University of Washington-Seattle Campus Top Questions

University of Washington is a huge school with tons of pride and countless ways to find your place. I love the Pac-12 sports and a lot of students favorite time of the year is Husky football season. The entire student body comes together and roots against the opposing team as a whole. It is a great feeling being part of such a large community that are all connected by being Huskies. Although a large school may be a deterrent for some, their are many ways to get involved that make the school seem much more intimate and smaller. These ways include IMA sports teams, clubs such as Capture the Flag, College Republicans, Dow Dawgs Finance, Badminton Club, anything...you name it. In addition to these, joining a fraternity and sorority instantly makes you connected to hundreds and in Sophomores, Juniors and Seniors cases', thousands of fellow students. For these Greek System members, the school feels like an intimate community of 500-4,000 students who you see all over campus, at parties, in classes, on the basketball court, at concerts, etc. Another amazing thing about University of Washington is the Ave, where students can find dozens of food and retail shops just blocks away from their homes. Also, on the ave and all of campus are tons of bus stops that run constantly around Seattle and downtown. The busses are free to students and are a quick and great way to get downtown to work, shop, eat or enjoy Pike's place in the sun. I love how the University of Washington feels completely separate from a city when you are walking around campus, but downtown Seattle is only 10-15 minutes away on a free bus ride.

University of Washington is what you make of it. If your not used to big school like myself, you may want to consider going somewhere else. However if you feel like you can navigate the waters of this mammoth university your gonna have the time of your life. The possibilites are endless and the education is world class. There is no end to the list of majors and new ones are added all the time. I had a very hard time on my journey to finishing my major because UW failed to give me the structured support I was accustomed to. It's characteristically a sink or swim mentality on campus, which is great for building your confidence towards the real world life but very intimidating for a freshman coming from a graduating class of 80 people. Don't expect much guidance from your counselors after your first quarter, and expect a learning curve when using the school registration website. I'll never forget waking up at 5AM on registration day each quarter and fighting for a computer at the campus library in order to get the classes I really needed. This campus is basically a small city, so I urge you to consider joining some kind of group in order to meet people. Once your part of a campus group, it becomes apparent that our school has a ton of school pride and tradition. The entire state of washington views (besides WSU) thinks of UW as it's crowning jewel of Education, and those that graduate from this university carry the local esteem with them for life.

University of Washington is what you make of it. If your not used to big school like myself, you may want to consider going somewhere else. However if you feel like you can navigate the waters of this mammoth university your gonna have the time of your life. The possibilites are endless and the education is world class. There is no end to the list of majors and new ones are added all the time. I had a very hard time on my journey to finishing my major because UW failed to give me the structured support I was accustomed to. It's characteristically a sink or swim mentality on campus, which is great for building your confidence towards the real world life but very intimidating for a freshman coming from a graduating class of 80 people. Don't expect much guidance from your counselors after your first quarter, and expect a learning curve when using the school registration website. I'll never forget waking up at 5AM on registration day each quarter and fighting for a computer at the campus library in order to get the classes I really needed. This campus is basically a small city, so I urge you to consider joining some kind of group in order to meet people. Once your part of a campus group, it becomes apparent that our school has a ton of school pride and tradition. The entire state of washington views (besides WSU) thinks of UW as it's crowning jewel of Education, and those that graduate from this university carry the local esteem with them for life.

Sure, everyone wants to go to Yale or Harvard. But when you really think about it, the University of Washington's not too bad itself. It's one of the best schools nation-wide for anyone going into nursing or psychology. I hear our dental program's pretty prestigious as well.

The University of Washington is literally a world of it's own. Centered on it's own power grid with it's own identifiable streets and unique nicknames. The UW is a large, complex community that needs to be networked. From it's individual colleges to extensive student body activities, the University of Washington is in my opinion a network of possibilities. It's ability to create an atmosphere that is large scale yet personable gives this school a unique edge. All attributes of the university are made approachable from getting involved in the school's politics to making connections between teachers and students. This school makes it easy to make connections and experience college life to it's fullest. This is done even down to the school's daily student written newspaper. For the students by the students, "The Daily" represents that idea that the UW is a world of it's own where you can take part in every aspect of what is happening in the university community. Even if that is just finding out about the latest student hangout hot sport, taking part in school rally, or discovering the newest lecturer to visit campus. The UW is a place where you can learn, grow, and connect. Be apart of something bigger than yourself but never makes you feel small.

There are so many opportunities at the UW. The classes are structured in a way that even though you are in a course with hundreds of students you still feel like you can get one-on-one time with professors and teacher's assistants. There is a lot of pride here and it's great to be a Dawg! There is a lot of diversity and I really enjoy it.

