Washington State University Top Questions

How much money and time is spent on the athletic program that could be used for other programs.

I attend Washington State University in Pullman, WA. I transferred from Fort Worth, Texas via Tarrant County Junior College. The worst thing about this school is how unprofessional and uninformed the staff are. Miscommunication, lack of knowledge on the staff's part, partial answers, and inefficiency all plague this school. When I was first accepted to this school back in February/March of 2015, I immediately called registration and student transfers to see what qualifications I needed to meet to obtain in-state tuition. I asked the representative on the phone if meeting Washington State's minimum standards of citizenship would qualify me for in-state tuition. The rep (a young woman) did not fully understand my question apparently as she told me yes it would. I relocated to Washington state thinking I was going to qualify for in-state tuition (after getting my vote's registration, establishing my new residence at the post office, and finally changing my car's plates and DL). Once I was there, the registration told me I had to be here a minimum of a year before any of that meant anything. In a panic, I tried to find help to figure out my situation; I did not qualify for private loans nor could I take anymore out, and I was unable to obtain any scholarships. The Student Affairs rep I talked to told me to quit and move back to Texas. She said I obviously couldn't afford school, and aside from attending a junior college in the area, there was nothing that could be done. In other words, she said I should quit. When I contacted the head of registration (specifically the person who handles student in-state residency issues), the woman told me it was my fault for not going online to look at the requirements. I called a total of three times into the dept. that handles in-state residency before relocating, spoke to 2 different people, and not once did anyone mention to me a website that I needed to go to. Furthermore, I called in to talk to a person whom I assumed would be qualified in their job and could give me the information I needed; why would I need to go online if I am given the information via phone? This makes it seem like the staff is not qualified for their job or given the information they need to do said job. Of course the woman I talked to who gave me the wrong info is no longer there, and I have even been accused of lying by some staff members. I have spent 2-3 months trying to sort things out, and still I'm not out of the fire. I have severely mis-budgeted due to faulty info, and now I am struggling just to attend part-time. It does not help that I am a first generation college student that comes from a relatively poor family. For new students entering any university or school, ask multiple people the same question, double and triple check, and always prepare for the worst.

As a branch campus my school is very small. This means that most every class is only taught in one section, one semester a year. This makes scheduling class around work and other activites very difficult. Once a student gets intoi their major classes their scedule is not very flexible and the students must be able to work with what is availible. This can often cause a student to fall behind and force them to take an extra year or two to complete a degree.

The worst thing about WSU is the location. It is in a very rural town that is far away from any big cities. Therefore, you can feel very isolated at times. There is not as much to do in Pullman as there would be in a larger city with more people such as Seattle or Spokane.

My school is on the Vancouver campus of WSU. Many students and major universities look down on my school because it is not the "mother school". They say this as if it makes college more simple and not as fullfilling. My school is as equally challenging and important as other four year universities. I am still earning a bachelore's that is as meaning ful as if I went Pullman. I decided to stay in Vancouver to earn my degree because as a single mother, it would be more diffucult to move six hours away and find new housing.

I really dislike all of the partying on Greek row with their drinking and yelling at other sport teams. I know all colleges have this, but why can't everyone have friendly rivalries?

I consider the dorms to be the worst thing about Washington State University. They aren't horrible to live in, but not roomy or extraordinarily pleasant to stay in. Then again, they are college dorm rooms, not hotel rooms, so in retrospect to all dorms they aren't awful.

The only bad thing my school has is that we do not have a recreational center because our campus is small, WSU Tri-Cities. Our campus is great and a wonderful place to be at. It is a small campus but it helps make it personal and comfortable for all students enrolled and thinking about enrolling.

How slow the school is to process Financial Aid applications. I've gotten my student loans late for two semesters in a row so far this first year, which has caused me to miss out on getting some early deals on materials and books for students, since I rely on financial aid.

The financial aid system and financial advising. Not only are the advisors confused about anything other than loans, but specific financial situations such as the Post 911/GI Bill students or homeless students for example, have very limited professional resources for advice and financial aid is very late in distribution when given to our school.