Case Western Reserve University Top Questions

Coming from a very small department in the dusty humanities corner of campus, I've had a lot more personal interaction and support from my professors than most science and engineering students. I've had primarily small, seminar-style classes with wonderfully intelligent, engaging professors, many of whom I am friends with outside of class. The few duds were disappointing, but overall I've had an excellent experience with the academics in my own field. The gen-ed fueled steps outside it have been slightly less warm, but interesting nonetheless.

The academics at Case are widely known and respected and for that I'm grateful, because I know that when I graduate, it will be much easier to find a job. On the other hand, because Case is so well respected and because it is a research one institution, the emphasis is not always on education, at least for undergrads. It has been my experience that I am paying $40,000+ a year for book suggestions. I realize that I am in college and need to do a great deal of work to learn the material on my own, but a lot of times it feels like I'm doing all of the work. I don't mean to insult all of the professors because there are some out there that are great teachers but the vast majority, especially in the engineering field just aren't very good at it. I have had professors that graduated from MIT and Harvard, they're brilliant people, but they know the information so well that they can't imagine how a lowly undergrad like me wouldn't be able to understand the information within the first 5 minutes.

The best part about Case is that I have never had a class taught by a TA. Professors are all very hands on and want to get to know their students. There is a real sense of academic integrity and desire to learn for the sake of learning. Engineering and the sciences are really strong, but personally I'm a religious studies major and I love the department here.

I like small classes and Case offers them. Of course, my major not being BME or another "hard science" track offers me smaller classes and more contact with the professor. I just finally chatted with my chemistry professor for the first time and it meant a lot to me. Knowing that your teacher has some idea who you are means a lot when you really are not happy with the class in the first place. Class participation is common, no matter the size of the class, and I really like that. Case students DO have intellectual conversations outside of class, and I LOVE it. Brilliance illuminates the sky.

I have been in large and small classes at Case.. classes where professors know everyone and classes where professors know no one. A lot of times it takes effort on the students part to get to know their professors and really stand out. I came to Case looking for a rigorous academic environment and I am getting what I paid for. My professors push me to do my best and they attempt to instill values like professionalism and maturity in all their students. I haven't met a professor who doesn't care about the students. I am working on the committee that gives awards to undergraduate professors for their teaching abilities and I was surprised by how many are nominated. There were even professors who I had had who I didn't think were the best when I had them who were nominated and it made me realize that not every professor is my 'cup of tea' but they are all outstanding and have been selected to teach at this school for a reason. I have learned important career related skills but I have also gained a lot of knowledge about the world and about life from my time at Case.

The political science department is pretty small, so most of the professors I've had class with know my name. The classes range from extremely boring and useless to pretty darn good, but it's not consistent across the board. Most of the professors here don't really like to teach and are just here to do research, especially in the maths and sciences. Most students here think they are a lot smarter than they really are, and walking around campus you'll hear lots of people talking about classes or how dumb their professors are. The truth is though, that Case accepts more than three-quarters of their applicants so they don't really weed out any of the dumber kids. I feel like my education is geared towards learning for the sake of learning, because there sure isn't any help getting a job for kids in the social sciences.

Academics is a major focus here at Case. Students spend a lot of time studying. Professors expect a lot of their students both in terms of work load and difficulty of course concepts. Students are very invested in their work, and tend to be very competitive. However, students are willing to help out and study together. My major is polymer science and engineering, and it is a great major. The department is small, only graduating less that ten students a year. My professors know my name, and I have a close relationship with my advisor. I also have had the opportunity to work in a research lab since my freshman year, which has helped me to decide that I would like to pursue a Ph.D. after undergraduate.

some of the intro classes are pretty big, but the biggest room only holds about 300 people, so no class will be bigger than that. even so, most of the professors i've had are very nice and approachable. even my professors from my 200+ classes know my name, because i have introduced myself to them. many people i know study A LOT. the education at case is geared at preparing you for grad/professional school.

In all classes the teachers learn your name, if you go to them and are not just face that they see 2 to 3 times a week. Case students are studying quite often. My favorite class was sign language. I liked it, because it was a fun class that I didn't have to worry about memorizing reactions. I worked hard, and I did well. It was great, because it was a break from my usual set of classes. I sometimes wonder if Case where is guiding me, and I realize that Case isn't guiding me, I chosing where I want to go, and Case is helping me go there. Some schools its all about getting a job, other schools are about getting into med school, Case is about helping me find out what I want to do, and where I should go to do it.

They're great. I learn a lot and remember a lot. My best profs have been Dr. DiIulio, Dr. Pearson, Dr. Demaree and Dr. Toman. These are some of the few people I've run into who care about my education and hope that I succeed. I've recently been studying for the MCAT and so far, I think I'm well prepared for it. The unfortunate thing is that admitting the types of people Case is now admitting, is that the students care less about the academics. The academics, as a result, suffer. Students goof off a lot more and gripe about grades. It seems like their focus is much more on getting into med school than actually learning the material. I attribute all of that to the university's shallowness in who they allow to come here. People who are more serious about Case's lousy sports teams than helping people through their education really don't have a place here. Most of the professors care a little bit more about their research than their students. They're forced to teach so do a mediocre job and use the same powerpoints for years...not devoting much time to it.