Colorado State University-Fort Collins Top Questions

Academics is a hard subject to comment on because I've found it varies a lot between departments. In the big classes, the prof's won't know your name. That's not anything any different than any other school. When you get into smaller classes (could be your freshman year, could be your senior year, depending on your major), they will know your name. Both situations have advantages though. How much you study, again, will depend on your major. I tend to study at least 5-10 hours a week, but I've known people who get by with much less. As I look through the list of questions for this section, the generic answer is that it depends on your major. In biochem, we tend to be competitive (in a friendly way). We know our profs pretty well (especially if you work in a lab). We also tend to talk about classes and study together a fair bit. I would say that this department is awesome overall! I love it! We work pretty hard, but we also have a lot of fun!

Most professors I've had were very nice and willing to help students. I don't really have a favorite class, but my least favorite is definitely organic chemistry! The academic requirements are pretty easy for a biology major, and more difficult for Environmental Health or Biomedical Sciences. Most students I know study about every weekday on average. I try to but am a great procrastinator so normally I end up pulling all-nighters to write an essay or study for a test. Not recommended.

The academics here at CSU are not particularly challenging, not are the professors up to the standard my private high school professors were.

CSU's academics are very interactive. Class participation is highly encouraged if not practiced. The classes are not just about failing students, but rather about enabling the students to learn. The professors really seem like they care about teaching. My favorite class so far was PY100. My professor was always in a good mood and tried to relate the material to us in a way that we would not only understand but also remember and apply into our daily lives. That class really had an impact on me.

Class sizes vary from just a few students to a few hundred. If you take advantage of a professor's office hours, any class will become more personalized as you get to know the prof and they get to know you. My Spanish classes have been challenging, interactive, and covered a variety of topics. Most of my classes are science classes, which vary in difficulty from General Chemistry to Organic Chemistry. Students who study more and work harder usually get the better grades... it's a logical balance. My physics professor has made that course unbelievable. His lectures entertain and inform at the same time, and he (like many professors here) genuinely cares about the students. My theory is that you can make your education worth whatever you put into it.

Professors are very willing to help students outside of class, whether it be during office hours or set up appointments. I have gotten to know my professors very well and they all know me by first name. Since CSU is such a large school its nice to know that teachers are willing to get to know you on a personal level. I find that students participate in classes that are smaller in size. In large lecture rooms, people don't respond as much. Also, I have noticed that there is more discussion in classes that are in the later morning or early afternoon. 8AM classes are too early and 3PM or later are too late in the day. People talk more often during the middle of the day.

The professors in my large lecture classes have no idea who I am, but the ones of my smaller classes do. My favorite class I've taken at CSU was Geosystems with Chamberlian, and my least favorite has been Public Speaking. Class particicpation is common in my smaller classes, but not as much in the larger ones.

What I have discovered at CSU is the majority of your teachers really do care about you. If you put yourself out there and get noticed the professors will remember you. Although I have had a few classes where the professor doesn't seem like they really care how you do.

No like I said above I wish we could reduce class sizes to help academics. When a professor knows my name I am more involved in the class and I learn a great deal more then when in a big lecture hall.

Two professors out of six classes know my name: my comp teacher and my lab TA. My other classes are in huge lecture halls and I haven't had a reason to speak with any of those professors yet so, they don't know my name. My favorite class is comp150 because our teacher, Marcia Gibbs, takes time to get to know us and schedule draft conferences to help us with our writing. My least favorite class is CIS 150. It is incredably frustating to work with the interactive Excel and Microsoft applications used to test student's abilities on these programs. Also, the class is incompatiable with my Apple computer, which is outrageous because I've been using that computer and never once has it crashed or gotten a virus, something that can't be said for the many Windowns comptuers I've owned in the past. CIS150 NEEDS to become compatible with Apple. It is necessary. Most students in my a hall study frequently, at least 2 hours a night.