I think you can approach a review of a college in a couple of different ways, as a student most…read moreobviously, maybe also as an employee and/or professor or as a parent. I'm coming at this as merely a visitor. My top-tier chum who literally went to the school of hospitality at VA Tech asked me to accompany her on a campus visit last week, her first time back since her graduation roughly a quarter century ago. She's always spoken very fondly of her time here and just unfortunately hasn't had the opportunity to return until now. Just for context, I went to NYU, which doesn't really have a campus - Washington Square Park is the closest comp to that, but one of the bigger selling points of that school is that NYC is your campus and you're not really cordoned off in your own little world. Pros and cons to both scenarios. I preferred to be dropped in the middle of a chaotic city but I can see the appeal of this type of college living as well. We spent roughly a day here, arriving by car late Tuesday morning and leaving the following day after checking out of The Inn at VA Tech. We were blessed with sunny skies but it was pretty toasty during our visit, in the 90s during the afternoon. For our main tour/walk, we went from The Inn down Perry Street, curving around Stanger Street until we hit the vaunted Drillfield and then visited the Duck Pond. Then we walked up West Campus Drive and down Washington before cutting back into the campus again to see some of her old dorms (I think Newman was one?) before hitting up the University Bookstore and walking into the downtown area for lunch. Especially with the nicer weather, the Drillfield was a great optic - just a gorgeous, lush lawn, and a cool homage (at least in name) to VA Tech's military background. The imposing structure of Burruss Hall was a cool sight right next to it, and right behind a very classy tribute to the VA Tech shooting - we were both wondering as we walked around if we'd see something acknowledging that tragedy from 2007. Initially we thought it was literally just a small kiosk, until turning around and realizing it was a much larger setup with an acknowledgment of each specific victim. My chum graduated several years before that shooting occurred but was obviously/understandably impacted by it in her own way, so that was a nice moment. She was a little disappointed (probably the right word) at how many new buildings had been erected since she'd graduated in 2001. On one hand, that's literally a generation ago so it's not surprising that there have been significant changes in the interim. But it WAS striking how many areas were just flat-out unrecognizable and new to her, particularly in the Perry Street section. I'm assuming that the student population has expanded significantly to accommodate all of the new buildings, but it's just not the same college she left. Not a negative, but probably not a positive either - is what it is. My two cents as a humble outsider is that everything just seems very monotonous - pretty much all of the buildings are constructed of this Hokie Stone, a specific time of rock that's mined nearby, I believe. A couple of buildings composed of that would have been pretty cool; it's got an old school gothic vibe to a certain extent, but after seeing the same building over and over again, I'd politely suggest a little more variety. Again, this school has its roots as a military institute so you definitely got that impression from the architecture as well, but to me it came up short compared to, say, their ACC rival Duke's campus and its buildings, or West Point. Definitely a cool experience to see this, especially through the lens of my top-tier chum and her formative years here. Go Hokies.

Driving over the mountains north of VT, this marker points out the amazing history of this world…read morerenowned education institution. It is on the side of a busy road but there is a wide breakdown lane if you're interested in risking your life to see and read the marker like me. As it says, this is FIVE MILES from the university so please don't merge it. The marker reads, "Five miles south lies the main campus of Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, founded in 1872 as a land-grant college specializing in agriculture and mechanical arts. The land-grant college system initiated scientific agricultural and industrial instruction in the Commonwealth. Over the next century, Virginia Tech became nationally recognized as a comprehensive research university with a broad range of scientific, technological, business, and liberal arts instruction. The 3,000-acre campus includes the site of Draper's Meadow, where Shawnee Indians attacked settlers on 30 July 1755 at the beginning of the French and Indian War." This is marker number I-2-a and was erected by the Department of Historic Resources in 1998. [Review 19579 overall - 1417 in Virginia - 550 of 2023.]

I have an educational event here every October, and the space is wonderful for our needs. All…read moreclassrooms are equipped with the latest technology, furnishings are contemporary and new, bathrooms are clean and stocked, catering does a fantastic job, there's Wi-Fi, and parking is only $5-6/day. We love coming to this venue and will continue to come back as long as we're in Roanoke.

We visited Virginia Tech while we were doing a bunch of campus tours while we were in the area…read more Virginia Tech was beautiful real like a football field. I like all the structure is the buildings environment. Everything was really an excellent experience.

