University of Connecticut Top Questions

No they don't know m name. I liked my comm105 class. I didn't like my math105 class. I do think we have deep conversations. Students are very competative.

My major is Coastal Studies (or Marine Sciences), Bachelor of Science. It is a very small group, and it is based out of Avery Point, where many of my junior and senior year classes take place. In my current experience with this major, not many professors know your name in your freshman and sophomore year because lectures can be up to 400 people, and well, thats just a lot of names. Once you get down to the smaller classes for your own major, professors usually try to get to know everyone, also making it easier to make connections with classmates. Least favorite class is CHEMISTRY...its very very hard. So if you are majoring in a science, be prepared. I think my favorite class was Statistics, math comes very easy to me, and the teacher made everything so clear.

Some professors know me personally. Others-- those in large lectures-- don't know me at all. I make it a point to get to know some of my professors, either for extra help or future connections into my field. Do ask questions, either in class or staying after. Most appreciate it if you actually seem concerned about the class. Also, they like attendance. My favorite classes have been English classes because of the smaller size and more chances to participate. I also liked my Animal Behavior class-- my major is Animal Science, so it was a really interesting subject for me. Class participation is common in some classes, but not in large classes, or math and science classes. Yes, Uconn students have intellectual conversations, if you hang out with the right people. And a lot of students are more than willing to help each other with assignments. Animal Behavior was a unique class. I had to train an animal for this, so I trained a chicken from Uconn's Poultry farm. My Intro to Shakespeare class was also unique because most of the class was focus on interpreting and acting out a scene from one of his plays. My major is Animal Science, with a focus on Pre-Vet. This means I will be taking a lot of Chemistry and Animal Science classes. I sometimes talk to professors after class or through e-mail when needed, but I don't spend time with them besides that. However, I'm in a learning community, and I will talk to the associate professor and teachers assistant more. I'm more concerned with what Vet schools want. Uconn's academic requriements for Animal Science are mush easier than their requirements.

a lot of studying is required, the classes are pretty tough, teachers are real good about getting extra help

Students study depending on their workload, major & year. It all depends on the person. But I will have to agree that a lot more students study & succeed than the media shows. We do have many large lectures, which have discussions & lab w/ smaller amounts of students. But there are some smaller classes. I am nursing major & I love the support I get from the faculty there, it provides the feeling of a small college in a large public university.

I think the academics at UConn are challenging but needed. I am a business major and we have to take economics. These classes are aweful. They are very difficult. While your professor does not know your name, if you make a point to meet them and go to their office hours, most are very nice and willing to help.

if you are willing, you will receive an excellent education at uconn. that said, you can also just go through the motions and get by with passing grades without learning a thing. just like any institution, what you get out of uconn is what you are willing to put into it. your gen-ed classes are going to be long, boring, and pointless, but suck it up!! we all had to go through them! make sure you are interested in your declared major because that is when you get out of 500 student lecture halls and enter 20 student classrooms. you should really like what you are studying. most professors are great- they enjoy very much what they are teaching and enjoy it even more when young college students get excited about the material too. be prepared however, to be taught by a lot of teaching assistants as apposed to professors- these are masters and phd students that will teach your classes under the supervision of a professor in the discipline's department. no fear though, all my experiences with ta's were great! though the bureacracy of it all is enough to drive you insane, the actual academics of uconn are one this i am not able to bash.

I am a Biology/Pre-Med student and so far have been disappointed by the science department, particularly Chemistry. Some of my professors are very bland and don't seem to care if their students do well or not. But on the other hand, a few of my professors have gone above and beyond the call of duty to reach out to every one of their students (like David B. Miller). Although it may be really rough to get through the academic core at UConn, you will be at the cream of the crop when it comes time to apply for jobs or graduate school.

Just because UConn is a state school does not mean it is easy. We are definitely challenged. For the most part professors are very helpful. The class sizes are only big in Intro level courses and there is usually a TA that is willing to help if you are having difficulty. In the upper level courses, you become part of your school or department. You begin to know the professors and other students in your major, which is nice.

