Eastern Illinois University (Chicago, Champaign, Bloomington: hotel, house, transferring to)
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Anyone a graduate of EIU or lived in the surrounding area (Charleston)? If so, how is the campus, academic life, faculty quality (I'm a LAS major), administration, and quality of the student body ? I would say I'm fairly intelligent and motivated when it comes to school work and socializing so I'm worried I may not be a good fit. Any information would help.
Sorry for this incredibly long-winded post, but here goes...
I went to EIU and lived in both Charleston and Mattoon when I was there. Let me just say this: Thank God that a) the bar-entry age in Charleston was 19 for my first two years there, and b) Champaign-Urbana was only a one-hour drive away. My only complaint about the campus itself was its thorough architectural/aesthetic incoherence, but that's the kind of thing probably doesn't catch most peoples' eye. Otherwise it's nice and tidy. Its primary upside is that it's extremely compact. It takes about 12 minutes to walk from one corner of the campus to the other corner. I was just on campus about 10 days ago and they've made a ton of capital improvements since I attended from 1992-1998. They just finished up a brand new performing arts center where the old one used to be, and it looks like they're building something else too. One of the combined administrative/classroom buildings burnt nearly to the ground a couple years ago so it's brand new except for the outer shell. But as a medium-sized state school, it still doesn't have the sort of facilities and quality thereof that you'll find at a flagship school like U of I.
Here's one thing I really liked about EIU: It is not a conventional research university so the professors focus their time on actually teaching their subject instead of getting paid to ignore their students who are instead taught by barely coherent foreigners who barely know the subject material. Every single one of my classes except two were taught by actual professors instead of TA's. Of the two that were taught by TA's, one was a math class that could have been taught by anyone who knew what they were talking about and knew how to convey it to the students (and he did); the other was only taught by a TA (two TAs actually) because the professor fell seriously ill and they took over for him. Additionally, I only had two "lecture-hall" style classes, and even in one of them the prof got to know almost all of us by name and interacted with us in class. Every one of my classes but those two were 25 students or less. When I went there, the school motto was "big enough to matter, small enough to care." And I found that to be pretty accurate, though at the time, us clever college students parodied it with our own version: "Big enough to have a McDonald's, small enough to bore you."
Where EIU falls short is the "campus life" aspect. It and Charleston don't have much in the way of the standard "college atmosphere" like you find in more substantial college towns like Chambana or even Bloomington/Normal. For the most part you won't find the little neo-bohemian arthouse coffee shops and hip alt-indie record stores and cool hangout bars. What it does have plenty of is get-drunk-and-puke bars and chain restaurants. There just isn't much in the way of entertainment and cultural offerings like you have in a "real" college campus. There just isn't much to do but hang out and drink, or go to the bars and drink, so that's about the only thing the students do there. I started college as a tee-totaler. By the time I left, I had an alcohol habit that bordered on interfering with my ability to function and took me years to get under control. Yes, it was mostly my fault for succumbing to peer pressure (though in defense of my friends, they weren't trying to get my drunk when they took me out to a bar for my 19th birthday, they just wanted to celebrate with me and I was hooked from that moment on), but there just wasn't much else to do there. A good number of students spend a portion of their weekends up at U of I visiting friends or family and getting a dose of "real" college-town atmosphere.
Charleston itself is a tired, fairly run-down town full of small-town folks with small-town notions, ambitions and sensibilities -- which is to say, they're perfectly content with their little run-down town and don't see any need for change or improvements. I don't mean that as derisively as it sounds, but rather to point out that this sets up a pretty big culture clash between the town locals and the overwhelmingly suburban Chicago who are used to slightly more urbane tastes, tidier aesthetics and higher standard of living. Of course, the campus-versus-locals culture clash is not unique to Charleston; but what makes it particularly pronounced there is that the student body comprises over half the town's population.
My ex-wife and I moved to Mattoon during my last year of school to get some peace and quiet; we were getting too old for the party scene in Charleston. The last straw was waking up at 2am to find a couch on fire in our parking lot. That was over 10 years ago and to this day I regret having moved to Mattoon. The culture clash was just unreal. And it was more than just "city-kid-in-a-small-town" type of clash. It wasn't just that it was a small town; it was a scummy small town with small-minded people. The old-timers were fine and friendly, but the younger people were just... creepy and unbelievably provincial as if Mattoon were something to be proud of. If Charleston makes Champaign-Urbana look like Rome, Mattoon in turn makes Charleston look like Paris. It really is that bad. I am not exaggerating or embellishing when I say that leaving Mattoon in a moving truck with all of my belongings was one of the best days of my life.
So to sum up, as for Charleston and EIU, the school was the right place for me when I was fresh out of high school, and Charleston was somehow tolerable at the time. But the further away in age I get from those young care-free college days, the more I shudder at the prospect of ever living in Charleston again. Maybe I could do it for the right amount of money -- say, well into a six-figure salary -- but I'd still have to think long and hard about it. For that kind of money, commuting from Chambana would be a very attractive alternative to living in Charleston. (In fact, quite a few of the professors do that very commute.) And unless it undergoes some sort of unprecedented cultural renaissance, I would never live in Mattoon again for any reason whatsoever.
Wow, thank you. The small town with small minded people isn't new to me. I'm at NIU right now and you would think people would be more tolerant since it's about an hour from Chicago, but no. I spoke to some acquaintances of mine who attend EIU and they actually speak of it with enthusiasm. I'm a bit worried though, I know EIU isn't an academic haven, but I want to seriously delve into my majors (Soc. and Phil.) so I hope there are enough resources for me to pursue. Were the professors you had competent and easy to talk to outside of class? Were you challenged not only by your professors but by your classmates academically?
