Florida International University has a reputation for being one of South Florida’s most convenient local universities. Founded in 1965 by Chuck Perry, the college has blown up since, housing over 56,886 students. Home of “The Panthers,” FIU has garnered the reputation of being “the next step” after attending Miami Dade College for two years. There have been both good and bad things said about the University, but why don’t we hear from the students themselves?
I got to interview two current FIU students to ask them about anything from academics to after-class activities to their current feelings towards the university.
What does your average day look like?
Gaby: “My average day starts with me waking up and getting ready for class or work, depending on the day.”
Thea: “My average day [usually consists of] getting dropped off [at] the campus or take the bus to the campus in the morning. Some days I would take Panther Express bus to [the Biscayne Bay Campus] for my other class.”
What’s it like walking around campus? Is it pleasant? Tiring? How’s the scenery?
Gaby: “Walking around campus can be nice at night, but during the day it can be pretty tiring.”
Thea: “This semester has been difficult walking around, it’s more crowded than before. At the first half of the semster, there were a lot of petitioners, which was annoying.”
Are you in any clubs? If so, how are they?
Gaby: “No. Not right now.”
Thea: “Yes, I used to go to a club. However, I don’t participate in their recent events.”
How are your professors? Are they any good? Bad?
Gaby: “My professors are amazing! They definitely love teaching their material.”
Thea: “Most of my professors were nice and caring, however, I did have some bad experiences with online professors.”
What are some negatives about FIU?
Gaby: “PARKING”
Thea: “The negatives sides of FIU is that there’s not enough parking space or space in general at the main campus.”
What do think of FIU as a whole?
Gaby: “FIU is a good school. I wish they had little more [majors] to [apply] to like cosmetology or fashion majors.”
Thea: “I think FIU as a whole is a good university. We are a melting pot with different cultures.”
If you could change anything about FIU what would you?
Gaby: “Add more parking, and add more majors.”
Thea: “I want to add more parking garages, and more places to sit at the main campus.”
All in all, FIU sounds like a respectable university. It’s well located, has all the amenities that out of town students could want and relatively affordable. It could do with a couple more parking garages and several other choices when it comes to majors, but as a whole FIU is one of Miami’s stand out colleges – deservedly so.
