Baylor University Top Questions

Academcs, personally, revolve around the Baylor Interdisciplinary Core, a set of classes that give a well-rounded and liberal arts education. All of these courses have a large group setting along with a small group setting. So, while we have some lecture classes, there are many times when we have class discussions with our individual professors. As for my major classes, I've yet to take one, but my minor classes for Sign Interp, are fairly small and generally don't have many students. The Sign Language dept at Baylor isn't large by any means, but they are well-equipped and personable. From friends I've heard the science courses are fairly large, and while some professors are willing to work with you, others are not, but that's at any college. Language classes in general are not large, which is good in order to keep the student's engaged.

Professors are ok for the most part except for science profs. They expect you to be able to take tests that are made for grad students. They have expectations that are way too high for undergraduates and they suck at teaching.

My major isn't exactly common at colleges around America, but the neuroscience department at Baylor seems awesome. I just finished my first year there so I've only had one neuroscience class, but it was team-taught by 4 professors and absolutely fascinating. Even the lab was fun and you can take it on your own time. There's also two extracirricular clubs, Nu Rho Sci (neuroscience honor society) and the Baylor Neuroscience Society, which is open to everyone interested in neuroscience, regardless of major. Although my class was large enough where I wouldn't recognize most of them, it wasn't intimidating at all. I was completely comfortable raising my hand and asking a question during class, going up after, or emailing the professor and they're equally helpful every time. I love it so far and can't wait for some more.

Classes are generally difficult. It's an academically rigorous school, and if you graduate, you've definitely earned it. Students spend a lot of time studying, for the most part, but there's also a lot of free time. Classes vary on interaction- there's 3,000 students in one class of Chapel, but you may have an upper-level class with seven other people. Education at Baylor is really what you make of it. If you just follow a degree plan and do the minimum amount of effort to pass, you'll graduate and most likely get a job out of school. If you really devote yourself to it, though, you can learn simply for purposes of self-edification. Most Baylor students learn to find a comfortable middle ground between those two options.

My professors all know me. In the engineering department many professors come to our ultimate frisbee tournaments and our dessert nights in the dorm. Students of all majors frequently talk about academics outside of class. The atmosphere is diverse among departments- engineering is hard but everyone is so helpful, pre-med is very competitive all the time, business is fast-paced, leaving lots of room for extracurriculars and developing your resume.

It's really tough, but there is plenty of help if you look for it! The professors are very friendly!

Some professors are AMAZING, they know who you are, the care about your life and what things might be going on with you. But just like anything, there are the bad ones. The profs that think that JUST because they are profs that are are automatically almighty and powerful and dont give a hoot what you think. Baylor is about learning for its own sake i think. There are 'job fairs' every now and again, but Baylor isnt really known for one department over another... nothing stands out academically to me.

Academics at Baylor are pretty good, I've gotten a good deal of learning in my classes. There are some required classes that aren't exactly the most relevant things, such as Chapel and the Religion courses, but they can be pretty interesting so it isn't too bad. Baylor students are, for the most part, pretty driven students and students can be competitive, especially within honors. There are usually several students in a class that are pretty participative. The libraries are usually pretty full, students take their studies seriously. Education at Baylor is good for preparing students for what lies ahead after college, getting jobs, and also they make sure that their students will be ethical members of the business world.

overall professors are warm and always have open doors to help. i found a handful of the professors i had to be hard-hearted and not very helpful but other than that, i built relationships with several of my professors and even sought career advice from a few upon graduation. students are not too competitive, unless you make yourself that way. i never felt expected to make a certain gpa but went at my own pace. come classes are extremely easy, such as p.e. credits, and others in your specific major are the right amount of challenge.

I did not realize how much I would have to study before coming, but I am so glad that I was as challenged as I was. The classes are difficult, but the students are willing to help you study, and there are several places to find tutoring. I have had no trouble finding help or speaking with people about future plans. There are tons of opportunities for me after I graduate and all of my professors have been willing to help to whatever extent they can.

