University of South Florida St. Petersburg Campus — Attraction in Saint Petersburg

I was sent here to USF St. Petersburg because when I applied for USF Tampa, they stated it was “at full capacity,” something that no university should do. Sending students to completely different campuses is absolutely unacceptable. I could have still been accepted to USF Tampa and have gotten an apartment off campus since on campus housing was full, but USF decided to make it more inconvenient for me and located me to USFSP. But this is only looking at the surface of how awful USF is.

Ironically enough, housing is a major issue about this campus. I was boarded in Residence Hall One for both fall and spring, and it is the absolute worst place for any college student. Both the washing and drying machines on all the floors do not work at all, PERIOD. The card reader will constantly read “Sorry, temporarily unavailable —— Out of Order” every time you try to use them. I had to walk across campus to Osprey Suites (the newest housing complex) just to get laundry done, because RHO’s machines never work. In addition, RHO is not clean or well maintained, as I have encountered flies, trash, dust, and hair in the hallways multiple times over. The dorm rooms themselves need some improvements, as I have been housed in a room with broken blinds, chipped floorboards, and bug problems.

The biggest problem I had, however, with housing was roommate matching. I did not put any requests on the online application that I wanted to be housed with UMatter students, or any other group of student communities on campus, and yet I was housed with two UMatter students. For those unaware, UMatter is a program at USFSP that helps people with intellectual disabilities become engaged in college life. I quickly had a lot of issues with these roommates, and their inability to respect the boundaries of others (cleaning up after themselves, taking trash out, noise levels, inviting other people into our dorm room without my consent or awareness, etc.) They also had a history of saying racial slurs and sexist comments, which they were never reprimanded for simply because they had intellectual disabilities. This is unforgivable and only goes to show how awful USF is as an institution. I was told by the Residence Life Coordinator, Ashley Ramirez, that they would need some more help with me reminding them to do simple things such as those, and that they were being in touch with specialists on campus to help them out, but I had to focus on my own academics since I was concerned I was not doing well. I had no reason to be housed with them, and it made my entire fall semester so awful that I had to get a different room on another floor. This kind of inaction by USFSP Housing is inexcusable, and I cannot put into enough words how unfair it was for me, considering I had to look after my own health and well-being. They essentially made me take on additional burdens that I were NEVER responsible for from the get-go, and, in addition to how godawful my roommates were, USFSP did NOTHING to help me, they only made it worse.

The classrooms are not very good either. All of them are poorly kept and maintained. Lynn-Pippenger Hall, which houses the Kate Tiedemann College of Business, is surprisingly inhospitable, it is not a nice place to be. The professors also left very bad impressions on me, I was actually appalled by just how bad they were.

Overall however, I had a GODAWFUL experience the time I was here. This is by no means an institution for students who seek education and self-improvement. I genuinely had faith that I could still make the most of my time here, and that things would be alright (because I did not want to come to USFSP,) but that never occurred. I understand my opinion is somewhat biased since I did not want to be located here, but my time spent there was time I wish I could get back. Pretty much anything, particularly taking a gap year, would have been a far more reasonable decision than to come to ANY USF institution. Do NOT come here unless you want to throw your life...

I agree with a review that was written a few reviews back. Beautiful campus, everything else is awful. I attended Saint Petersburg College for my Associate's Degree then transferred to USFSP to finish my Bachelor's Degree. I wish I would have stayed at SPC. No one at USFSP seems to be passionate about the student experience. There's always some sort of hold and 13 hurdles to jump over. Classes are never available. The systems are not intuitive. The staff could care less and often make you feel stupid. It only took me 2 days to apply and register for classes at SPC. The advisors at SPC are so kind and hands-on. I've reapplied to USFSP to finish my Degree in History twice, once in the Fall of 2022 and Spring of 2023 (I only have 2 semesters left) and no one ever takes the time to explain anything or follow up. It really is a bummer. I've gas-lit myself into believing that maybe there's something I'm doing wrong, but after going back to SPC for a few semesters just because I was so frustrated with USFSP, I've realized that USFSP's system is seriously flawed and not very intuitive at all... but no one is there to help explain the process to you. Prepare for headaches every step of the way and offices that are staffed by other students who would prefer to rush you off the phone.

Additionally, the classes aren't great. A few years ago I took a Chinese Cultural Class and the "curriculum" came across as stereotypical, which left a sour taste in my mouth. Myself and other students were uncomfortable... It was also not taught by a Chinese person. Which would have been fine if the class wasn't littered with personal opinions. Hopefully, that person is no longer teaching classes or has elevated their curriculum. ESPECIALLY for the price you pay.

The only reason why I'm trying to go back is because I would prefer to have a degree from a university rather than a community college and I've invested so much time (and money) at USFSP. I'll edit this review if things go a bit smoother this time around. Otherwise, go elsewhere. Myself and my peers have had a difficult time just trying to finish, they...

I seriously was considering coming here in the fall. I took a tour and loved the smaller private-college feel while also having the USF accreditation. The campus is truly beautiful. One of the main reason I decided AGAINST this campus (not USF Tampa though because that campus is great) is that not a single person could answer my simple questions about how many students who apply to med school matriculate and get accepted (every school has this data readily available) so that was a red flag. I was just ping ponged between many people which was quite annoying. It’s a shame because it’s such a beautiful campus and they have a lot of offer especially with the huge scholarship(ended up being a full ride with Prepaid) I was offered from USF but I just decided it was not the best option for the Pre-med track. I would suggest looking at USF Tampa if you must because most of the classes I wanted to take anyways I would’ve had to take there even if I stayed on campus at USFSP which is a shame because dealing with that traffic is a nightmare I would not like to endure daily or even bi-weekly (yes it is that bad trust me). Also a note, the campus is right next to an airport so walking around you notice the planes but you can’t even hear them inside the building. I was really impressed with what USF offered in scholarship and the dorms were quite nice but just was not the best fit for me. I finally decided on UM because USF just disappointed me in too many ways. You may think it’s the best fit and go for it just weigh out your options; I don’t think this campus has enough going for it in terms of Pre Med though. Maybe (and hopefully) that will change but for now all I can say is, It’s all about the U...