University of Central Florida — Attraction in Alafaya

I've been waiting almost 2 months for an admissions decision from UCF. As someone who is a veteran, a single mother, and an out-of-state transfer, I find it absolutely appalling that I am still sitting and waiting. I have applied for 5 others schools, and received acceptances to all of them within a month, including Ohio State U., U. of South Florida, Florida Atlantic U., San Francisco State U., and Portland State U. I applied for several schools so that I would have options, but I was originally intending to go to SFSU. However, living in California has been unbearable for me, and I could not take the stress of living there anymore.

I was surprised and delighted when I discovered the Transnational Gender, Race & Sexuality Studies program at U. of Central Florida. If I had discovered it sooner, I would have just worked towards that and applied for their program in the first place. I submitted my last minute applications to both UCF, and USF as a back-up. I received my acceptance to USF within a month. Finally, a note popped up on my UCF application status which says "An admission decision is being deferred pending receipt of verification of completion of the foreign language requirement."* I was unsure of what this meant, as I had annotated on my UCF application that I never took a foreign language. I called right away and spoke to someone in Admissions. I explained my situation that I have attended three different schools due to being in the military, and that I am currently a veteran, and that none of my prior schools required foreign language. I also explained that I was originally working to get into a state school in California, not Florida, and so on. She was very kind and helpful, it seemed. She said that she would forward my application on to the Admissions Committee, and she gave me their email address so that I could provide them a thorough justification on why I never took a foreign language and make a case for why I should be accepted. She said I should receive a decision within 3-5 business days.

That phone call took place on June 29th. It is now July 12th and I still haven't received a decision, and the status hasn't updated to anything else. Classes start on August 20th, just barely over a month away. This whole situation is pretty upsetting being that UCF was my top choice once I discovered their academic program that I felt was right for me. But moreover, I live in California. I am in the Air National Guard. I have an 18 month old son. All of the choices I need to make have been riding on UCF's decision. I need to plan 2900 mile move across the country, execute the move, find a place to live, find a new ANG unit, find a job, go to orientation and register for classes, find books, transfer my Post 9/11 G.I. Bill benefits, and make sure my son is taken care of. This is just unacceptable. UCF has proclaimed that they are among the top veteran-oriented schools in this nation. If this is how they treat veterans, I am not sure that I want any part of it.

Your indecision is a decision in itself. Looks like I will be attending USF for Interdisciplinary Social Sciences with a concentration in Women, Gender & Sexuality Studies.

*For most schools in the Florida state school system, they REQUIRE foreign language prior to GRADUATION. It is generally recommended prior to TRANSFER, but NOT REQUIRED. There is no reason that the absence of a foreign language competency should hang up an application, especially in my case. I was aware that attending school in Florida would necessitate taking a foreign language, and it was my intention to fulfill this requirement with whichever school I ultimately attended. UCF takes this a step further and unnecessarily requires foreign language before transfer, with few exceptions. Beware of this if you...

UCF is, in a word: Annoying.

I'm a working professional in a STEM industry. I've attended 6 different universities in the pursuit of 3 different degrees, with UCF being the most recent. Its bureaucracy is not nearly as bad as UF's, but that's a low bar to beat. As an older, not-first-time student who is paying for tuition and fees 100% out of pocket, this place is designed for broke children, and it's driving me bananas.

I'm constantly being flooded with emails I can't unsubscribe from (well I can, but it doesn't help) telling me to sign up for a seminar to learn how to write a resume or to check out the latest happening hot spot for sports fans. There seems to be a constant stream of "how to adult" mandatory online classes, each of which take an hour or 2 to complete, as if I have that kind of time for a "how to not sexually assault girls" and "how to not get drunk before a test" course.

And then they constantly forget that I pay for myself, and spam me with warnings about not having filled out a FAFSA (it's not required to fill out, I'm not eligible for any aid, and I don't need any), not having filled out disbursement info (for receiving aid), and threatening to place financial aid holds on my account when, again, I DON'T USE ANY FINANCIAL AID.

Lastly, while they do have online degrees, they don't have any good STEM degrees online (what few they do, such as the BASSD, are not a very strong curriculum), nor do they have many online STEM classes. This means if you have any sort of social anxiety disorder or PTSD, you're out. You have to request accommodation, but it's such a long drawn out hassle that the process alone is likely to induce anxiety, and you have to keep redoing it. For everyone who doesn't have such a disorder, this means you have to physically go on campus all the time. That means commuting to UCF from wherever you currently live/work, fighting for 30-40 minutes for parking alone (even if you drive an EV, all the EV charging spots get hogged by plug-in hybrids), being accosted by kids shoving flyers at you to attend their celebration of Venezuelan poetry for women who like pugs event, trying to sell you their music, nagging you to sign a petition for some nonsense like changing the parking space colors, sitting in chokepoints of roads and bridges playing a guitar to force people to hear them, sitting in lobbies blasting ridiculously loud music from their headphones, complaining about how "Mr. Professor is so mean because he won't let me take the test I missed so I could go to a baby shower," and of course the endless barrage of political addicts shouting rhetoric at you.

What mature adult in their right mind wants to spend time among that mess for hours, several days per week, every week? We need universities for 25+ and professional/doctorate...

Let me be very honest: UCF is not the student-centered, supportive university it claims to be. It’s a party school with a great marketing team, and that’s about it. If you’re a serious student trying to stay on track academically, good luck getting the help you need.

I’ve been a student here for nearly four years, and the academic advising at the Nicholson School has been a constant nightmare. I’ve consistently struggled to get answers to the simplest questions, and when something important or time-sensitive comes up—like trying to register for transient summer classes—you’re basically left on your own.

I emailed three times over two weeks asking for help registering for Valencia classes, which I need in order to stay on track with my degree. These classes are also tied to my tuition reimbursement from my employer. No one responded.

It wasn’t until I sent a third email—clearly expressing my frustration and fear of missing out on registration—that I finally got a response. And what did I get? One sentence telling me to contact the Registrar’s Office. That’s it.

I followed that advice. The Registrar’s Office told me they have nothing to do with transient student approvals and that this matter should absolutely be handled by advising. So not only was I ignored for a long time, but I was given completely wrong information. This just confirmed something I’ve suspected for a while: the advisors, including my own—Margo—don’t know what they’re doing, or worse, don’t care enough to find out.

Out of desperation, I even emailed the President’s Office. I poured my heart into that email—explaining how this was affecting my education, my finances, and my mental health—and guess what? No response. Not even an automated reply.

I transferred to UCF from USF during my first semester because I thought this place would be a better fit—somewhere I could thrive and feel supported. At USF, I got emails from my advisor every semester checking in on me, not just academically but personally. At UCF, I’ve had to beg for help, and when I get it, it’s either wrong, late, or dismissive.

I paid for placement tests, kept a high GPA, and got into a limited access major. I’ve done everything I was supposed to do. But it feels like the university doesn’t care about students who aren’t just here to party or take pictures in front of the Student Union.

This school prides itself on being one of the biggest in the country—but if you can't support the students you already have, what’s the point of bragging about size or rankings? I’ve never felt more invisible than I have at UCF.

If you’re looking for a university that actually supports its students: keep looking. UCF will sell you the dream, but when it comes time to ask for help, you’ll be met...