Emerson College
- 4 Year
- BOSTON, MA
CollegeGrad School
Emerson College Reviews
Rating 3.51 out of 5 1,154 reviews
I love Emerson for so many reasons, but mainly because of how unbelievably prepared I feel for my career, even as a freshman. I have the opportunity to be a part of extracurriculars that build my resume, introduce me to connections in my chosen industry, and some I can get free credits for. On top of this, my professors know everyones names in classes because of small course sizes, and want to see you succeed.
The college is amazing and in the most perfect location. Being in the center of Boston culture and Boston life is one of the most inspiring places to be, especially for an arts college. Inspiration is certainly everywhere.
Emerson does a number of things quite well- the student body is passionate, driven, and motivated, and works tirelessly to create incredible productions and projects. On-campus organizations are popular and most students are involved, allowing students to gain professional experience before graduating. Professors are knowledgeable and understanding, and small class sizes allow for strong student-professor relationships. Unfortunately, a joke among students says that everyone has considered transferring at least once. I have not found the academically and creatively challenging environment I thought I would at Emerson, and this is extremely frustrating. I do not find the student body to be open-minded- the culture is often performative, judgmental, and superficial. The administration is a constant disappointment- students are not permitted to use most school theaters for sold-out plays, and tuition rates are constantly rising. I do not feel the education I have received is an 80k one.
Transferring out. Came into with a creative writing major with a focus in poetry and have not written one poem since getting here. Extremely unhappy and is isolating for introverts. Hard to make friends; very few nice and not snobby people.
The Emerson community is amazing: I love the area of Boston and being surrounded by students passionate about the arts. My professors have all been intelligent, kind, and (mostly) easy to communicate with. My high school was very diverse and this is a huge shift compared to that. I am glad to be studying film and minoring in digital media, and am looking forward to taking some playwriting and game design electives. As all Emerson students do, I really dislike SEAL (student leadership) as they make students’ extracurricular lives much harder than they have to be. Administration is fine, I just wish they would answer my questions directly instead of consistently forwarding my emails to other people.
Emerson College has wonderful programs and is filled with wonderful people. The environment promotes education and pushing yourself to your fullest potential. The only thing that is negative about Emerson is the cost and the lack of financial aid. The classes are great and the professors all have real world professional experience in their respective fields.
The campus is very conveniently located. Since the school is so small, the staff and professors are able to focus extra attention on students and help them. The community is also very close knit.
I had a roomate who was extremely antisemitic. I moved out of my room because every time I was there, they treated me horribly. I moved into a friend’s apartment off campus and it took housing two weeks to find me a new room. often, housing had not communicated with each other and were not aware of the situation I had previously told them about in detail. I felt unsafe on campus and did not have the bandwidth most days to go into the room I was paying for. There are so many things I love and appreciate about Emerson but this really turned me off, especially because it’s my freshman year and my resident director was very dismissive
I can't speak for other departments, but the WLP program at Emerson is amazing. The professors are exceptional and strive to make class interesting as well as connect with you. There are lots of resources available, but you have to find them and make use of them yourself. Do your research, make calls and appointments, look for info on the campus posting sites. The Backstage Deli is definitely the best place to get food. However, the dining plans are a bit annoying, as you either have too many meals that go to waste or you have to ration yourself. As well, tuition - it is increasing every year and the administration is not clear on where all of it goes. Especially because there have been issues with faculty not making livable wages, this is frustrating. As well, financial aid is incredibly low. While a career in the arts is hard, there are resources available at Emerson to help you achieve what you dream of, but you have to be determined and work hard for it.
Emerson has really great and supportive teachers. I also so deeply appreciate the staff working in the school's Healing and Advocacy Collective, who have been nothing but supportive of me during my time here. However, I have yet to meet a community of people who share my various identities here. Emerson has some great clubs that support students of color, but I don't feel particularly supported by the school itself. It sometimes feels like they don't value me or my voice. The school has also been ranked worst financial aid in the country. I personally was not given amazing financial aid, and my attempt to appeal was immediately rejected. This school claims they want to help shape me to change the world, but I am seeing a lot of what's wrong with the world in the first place in the institutional structure of this school. I love the students I have met over the course of this year, but the institution over us needs to do better. We deserve to feel like we are wanted and belong here.
Most of us are new to Boston, adjusting is hard. Residency life sucks here, Upper management handled things very problematically, especially those who in charge of monitor the residency place?. Dorm brings all troubles. Smokes, less time weeds.. But it does appear. Three year commitment to a tiny dorm you need to get serious documentary to get out here, and if you got your docs you even need to do an interview. I would agree about cliquey mostly depends on race. Something I would say I loved is my professors, they are nice and warm. Overall as a beginning three months freshman student, I don't feel happy here, feel DIED already lol.
people are fine - cliquey, but it's basically like high school so if you were fine there, you'll probably be fine here. my biggest piece of advice is to be outgoing because otherwise it can be really isolating. i am a journalism major and the faculty are CLEARLY experienced and passionate about the field. it's a competitive environment, but it's not an obnoxiously difficult workload. my best piece of advice would be to refine your time management skills if that's not something that you are already strong in. orgs are great and an awesome way to find community and boost your resume, they offer a ton of hands-on experience.
The people were great, the location was great, but the program wasn't for me. I was looking fore a more technical program, but they were focusing a lot on theory.
Emerson definitely has its flaws, but the structure of the school is perfect for student's interested in pursuing a career in a creative field. At Emerson, you don't have to wait to leave college to start getting experience and doing the things you are passionate about.
Emerson College is a good school for learning, you do get out what you put into it. I like the teachers, and the things they offer like the EDC where you can get pro film equipment is great. Although I do wish it was a lot easier to rent equipment, sometimes it feels like I'm jumping through hoops to try to get the equipment that I want. The food at the school is also very bad, It's not the fault of the kitchen staff as sometimes they make really good meals. I think the school is just cheap with the ingredients they give them. Speaking of cheap though, the school is not. It gets harder and harder every year to justify going to a film school with the insane price hikes every year. Last semester the price of the school went up by 4% which doesn't sound like much, but it's about an extra 2-3 thousand a semester.
Emerson College is great for students with a passion for the arts. I have a very diverse set of interests, and I find that Emerson caters to almost all of them.
The teachers are so involved with their students and everyone is so creative! I enjoyed the topics covered in classes.
The main issues I have revolve around the lack of specialized courses, disordered residential life, and rising tuition rates. The academics are good overall, but I desperately wish Emerson offered more courses dedicated to animation as it is such an important film medium and what I am interested in, and I know I'm not alone. I also had trouble with unruly students my first year and didn't receive help from the Residential Directors, let alone a reply to my email. Moreover, the rising cost of tuition feels necessary as there were no valid reason to place responsibility on the students to pay more for their education, especially those who rely on financial aid and loans to afford such an education. If Emerson expects their students to pay a 4% increased tuition, then I expect them to actually listen to their students and provide whatever academic or residential needs they may ask for, within reason. If these issues were resolved, I would rate my experience at Emerson 5/5 stars.
As a college freshman, it is nerve-racking to walk into a new city, with new people, and a completely different lifestyle. Emerson is making me feel very at home and the support for students is fantastic.
I love Emerson. Everyone at the school is very passionate about the work they do, and there is never a shortage of ideas or opportunities to participate in. However, it's important to note that the experience isn't for everyone. I love the performing arts program and student organizations with learning opportunities, but going to Emerson is what you make it. If you want to make the most of it, be prepared to always be busy. It's also a very expensive school to attend.