My experience at my school so far has been amazing. I love going there and I love the whole environment of it. My favorite thing about it would have to be the campus because it is so beautiful. I love architecture so I love staring at the older buildings and l love looking at how detailed they are. Suzzallo Library has to be one of the prettiest buildings in the country on both the inside and outside. I love the whole gothic architecture aspect of it and it is beautiful during the day and when it is all light up at night. When my bus drives around the perimeter of the campus, I simply stare out the window and look at all of the buildings. Denny Hall is another one that I appreciate because of the fact that it was built in the 1800's and then transported to the campus. The Quad is another part of my school that is beautiful. It is filled with trees and the leaves in the fall and spring especially make it a beautiful place to be. I love the whole atmosphere of my school. There are over 40,000 students there, but I love the busy feel of it. Everyone is really nice and seems to respect the school and the opportunity to go there. There are students everywhere off campus and all the businesses in the area seem to be built to cater to college students. There are restaurants, clothing stores, etc. that the people at my school frequent a lot. Directly across the street are the fraternities, sororities, and off campus housing so the students at my school almost "own" the area since they are everywhere in the surrounding blocks. As far as the academics go, the school offers an overwhelming amount of classes of many different topics and all of the classes are interesting and challenging. When it comes to sports, my school is very prideful. While we are seen as an academic school, we still very much care about sports. Husky pride is huge and in particular, the football games on Saturdays are always heavily celebrated and we are very competitive. I only have a few complaints about the school, but they are very insignificant. First of all, while the whole area around my school is very much a "college town," crime still does happen and I hate feeling unsafe if I'm walking by myself in the area. Also, the campus is quite large so sometimes you have to walk quite a ways to your next class which can be a pain. I once had classes that were 20 minutes apart from each other. With only a 10 minute break between classes, I had to cut one of my class five minutes short and arrive at the other five minutes late to try to not miss much of either class. I've solved this by trying to sign up for classes close to one another, but this isn't always possible. Besides those two small complaints, I've loved everything else about my school so far.

The best thing about the UW is the smaller community within the larger campus. People become connected through different events and similar passions, which often lead to sustaining friendships. Red Square, the center of campus, is always booming throughout the day with tents promoting clubs and other fun activities. Not to mention, the campus could not be more gorgeous with its Harry Potteresque buildings dripping with vines, blossoming cherry trees, and the fountain decorated with swimming ducks. Oh, but the education. That's pretty important right? Well, UW definitely knows how to teach and does it well. Perhaps one could argue its because the school has been around for a few years huh? But really. My teachers display an enthusiasm about teaching I never received during high school. My freshman year, my hands clasped my school map tightly as I sat down at my lecture boasting hundreds of students. And there stood my teacher, smiling. For the next few weeks, she begged us to come to office hours to get to speak with her, because she sought to know her students on a more personal level. This kindness did not fail my following quarters at UW and still can be seen currently. One of my professors memorized over 200 our names in his lecture in order to make us feel more comfortable, and some required us to come to office hours because they truly wanted to know about our backgrounds and personalities first hand. I will admit, some lectures are boring, but there are always others leaving you sitting on the edge of your seat waiting to hear more. It really depends on who is teaching. But either way, my educational experience has been undeniably the best I could have asked for or ever dreamed I could obtain. Although all the great qualities that drew me into UW's atmosphere fulfilled my expectations, I will admit I did feel isolated when I came here. I found it hard to make new friends in my classes where everyone seemed they had a full quota and were not looking to meet anyone knew. Therefore the one thing I would change about UW is the way they handle freshmen becoming assimilated into what at first seems like a giant campus and school population. Now that I have been here for two years, I have found my groove. My shyness slowly melted away and I have been able to meet new people in my classes, dorm, and on campus job I had as a freshmen. Husky pride in Seattle, oh...it's real wild. During football season, I could hear people screaming from the stadium all the way from my dorm room on a hill multiple blocks from the stadium. I also vividly remember the entire school marching band marching from dorm to dorm the night before a game with music players wrapped in Christmas lights. For any sport, there are always fans faces caked in purple and yellow paint screaming for the Huskies. Ahem, maybe that is why UW won the Apple Cup against WSU (GO UW!). You can feel the Husky pride all over Seattle. Every time I tell people I go to UW people seem to pop out from everywhere to shout "ME TOO!" When I applied for my debit card at Bank of America, at least five different people working at the West Seattle bank all told me they were alumni. For this reason, I have always felt as if I was connected to something bigger. An entire community within my hometown all felt and went through the same experience as me. Trying to sleep in loud dorm rooms. Walking with rain soaked umbrellas through the red brick path on the quad. Giggling with my new friends. Discussing social issues that affect our community. They were who I have become, a college student at a highly acclaimed university. And boy, are they jealous they can't go back! Because my experience at UW is in fact priceless (despite the thousands in housing & tuition, but hey you can't be a college student without SOME debt right?). Another common reaction I get after speaking the name of my school is, "how did you get in there???" Curious, wide eyes often beat down on me as if I just told them I had been chillin' inside Bill Gate's mansion this weekend. But I try to suppress my proud smile and simply tell them the tricks that every prospective student should know; I worked hard in High School. I earned my spot at UW by volunteering, getting good grades, and writing strong college essays. As a first generation college student, I knew and still understand the value of my education. Getting into UW, especially as an in-state resident is not easy and is something to be envied. But you do not want to feel the people who get in to your desired school got in solely on the fact that it was easy, do you? I always wanted to go to a school that people took seriously, because to me, education is serious. Not to say that you can't dabble in some red cup sipping on the weekend at the sticky floored frat houses, but during the school week, it's time to crack down on the studying and homework. Because it is time to be someone and do something with your life, and after all, UW is an award winning school scattered with opportunities. So what are you doing? Apply and take one.

