University of Houston

Having been a student of the University of Houston, I can confidently say that UH is one of the best universities in Texas. From a wide variety of academic courses to student success, UH just goes above and beyond. The professors are knowledgeable, approachable, and genuinely care about students' well-being and progress.

I'm an international student admitted to UH for Fall 2024. I submitted all required financial documents months ago and still haven't received my I-20. I called the admissions hotline, and the staff told me to email Mr. Jamail Garrick. I followed their instruction, but he never responded -- I've been completely ignored. Without an active I-20, I can't renew my visa, register properly, or do anything related to my immigration status. This delay has lasted for two semesters. I've paid over $30,000 in tuition and fees, and I've gotten nothing but silence in return. This is unacceptable treatment of international students. We rely on timely documents to maintain legal status. I'm currently stuck in my homecountry and might not be able to return. UH seriously needs to fix how it handles I-20 processing and communication.

Absolutely a great college! Finished my business related undergrad and masters degree here - all the while working full time. Conveniently located and more affordable than other schools I entertained attending.

I've attended UH for 4 1/2 years. I think they were great about how they responded during COVID. I felt supported online during that time. I appreciate the racial and religious diversity on campus. It's so beautiful to see people from all walks of life from all over the world. The school does a great job at representing the city of Houston when it comes to diversity and embracing other cultures. I love Cougar Grounds and their staff. I was able to try different organizations and my favorite was RUF. My current advisor is amazing! HR is also helpful and supportive. I felt heard and safe when I needed them to step in. Thank you! HOWEVER... It only takes a few professors to ruin your experience each semester. I've experienced psychological abuse from professors and disrespect. Eventually, I did get help for those situations once I knew who to go to. My advisor I had in the beginning of my time here, was overwhelmed/stressed with her job, unhelpful and rude. I suffered from an extreme amount of stress and eventually became sick mentally and physically. Majority of my professors were good or okay, BUT it only takes a handful to bring you down and fill your mind with junk. I hope UH looks after its' students well-being more than it does anything else. I hope they also look after their staff. Professors and staff need support too. Many of my professors complained about their job, not feeling supported, not having enough professors for the subject or enough advisors. I'm pretty sure there were over 3 suicides in the past 4 years as well. It made me sick and overwhelmed by grief. One professor projected his insecurities and trauma on the entire class. It made us extremely uncomfortable and it took me a bit to recover from that. I like this school but I also hate what it allows. I visited CAPS once and didn't feel supported or helped. Actually I felt like the person didn't even care or just had no idea how to help me even though they are "trained" ? lol. What ended up helping me was an encouraging community and friends. Without that, I would have fell hard. PLUS, not feeling safe is a common occurrence. So many robbers, rapists and violence. For housing, you never know if you're gonna get hot water, roaches, or when the next fire alarm will go off. Sometimes the school feels like a social play ground (positive) and other times like a prison. It can be a very toxic environment. If you come to UH, I DO NOT recommend the liberal arts school. They usually tell you what to think instead of how to think for yourself. The entire curriculum had a trend to demonize religion (mostly Christianity), sometimes white people and portray minorities like we are all helpless. It was always the same narrative. There seems to be no sense of different views or opinions. It's all through the critical (enter word here) lens, instead of looking through a variety of lens. My major is English and an Asian-American studies minor. Discussions can be great but sometimes felt pointless. Thankfully, some of my professors were open to hearing different opinions without being critical or rude. I really appreciate those professors. Marxism and Communism were often praised over others.Things that were said often felt biased. Also would not recommend the Asian-American studies minor. It feels bad saying that, but it was just very toxic. It's not what you think it will be. Thankfully I got to learn some useful things like Asian-American history and their experiences in the USA by reading a required book. Make sure to read reviews on ratemyprofessor.com before choosing your classes. I think it's helpful for me to be honest and have my voice heard. I'm not the only student who feels this way. I also don't want to hold on to any negativity towards the school, so this may be a healthy way to express my concerns without being bitter towards the school. I'm extremely grateful to be able to get my degree as a first generation student, as well as for the professors that encouraged me and taught well. Although there were many trials, thankful for UH.

I am trying to get information about a doctorate since November 2024 and is impossible to get in touch with the people in charge of graduates. I went in person in January (walked for an hour all around the parking in a cold weather), sent a lot of emails to different people and nothing. I am very disappointed. I thought was a good university for a Doctorate, will have to look for different options.

For a school that says it's trying to remove access barriers and prides itself on its diversity, you will spend hours of your life each year having to slog through barriers of inane bureaucracy from their disorganized financial aid office, over priced parking department, and burnt out (even if well intentioned) professors. They have obvious issues in their staffing as critical heads of infrastructure department roles seem to change year over year, along with their policies. Most professors and staff treat students like they are less than and not worthy of respect. My experience with the majority of the students in STEM classes is them trying to cheat or phone it in. Most students seem uninterested in actually learning or having intelligent conversations. The school prioritizes its sports program, but the kinesiology classes are middle school level easy. The chemistry classes curve so much that a C gets you an A. The school as a whole cares very little about undergraduate student success or well-being. While I appreciate that there are free tutoring options, the tutors are students from the school so the quality is pretty polarized, with about half of them eager stellar people who want to help and the other half who must have ChatGPT'd the B that qualified them to tutor the class. The TA's also follow this pattern, with many barely scanning the lab assignments they are teaching and grading. It is obvious that no actual effort on teaching TA's how to teach effectively is made. Stay away if you're disabled and need anything more than testing. Testing services are fantastic, I'm not sure the school's parking, ramps, or other accommodations should pass ADA. There are brilliant professors at this school, and many of them care about their students. But from the outside, it does not look like they are valued or paid well enough, either that or they are just being severely overworked. I have yet to meet a professor that didn't seem to be barely holding back frustration and exhaustion. This school has serious organizational and budget priority issues. It is a Tier One research facility where classroom labs have non-functioning equipment that affects your GPA. While there are a handful of professors I am honored to have gotten to meet, I can't wait to leave this school and will avoid ever mentioning it as my alma mater whenever possible. I'm that embarrassed to have attended here.

Parking is predatory, enforcement is always watching and waiting to give out citations even on Sunday. Zone parking is money hungry. Many classes are across campus and if you do not park within your zone, expect to pay $50+. Scooters are common now but the roads are so cracked and broken that riding your scooter can be destructive. Academics can be challenging because professors don't provide many outside resources for their students success. Admissions is often nonexistent. My advisor told me to take classes I did not need and then bailed on me a semester later telling me I was wrong to take classes then resigned from the institution. Everyone smokes here, it might just be a Houston thing. Student events can be chaotic. Student life only comes out at events. The student population is mostly commuters. Library is always open which is very nice.

3 incidents in the SAME week at the student welcome center garage and no security added whatsoever. quick to give parking tickets though. why is there 0 prevention for student safety? even if you call the number for an escort, they take forever to come.