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