My friends, teachers, memories, and experiences at the UW have made it as much of a new home to me as my original hometown from across the state. After almost four years, the campus has a familiar and friendly feeling, and the young, modern city of Seattle around us provides an appropriate environment.

The best thing about the UW is the smaller community within the larger campus. People become connected through different events and similar passions, which often lead to sustaining friendships. Red Square, the center of campus, is always booming throughout the day with tents promoting clubs and other fun activities. Not to mention, the campus could not be more gorgeous with its Harry Potteresque buildings dripping with vines, blossoming cherry trees, and the fountain decorated with swimming ducks. Oh, but the education. That's pretty important right? Well, UW definitely knows how to teach and do it well. Perhaps one could argue its because the school has been around for a few years huh? But really. My teachers display an enthusiasm about teaching I never received during high school. My freshman year, my hands clasped my school map tightly as I sat down at my lecture boasting hundreds of students. And there stood my teacher, smiling. For the next few weeks, she begged us to come to office hours to get to speak with her, because she sought to know her students on a more personal level. This kindness did not fail my following quarters at UW and still can be seen currently. One of my professors memorized over 200 our names in his lecture in order to make us feel more comfortable, and some required us to come to office hours because they truly wanted to know about our backgrounds and personalities first hand. I will admit, some lectures are boring, but there are always others leaving you sitting on the edge of your seat waiting to hear more. It really depends on who is teaching. But either way, my educational experience has been undeniably the best I could have asked for or ever dreamed I could obtain. Although all the great qualities that drew me into UW's atmosphere fulfilled my expectations, I will admit I did feel a bit isolated when I came here. I found it hard to make new friends in my classes where everyone seemed they had a full quota and were not looking to meet anyone knew. Therefore the one thing I would change about UW is the way they handle freshmen becoming assimilated into what at first seems like a giant campus and school population. Now that I have been here for two years, I have found my groove. My shyness slowly melted away and I have been able to meet new people in my classes, dorm, and on campus job I had as a freshmen. I have enjoyed getting to meet people from different economic and cultural backgrounds and sharing our stories together. Husky pride in Seattle, oh...it's real wild. During football season, I could hear people screaming from the stadium all the way from my dorm room on a hill multiple blocks from the stadium. I also vividly remember the entire school marching band marching from dorm to dorm the night before a game with music players wrapped in Christmas lights. For any sport, there are always fans faces caked in purple and yellow paint screaming for the Huskies. Ahem, maybe that is why UW won the Apple Cup against WSU (GO UW!). You can feel the Husky pride all over Seattle. Every time I tell people I go to UW people seem to pop out from everywhere to shout "ME TOO!" When I applied for my debit card at Bank of America, at least five different people working at the West Seattle bank all told me they were alumni. For this reason, I have always felt as if I was connected to something bigger. An entire community within my hometown all felt and went through the same experience as me. Trying to sleep in loud dorm rooms. Walking with rain soaked umbrellas through the red brick path on the quad. Giggling with my new friends. Discussing social issues that affect our community. They were who I have become, a college student at a highly acclaimed university. And boy, are they jealous they can't go back! Because my experience at UW is in fact priceless (despite the thousands in housing & tuition, but hey you can't be a college student without SOME debt right?). Another common reaction I get after speaking the name of my school is, "how did you get in there???" Curious, wide eyes often beat down on me as if I just told them I had been chillin' inside Bill Gate's mansion on Lake Washington. But I try to suppress my proud smile and simply tell them the tricks that every prospective student should know; I worked hard in High School. I earned my spot at UW by volunteering, getting good grades, and writing strong college essays. As a first generation college student, I knew and still understand the value of my education. Getting into UW, especially as an in-state resident is not easy and is something to be envied. But you do not want to feel the people who get in to your desired school got in solely on the fact that it was easy, do you? I always wanted to go to a school that people took seriously, because to me, education is serious. Not to say that you can't dabble in some red cup sipping on the weekend at the sticky floored frat houses, but during the school week, it's time to crack down on the studying and homework. Because it is time to be someone and do something with your life, and after all, UW is an award winning school scattered with opportunities. So what are you doing? Apply and take one.