Washington University in St Louis Top Questions

Students are given so much academic freedom here. Wash U really stresses exploring different classes or even something you MIGHT be interested in. It's true, you WILL have time to fill in your requirements to graduate. Professors truly want you to do well in their class, even a class of 300. While all classes are tough for any subject, even theater, the learning and growing process is so much more rewarding.

Academic life is challenging, but intellectually stimulating. I really enjoy going to class (except maybe if it's an early class...) Professors know my name, and try to get to know you even in larger classes. As long as you make an effort to participate and be engaged you will have fantastic relationships with professors.

Some classes are big lecture classes, other classes I've taken have 5 students. Professors are available for their students. People do study, even if at 4 am. Some students constantly study, others barely do. You can find a whole range, but generally, people are very aware of their academics and they are valued. WashU students certainly have intellectual conversations outside class, but we are no snobs- we value lots of other things outside academics like sports, acappella groups, volunteering, greek like, etc. Students are competitive but there is not tension surrounding everything academic. One of the nice things about it is that no one makes fun of you for taking school seriously, but people aren't biting at each other's necks to be first in the class. I am an economics major and thus far, have enjoyed it. I have found some of the intro classes a little dull (but still challenging!), but a recent upperlevel class I took where we discussed great economists and their writings really opened my eyes up to the field and the issues economists deal with today. WashU does not have really intense academic requirements and if natural science isn't really your thing, there are ways to kind of get around it. I think it certainly promotes learning for the sake of learning and part of the requirements are pushing you towards getting a liberal arts education.

The intimacy of a class largely depends on its department. For pre-meds, especially in the first few years, classes will be large. Professors hold office hours multiple times a week. With some extra effort, students can form relationships with instructors of these large classes. As an English major, I experience several small classes each semester. My first semester, I had a class with six people in it, and I was a freshman. These teachers are brilliant, to be honest. WashU does a great job employing professors who enjoy their teaching obligations and care about students. I have yet to see a professor who wasn't more than happy to meet with me outside of class, even if it meant setting up an appointment outside of regular office hours. Wash U doesn't have a core curriculum. It has distribution requirements. In four broad areas we have to completely clusters, groups of two or three classes that are somehow related to each other. I'm skeptical of the whole system because it seems like an overcomplicated way to ensure students have some exposure to different academic disciplines.

i'm pre-med so most of my classes are about 400 people or so so in those classes i know my teachers but they don't know me. i have one small class that's about 40 people and my teacher knows everyone who says anything in class by name. all of the science classes are on a curve, sometimes it helps (like in orgo) but sometimes it means that you can know basically everything in a class and still get c's on tests

Warning- premed classes are very intense. Everyone is really motivated and competitive with themself. Competition between students does not really exist here and students are likely to help and study with each other for classes.

Class participation is common in smaller classes. Participation typically counts toward your grade in English and foreign language courses. But in big introductory courses it does not count. You can skip every class if you want and just take the exams, but that's probably a very bad idea because if you miss the lectures, you miss a lot. One of my favorite classes was Fiction Writing 1. We got to write stories and read stories written by famous authors as well as by our classmates. If you like creative writing or want to give it a try, I'd definitely recommend this class. It's a lot of work, though. My teacher graded based on effort and if you did your work rather than on whether or not he liked your stories. Introduction to Psychology is also a great class. It provides an overview of psychology and is taught by good professors. It's a huge lecture class, though, so there is no interaction with the professors unless you make an effort to go to their office hours. Some students have intellectual conversations outside of class all the time. Others never do. It depends on who you're friends with. I usually don't spend time with professors outside of class unless I make an effort to go to their office hours to ask an important question about a paper or something. However, my French professor had her students over to her house one time. She made us a French dinner and talked with us in French. It was great!

Yes I know my prof name, my favorite class is when the prof can make us entertain without falling asleep. Least favorite is boring lecture. study a lot. class participate a lot, if there is so much information to study. yes wash U have intellectual con. outside of class. and students are competitive. blah blah

Academics at Wash U are absolutely amazing. Professors genuinely care about their students. They are always there to help and answer student questions. Most classes are small once you get past your freshman year. Smaller classes really let you interact with your teachers and other classmates. I have loved every single class I have taken in the anthropology department. The teachers in this department are amazing and keep classes entertaining. Of course there are always a couple of classes that are boring, but thats why you should always ask upperclassmen about what classes are good and bad to take. The college of arts and sciences is relly geared toward learning for the sake of learning. It really gets you prepared for graduate school. If you're looking for a job right out of college you're better off in the buisness school or engineering school.

The people here are very nice; most the teachers do care very much about their classes and teaching well. In the big classes like chemistry, it's not very personal, but you can always go to help sessions, office hours, or talk to the professor after class. I like my smaller classes a lot more though, because you really get to know your professor and the other students. For example, my writing professor has individual conferences with us every couple of weeks. That may not sound that important, but I always leave more encouraged and ready to go write my intimidating essay.