Virginia Tech is a lovely campus to visit in the summer. My teenage sons (16 yrs., 14 yrs), wife,…read moreand I came on a Saturday morning for an 11:30am tour. First, you will park at the main entrance to Lane Stadium. After a 30 minute information session (which is well-organized), you'll be divided into smaller groups for a 60-minute walking tour to see the interior of a campus building and walk in the residential dormitory area. The campus tour is full of useful information and you'll get a chance to see the interior of a building (but you'll be walking more than 1 mile outside so comfortable walking shoes are a must). Our tour guide walked backwards for much of the tour (which seemed awkward at times). By the end of the tour, you get a sense of how large the campus is (more than 30,000 students) and the Hokie spirit (which values service toward others). Overall, I would recommend the campus tour if you are considering to apply here. The pretty rural location and physical buildings on campus are worth seeing before you commit to applying. One thing that surprised me is that high school students are strongly encouraged to declare their major and college before arriving. Also, the "Hokie spirit" is pervasive on campus, which may be fun for some. The branding logo of Virginia Tech is impressive and appears everywhere from road signs to clothing. I am sure that you will reach your 10,000 step walking goal for the day if you do the tour.

I have been coming to Virginia Western for a few months to take proctored tests in the testing…read morecenter in Brown Library, and the experience has been great. Student parking is free unlike NOVA, and there's usually plenty of parking on both sides of Colonial Ave. The campus is clean and there's decent landscaping throughout, and I always enjoy the walk from the parking lot 12 down the steps to the library and looking around the surrounding hills. The staff in the testing center have been helpful, and I appreciate their helping me take tests for a NOVA class.

I attended Virginia western to get a degree in radiation oncology therapy. They were very…read moreunhelpful. I got all of my financial aid in line only to be dropped out of every class last second and put into the classes with the "leftovers" for teachers with horrible ratings. I've since dropped out due to financial problems that occurred when my financial aid was dropped. It was dropped for the GPA being too low but I was not informed that classes done online at another school do not transfer as credits unless you have 14 or more credits. So they let me take 12 knowing it wouldn't be enough to transfer and I made straight A's. not that the system showed this. So now I have no degree and after trying to set up a payment plan and having them tell me they didn't do that owe the collection agency over 1000$. Do not go to this school. They are completely incapable of helping. They can't keep staff in the financial aid building which resulted in questions not getting answered. Was literally told they didn't know because they were new. Don't waste your time or hurt your credit. They don't care about your success only the money that comes with having you there and once that's up they screw you.

I am employed at Virginia Bioinformatics Institute as a contract consultant. I enjoy the work, the…read morepeople and the culture. I hope my contract is renewed or extended and never ends. Visit the VBI website for a view of the amazing research conducted here. The Institute is dedicated to integrated information biology. As a global leader in informatics and analytics for massively interacting biosocial and technical systems, VBI serves science, governance and business to improve human habitat, health and well-being.

I am overwhelmingly pleased with the education my 4 year old has been receiving from Roanoke Valley…read moreMontessori School. She has been going to this school since she was 1. At the age of 1 she was diagnosed with a speech impediment. Me and my husband felt she had a learning disability. We were referred from a physician friend to Roanoke Valley Montessori for our daughter. This has been the Greatest gift for our daughter. We were assured by the Director that our daughter did not have a learning disability. The speech impediment is gone. Our daughter has been thriving since being at Roanoke Valley Montessori School. After seeing her pediatrician, she agrees our daughter has thrived being at this school. I cannot say enough about the cleanliness of this school either, it is absolutely immaculate in cleanliness, it is so clean you can smell the clean. Thank you to all of the teachers and the Director Ms Michele for allowing our daughter a place in your school. We are forever eternally grateful.

I have nothing but positive things to say about the staff at Roanoke Valley Children's Academy…read more They have been excellent communicator's and Are always attentive to my son and even me! It breaks my heart to see some of the negative reviews on here, because This simply has not been our experience. I think many of the concerns from others are simply a difference in one's beliefs and opinions. You have a choice where to send your child, and if you don't like the care that they are receiving, you can leave. I personally Would recommend this daycare/school to anyone who asked me. My son is thriving and so excited to see the people there!

They take professional and customer service to a different level. From the moment I walk in, I'm…read moregreeted by name in a clean and welcoming environment. I am promptly seen and the outstanding stylist begins. I have been extremely satisfied every visit. Anastasia is by far my favorite and only stylist! I highly recommend this location because they are trained, creative, and knowledgeable! Love it every time!

Saw Mollie there today for highlights on my natural red hair. Very happy with it! She's so sweet…read moreand very attentive. Would recommend

Elda Stanco Downey is the founder of Roanoke Spanish LLC and is a former college professor with…read moreover 15 years teaching Spanish language, culture, and literature. She has helped me tremendously improve my Spanish skills (I was one of her students over a four-year span) - not to mention she's an absolute joy to work with. She's upbeat and fun... and, well, a total pro. She (or one of her team members) will hook you up with tutoring, translation, interpretation, any Spanish-English service you might need help with - for adults, for kids, or for the office. :)