Bard College Top Questions

Class sizes are very small. With a few expections, professors know the names of all their students by the end of the first month. Core courses for your major generally suck. And a lot of people hate First-Year Seminar though I had a great experience). I've raraly been dissatisfied with an advanced course, though. Class participiation is a fairly important part of your grade in most classes. The exact class formats vary a lot, but don't expect to get away with sitting in the corner in silence. You can find intellectual discussions outside class if you want, and everyone I know can keep up with them when they happen, but I wouldn't say they predominate. The academic environment is very non-competitive. I don't even really know what kind of grades most of my friends are getting. Maybe I would respond differently if more of my friends were in my department. I've had some unusual classes (like an entire 4-credit class on a single essay), but the strangest was probably L&T (the 3-week intensive in August for new students)--very eclectic mix of texts for discussions, lots of free-writes and poetry exercises). Political Studies is one of the larger departments, and probably one of the more prestigious ones as well. There's several of sub-groupings within it--political theory, American politics, comparative politics, international relations--that have their own specialists among the faculty and, to som extent, attracts thier own crowds of students. There's a nice balance of offerings, and a lot of opportunities to interact with people from other areas. It's been a good experience for me, except for the core courses. Personally, I don't interact with professors much outside of class, but nearly all of them encourage it heavily, and it's not a bad idea at all. The academic requirements generally make sense. You have to take nine courses in different, non-overlapping areas, plus one on Rethinking Difference (not as intense as it sounds). Then there's the core curriculum (an intensive program before you matriculate and a two-semester, eight-credit program your freshamn year), which is sometimes taught rather poorly but generally isn't too bad. Then there's Moderation--a formal, and sometimes very intense, process of applying to the department you want to major in. People's experiences with it are a mixed bag--it tends to be worse in the arts, especially Film, Photography, and Music. It's much easier in the natural and social sciences. Then comes Senior Project--during your senior year, you write a 100-page research paper (if you're in science or social studies) or something comparable, and get eight credits for it. This will be the focus of your senior year. A lot of people start the preparatory work as early as the middle of their junior years. Bard is not very career-oriented, although there are some good master's programs. Make connections wherever you can.

Bard Academics are great. Small classes allow for incredibly personal relationships with professors which improves the quality of class discussion and work. The lack of required courses at Bard gives students the freedom to take classes that interest them and to sample all types of classes. The big 4 common curriculum (L&T, First year seminar, Moderation, and Senior project) are all very flexible and unique parts of the academics at Bard.

What I love about education at Bard is its involvement directly in the students' lives. Our teachers inspire us on a daily basis and we do the same to them. To hear "I really like the way you think." or "what an enlightened/inspired idea." from a professor who is quite accredited in his/her field is a truely spectacular feeling. Hard work is rewarded with self worth. And I dont just mean the cliché "You get what you put in." I mean that your self esteem gets the major boost at the end of a class to which you came well prepared.

Professors definitely know me by name. Class participation is usually a part of the grade, and discussions are frequently encouraged. Study time depends on the student, but most students study at least a little bit. There are tons of intellectual conversations outside of class. The most unique classes I've taken so far are Neutral Masks and Monuments of Asian Art. I'm a physics major with a passion for theatre, and I LOVE the physics department here. Most of our equipment is pretty old, since we commonly get overlooked in the budget, but the professors are amazing and very dedicated. The theatre department is stellar, and there are always shows going on. I've met with professors outside of class to discuss papers and grades and whatnot. I think some moderation requirements are a little stringent, but they really just want to ensure that you'll be a successful student in that major. Bard is much more geared toward learning for the sake of learning as opposed to going to grad school and getting a job, but they do have some resources to help with the latter two.

