The University of Alabama Top Questions

The classes are amazing here at UA. The class sizes vary depending on if it introductory level or not. When the class is introductory, it is very large, but if it upper level or specific to a major it holds about 15 people. The professors will know your name is you make them know your name. They are willing to help you and to get to know how they can help you specifically. I am a journalism major, which is a smaller department and there are several teachers that know my name. They also have opened a lot of opportunities for me as a senior about to graduate.

Within my classes, they arent all about who makes the best grade. It all depends on the teacher. Some of my teachers have been hardcore and fierce about getting your work done and done incredibly well. Others have been less rough, they've wanted you to enjoy your curriculum and understand that some students are taking more hours than others. GPA's are competative and if your considering a grad school its best to take your classes seriously as the grades are competative with this many students graduating each year.

Academics are the top priority at the University of Alabama. Most of the professors are passionate about what they teach and are eager for you to succeed. They help you each step of the way through your time at the university. A wide variety of majors is offered here, ranging from business to nursing and even fashion. The University of Alabama's School of Law is ranked 35th in the nation and the Public Relations department is the top in the nation. Whatever road you're going down, the University of Alabama can help guide you to success.

Many classes at The University of Alabama are massive, sometimes consisting of more than 300 students. However, the classes that really require intensive focus and study are often smaller, consisting of 20 students or less. Professors will get to know you if you take the time to get to know them. I have a very close relationship with my English Composition professor from my freshman year. I can talk to her about anything, and we get dinner occasionally. She's a great reference for anything on campus, and of course I get to put her down as a reference on my resume! Classes at the Capstone will vary depending on your major. Interior design majors won't study nearly as often as engineering majors. It just depends on what you're into.

Some of the teachers at Alabama may not be the best but as long as you read your book and stay on top of it, you should be able to handle it. I have had classes with 25 people, as well as a a class with 450 people. The smaller classes are the classes where the teachers know your name, but i'm willing to say that the class with 450 people, that my teacher probably doesn't even know what I look like. My favorite class is definitely Human Anatomy but it is VERY hard. I am definitely a nerd and still have a hard time with it. Its just a lot of information to retain but it is very interesting. I probably spend at least 20 hours a week studying. I would say that not all students study that much however.

Academics are some of the best I've seen anywhere. UA takes a lot of time and considerations when selecting faculty memebers and their selectivness reflects a great educational environment.

One thing a lot of people ask about is class size. Like most universities, UA does have some large classes. Personally my largest has been 160. But size is what you make it. Professors have office hours for a reason, and all of my professors have begged for students to come visit and ask questions. Most classes, especially when you get into your major, are no larger than 60 students with the majority being smaller. In the history department, most of my professors know my name, or at least know my face. You are not a nameless number here. You can always find people debating some issue or another on campus. We get free copies of USA Today, so most history classes at least sit around before class talking about the day's issues. People are very passionate about their beliefs here, and we are very diverse in those beliefs, so it can get interesting. An education at the University of Alabama is very competitive with the rest of the country. In fact, several of my professors are graduates of Ivy League schools and are very respected in their fields. If you are interested in history, you should take Dr. Lawrence Kohl's Civil War class. He is the ultimate storyteller, and while it is a tough class, it is well worth the effort. We have one of the top business schools in the nation and our law school is consistently ranked in the top forty. If a student leaves the university unprepared for life in the real world then it is their own fault because there are resources galore here to help you if you are willing to help yourself.

Academics are really good here at the Capstone. My favorite classes were my English 101 and Art History 253. I had a really great teacher. She made it fun to write all the papers. My least favorite classes would have to be History 101 and Psychology 101. These are big lecture classes with about 150 to 200 students. In all the classes that only had about 30 students, the teacher knew my name. Only in a few of my big lecture classes did the professors know my name. Don't be fooled there are some hard professors here at Bama, but they will help you when you ask them for help. Never be afraid to ask your professor questions. It is their job to make sure you understand and they want you to achieve. With all the different classes you will find out want you like to study and what type of major you can get with it. Never be afraid to change your major. At the beginning of my first semester, I was a Social Science Education major otherwise known as a history teacher. After my first history class I knew I wasn't going to enjoy learning all the history, but I did love writing papers that dealt with describing or telling about a certain subject. I change my major mid-way through my first semester. My major is advertising. I start my advertising classes next semester. I declared my graphic design minor right before spring break of my second semester. I am looking forward to the classes.

All my professors know exactly who I am, and I'll often have discussions with them after class that have nothing to do with class. For example, I had a really long discussion with one of my French professors yesterday about the politics and crime rates of larger Southern cities. Honestly, I love all my classes, so I don't have a favorite really. The most unique class I've taken thus far is my French Literature class. We read the works, have multiple discussions that occasionally involve what we read, and then we write a long paper about something we've read/discussed. I am a French major and Biology minor following a Pre-Med track. It's a lot of science and language. However, the stark contrast in subject provides a good balance in my workload. UA's academic requirements are daunting, but easier to plan out than most people think. My education is ultimately focused on getting me to medical school, but I love what I'm learning along the way.

As far as academics, I really recommend getting involved in the honors program. I have had my most enjoyable classes in the Honors College, and the classes are small enough so all the professors know you by name. They also know that you are a student who cares, so they treat you with respect. Class participation is much more common in the Honors classes. I took one class called Witches and Bitches in Popular Culture, and I was completely enthralled the entire time.

