Hofstra University,
Hempstead, NY
Located on Long Island in a suburban area with all the resources of Manhattan just a stone’s throw away, Hofstra University was founded in 1935. Originally an extension of NYU, Hofstra became independent in 1939 and a university in 1963. It consists of 10 schools, including a school of nursing, a school of business, schools of law, education, engineering, communications, and liberal arts and sciences. For a school with only 6700 undergrads, Hofstra offers a whopping 160 programs to choose from.
Dedicated to sustainability (one motto there is Blue and Gold make Green), Hofstra believes in their responsibility to the environment not just where they are but also in the greater world. They offer programs in Urban Ecology, Environmental Resources, Sustainable Resources as well as Environmental Chemistry and Environmental Engineering, so if you are looking to continue your work from ESA or start your journey in climate crisis, Hofstra have what you are looking for.
Hofstra also has an engineering school so if you want to pursue engineering you can do it there. They offer a wide array of types of engineering programs for students. Everything from computer engineering and cybersecurity to industrial engineering, from civil engineering to mechanical engineering is available to you. Plus, since Hofstra is also a school with solid Liberal Arts, if you find that biomedical engineering isn’t for you and you just want to move to biochemistry, that is doable.
The offerings in the Liberal Arts and Sciences program are rich and varied. Major in neuroscience, music performance, Chinese, or meteorology. Focus on English- literatures in English children’s and young adult literature, geography/GIS, Economics, or mathematics with science applications. What about food studies, military science, Middle East and Central Asian Studies (a key area for Department of State jobs!!), or pre-med? Most Liberal Arts programs do not have this variety of programs for undergrads. This is a real bonus at Hofstra, and with New York so close there are great opportunities for internships and job shadowing for all of these.
There is also an undergraduate business program available at Hofstra with multiple opportunities for students. Major in finance, entrepreneurship, international business, supply chain management, or marketing. Get on the inside with information systems and business analytics. These are very niche programs and as a result the average starting salary for a Hofstra graduate is, according to US News.
Hofstra is also home to a mighty number of research institutes that students have access to. Not only can they work there they have them as resources as well. The Center for Civic Engagement helps to keep students politically active and engaged in their community. They sponsor internships for academic credit as well as speakers, debates, workshops, and more. The Center for Climate Study is funded by a ½ million doall grant which they put towards hiring students to conduct research on topics like prehistoric hurricanes and ocean absorption of CO2. The Digital Resource Center works to digitize documents and images that otherwise might be lost. The Hofstra University Bioethics Center is a collaboration between the law school and the med school to examine the ethical and social impacts of the intersection between science and the law. And these are just some of the options. There are 24 in all.
Two times a year, once in fall and once in spring, students gather for the Student Engagement and Learning conference where undergraduates share their research with the community. Advanced learning is a large part of the curriculum at Hofstra and students are expected to engage in it throughout their time there. This day is a celebration of the incredibly hard work that goes into research and its outcomes. Students from across the university share their research with their peers, faculty, and visitors and have an opportunity to showcase their hard work and their talent.
So what is it like to go to Hofstra? Hofstra works hard to be a student centered environment where students are both challenged and nurtured, prepared for their futures after school and successful at school as well. Students are welcomed to campus in the summer for a three day, two night mini-orientation and then come back for a week long orientation in the fall. There is a common read that unites the first year class (for the entering 2020 class it will be No One Is Too Small To Make A Difference” by Greta Thunberg) and that serves as a beginning for your academic conversations. Pride is actually a way of life at Hofstra (each letter represents a value: Perseverance, Responsibility, Innovation, Diversity, Empowerment) and you can see it in the way students are engaged from day 1.
From there, you will experience many opportunities to participate in leadership and service initiatives like Relay for Life, Habitat for Humanity, Blue and Gold Leadership, or Midnight Run. Students at Hofstra take advantage of programs like Alternative Spring Break, interactive community art projects, Pride, exploration of African American heritage and history, political debates, intersectional conferences, lectures on age and aging, exploration of ethics in healthcare, mindfulness meditation, and a musician’s discussion on her path to sustainability (in Spanish). The campus has multiple events to take advantage of every day.
