University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign Top Questions

My freshman year, most of my professors definitely did not know my name. Most classes are taught two days a week in large lecture hall (over 300 students) by a professor and then once or twice a week in a smaller setting by a TA (20-30 students). This makes it hard to ever even talk to your professor face to face although you usually do develop a good relationship with your TA's. Classes at U of I might be a little different from my point of view. To me, my classes are difficult and require a lot of concentration and studying in order to fully understand the material. It is a running joke in the engineering community about "classes south of Green". the engineering quad is north of Green Street and the main quad and all other colleges are located south of Green Street. Many engineers enroll in those classes to either fulfill requirements or boost their GPA. The requirements for an engineer are not hard to fulfill. I can complete all of the hours needed in four classes, but I'll take more to pad my overall GPA. I know my professors pretty well now because you start taking engineering courses during your sophomore year and the class size decreases exponentially. It is also imperative that you attend office hours and talk to your professors to understand the material and do well in the class. The professors also take an active role in student activities. To raise money for various organizations, professors will donate a student/faculty basketball game or dinner at their house. These dinner parties can be really fun and get pretty crazy. Professors are fun to hang out with outside of class, surprisingly.

Some professors will know your name and some wont. It depends on the class you are taking. And most likely you will have both types... some small classes and some huge lectures of up to 800 people. It just depends. My favorite class would have to be KIN 120: sports injuries. My least favorite class would be CALC 2. It depends on the class how much you have to study. It also depends on how much you already know, if you go to class, if you actually pay attention in class, etc. The studying is up to you. You dont have to study at all, but I wouldn't suggest that unless you want a ticket back to your hometown. But, it all depends... (sorry I know, I hate answers like that) Yes, students have intellectual conversations outside of class. But, it isn't something that should be frightening. It's mostly sharing something cool you have learned. Its nothing to take super seriously. Some students are very competitive in grades, some are just trying to get by. It depends, its like every school. However, I will say that the competition here is tough. Most unique class I have ever taken is Human Sexuality. Its something that you probably wouldn't have to study too much for (just an hr or 2 for the test) and do the assignments and you should get an A. But, it is something that you wouldn't think would be taught in a classroom. My major when I first came to U of I was Math. I will tell you something, you should take school seriously, but definitely take your major classes super seriously. You have to do very well in those classes to stay in your major. Now my major is communications. It is harder than what people expect, but I truly enjoy it, so its not so bad for me. I don't usually spend time with professors outside of class, however, there is an option that you can. They all have office hours. I would say definitely use those to your advantage, I never did and I regret that. I think some of the academic requirements at U of I (especially in your major) are absolutely rediculous. They piss me off honestly, but thats why this school has the reputation that it does. It is what it is. I think that there is both, educationg for its own sake and geraed toward getting a job. The education here is impeccable.

U of I is a great school with an awesome reputation. You are really going to get a good degree from this school and will definitely turn out to be successful. There are classes that are certainly challenging, but when that final exams are turned in and you are done with them, you'll be proud of yourself for getting through.

Professors do not know your name! Let's not sugar coat it, if that's what your looking for DO NOT...I repeat DO NOT apply to U of I. The classrooms are huge, (auditorium sized). Favorite class: ART 250 It's a class in which they teaching you how to write using video. Interesting right? I loved it, I learned how to edit and make quality videos. (Plus it fulfills three Gen eds) Least favorite: BIO 120 Integretive Biology...Yuck! Students study ALL THE TIME...The Library is so full of people Class participation is not common, you try asking a question in a room full of 300 students. Intellectual convos are very common with my friends and I. The students are extremely competitive, I've seen people get disgruntled over a B The most unique class would have to be the same as my favorite class ART 250 My major is Communication and I enjoy it because there's a wide variety of careers that I can persue with this Major. I do not spend time with professors outside of the classroom. I feel that the Illinois academic requirements are challenging, many people complain about all the weed-out classes. I feel that the education is geared more learning for it's own sake.

There are many difficult classes and most expect a lot out of you, but there are also easy, blow off classes that you can take to satisfy a gen ed. Everyone always warns that the curriculum is rigorous, and it is challenging, but if accepted, you will be able to do it.

Professors don't know your name, even if you go to office hours often and you have the highest grade in the course. I know this for a fact because this is my situation every single semester. Everyone studies as much as they want to - some students never study, some students never do anything else except study. It's not uncommon to study 5 hours a day outside of class. Students are really, really competitive. In the majority of classes, participation is discouraged because there simply isn't enough time for questions from more than one or two people. My major is Molecular and Cellular Biology. I had to take the intro course because I'm pre-pharmacy, and you have to take a year of biology. The course was so interesting and so hard, but I did so well, that I decided to switch majors (I was previously Community Health, which is the most boring and repetitive major on this campus!). The department is decent, there are some really great advisors and some really awful ones... But fortunately, they are not assigned, so you can choose who you go to. The first few courses in the major are painfully boring, but I've been assured by many former students that the interesting courses come later. I've heard this is common for many majors.

For the most part my professors know my name or they can recognize my face at least if I see them on the quad. Students study often, but also party very hard. The students are not that competitive, but they do have intellectual conversations outside of the classroom. These conversations usually take place after a major event such as the shooting at NIU.

Overall, I have been impressed with the academics at Illinois. Yes, you will have some classes with Teaching Assistants (TA's) early on, but once you get to the higher level courses (200/300/400 level) you will have Professors. Most of my Professors have been very kind and friendly, and fully accessible for questions and help. Oftentimes, in a large lecture, the Professor will have several grad students who hold office hours for questions as well. My favorite large lecture course has been History 140, "Western Civilization: Antiquity-1660." The course was taught by Professor Carol Symes, and her energy and enthusiasm for the material really made it fun. I was never a lover of History, but Professor Symes made the material come alive with her creative lectures. In one of the largest lecture halls (Foellinger Auditorium, on the Quad) we held our own trial of Socrates, complete with Graduate Students as actors, and Professor Symes herself running around the lecture hall to bring the microphone to students expressing different sides of the debate. My TA for that course, Trisha Olson, challenged our writing skills and really took the time to help us understand the material and make us into better learners overall. Within the Psychology department, I have taken several interesting courses. My favorite course thus far has been my internship, which is part of the Psychology 340/341 program. In this course, we had class once a week for 2 hours, and then we interned 10 hours a week at Cunningham Children's Home, which is about 8 minutes from campus, in Urbana. There are several other 340/341 opportunities to intern in different places in the community, but I chose this one because of my interest in children. I worked in a cottage with boys aged 10-11 and girls aged 13-15. At most, the cottage held 10 kids, but the Cunningham campus as a whole can accommodate many more. Cunningham Children's Home is part of the Illinois Department of Family and Children's Services (IDCFS), and it is home to children who are either wards of the state or are on individual care grants from their families. This was my most unique course, because it allowed me to reach out to the community and learn a great deal about the IDCFS system and how it affects the lives of hundreds of children every day. This coming semester, I am planning on continuing my work with Cunningham by interning in their school.

Professors know my name a lot and will say hi if they see you out of class. You do have to make yourself known to them though. Be sure to introduce yourself to them, they can be extremely helpful in the future. The academics here are tough, but I feel that you learn the most from it all. Definitely geared towards getting a job someday in the future.

I know all of my professors, and they all know me. The professors here, even the ones that teach lectures of 300 or more students, will go out of their way to help you and will round your grade up if they know you have put in the effort. The students here know how to study hard and have a good time. Students know how to get there work done and take time to dance till 2 am on a week night if they feel they deserve a break.