Empire State College, State University of New York : Business, Management and Economics, Concentration in Business Reviews

Bgrimes89 (In Progress) on January 8, 2012 (email verified)

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ESC HAS BEEN GOOD FOR ME. I'm currently in my second term at ESC. Before ESC I attended BMCC (Borough of Manhattan Community College). In all honesty my experience at ESC has been way better than my prior experiences. This school is for people who are self starters. You have to understand the college system. I also research my professors before I sign up for any course. I've had wonderful professor always willing to help. Also other students are always very helpful as well. My mentor is easily accessible at all times. Anytime I email her I get a response the same day. The financial aid office can be a little difficult but I HAD TEN TIMES WORSE EXPERIENCE AT BMCC with the financial aid office. The lines went on for hours. All you have to do is email the financial aid office and they get back to you in 24 hours or less. This school gives you the freedom to do your work at your own convenience. I dont have a scheduled time block to attend classes and that for me is the best thing ever. If you dont take the effort to try and figure out things on your own do not sign up. The school offers alot of tutorials for things like the degree planner. My mentor had a seminar on how to use the degree planner and it is true that the best way to understand it is to play with it a bit. Also the mentors are extremely helpful they called me and we had a 30 minute conversation about what classes to start with and how the programs works and what to expect. The conversation was extremely thorough. I read everything and know how to go about my degree here based on all the materials the school has provided. I like ESC, this program is perfect for my needs. This program is really intended for people with college experience and a strong academic background. Its not easy.

Anonymous (In Progress) on June 5, 2011 (email verified)

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Worst expereince ever! This may be one of the worst schools in existence. For a state run public institution it acts if they are a for profit school. They take your money and turn your back. They falsely advertise about the experience and about this being a legitimate degree. 70%+ of all teachers do not respond to e-mailed questions, and do a poor job explaining material. If you do not get the material, or if you would like an explanation on a grade, good luck. Suny should be embarrassed about this school, and I hope that one day someone sues this school for fraud. The faculty does not care, because there is no recourse poor work ethic. Most of the professors are actually employed full time in a field, and do not actually attempt to respond to the students needs. Grades are random, and usually do not provide for any explanation. You would do better going to the library. I wish I could have given them a zero.

Anonymous (In Progress) on September 28, 2010 (email verified)

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Wouldn't Change A Thing...EXCEPTIONAL SUNY COLLEGE I am graduating in December and very pleased with my experience at Empire. If it was not for ESC, I would not be where I am today. Yes, it is very difficult at times trying to rectify problems - This is COLLEGE, not Kindergarten. I never expected anyone to hold my hand and glad I took matters into my own hands when necessary. During my orientation/first semester, my mentor was "MIA". I would not tolerate this and pushed the college to assign a new mentor. This is NOT common practice as reassignments RARELY happen (as in close to NEVER). I would not settle and within a few days had a new mentor whom I absolutely ADORE. I struggled during my first semester. ESC is MUCH more difficult than a traditional college. Everyone always comments "can't you CHEAT online? isn't it easier because you just Google and have open book tests?" - THIS IS NOT THE CASE. If you think taking online courses will make life easier assignment and reading wise - think again. Yes, you can go to school in your pajamas and not have to drive anywhere. But, you make up for that "saved time" with a tremendous workload. Now that I am almost done with my studies, I am actually thankful for the much more difficult workload. I would slack off in college and basically memorize vocabulary and concepts. At Empire you are forced to actually grasp the entire CONCEPT, understanding the topic from head to toe - inside and out. Since 90% of assignments are papers, there is only research work which must be done and a LOT of reading since you are basically teaching yourself 80% of the time. If you want an easy degree, perhaps try your local community college which feature multiple choice quizzes. If you are looking for a solid education which will help in your career field, Empire is the way to go I don't want to sound like a spokesperson because I did have some difficulties at Empire. It started day one with my mentor. But like I said - do not expect someone to hold your hand. Take matters into your own hands, follow-up with the appropriate departments. Some professors will be absent and non-existent throughout the semester. COMPLAIN. And when I say complain --- I MEAN ON A DAILY BASIS. It is YOUR FUTURE AND MONEY. I had a professor who was A NIGHTMARE. I complained and so did my ENTIRE CLASS. Apparently she is some big shot at the school and must have a free pass to not work all semester, tell students to "figure it out", take 5-6 weeks to grade assignments, and basically not attend - and get away with it! This was a COMPLETE disappointment and 'till this day I cannot believe proper attention was not paid. She treated her students like animals and put us down on a daily basis. Watch out for her. If you are able to work independently, comfortable writing, schedule tasks and can keep up with deadlines, and can take responsibility for yourself - ESC is for you. If you like working in groups and having your hand held while driving to school - try another university.

Anonymous (In Progress) on February 11, 2010

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You Decide Unfortunately for ESC, I can relate to all the negative comments made so far in this forum. The program is, in fact, very "flexible," and it is ultimately up to you (of course) as the student to get something out of it. I was handed a "learning contract" for only one of the two courses I am taking, and it simply consisted of periodically submitting answers to questions from the text and a final research paper. After that, I received virtually no feedback on the work I submitted, and my mentor rarely replied to my e-mails (in fact, he/she has not replied to my last e-mail from over a month ago). Academic guidance, in my opinion, is essentially non-existent at ESC. If I learned anything here, it was definitely on my own. Some students are okay with that level of ambiguity. Some like me, however, need some structure and feedback, even with an "online" program such as this one. So I've decided this style of "instruction" is not for me. It's really not what I expected from a SUNY college. ESC will definitely help you obtain a degree. Whether you can actually get an education at ESC is certainly debatable. So you decide what is best for you and your future.

Anonymous (In Progress) on August 27, 2009

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Empire State College is run my a bunch of MORONS The mentors are pathetic and when they can't evaluate you they send in the CLOWNS... Then when you file a grievance, they run for cover and send in the CHIEF CLOWNS... DON"T WASTE YOUR MONEY

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