Washington University in St Louis Top Questions

Wash U students are from all over the country. Most of them come from the top of their high school classes or have scored very high on the ACT/SAT. Most of the student body also loves to be involved with campus activities. Most students tend to meet their close friends through their living situations (freshman floor) or clubs and activities. Students on this campus are very open to different types of people. There is very little racial, religious, of LGBT discrimintation on this campus and everyone is accepting. Most students dress pretty casually during the week. Sweatpants and t-shirts are the most common class attire. People save their nice clothes for the weekends.

My only gripes are that everything here is very expensive; in addition to the whopping tuition, the University charges students extra money for in-room Internet service and cable TV. Food is also very expensive; you pay a premium for the good quality. Another problem is that there's so much construction. The University is bringing up two new buildings right now on main campus, and that means there's two giant holes where there were once either an old building or grass. Finally, St. Louis isn't the most hopping city. There are some good museums in Forest Park and excellent shops and ethnic food on the Delmar Loop, but besides that the city is not safe to be in by yourself. Thankfully, the University isn't located right in St. Louis city, but rather in University City and Clayton, the latter of which is a rich, up-scale suburb of St. Louis. On the whole, campus itself is very safe, and I never feel unsafe walking around campus at night.

The location of Wash U is really beautiful. Perhaps people from green areas might not find it that special, but I am from a dry area of the country and I am so excited by all the trees and the beautiful fall colors. Wash. U is right beside Forest Park which is an enormous green park full of trees, a free art museum, and the free St. Louis zoo. It's a great place to wander around in when you're sick of studying. In fact, last month, there was a big hot air balloon event and my friends and I went and saw all these huge colorful hot air balloons getting lit up.

Campus housing and food are by and far excellent. The modern dorms are especially nice--air-conditioned, carpeted, nicely furnished, laundry facilities, common rooms on each floor. By 2010, all the big dorms on the South 40 (the residential area for underclassmen) will be modern. Food is also great here; most places serve things made fresh to order, and they usually taste good. Still, it's not the same as home-cooked meals, so students here tend to get sick of the food after half a year or so. The campus is quite nice, with big green areas and flower-lined pathways and trees everywhere; the campus is sort of modeled off the quads of Cambridge and Oxford, and it works well.

Wash U is majority liberal/democrat, but you will find plenty of conservative/republican outlets and student groups. The campus is heavily Jewish and Catholic, so don't let that surprise you. There are many places to find part-time work on campus - look into the STaRS program. The Career Center is helpful, but more companies eye Northwestern in Chicago than Washington University in St. Louis - even though we are ranked the same.

WashU's student body is very, very diverse compared to the other schools I have visited. We have a million different students groups here that cater to racial groups, religious groups, sexuality groups, everything. WashU is a school dominated by wealthy students, but its not obvious like other schools. No one flaunts there wealth, so its hard to tell who is on financial aid or not, which is how it should be.

Lots of kids from the east coast. Biggest minority is asian. Wealthy. Unfortunately, WashU does not have a very politically active campus, although Barack Obama has inspired the biggest student following here.

Most WashU students are liberal, the young Deomcrats club definitely attracts more than republicans. There are a lot of New York/Chicago/DC kids, but the student body is very diverse on a whole. LGBT groups are active, and I have never heard of any discrimination taking place. Self-segregation between races (black and white) is common, but not restrictive.

WashU is mostly three things: a third jews, a third asian geniuses, and a third devout catholics. WashU calls itself diverse, but coming from a public school, it's pretty much a joke to consider it diverse. Asians and Indians sure, but there is a minute African American population.

Experience with racial, religious, LGBT, socio-economic and other groups on campus? Lots of Jewish people. Most groups are well accepted on campus, although some racial groups seem to group together. What kind of student would feel out of place? Anything too weird, like a cross dressing or lots of tattoos. A stupid student would feel out of place too. Most students wear to class? jeans or sweat pants. skirts a lot too. Do different types of students interact? Students from different schools do, yes. Yeah, I'd say so. Four tables of students: Blacks, Asians, Jocks, and normal people. Were are most Wash U students from? "A suburb of Chicago" What financial backgrounds are most prevalent? Upper/middle class. I think. It's kind of hard to tell. Politically aware/active? For the most part, I think. Predominantly left right or center? Center to Left. Students talk about how much they'll earn one day? No.