Academics
Virginia’s Old Dominion University is a progressive, metropolitan research university that offers its 19,000 undergraduate students more than 120 majors, state-of-the-art facilities, and millions of dollars in annual funding for ongoing projects. Online and night courses provide the flexibility needed by the wide-ranging student body and the “focus on internships and gaining experience” and “serviced-based learning” is valued for a group that is ready to enter (if not already in) the workforce. Technology is king here, and the school caters to all types of learners and is adaptable about “using programs like WebEx to have distance students participate in the actual lecture.” The “lab facilities are excellent,” ODU’s trading floor has the most Bloomberg terminals in the state, and there are many different types of classrooms to best serve the swatch of majors, including “typical lecture halls, classrooms, [and] open floor plan rooms with whiteboards covering the tables and walls.”
Most of the professors “have designed informative lectures and study materials, and gear their classes not just towards theoretical knowledge, but real world application.” Students readily admit there are weak teachers in the bunch, but most are “absolutely wonderful,” “have many office hours available and are open to appointments,” and appreciate “the amount of effort professors put in to make sure everyone is successful.” “I’ve had numerous professors help me outside of the classroom with projects that did not even pertain to their class,” says a student. The school is “very research oriented,” and offers many services to students, such as “counseling, health care, [and] accessibility,” as well as a writing center that “allows students to bring in papers to have them reviewed by a professional” so they can receive tips that will help to strengthen their writing.