Hamilton College Top Questions

Academics at Hamilton are great. The professors really care about what they teach, and their main goal is to inspire the students in that subject. Professors are for the most part readily available to talk about classes, or anything outside classes. The chemistry department at Hamilton is great. The professors are all very close with the students, and really want them to learn as much as possible. There are always oppurtunities to spend time with professors outside of class, sometimes school sponsered, sometimes by the students organization. I think that the academic requirements at Hamilton are perfect, they allow the students to take whatever interests them, and a broad range of classes, not necessarily in the major. Education is definitely geared toward learning for its own sake at Hamilton, as students are able to take a wide range of classes, it is really the oppurtunity to learn as much as possible before narrowing the path to a career choice.

Professors always know our names. I would say the campus is split in half of kids who study a ton and kids who do not study at all. Students are very competitive about GPA's. Academic requirements are amazing at Hamilton!!! There are barely any-we do not have any core curriculum!

The professors definately know my name. I still say hello to all of my old professors and they care about how I'm doing and what my future holds.

It really depends on the courses you take how hard they are. I would say the science and history departments are the hardest, but I also think they are the courses that best prepare you for post-college life.

Professors make an effort to get to know students, which is helpful. I haven't been in a class with more than 40 students, and I don't think there are many here. The workload is at times a struggle for people without strong time management skills. There is a clear difference in the workload of science/math classes (more) and humanities classes (less), and because of the lack of distribution requirements, some students have comparatively little work outside of class.

Prof's know your name, some come to events, very supportive the ones that are. Hamilton is HARD, but good and the resources are totally available to you. All the time. Lots of intellectual discussion outside class, open curriculum the best thing ever!

Do professors know your name? Yes, including many who never taught me. Is class participation common? Yes, it is expected and is integral to the teaching process. Do Hamilton students have intellectual conversations outside of class? Yes, I often feel we do this too often. There may be too many intelligent people for the world to handle. What's the most unique class you've taken? Geology and Development of Modern Africa Do you spend time with professors outside of class? Yes, in many cases i know their families. I have also gone to the pub with some after hours (I'm 22 years old for the record). How do you feel about Hamilton 's academic requirements? I LOVE the open curriculum.

The absence of core requirements is awesome. The professors almost always know the names of the students in the class, and many remember the names and faces even when you're no longer in the class. In general, the time I spend with professors outside of class is during their office hours. It would be nice to have more interaction with them beyond the academic circle.

The academics at Hamilton are superb. Small class sizes, intimate class settings, the highest level of technology in the classes. The best and most commonly over-looked component of Hamilton is the amazing faculty. Well established within their respective fields, easily accessible, always willing to provide additional (outside of class time) help to students; the faculty is unbelievable.

My classes are great, overall. Professors here care much more than I've heard of those at other schools, and they're a lot smarter, too. Of course, this varies from department to depatment, and if you're in a good one, you will work your ass off. THE NO CORE REQUIREMENTS IS THE BEST THING E V E R.

Academics are great. Teachers make the classes, and the smaller classes are great, and work HAS to be done otherwise the other 8 people in the class will know as well as the professor that you did not keep up with your work.

Class participation gets better as you get old. I spend times with my professors outside of class but students often need to take the initiative. Its hard at first and beneficial in the end. I think Hamilton students really value and cherish the academic freedom. The career center is helpful and has a lot of resources but people sometimes complain that the counselors are not knowledgable or helpful. Most students do have intellectual conversations outside class but for the most part students spend a large portion of their time working and enjoy social and non academic things for their down time. This could mean drinking and partying and could mean a movie, group discussion, or other similar events. The drinking culture becomes less important as you get older and people do more diverse things on weekends.

The communications department at Hamilton is outstanding. Professors are all incredibly approachable and are all noteworthy scholars in their fields.

It's really easy to form great relationships with professors. Classes are small and all the professors seem to actually care about teaching.

I love the professors here - almost all of my classes the professors have known my name, and enjoy getting to know the students, even classes that are not within my major. Hamilton focuses on writing and public speaking, but mostly writing -- 3 writing intensive courses are required but that's about it. It's an open curriculum besides that and fulfilling the Q-Lit requirement. Intellectual conversations are held outside the classroom - there are plenty of lectures avialable to attend all the time for various departments. As an Art major in a liberal arts college I feel like I'm getting a well rounded education with the opportunity to explore several areas of study.

Professors know every student in the class and have a close relationship with their students. As a music major, my favorite class is Music in Europe from 1600-1900. Although music is not at all a popular major at Hamilton, the music department is wonderful and has great, professional, and fun professors and musicians. Hamilton students are extremely diverse when it comes to conversations; they do have intellectual conversations outside of class, but at the same time, do know how to have fun. I do not spend time with professors outside of class. I do feel that the education at Hamilton is geared toward getting a job, and will prepare everyone for the workforce.

I came to Hamilton because I knew when it came to academics I thrive in a small classroom environment. I have not at all been disapointed. I have yet to be in a class larger than 30 students and I hear classes only get smaller as you go to higher levels. All of my professors know my name and most make a concentrated effort to get to know their students. My Comparative Lit professor made sure we learned the names of everyone else in the class by making naming everyone a part of the final. I loved this and thought it greatly enhanced the class atmosphere. Intellectual discussions occur outside of class on rare occasions, but by the time class is over most students are ready to take a break from academics. Hamilton stresses strong writing skills and provides a lot of support to students, especially through our writing center, to turn out students who are strong writers.

Most classes are capped at 40 students, so professors are expected to know your name, whether you participate in class or not. Class participation is essential to a Hamilton education. Most classes go back and forth between lecture style and discussion. Heated debates often occur in most of my classes during discussion time. Students are not very competitive with each other. The real competition at Hamilton is with yourself. Grades are not talked about very much, which makes many feel more relaxed about academics. People set their own goals instead of trying to live up to someone else's. Academics are hard, but not too hard. Time management is definitely a good skill to have. Students are able to study during the week and still have fun on the weekends.

While students generally party hard on weekends, the same people are serious, motivated students. Almost all of my peers participate in our small classes, none of which are taught by teaching assistants. Hamilton is a liberal arts education which hopes to shape well-rounded individuals who have aptitude in nearly anything.

There are no real requirements except that you take a certain number of writing intensive classes (which may or may not actually be "writing intensive"). There is also a quantitative lit requirement, which is usually easy to fulfill without going all hard core math and science. Faculty is great, unlike at many big universities,they are into teaching, not research, so they are always available. Students are friendly with professors and go in for office hours. Competition academically isnt really a thing here at Hamilton, and my friends and I rarely discuss grades, not that we don't care about them, we just don't like comparing. My advisor is fantastic, love her. I'm an American Studies major, which is tiny here at Hamilton, but there are a good number of courses available that fit under that heading. At Hamilton, though we have a helpful career center and a top-rated alumni network for post-grad job hunting, we prefer to learn for learning's sake. All that ivory tower stuff.