Academics
Located on Florida’s Gulf Coast in St. Petersburg, Eckerd College is a small liberal arts college that prepares students to be “well-rounded, educated people for the ‘real world,’ rather than for just one job.” Indeed, 45 percent of all students will go on to pursue advanced degrees, and the school’s “academics are top notch and continue to impress,” particularly the constantly expanding, “hands on” science and art departments, which “really flourishes.” Also of note is the study abroad program, of which most students take advantage.
Eckerd is “all about having small class sizes in order to maximize learning and personal connections to professors.” Professors are “always approachable on an academic and personal level” and “make the classes fun and interesting.” There is a “level of genuine care” from the teachers; according to a senior, “If I have a question, it gets answered, simple as that.” “Not once has an email been ignored that I have sent to a professor,” echoes a junior. Class discussion is very important (many classes have a sizeable participation grade), and faculty encourages opposing views, creating “an environment where it is easy for everybody to openly express their opinions without judgment.”
The Mentor program assigns students to professors of their major(s), their job being “to help guide the student through choosing classes and registration, or anything else.” The “quirky” liberal arts curriculum turns out graduates that “are not pigeonholed into the skills associated with their major, but [who] have developed a wide range of abilities which make them attractive to employers.”
Student Body
This “barefooted and brainy” brood “has a wide variety of students who all fit different niches.” “It isn’t unheard of to see people in three-piece suits sitting with what we might call modern-day hippies,” says a student. The “very relaxed” crowd adopts a “laid-back Florida attitude,” and every student is “friendly, approachable and has a general positive attitude about being here at Eckerd.” Most everyone is “pretty liberal” and “has a strong interest in environmental sustainability.”
Campus Life
The school’s heartstoppingly beautiful location on the waterfront gives it a feel of being “like summer camp with an enriching academic experience”; as a senior asks (rhetorically): “How can you beat a dorm that overlooks the bay?” The residence halls “are beautiful so there is no need to live off campus,” and the school’s Community Bike program allows students to “just pick up the yellow bikes and ride wherever you need” (though some students think there should be “more dedication through internal action to the environmental principles it espouses”).
There are “eclectic options of student activities” at Eckerd, and with no Greek life, the Campus Activities crew is allotted “a crazy amount of money to have fun events on campus, such as cookouts, dances, casino nights, and an actual carnival brought onto campus.” Obviously marine activities are popular, and for fun, people “go to the beach, go downtown, [and borrow] paddleboards/kayaks at the Waterfront.” People love exploring downtown St. Pete, and there are many famous restaurants nearby (good thing, as the cafeteria food is “definitely our weakest point,” according to many students).
There’s a definite party streak here, and “pot and beer are not strangers to Eckerd parties,” which typically take place outdoors. Still, it’s “a very no-pressure environment” for those who choose not to partake, and “there is a very ‘free as a bird’ mentality’” here so “people rarely feel trapped.” Life at this school is generally relaxed but busy. It matches the atmosphere of the location,” says a first-year student.
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