First years live in housing specifically for them designed to be nurturing and to support them in their first year so they can meet with success. Most first years will live in “The Netherlands,” where students are grouped into houses of 55 usually by interest, making it a Living Learning Community. Groups of students who are pre-health, or in the business school, or the arts, live in these communities in the different houses in The Netherlands (for example, Math, Science, and Engineering live in Rotterdam House, the arts community is in the Hague House). The other first year housing is also organized by interest and is located in the Stuyvesant Hall. Residents there are interested in international exploration and leadership.
There are plenty of sports to enjoy on campus. Hofstra has 21 DI sports with wrestling, baseball, lacrosse, and cross country being some of the most popular. In addition to these, there are also tennis, volleyball, softball, soccer, and field hockey to enjoy. Hofstra has plenty of club sports as well including non-tackle football, ice hockey, rugby, cheerleading, crew, handball, and riding. For those of you into the great outdoors, Hofstra also has rock climbing and snowboarding. And for those of you into the great indoors, there are pocket billiards and roller hockey.
Clubs are an embarrassment of riches at Hofstra. There is a rich arts scene with multiple shows going on all the time. They have a Shakespeare Festival each spring. Greek life is also a popular way to live at Hofstra and will take up your time and provide a place to live. No matter what your interest there are multiple clubs and organizations that will appeal to you. From philosophy to motorsports engineering, from Campus Whispers (the local horror writing mag) to Adopt a Dream (works to give kids with chronic illness a dream come true), to the pep band, nonsense humor mag, student government, yoga, women in business, Hofstra v. Zombies, history club, De Moda Fashion Club, Makin’ Treble (women’s acapella), Hofbeats (co-ed acapella), Bollywood Giddha Bangra, and Culinary Club, you pretty much can’t go wrong.
Is Hofstra for you? Hofstra is great for a lot of people. Students at Hofstra are pretty confident people. They feel good about themselves and the paths they are forging. But there is enough support there that if you are not 100% sure that what you think you want to do when you start college, it’s ok to change your mind. You will have the support of the community, faculty, and staff to help you make that change for the best. It’s a really safe place to grow up which is part of what college is about.
Pros:
Cons:
Hempstead, NY
Located on Long Island in a suburban area with all the resources of Manhattan just a stone’s throw away, Hofstra University was founded in 1935. Originally an extension of NYU, Hofstra became independent in 1939 and a university in 1963. It consists of 10 schools, including a school of nursing, a school of business, schools of law, education, engineering, communications, and liberal arts and sciences. For a school with only 6700 undergrads, Hofstra offers a whopping 160 programs to choose from.
Dedicated to sustainability (one motto there is Blue and Gold make Green), Hofstra believes in their responsibility to the environment not just where they are but also in the greater world. They offer programs in Urban Ecology, Environmental Resources, Sustainable Resources as well as Environmental Chemistry and Environmental Engineering, so if you are looking to continue your work from ESA or start your journey in climate crisis, Hofstra have what you are looking for.
Hofstra also has an engineering school so if you want to pursue engineering you can do it there. They offer a wide array of types of engineering programs for students. Everything from computer engineering and cybersecurity to industrial engineering, from civil engineering to mechanical engineering is available to you. Plus, since Hofstra is also a school with solid Liberal Arts, if you find that biomedical engineering isn’t for you and you just want to move to biochemistry, that is doable.
The offerings in the Liberal Arts and Sciences program are rich and varied. Major in neuroscience, music performance, Chinese, or meteorology. Focus on English- literatures in English children’s and young adult literature, geography/GIS, Economics, or mathematics with science applications. What about food studies, military science, Middle East and Central Asian Studies (a key area for Department of State jobs!!), or pre-med? Most Liberal Arts programs do not have this variety of programs for undergrads. This is a real bonus at Hofstra, and with New York so close there are great opportunities for internships and job shadowing for all of these.
There is also an undergraduate business program available at Hofstra with multiple opportunities for students. Major in finance, entrepreneurship, international business, supply chain management, or marketing. Get on the inside with information systems and business analytics. These are very niche programs and as a result the average starting salary for a Hofstra graduate is, according to US News.
Hofstra is also home to a mighty number of research institutes that students have access to. Not only can they work there they have them as resources as well. The Center for Civic Engagement helps to keep students politically active and engaged in their community. They sponsor internships for academic credit as well as speakers, debates, workshops, and more. The Center for Climate Study is funded by a ½ million doall grant which they put towards hiring students to conduct research on topics like prehistoric hurricanes and ocean absorption of CO2. The Digital Resource Center works to digitize documents and images that otherwise might be lost. The Hofstra University Bioethics Center is a collaboration between the law school and the med school to examine the ethical and social impacts of the intersection between science and the law. And these are just some of the options. There are 24 in all.
