Vassar College Top Questions

Classes are challenging yet rewarding. Aside from some science courses you can find almost any class you want.

The academics here are outstanding. My department (Cognitive Science) is full of amazing professors who know their stuff, and that can be said for pretty much all departments here. The classes are small so you build a real relationship with professors, which opens the door to research opportunities later on. There are no grad students to compete with, so the professors are really here to teach. Additionally, there is no core curriculum, so you have the freedom to explore your academic interests without filling distribution requirements.

The academics at Vassar are truly its selling point. The professors are simultaneously respected researchers, as well as exceptional teachers. Unlike larger universities, the professors are primarily there to teach, and their accessibility pays testament to their commitment to teaching. Given the small nature of the student population (2,450), the classes are generally small and intimate. However these are not like small high school classes, in that the professors are of an incredibly high caliber. They challenge, argue, lead, and educate in such a fashion that students want to study and do well because they are interested by the matieral and impressed by the the faculty. Generally there is a lot of reading and lab work. There are no distribution requirements, so students take classes they want to take from the very beginning. Classes are not very difficult to get into, yet are still very small. Both of these attributes add to a healthy relationship between students, professors, and academic interest/achievement.

The Vassar education is more in depth than what is offered at most schools, in part because students aren't forced to waste time on a core curriculum. What I've found is that, by and large, Vassar graduates know a great deal about a few subjects, rather than not much about a lot. (It is always a few subjects, and not just one, because Vassar encourages interdisciplinary studies.) The class sizes are small. The professors are a regular part of your life. If a class isn't readily available, independent studies are easy to come by. The faculty and administration do everything they can to encourage and nurture a spirit of creative intellectualism.

Academics at Vassar are great. Intro classes leave a lot to be desired, but once you hit 200-level and above, it's a very satisfying learning environment. Classes are small - one of mine this semester was huge at 40 members - and professors usually know your name by the third week, if not sooner. It's frustrating that you have to pick just one or two majors; I want to take every class in every department because they all sound incredible. The interdisciplinary majors offered at Vassar (American Culture; Media Studies; Latin American/Latino Studies; Science, Technology, and Society; etc) are phenomenal, and really give great, well-rounded approaches to their subjects. Students are not competitive at all - everyone wants to do well, but that does not come at the expense of others' success. Very few (if any) students would refuse to help on an assignment or deliberately misguide a classmate.

Classes were pretty much the same size as my high school classes (generally 25 students, which I found to be a good thing). However, classes do vary in size from small seminars of 11 students to intro to art history, a 200 person lecture hall class. Most professors will get to know your name, and most of my classes involved discussion and student participation. Every professor has office hours, and most reply quickly through email. Some professors even give out there cell phone numbers or are available on IM. But every class / professor is different. One of my favorite classes was an Art History class on European painting from 1850-1900. The professor didn't know anyone (straight lecturer), but he was such a great lecturer (very funny with interesting side stories about Monet, Van Gogh, etc personal lives) that I loved it. Sometimes a no-discussion class can be a nice change from other, more student participation focused classes.

Vassar is not a good school if you are more science oriented. There aren't enough options in the biology department. Everything is either about plants and/or animals. If you want to learn about human anatomy and physiology, Vassar is not the place for you.

Be careful. Check www.ratemyprofessors.com I have philosophical conversations all the time outside of class.

Most professors will know your name by midterms, but it all depends on what kind of class you are taking. In Art History 105 and 106, which are lecture classes with small conferences, most professors didn't know all of their students names. People definitely have intellectual conversations outside of class. Professors are really good about encouraging students to meet outside of class to discuss ideas. I've had multiple group sessions outside of class in philosophy to discuss the material. I absolutely love the requirements at Vassar. I am completely hopeless with math and science, so the one QA requirement that studends have is wonderful. It allows students to focus on things that they KNOW they want to do, without taking so many gen eds.

Professors range anywhere from divinely brilliant golden gods to downright incompetent. Usually you're lucky to hit a happy medium--only a few are insufferable to be around, most are actually ridiculously nice and interesting people once you get them outside of a classroom.