Wow, thank you. The small town with small minded people isn't new to me. I'm at NIU right now and you would think people would be more tolerant since it's about an hour from Chicago, but no. I spoke to some acquaintances of mine who attend EIU and they actually speak of it with enthusiasm. I'm a bit worried though, I know EIU isn't an academic haven, but I want to seriously delve into my majors (Soc. and Phil.) so I hope there are enough resources for me to pursue. Were the professors you had competent and easy to talk to outside of class? Were you challenged not only by your professors but by your classmates academically?
Yes, most of my professors were competent, and most were easy to talk to outside of class. As I said before, they actually teach, so they know who you are when you come into their office, and if you ask them about materials that were just covered in class, they know exactly what you're talking about since they're the ones who just taught it. I'm still in contact with a couple of my professors to this day, which is part of the reason why I was on campus last week.
As for being academically challenging... I found most of the "gen ed" classes to be a breeze, but once you start getting into "serious" material of your chosen discipline, it became a lot more challenging. I was a political science major, so my views were challenged by my professors and many of my classmates as a matter of course. BS didn't fly easily; if you did not demonstrate that you had given some serious thought to your beliefs and policy proposals, you got slaughtered. Those who could not or would not think past the first layer of a complex issue were dispatched promptly and with little sympathy.
Yes, most of my professors were competent, and most were easy to talk to outside of class. As I said before, they actually teach, so they know who you are when you come into their office, and if you ask them about materials that were just covered in class, they know exactly what you're talking about since they're the ones who just taught it. I'm still in contact with a couple of my professors to this day, which is part of the reason why I was on campus last week.
As for being academically challenging... I found most of the "gen ed" classes to be a breeze, but once you start getting into "serious" material of your chosen discipline, it became a lot more challenging. I was a political science major, so my views were challenged by my professors and many of my classmates as a matter of course. BS didn't fly easily; if you did not demonstrate that you had given some serious thought to your beliefs and policy proposals, you got slaughtered. Those who could not or would not think past the first layer of a complex issue were dispatched promptly and with little sympathy.
I'm weak in debate, but this is good to hear. I need to toughen up when I defend my opinions. When you graduated how hard was it finding a job and getting internships? I was looking at EIU's undergraduate research program I like what I read so far.
EIU Has a GREAT, I MEAN GREAT SOCIOLOGY DEPARTMENT. With the exception of 1 anthropology professor, they are all great. Very intelligent and very good teachers. THey make time for you and don't ignore your questions.
Socially, if you like going out, EIU is the place for you. IF you don't like going out, there are plenty of campus groups and different types of people you can hang out with.
I'm weak in debate, but this is good to hear. I need to toughen up when I defend my opinions. When you graduated how hard was it finding a job and getting internships? I was looking at EIU's undergraduate research program I like what I read so far.
Can't really answer these questions; I left in 1998 before graduating and I had been in the workforce for 5 years before I graduated in 2003 on a "requirement waiver" from the Dean of the College of Sciences and from the Political Science department chair. Even so, a political science degree isn't particularly useful except as a gateway to grad school or for jobs that are just looking for college grads with any degree. I'm not sure where they could have placed me if I'd had my degree when I left.
I grew up in Charleston and went to EIU for a bit before transferring to U of Illinois. A lot of what has been said is on point, but I think the real question is what are you looking for long term. Charleston may not be the place you want to settle post-college, but then again many college towns in Illinois don't meet that requirement either. If you want to continue to live in Illinois somewhere I really don't think EIU v. NIU v. WIU is going to make all that much of a difference.
The one thing I found about Charleston, now that I live away from it and have a far more 'global' lifestyle is that Charleston is really kind of an island--an island in the corn. Everything the locals 'need' to survive, food, clothes, etc. is available in the town. Yea, there is no 24 hour sushi restaurant but the people there have learned to survive without it. It's really an example of people not knowing what else is out there, but then again, not really caring that they don't have it. In a way it is somewhat sad, but in another way it's somewhat self-reliant.
Chicagoans who are used to a 10 mile drive for good Thai and a great shoe store at the Mall in a suburb down the road are in for a shock, and can go a bit mad at times. You can get a bit claustrophobic if you are used to more.
That said, you'll meet some in the University community who lived abroad, who worked in Washington or New York, or who went to an Ivy League school to get their PhD before settling down in a small midwestern town where they know their neighbors and feel a part of a community. It depends a lot on who you socialize with and what you like to do. If plastic cups and puking is your scene, you'll find that. You might also find a smaller group of friends who want to hang out a quiet coffee house somewhere.
Anyway, can't really advise if you should go or not go--going to be your call. Would encourage you to head down and try to stay a night or two in a hotel there and see things, visit some professors, maybe go out to a bar and chat up some people.
I just visited EIU this past Saturday and I liked what I saw and the people I encountered. I was taken by the Doudna Fine Arts Center (I think it's grand opening was this August - not sure.). It was absolutely amazing; it literally brings any culture that Charleston or EIU was missing to the students and residents. Almost like a mini-Krannert Center. I'll give you the rest of my review later this week.
The campus itself was 'cute' and compact, which I liked a lot. The town of Charleston was a snooze fest - like Penguin said an island. I just hope I can stay entertained during the weekends when I'm not doing homework or going to sporting events.
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