The Catholic University of America

I will first serve up a disclaimer that I am not reviewing The Catholic University of America from a student perspective, but as someone who recently spent 3 – 4 days on the campus attending a conference where I feel comfortable enough with how much I experienced the university that I have no problem offering a review.
Located in the Brookland area of Washington, D.C. and easily accessible by the Metrorail via the Brookland/​CUA stop, The Catholic University is, as you should probably expect, the national university of the Catholic Church in the United States. Started in 1887, The Catholic University is located on a 180 acre campus just North of Capitol Hill. As is nearly always true of Catholic settings, the area is filled with lots of greenery, beautiful buildings, and a genuinely meditative and prayerful atmosphere. It was actually started as a graduate research center, but in 1904 began offering undergraduate studies.
The conference I attended was largely based in Pryzbyla Center, a student center almost smack dab in the middle of campus. We also utilized McGivens Hall for certain workshops/​sessions, while some people actually stayed in dorms on the campus but I ended up staying off campus.
The university has several beautiful areas worth visiting including a stunning Basilica and several other neat buildings. They also have contemporary perks including a Starbucks, a nearby bookstore, and others. It’s an expensive school — according to their website, they run about $ 20,000 a semester.
Yeah, I think I’d want weekly massages at that price.
I will admit that the overall lay-​out of the campus is a bit challenging for a wheelchair. The campus can be a bit hilly, while there are times that you have to go a couple extra blocks in a wheelchair because they made stairs without a ramp. Fortunately, it’s workable for the most part and I would note they do offer accessible dorm options.
I had a few terrific experiences here including genuinely positive experiences with the staff and a wonderful experience with security when I got lost on campus going to one session. Security picked me up in an accessible mini-​van and got me where I needed to go — I was informed that they’d just bought the van a few months and the officer driving it believed I was the first person to use it. That’s both embarrassing and very cool.
Pryzbyla offered automatic doors, appropriate wheelchair ramps, terrific restroom options, and rooms that were all quite accessible. In addition to their fine facilities, I was even more impressed with the staff and students that I met.
While signage seemed to be a bit lacking, I was impressed that even the older buildings that I visited, like McGivens, had been made accessible and not in a cut-​rate way.
The area around the campus is a growing commercial area. While the hilly campus bothered me at times, I will note that curb cuts are generally solid throughout the campus and even being on campus during Summer, when school attendance is much lighter, I never felt unsafe.
In many ways, I wished that I had stayed on campus given the beautiful setting and community in which it’s all set. While my conference was jam packed, I was grateful for a positive atmosphere and genuinely helpful staff.

On this visit, we were at the soccer field for a college ID clinic. The athletic facilities, both inside and out, are excellent. There is a regular sort of hum when at the track/​soccer/​football field because the metro is so close.
But, of course, the cost proximity of the metro is one of the benefits of this university (especially over my alma mater in DC, American University).

I don’t go here but live next door. I like to walk through campus as it is park-​like and a bit of quietness in the city. The architecture on the older buildings is interesting and of course you have the Basilica next door which is a gem even if you aren’t Catholic.
There is a Starbucks in the student center. Goes on short hours during school breaks. The bookstore recently relocated to Monroe St Market on Monroe St/​Michigan Ave.
Since their mascot is a Cardinal, wish they had had more fun with it and had a Catholic Cardinal vs a bird as the logo. If they ever played Wake Forest snd the Demon Deacons in football, the marketing would be of biblical proportions. Alas…

I’m not a huge college sports fan but my friends and I went to see a Cardinals game and had a great time. Of course it helped that the basketball players were cute ;)

Catholic University (CUA) is a true treasure and a wonderful place to get an education. Catholic has a dedicated faculty, a beautiful campus, and a wonderful atmosphere that permeates the entire CUA experience. What makes CUA even more special is its connection to the Catholic faith and how that ethic – or even AN ETHIC, in a seemingly unethical world – shapes the entire campus community and contributes to the overall positive nature of the school.

It’s really a love/​hate relationship.

So, let’s get this out of the way: Catholic is expensive.
But, they say you get what you pay for, and man is this place good. A great library with internet access to all the books, and a lot of them on PDF which you can download right at home from any other university. You can also borrow from the consortium of universities in DC.
The professors are great and helpful, and there are a fascinating lot of classes.
The best thing? There’s a Chick Fil’A on campus!!!

Great stand-​alone law facility.

Graduated in the Class of 2000. I love CUA, even if it can’t organize its way out of a wet paper bag.
The students are mostly Catholic, and always drunk. We come largely from the various Catholic high schools from Boston through DC.
Did I mention that we like to drink?
The academics are good in the Politics Department (major), Philosophy School, and I hear good things about Architecture, Nursing, etc. Good stuff.
It helps to at least not hate the Catholic Church. You’ve got the Shrine, the Dominican House of Studies, the Franciscan Monastery, etc. If you like cool Catholic stuff, this is a good campus.
Did I mention the drinking?
Sadly, the liberal campus ministry is hostile to traditional Catholicism.

Well, it’s my alma mater so I have to show some love.
I know, I know — the name is off-​putting but really it’s no different than Georgetown, Villanova, BC or Notre Dame. The campus is probably the biggest of the DC colleges and is almost as nice as Georgetown’s. There are several excellent departments there: politics, architecture, music/​drama and there’s the law school.
Socially, the place is loaded with Irish Catholics from the Boston-​DC corridor with a large contingent from New Orleans so this can mean only one thing: lots of boozin’! And with a Metro stop right at the campus you can get practically anywhere in town in minutes.
The campus and the Brookland neighborhood are much improved since my time there which only made me want to give CUA a higher rating.