Most of the undergraduate Gen-ed classes are large, so the professors do not know our names. Because I am a spanish and comm double major, my spanish classes have been about 15 kids every semester and therefore the teachers know our names. My first spanish teacher-Jorge- was a TA (teachers assistant) and taught my class. He turned into almost a mentor in my freshman days, and i knew i could (and still can) go to him with anything. I love my spanish classes because the students in them are actually very interested in the language and intend to pursue their language skills, and because of this, classes are competitive and fun. Many classes at Uconn are geared toward individual furthering of knowledge, learning for ones own sake. Although when you get into high level classes in your major, there still seems to be leniency as to where one might like to take the knowledge he/she is learning and continue on a certain path to better himself/herself in the field.

Sometimes it is difficult attending uconn out of a highschool setting because the classes are so much larger! However you get used to it and it really teaches you how to be responsible for yourself.

I'm enrolled in the College of Agriculture and Natural Resources as a Natural Resources Management and Engineering major. My friends and I do discuss classroom topics out of class because we find it to be an interesting subject (even some of us who aren't in NRME). But then again, who isn't concerned about the environment these days? This past semester was my first at UConn and as a transfer I had a later registration date that most of the university. I took five three-credit classes. They were all pretty interesting and my professors all enthusiastic about their subjects. I'll admit, though, that they were all pretty easy and that I haven't taken any challenging classes yet. I've heard that chemistry classes are pretty hard and some advice about that to students who aren't in engineering or pharmacy: if you need chemistry, take it in the spring. In the fall, they make it harder to weed out students form those programs.

Professors do not know or care about students' names. Grad student teachers do, however. Students are not very competitive.

I was very fortunate because most of my classes weren't huge, even though I did have one 100+ class and another 350+ class. Students are constantly in the library, but there are a good bit of slackers. Class participation depends on the size of the class. UConn's academic requirements are good.

A lot of classes are large lectures, so the professor won't know you unless you go to his office hours. However, a lot of professors in classes of about 30-35 people or smaller usually do make the effort to try to get to know their students. Expect a workload - especially in the school of education. I hear the school of business isn't all that difficult once you're in, though. The nice thing about UConn is that it's so highly accredited, so many jobs will take you into account, especially from the schools of education, business, and probably pharmacy. It's a research university, so expect some professors to assign their own work as well. And one cool thing that a lot of people take for granted is that many times, professors will be able to have experts in the field come to speak to the class. Skipping guest lectures is not advised - a lot of times, you may receive bonus points for attending, and skipping tends to make professors angry. Once, my entire 125 person lecture got an angry email from a professor because only about 1/3 of the class showed for a guest lecture.

Class participation varies from class to class, the students in the school of ed are sickly competitive to the point of being catty but otherwise everyone helps eachother out. No time spent with professors outside of class

At the regional campus the professors know your name, otherwise in a big class with anywhere from 300-60 some professors would obviously have the study more then the students just to know every name. people are always in the library studying and during finals week at storrs the library is open 24 hours and quiet hours are reinforced. in some classes class participation varies. when a professor asks a question openly to the class there is always that one student that answers it. Think of Hermione in Harry Potter, and it gets annoying. I'm not saying not to participate and if it is in a philosophy class your opinion is obviously wanted. if you know your major, thats great but if not, don't take ALL your Gen. Eds. at the same time, because in your junior and senior year you will be wishing to take those easy classes.

Academics at UConn are diverse. There are so many majors to choose from and different schools and departments that one can take classes in virtually anything that interests them. As a science major, I have experienced some of the most difficult "weeding out" classes for freshmen. For a science major, the requirements are difficult, but not impossible. Class sizes vary. As we go to a large school, large lectures make up a majority of classes. However, small discussions which are taken concurrently with lectures consist of intimate settings in which students may ask questions and discuss material covered during lecture.

classes are too huge, no real learning just memorizing. impossible to form relations with professors. most are rude new englanders anyway

UConn is the #1 public university in New England, and our academics are reasonably tough, for a public school. There are some huge classes in popular Intro courses, up to like 300 in a section, but complementary lab or discussion sections can make those a little more comprehensive than just taking notes in a lecture. Once you get into upper-level courses, the classes get much smaller. All the professors I know are very intelligent and pretty good at teaching, and the TA's are okay for the most part. Some of them don't speak english well. Certain niches of people discuss academics outside class, but for the most part the work ethic of UConn doesn't match that of tougher colleges.