Inside Look Offered at Spring Open House | SUNY Plattsburgh

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April 05, 2016

At SUNY Plattsburgh’s first Spring Open House, 275 prospective students toured campus and learned about academic offerings, student organizations and residence life.

Registration for the next session, set for Saturday April 16, is open.

Students Gain Insight

Seeing in person everything he had read about the college helped Brandon McFarland of Staten Island envision what it would be like to be a student at Plattsburgh. He attended the April 2 event with his parents, Gary and Diana.

“I got more insight rather than just reading it in a pamphlet,” Brandon said, as he waited to depart from the Angell College Center for a campus tour.

Part of that was getting a sense of the vibe on campus, which Brandon described as a laid back and relaxed.

Gary agreed.

“Everyone seems so friendly.”

Smaller class sizes at SUNY Plattsburgh mean greater access to faculty, something that’s important to Brandon, who is looking to major in theatre.

In addition to the one-on-one attention he would get from professors, the scenic area is also a draw for him.

“It was beautiful coming up here,” he said of the drive to Plattsburgh.

Brandon said that although he will take some time to finalize his college decision, he thinks Plattsburgh is the place for him.

Overall, Gary said SUNY Plattsburgh would offer his son a meaningful educational experience.

“I’m very impressed with it.”

Seeing campus will help Brandon significantly when it comes time for him to make his final decision, he said.

Personalized Program

The Open House program starts in E. Glenn Giltz Auditorium with an opening presentation and student panel. There, current students describe their academic experiences along with their favorite places to eat on campus and what they do for fun.

The panel is followed by break-out information sessions separated by major where students hear programs specifics from faculty.

One of the break-out sessions is for students interested in one of the 11 majors offered within the SUNY Plattsburgh School of Business and Economics, one of less than 5 percent of business schools to hold accreditation by The Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business.

SUNY Plattsburgh offers ample opportunity for applied learning through internships and scholarly competitions, said Dr. Nancy Church, SUNY distinguished service professor of marketing.

“We have more internships than students to fill them,” Church said.

Making Connections with Faculty

Soon-to-be marketing major Michael Grogan of Rome, N.Y., chatted with Church after the presentation.

Grogan submitted his deposit to SUNY Plattsburgh a couple of weeks ago.

The chance to speak with faculty was one of the reasons he decided to come to Spring Open House. He came to Plattsburgh a few months ago for an initial tour of campus.

Grogan said he looked at a variety of other colleges in New York State, but SUNY Plattsburgh’s manageable size and setting in a small city ultimately won him over.

“I liked how the campus was set up, how it looked,” he cited as one of the other factors that influenced his decision.

Open House was also a chance for him to get a better feel for campus life and the wide range of extracurricular activities the college offers.

This was the second SUNY Plattsburgh Open House for Emily Wilson, who first came to campus from her home near East Fishkill, N.Y. in fall 2015.

Since she decided to enroll at SUNY Plattsburgh, she and her family thought a second visit would be helpful.

“We were coming back to refresh ourselves,” said Wilson’s mother, Barbara.

SUNY Plattsburgh’s location in a small city on the Adirondack Coast was one of the things about the college that appealed to Emily.

“I like the area, the location,” she said.

The area surrounding the college seems like it would be easy to navigate for students who are new to the area, Barbara said.

Both Grogan and Emily said they are eagerly awaiting the start of their freshman year at SUNY Plattsburgh in the fall 2016 semester.