UA academics are amazing. I know all of my professors names (first and last and where many of them went to college, etc). My favorite class was actually not in my major. It was a women's studies class (WS 200). It really challenged me to think outside the box and look at things in with a different perspective. My least favorite class was organic chemistry (need I say more?). The amount of time I study depends on the class style and the subject (1-5 hours a week). Students are competitive but also collaborative. I took a freshwater interdisciplinary studies class my freshman year and really enjoyed it. It was a seminar class where we had speakers come in every week and talk about issues related to freshwater ecosystems. The speakers were from a very diverse background and gave a good picture about different reasons why some of the issues arose in the first place. It was definitely one of my most interesting classes. Class participation varies based on the topic being covered and the size of the class. I did undergraduate research so I spent a good amount of time outside of class with professors and graduate students. UA's requirements are just the minimum. Biology majors really need more upper level classes. UA's education isn't geared towards a job really.

Your relationship with your professors will be what you make it. If you decide to go up and introduct yourself and see them outside of class you will have a close relationship. If not, then you won't. Class attendance isn't that big of a deal. Most people get by without it . I learn better if I go though. Class participation is kind of intimidating in large classes. Students study according to how bad they want a good grade. I think I've taken a lot of classes I didn't need. I wish the first two years weren't spent only doing core requirements. I wish there was more time devoted to your major classes.

The size of the class and your own participation depend on whether your professor knows your name. My professor for Spanish and English both know my name, because they are smaller classes. However in my larger classes like Art History, Astronomy, and Math, the professor might know my face, but may not remember my name right off the bat. The education at UA is geared toward getting a job I think. Whatever department or major you have, your advisors work with you if you choose. There are also many internships for different majors and colleges. I think UA does a good job at trying to have a job lined up for you when you graduate.

If you get into the right programs, such as Blount or New College or Honors College then it is an Ivy Education at a Football School. Your education comes with finding the great professors on Campus.

Although football is unaminously the biggest thing here, academics is huge here too. We always rank high on practically every academic-based list. I would say that the curriculum is rather challenging, but I think so in a good way. Employers prefer students who go to colleges where you have to earn good grades as opposed to schools where you can just show up and get an 'A'. All classes aren't hard, I guess it just depends on your major. Even then, a lot of times the toughness of a course depends on the professor. Some of them are very nice and make every effort to make their students happy. Other ones just stand in front of the room and talk, and could care less whether or not you understand the material. But I guess it's like that at every school. There are many classes, especially in the business school, that allow you to go well beyond just reading a textbook and taking tests. They emphasize real world projects, which of course will help students in the long run especially as they go out into the real world.

Classes at UA are impressively small for it being such a large school. Most of my classes have about 20-30 people in them, except for my lecture classes, those have about 200. But even in those classes, it's not hard at all to pay attention. Those professors still take the time to try and have everyone in class participate. I think that the most beneficial class that I have taken so far is Computer Science 102. It doesn't really count towards anything unless you are majoring in business or computer science but it makes you a master at Office 2007, something you're going to need to be for the rest of your life.

What you put in is what you get out. If want to study, you will study. No one is here to hold your hand. If you want, you can get an education equivalent to that of any "Top" school in America. If you want to just party, you can do that too. My favorite class was Classics 222 with Kirk Summers. It was Greek and Roman Mythology. My worst class was TCF 112 and MC 101. Don't take college of communication classes. The business school is very much about giving you a great education while at the same time working with you to find a full time job.

The academics at UA are good. I sometimes feel like the classes I take are not hard enough. I sometimes feel like I am still in high school when it comes to how much studying I actually have to do. Don't get me wrong, I do have a lot of studying to do in some classes, but for the most part they aren't all that hard. I really dislike the core curriculum. Had that not been in place, I may have decided a major and stuck with it. I kept changing my major simply because I had too much time to think about it. For some, that may be good. Now that I am fixing to graduate, I wish I would have stuck with what I originally wanted to do, which was teaching. But over the years, so many people told me the negatives of it, that I decided I would do what others wanted me to do.

It depends on what your major is and what your class sizes are if your professor knows your name. As you get into upper division classes they seem to make more of an effort to want to know who you are. Its the students responisbility to introduce themselves for the most part. Favorite class is MKT300 with Dr. Reynolds. My least favorite would have to be any english class. It depends on the student to say how much they study. I have just recently started studying up to a week and a 1/2 before a test. class participation is more common in upper division classes. but always common if points and/or extra credit is given for attendance. i think the honor students and/or the students in the top 5{4a082faed443b016e84c6ea63012b481c58f64867aa2dc62fff66e22ad7dff6c} on their class are competitive, but thats about it. I am an accounting major and i strongly believe we have to best faculty, teachers and advisors. it has VERY hard classes and the teachers treat us and give tests to us like we are smarter that we really are. so the tests are very hard. but they offer their time to help you and they are very focused on being 15th in the nation for undergrad accounting schools. i do not know if UA as a whole is geared toward post graduation jobs but i know the accounting school is. i would be giving a conservative percentile when i say 85{4a082faed443b016e84c6ea63012b481c58f64867aa2dc62fff66e22ad7dff6c} of accounting students have a job waiting on them before they even graduate.

I have great professors. My experience here as an undergrad student was awesome, and graduate school is good too! My professors are so helpful and go out of their way to help me.