Washington University in St Louis Top Questions

When I came here, I knew that WashU was really good in fields like anthropology, biology, philosophy, psychology, business, political science, chemistry, English, etc., but I was not too sure about physics. Thankfully, I have been very satisfied with my experience in the physics department. The physics course I'm in right now is easily the best educational experience I've had of any type; the professor is funny and engaging, he explains things very clearly, and he emphasizes understanding. Additionally, he's always accessible after class and has very lenient office hours. It's been a great experience. I've done both physics and economics here, and I can say that both programs are excellent. I've had great professors in both departments and the courses have been very challenging. I have four academic advisors who give good advice about what classes to take. Research opportunities abound here; if you are interested, you have a very good chance of being able to do cutting edge research with professors here. Additionally, the students here are typically very cooperative; I haven't sensed any hint of competition among students within my departments. I understand that pre-med students may compete just to survive the curriculum, though. Nevertheless, students here are always willing to help others with homework assignments and study for exams.

One of the big plusses of this school is the scholarship policies. First of all, there is merit based aid available which was a big factor for me. If you apply to the university, make sure to apply for the scholarships! There are a lot of scholarships available, and so apply and do a really good job on the application. For me, it certainly paid off; I've got a full scholarship here with a stipend each year. Then, the policy for outside scholarships is great too... if you're a National Merit finalist, the school gives you money depending on what type of National Merit scholarship you get; I got a $2500 one-time scholarship from NMSQT, but Wash. U is continuing that for my sophomore, junior and senior years. Additional outside sholarships are also yours to keep; financial aid doesn't just sink your scholarship money towards your need based aid at all! That's huge. In fact, this semester the university wrote a check to me because I had more money scholarship money coming in than the semester 's tuition, room and board were costing. Of course, I have been very lucky and I worked very hard. I don't want to give the impression that everyone here has full scholarships or anything. All I mean to say is that need and merit based aid is very very reasonable at Washington University relative to other universities and that you should apply for scholarships! 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.

I've done both physics and economics here, and I can say that both programs here are excellent. I've had great professors in both departments and the courses have been very challenging. I have four academic advisors who give good advice about what classes to take. Research opportunities abound here; if you are interested, you have a very good chance of being able to do cutting edge research with professors here. Additionally, the students here are typically very cooperative; I haven't sensed any hint of competition among students within my departments. I understand that pre-med students may compete just to survive the curriculum, though. Nevertheless, students here are always willing to help others with homework assignments and study for exams.

As a business student, 40{4a082faed443b016e84c6ea63012b481c58f64867aa2dc62fff66e22ad7dff6c} of my classes were required to be outside of the business school, 40{4a082faed443b016e84c6ea63012b481c58f64867aa2dc62fff66e22ad7dff6c} inside, and 20{4a082faed443b016e84c6ea63012b481c58f64867aa2dc62fff66e22ad7dff6c} were up to me to choose. This made it easy to fulfill my requirements. For Science I took DinoBio (Biology of Dinosaurs) - not a blow off class, but not physics. My double major had no overlapping Accounting/Finance courses, but with the core requirements I only took 4 extra Finance and 5 extra Accounting classes, plus one Accounting for fun. I've already finished my business requirements, so now I have 11 credits from outside the b-school to take. I only brought 6 AP course credits with me (Calculus 1 and US History). Unless you get 5's, don't expect much. You need 120 credits to graduate, so either get those AP credits in high school, come to classes in the summers, or take 15 credits each semester. I love my professors and fellow students. We are competitive, but the curve isn't killer like some people at other colleges might say. Most classes set the average to B/B+, while the hard classes set it to B+/A-. This semester I took the hardest classes ever and got A- in all of them. Pet peeve, though - the B-school is called "Pre-school" by the non-B-schoolers. We just think they are jealous. We don't have labs, and we have no long, painful classes. It takes a certain person to think business, and if you do it all makes sense. Finally, and more broadly, it also helps to befriend a professor or two, especially if they sponsor a student group, because they bend the rules for students they like. No one plays favorites, but they will understand if you need an extra day on an assignment if they know you work hard and care about the class.

Students here are really smart, and its not just in the classroom. People here talk about classes, academics, and current events all the time. At parties, its funny to hear people taking about their most recent chemistry test or some funny lecture they had. Its nice to have smart friends, whenever I'm hesitant or struggling with a subject, I can find any one of my friends who can help tutor me or help me completely understand the subject.

Human Evolution is the best class at WashU, but Prof. Richard Smith taught it for the last time this year. Anthropology is a great department and it's a pretty easy major. Pre-med classes are the most competitive.

The size of classes at WashU varies greatly, so that can effect your personal relationship with your professors. ALL professors hold office hours where a more personal environment is accessible if so desired. Most of the hardcore science classes (chem, bio) are very competitive (grades are on a curve based on how the entire 300 or so person class does) but most other classes are not very competitive. I study mostly the social sciences, where classes are usually discussion-based and a safe environment to share personal ideas.

Most intro classes are a pain. They are generally poorly taught because of the environment, and rarely will the teacher know your name. Granted, that is the case at just about every university. The smaller classes are much better taught, and teachers almost always know your name. The students here are incredibly competitive, but with themselves and not others, setting us apart from some other top schools.

Do proffessors know your name?: I have small classes, so yes. Favorite class: Drawing. My teacher is AMAZING! Least favorite: It would go to Writing I, except that I LOVED my professor. How often do students study?: ALOT. Are students competitive?: In certain schools. Not in the art school. Most unique class I've taken?: I haven't. My major/department: The art school rocks. Lovely teachers, non competitive/fun loving students. It's fabulous. But REALLY time consuming! Spend time with professors outside of class?: not really. no. office hours sometimes. Wash U's academic requirements: I'm fine with them. But it's crap that the engineering students can test out of writing 1 and art students can't. Wash U geared toward getting a job or learning? I'm only a freshman. I don't have any sense of this yet.

Professors know my name. The classes are wonderful, except for math classes. My favorite class was Survey of Latin American Culture (so engaging, wonderful professor, great readings). Students study a lot, and class participation is pretty common. Some Wash U students have intellectual conversations outside of class, while others don't. Students are somewhat competitive in the Pre-Med classes, but not so in other disiplines. I love my department and professors, and the academic requirements aren't too difficult. Wash U's education can be either practical or impractical, depending on major.