Some professors know my name, mainly because I have gone to visit them outside of class. It's really important to visit your professors and get your name on their mind so that they know who you are, which allows them to be more willing to help you out. It depends on the student how often they study. I have friends who prefer to go out every weekend then take it slow and stay in to focus on classes. I have other friends who prefer to spend many hours studying in the library. It depends on how focused you are in school and how much studying time you need for your class. Class participation is common in language classes where its important for you to be comfortable with the language. In most of my other classes, such as math or science, class participation is seldom. Students at Baylor are very competitive. Everyone is competing for a job or a spot at a medical school. I do not spend time with professors outside of class, but if you want to have lunch or sit down with them, they are willing to schedule time with you.

I will give it to academics at Baylor though. For the most part, I love my teachers. If you go in and talk to them, you can tell they truly do care for the students. But at the same time, there are teachers that do not care at all whether or not you are failing their class. The class sizes vary from 10 to 200 people. It depends what school you are in and what types of General Education classes you are signing up for. Chapel is not as bad as everyone says it is. It was the only time I got to see my friends in class, so that was fun. Religion is horrible. Baylor should not require those classes. Waste of my time. Those classes did not help me pursue my faith more, but instead, I ended up dreading those classes and resenting learning about my religion. The Writing Center is amazing. It is free and they help you edit your papers. I would stay at Baylor solely for the Writing Center. Also, OALA helps special students, and I am truly grateful for their services. The human performance requirements are so stupid. If students want to be active, then they will be. This is not supposed to be high school, so do not try to seperate the jocks from the nerds. Oh, and if people tell you that your professors invite you over for dinner, do not believe them. I have never heard of that ACTUALLY happening.

Professors really get to know you. I can't think of one class i've taken where the professor didn't call me by name by the end of the semester. (Granted, I take the time to meet in office hours, which I highly recommend you do). The library is great for studying, as is the SUB, which is more casual. The professors really try to teach you what you 'need' to know, not just mindless information.

Some professors are geniuses and make you feel retarded every time you speak in class, some are idiots that give tests over material we haven't covered, and some are foreign, so you can't understand a word they say. Whatever the case is, I doubt you'll be satisfied.

The classes and professors here are probably one of the best things about Baylor. It's a big enough school that you get a wide range of classes to choose from, but small enough that even in your intro classes, professors will often know you or at least recognize your face. As you start taking more and more major-specific classes, you'll come to really respect the passion and knowledge that Baylor professors possess. There are the few inevitable tenured profs that are too brilliant for their own good and expect you to know everything about the subject because they wrote the book (seriously), but wouldn't you rather have that than profs who don't know what they're talking about? A good handful of my classes have been taught by the type of professor that cares more about your life experiences than the class curriculum, which is really cool. They'll pay no attention to the syllabus and talk more about your thoughts on revolution or the afterlife or religious pluralism or foreign culture or any number of subjects more applicable to life than is the textbook. Those are the classes I enjoyed most.

My classes are what keep me here. I have connected with a lot of really great educators who have taught me so much about their respective subjects as well as myself.

Class size at Baylor is really good; except for a few introduction to business or science classes, most do not exceed 30-50. Being in the Honors College, I have few classes that exceed 20. I have loved my upper level classes, but the introduction courses in any area are usually pointless and more of a hassle than anything else. I have taken mostly History and Literature courses, and the professors are wonderful. They are really interested in their subject and in your education.

Academics at Baylor is a tough subject, because every major is different. For example, I am a biology/pre-med major, and this year my easiest class was Political Science. However, I heard some business majors in my class talking about how difficult they thought the tests were. I have found, at least in the pool of science majors, academics are very competitive. However, most students would never show their anguish when someone else out performed them. Many students have intellectual conversations outside of class. You just have to find another student who is on the same level as you are, which is not difficult to do. Every class with thirty or less students I have had, the professors make sure they know every one's name and face, which is nice. In other larger classes, if you make an effort to get to know the professor, they will always make sure to get to know you. If you want to see a professor outside of class it is almost always easy to do, because Baylor makes certain all professors give a large chunk of their hours to be available to help students. My least favorite class has to be freshman semester biology. The class average was in the 50s. Beware of this type of weed-out class for every major.

I touched on that above.

I enjoyed my classes at Baylor for the most part. I do not enjoy the busy work of writing papers and filling in work sheets, but for the most part I have enjoyed these classes.