Two times a year, once in fall and once in spring, students gather for the Student Engagement and Learning conference where undergraduates share their research with the community. Advanced learning is a large part of the curriculum at Hofstra and students are expected to engage in it throughout their time there. This day is a celebration of the incredibly hard work that goes into research and its outcomes. Students from across the university share their research with their peers, faculty, and visitors and have an opportunity to showcase their hard work and their talent.
So what is it like to go to Hofstra? Hofstra works hard to be a student centered environment where students are both challenged and nurtured, prepared for their futures after school and successful at school as well. Students are welcomed to campus in the summer for a three day, two night mini-orientation and then come back for a week long orientation in the fall. There is a common read that unites the first year class (for the entering 2020 class it will be No One Is Too Small To Make A Difference” by Greta Thunberg) and that serves as a beginning for your academic conversations. Pride is actually a way of life at Hofstra (each letter represents a value: Perseverance, Responsibility, Innovation, Diversity, Empowerment) and you can see it in the way students are engaged from day 1.
From there, you will experience many opportunities to participate in leadership and service initiatives like Relay for Life, Habitat for Humanity, Blue and Gold Leadership, or Midnight Run. Students at Hofstra take advantage of programs like Alternative Spring Break, interactive community art projects, Pride, exploration of African American heritage and history, political debates, intersectional conferences, lectures on age and aging, exploration of ethics in healthcare, mindfulness meditation, and a musician’s discussion on her path to sustainability (in Spanish). The campus has multiple events to take advantage of every day.
First years live in housing specifically for them designed to be nurturing and to support them in their first year so they can meet with success. Most first years will live in “The Netherlands,” where students are grouped into houses of 55 usually by interest, making it a Living Learning Community. Groups of students who are pre-health, or in the business school, or the arts, live in these communities in the different houses in The Netherlands (for example, Math, Science, and Engineering live in Rotterdam House, the arts community is in the Hague House). The other first year housing is also organized by interest and is located in the Stuyvesant Hall. Residents there are interested in international exploration and leadership.
There are plenty of sports to enjoy on campus. Hofstra has 21 DI sports with wrestling, baseball, lacrosse, and cross country being some of the most popular. In addition to these, there are also tennis, volleyball, softball, soccer, and field hockey to enjoy. Hofstra has plenty of club sports as well including non-tackle football, ice hockey, rugby, cheerleading, crew, handball, and riding. For those of you into the great outdoors, Hofstra also has rock climbing and snowboarding. And for those of you into the great indoors, there are pocket billiards and roller hockey.
Clubs are an embarrassment of riches at Hofstra. There is a rich arts scene with multiple shows going on all the time. They have a Shakespeare Festival each spring. Greek life is also a popular way to live at Hofstra and will take up your time and provide a place to live. No matter what your interest there are multiple clubs and organizations that will appeal to you. From philosophy to motorsports engineering, from Campus Whispers (the local horror writing mag) to Adopt a Dream (works to give kids with chronic illness a dream come true), to the pep band, nonsense humor mag, student government, yoga, women in business, Hofstra v. Zombies, history club, De Moda Fashion Club, Makin’ Treble (women’s acapella), Hofbeats (co-ed acapella), Bollywood Giddha Bangra, and Culinary Club, you pretty much can’t go wrong.
Is Hofstra for you? Hofstra is great for a lot of people. Students at Hofstra are pretty confident people. They feel good about themselves and the paths they are forging. But there is enough support there that if you are not 100% sure that what you think you want to do when you start college, it’s ok to change your mind. You will have the support of the community, faculty, and staff to help you make that change for the best. It’s a really safe place to grow up which is part of what college is about.
Pros:
- Undergraduate programs in a lot of areas including business and engineering
- Solid liberal arts to fall back on
- Nurturing community
- Tons of variety
- Proximity to NYC for internships and work
Cons:
- Private (cha ching!)
- Undergraduate business programs can mean that you repeat a lot of coursework when you do your MBA
- Transportation is a factor
- Cost of living is a lot higher in that area