Ask MetaFilter questions tagged with universities

Which NYC area colleges and Universities are teaching valid hand marked-up xhtml and css in their web design courses?

stagewhisper — Tue, 17 Nov 2009 07:21:11 -0800

Which (if any) NYC area colleges and Universities are teaching valid hand marked-up xhtml and css in their web design courses? I am trying to find a freelancer or small firm to take over a dating website redesign for a client in the NYC/NJ area. The back-end is/will be Cold Fusion (this is the only option as far as the client is concerned) and the front end styles and all formatting will be implemented using style sheets and fully accessible xhtml. I am having trouble finding an entry level designer who not only has the proper skill set, but who also understands why it is important that their code validates.
The best option seems to be to advertise this job on various area school's alumni and/or student job boards, but if the state university that I am currently a grad student at is any indication, not all web design courses and digital design concentrations teach much beyond WYSIWYG dreamweaver classes, and the computer science classes don't address user interface design and css much, if at all.
Is anyone here familiar enough with the design programs at other schools (Pratt, Parsons, SVA, Rutgers, etc.) that they might suggest the best programs and career services offices for me to contact?

Inflated grades or inflated hype?

hiteleven — Mon, 11 May 2009 16:34:50 -0800

Is grade inflation really that serious a problem at colleges and universities? Looking to cut through the rhetoric associated with this issue. Before posting this question, I dutifully sought out an answer through Google, and I didn't realize that grade inflation had become such a political issue. I don't exactly follow radical right wing punditry, so I didn't realize that to so many from that lot Harvard = grade inflation = some sort of liberal plot or another. Well, whatever.

I know that there are statistics out there that show that, for example, Ivy League schools hand out a higher percentage of high grades than they did, say, a half-century ago. But that doesn't really tell me much. There could be a number of factors in play to explain these figures. But nobody appears to want to analyze the situation objectively.

So what I'm asking is this: has anyone been to a school where they perceived grade inflation to be a serious issue? That is, were there large swaths of students getting high grades who didn't deserve them? If so, how did this work? Could they actually skip assignments and still do well, or was it more like they just had to put in a minimum amount of effort to do the necessary work? Was it so bad that students expected high grades when they clearly had no business doing so?

I know that grades don't mean a lot to most people. But the reason I ask is that I'm in a grad school program that draws students from a wide variety of backgrounds, and I'm surprised at the sense of entitlement some people have when it comes to getting the A-level grades they need to stay in good standing. Where I came from in undergrad, the students that worked the hardest (i.e. those destined for grad school) seem to worry about their grades the most. Where I am now, nobody seems to stress about grades. It's odd.

Books about non-US universities

hydropsyche — Wed, 28 Jan 2009 06:24:37 -0800

Have you read good books (fiction or non-fiction) which accurately depict/explain life at universities in countries other than the US? I will be finishing grad school soon. In my life I have attended a small liberal arts college, two large state universities, and now a pseudo-ivy league private university. I'm realizing that although I know a lot about the different university experiences in the US, I know next to nothing about how undergraduate and graduate education works elsewhere.

Also, I love fiction and non-fiction set in US universities, things like The Secret History, The Big U, and The Idea Factory.

I figure there must be books like these that are fun to read and will help me learn more about higher education in other countries. About the closest I have come is Gaudy Night. Googling something like this is useless, so I'm looking for suggestions.

Best Distance Learning schools with Computer Science degree programs?

premo — Thu, 06 Nov 2008 02:07:57 -0800

Best Distance Learning Universities with Computer Science degree programs? Any recommendations appreciated! I've been considering going to Troy University for my BA in Computer Science. Are there any other competitors that I should be looking at?

I've been to University of Phoenix and they are awful, high priced and don't care about their students at all. I'm 27 and need a school that I can complete entirely online. My main objective is to find a school that is well received and will be enjoyable, price and difficulty aren't as important to me as the caliber of teachers and or program is.

Thanks so much.

If it looks and quacks like a CS Degree, then is it a genuine enough CS Degree???

JoeXIII007 — Wed, 23 Jul 2008 20:15:25 -0800

Does it really matter where you get the Computer Science degree from? I am currently going to Washtenaw Community College to (of course) save money while getting the all important education. Currently majoring in Math and Science with a concentration in Computer Science.

At the moment I have pretty much put my future plans on going to the University of Michigan just a little further westward (which, if you have not heard, is a pretty reputable University other than being part of the Big Ten, as far as I have known).

MUCH closer (I live just barely east of downtown Ypsilanti, MI) to home is Eastern Michigan University. Going there would undeniably save money on not only tuition and supplies but also gas using the car. For either university, I would be commuting to them.

Now I make the following realizations no matter what the decision:
- The CS biz changes practically daily, so I know I will have to constantly learn new stuff.
- As far as I know, computer scientists are in high demand (at least according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics)
- The education I get at college lays a foundation more than anything (doing a pretty deep google search confirmed this) and anything in industry will have to be picked up along the way.
- Having noted that, I already know people without CS degrees already in the industry (particularly with .NET).

Therefore, it really comes down to the money, quality of college education and risk with sacrificing either, and thus why I ask MeFi: does it really matter where I get the CS degree from??? I have done a lot of research into this decision and I am more than anything looking for the final factor (which I cannot seem to grasp) that will set the decision in stone.