Professors know my name, phone number, and e-mail address. My academic adviser is a big exit pollster, and when he is formatting his blogs on political websites, he often IMs me and asks me to check out the formatting with my browser. In other words: don't go to Bard if you're looking for anonymity. My favorite class is Spanish 110 (Accelerated Spanish). We meet five times a week for an hour each time. I love learning new languages, and the class is a lot of fun. Today, we did an oral activity designed to help us learn the cases in which we are supposed to use the preterite and imperfect (two different past tenses). We went around the room telling a story in Spanish line by line about a smurf who was a Bard student, who encountered a lion, who poisoned the lion, who fell asleep and dreamed that the dead lion was in fact a Bard student that had long hair. My least favorite class is Biology 415 (Restoration Ecology). I don't hate the class -- to the contrary, the material is very interesting. Unfortunately, the work load is very heavy (hence, 400-level biology class), so it's getting put at the bottom of the list this semester. Students work hard and play hard. We definitely don't study all the time. There's a lot of work -- mostly essay writing, if you're a social science major. Aside from the large quantities of reading and writing that most classes assign, there isn't much studying to do unless you're a science, math, or language major. Usually the work load starts of light at the beginning of the semester, where students can spend several nights a week just hanging out with friends. Towards midterms, the workload becomes very heavy, and people are working on papers around the clock. The workload is very light for the week following midterms, then starts up again, requiring a few hours of reading/writing each night until finals. As a social science major who takes mostly 300 level seminar classes, I can report that finals is quite the adventure. We don't have a reading week at Bard, so you have to go to classes while writing your final exams. Finals week last semester was particularly hellish. In addition to my classes, I had a 10 page final paper due on Monday, a 20 page final paper due on Tuesday, a 20 page final paper due on Wednesday, and a 20 page final paper due on Thursday. Friday, I drank myself silly. Bard students have intellectual conversations outside of class ALL THE TIME, particularly conversations about politics. Yesterday, I sat in the dining hall for two hours debating the possibility of sustainable environmental development with a friend of mine. Students really aren't competitive, unless you're a part of the film and photo department. The emphasis really is on personal growth and development. Since most classes are essay-based rather than test based, it's difficult to be competitive due to the diversity of responses and ideas to each essay question. The most unique class I have taken is one I've got this semester, called the Cultural Politics of Animals. I'm also taking an amazing class this semester called Reading and Writing the Hudson. Some favorite classes from past semesters include: American Religion and Politics, American Environmental History, American Environmental Politics, Population Economics and Demography, The 19th Century Continental Novel, Historical Archaeology, and Field Methods in Archaeology. Outside of class, I often visit the professors I like in their offices, either to ask questions or chat. If I see a professor in Kline or the campus center, I'll walk up and say hi. there are several professors who live on campus who I run into a lot. Often the language tutors (who are foreign post-grad students employed by the college) come to our parties. The academic requirements are numerous and strict, but I really like them. It's nice to have to take classes in every academic discipline, simply because, through those requirements, I have really expanded my interests and learned a lot about subjects I never would have otherwise encountered. The education at Bard is geared towards learning for its own sake. Once you pump out an 80-120 page senior project, you should have the motivation, organization, and ability to go out and promote yourself to a potential employer. In getting prestigious internships, I've found that my ability to communicate my ideas verbally and in writing, in conjunction with my academic record, speaks for itself.

While the average person might not recognize Bard College in conversation, it is without a doubt an accredited institution with very strong academics. All the teachers are practicing professionals in their field of study, and the fact that there the option of commuting up from New York City seems to strengthen the overall quality of the faculty. Of course, there are some professors that come to mind who are not the most skilled teachers and may not deserve the tenure or appreciation that they receive. This is likely the case most places. Overall, one can expect the classes that they choose to be interesting enough not to drop out of. Bard, unlike other places, does not force specific classes on the students depending on their chosen field of study. Instead, it relies on broad distribution requirements to make sure that everyone is having a sufficiently well-rounded, liberal-arts education. Although the Asian Studies department is quite small, with only four or five permanent teachers, those that I know well are excellent and I did not choose the school based on my intended major, but rather on my impressions and experiences of all aspects of the institution.

The professors at Bard are willing to work individually with students and the class sizes are usually under 20 people, creating a close knit academic environment. Classes are usually discussion based, with students reading texts beforehand. Most of the student's aren't competitive but if a student feels that his intellectuality is threatened, he will suddenly raise his cerebral hackles and fiercely defend himself. The moderation process during the second year allows the student to reevaluate his work before attempting to major in any one subject. Unlike other schools, the departments at Bard reserve the right to refuse a potential major. Students are admitted through a process known as moderation during which they must defend a paper against a panel of professors. In the fourth year, the student is expected to complete a senior project over the course of two semesters before going before their board once again and discussing it.

Classes are generally small and teachers are personable. I have had great conversations with professors outside of class and always feel comfortable contacting thiem with questions. the professors here for the most part are excellent. Anyone who comes here is truly privileged to be able to engage in dialogue with these people. I am an art major and for the most part the professors I have had are excellent and wonderful artists in their own right.

the academics at bard are better than the students

The average class size is about 15 students, and you'll get to know your professors and classmates pretty well, whether you try to or not. Every class is taught by a Bard professor (we have no TAs). All faculty members are required to take on student advisees and hold office hours each week. The distribution requirement encourages students to explore areas outside of their major area by compelling students to take classes in each of the four divisions of the college: Arts; Languages and Literatures; Social Sciences; and Sciences, Mathematics, and Computing. In addition, the First Year Seminar gives the entire college a common base of knowledge to build on. The consensus among graduates seems to be that no matter what you do after Bard, you'll be well prepared.