Trivia: Currently 19 years old, holding a 3.97 GPA (only shy of a 4 thanks to an A- for some reason), and have put myself through two semesters (Fall 07/Winter 08) of 18 credit hour loads (for a total of 36 in the college career).

as far from Shopping Mall State as possible

brandnew — Wed, 23 Jul 2008 18:55:08 -0800

What are some of the more radical, yet reputable, universities in the United States? What are some universities in United States that encourage a culture of radical intellectualism? To be precise, I mean ones that promote or even encourage research and development of ideas that are unconventional, potential controversial, and likely to be found no where else.

I'm looking for those places of education that attract the most pure thinkers - educators and students that thrive by living on the edge of knowledge, uninterested in contemplating the usual paths. Although they may be fearless and provocative, they still employ rigorous and credible standards of research.

Of course this is an ideal portrait, and likely non-existent. But which universities even come close?

Unofficially auditing university classes?

jayder — Wed, 08 Aug 2007 21:03:20 -0800

Is it weird to ask a university professor if you can audit his/her class without officially enrolling in the university as an auditor ... and, as part of the arrangement, asking the professor if you can submit papers and have them graded and evaluated? Asking for a friend:

"I think I mentioned to you that I was going to look into taking a [graduate liberal arts] class at [Prestigious State University] this fall. [Prestigious State] has a program where people who aren't full-time students can enroll in a class, with the instructor's permission, and you even get credit and a real-life grade for it (whether the [graduate liberal arts] department would later count that credit towards a degree is an open question, I think, but that's not the main point here). I've looked into this, and the snag is that if I do this right now I'd have to pay tuition for the class at the out of state rate, which is very expensive for one class. I don't qualify for in-state tuition until I've lived in this state at least 12 months. So, I wondered what you thought about the following: I've considered e-mailing the professor in the class I'm interested in taking and asking if he would allow me to "audit" the class, i.e., take it for no credit, and without being assigned a grade, and essentially no record that I had ever officially taken the class. Of course there's no way to know how a given professor would react to this, but I wonder if you know anyone who's ever done this, or if you think this idea sounds completely crazy or a professor might take offense at it? The problem with it is that I sort of am asking the professor to work "for free", because I would want to do the assignments and have the prof evaluate them, even if I don't get an official grade. On the other hand, the presence or absence of my tuition being paid into the system is not going to make a difference in the professor's pay rate. But it still seems a little like asking for charity when the prof will probably wonder why I don't just wait twelve months. (I'm not sure it would be appropriate to tell the prof I want to get into grad school one of these days and I'm not getting any younger, damn it). So, what do you think about this idea?"

Legitimate p2p examples?

spock — Tue, 28 Nov 2006 07:32:56 -0800

I need compelling examples of legitimate/legal uses of bittorrent or other p2p applications/protocols. I'm an I.T. guy on a committee that advises a university Chancellor on tech matters. I'm disturbed by the university's bowing to pressure by the RIAA and the responses being taken. We already have a Packeteer in place that (while not banning it) "prioritizes" p2p traffic into such a narrow amount of bandwidth as to make it all but unusable. Now the university is looking into Audible Magic's CopySense appliance/application. Besides the fact that such things are easily defeated by encrypting the shared files (and are therefore a huge waste of university dollars) they also give the university the ability to completely shut off the functionality p2p programs (allegedly). It seems to me that this is wrong-headed — like making VCRs nonfunctional simply because they CAN (and are) used to make copies of copyrighted material.

It seems to me that the best way to make a case against this is to cite situations or cases for which bittorrent or other p2p applications or protocols are used legitimately. I'd appreciate some examples to cite.

Librarian jobs in Canada? Does university name matter?

HotPatatta — Sun, 19 Nov 2006 12:53:41 -0800

Are there lots of librarian jobs in Canada? Does what university I graduate from really matter when I apply for jobs? I'm currently getting my master's degree in Library and Information Science in California but I want to immigrate to Canada when I graduate. Does anybody know if it's hard to get a job as a public or news librarian in Canada, especially for an immigrant? (I really want to go to Vancouver, Toronto, Calgary, Ottowa or other BIG city) Oh, and I do NOT know how to speak French.

My second question is: Does it really matter what university I graduate from? I currently go to UCLA, but I want to transfer to San Jose State Univeristy (in northern California). Maybe in Canada it won't make any difference because they may never have heard of either UCLA or San Jose State U. Some people are snobbish about hiring only people from prestigious universities, but maybe they are the exception to the rule. When I apply for a library job, does the employer just care that I have my master's degree and the rest is based on the interview and other skills?

Pomona Students

supercommon — Wed, 01 Dec 2004 22:39:48 -0800

I've just applied to Pomona, early decision. I'd love to go there, but I'm kind of clueless about what kind of student you have to be to get in (outstanding academically, just interesting, rich). Were you accepted to Pomona or another prestigious university, and if so, what kind of student were you?

Ivy League

the fire you left me — Thu, 08 Jul 2004 09:44:25 -0800

Who went to an American Ivy League School? Did you think it was the best?

Are there any sites/communities that rate individual courses in universities?

Raze2k — Wed, 30 Jun 2004 10:44:43 -0800

Are there any sites/communities that rate individual courses in universities (specifically in Canadia)? [mo] My s.o is transferring to the University of Western Ontario and she's about to register for classes, however she's having difficulty deciding how to schedule our courses. Consequently she has several questions about individual courses / departments that would be best targeted at currently enrolled UWO-students.. but UWO doesn't seem to provide a forum for such engagements and she's not near the campus so wandering about asking folks isn't viable. What's more, with summer in session the admin support is severely lacking. Skeleton crews are all that seems to be left and it's taking forever for professors to reply.

I was hoping that there'd be something akin to Rate-My-Professor? Help?