I applied to and attended Western WA University because it was about four hours away from my home town, had a reportedly excellent art program, and everything about it seemed friendly and active.I lived both years in the dorm rooms. I was assigned an adviser, but had very little to no connection with him, and he never made an effort to connect with me either. Registration for classes was done all online, so there wasn't much need to talk with faculty. Mostly I just felt lost and like I'd slipped through the cracks between the other twelve thousand students there.
The professors I encountered were, for the most part, helpful, intelligent, and thoughtful people, and I enjoyed those classes a lot. Some had an average impact on me, and a few I thoroughly resented. Even with good professors, I was still one of 50-500 students in a lecture hall. Dialogue with the teachers was very rare, and dialogue with the material outside the form of scan-tron tests was even rarer. If you go to WWU, you will become very familiar with scan-tron tests. The vibe I got from most of my professors was that they were friendly, but mostly at a loss with what to do with their students and how to connect with them. Maybe ten of my professors over two years knew me on a first name basis, and only a few really made an effort to get students to talk in discussions.
WWU likes to hype itself as a diverse and tolerant campus. Maybe it's just the people that I was exposed to, but the majority of people I met/took classes with were 18-27 years old, white, middle-upper class, and from Seattle and its surrounding cities. Most of them had established cliques from home and high school before attending Western. Once groups were established, it was very difficult to break into those groups, and when I made attempts I was treated kindly, but never included. Walking across campus, people rarely make eye contact, and work as hard as possible to avoid you if they don't know you.
Not many students that I met had any real drive towards their major or career. Some openly admitted attending primarily because their parents were paying for it and they had nothing else they wanted to do. Given the huge costs of attending Western, this is ridiculous. If you have doubts about your interests, career, or future, don't waste time and money somewhere that other people push you. If you must further your education or explore areas, attend a community college. I've had excellent professors at community colleges, and I've had bad, so the quality of education is no worse than what you would get at Western, or any other state school.
There is also a pretty liberal atmosphere as Western, but what tends to happen is people blocked into a particular mindset, even if it is "left-wing". It is virtually impossible to move people from this viewpoint. Students at Western are as closed-minded as students anywhere.
You'll find that the faculty/authorities at Western are pretty removed from the rest of the student body. The students have a lot to say about where money should go, what resources they need, and what needs to change about the infrastructure. They are met by dead ears, and what ends up happening is an Associated Student Body that cycles through different members by ends with essentially the same university. There are protests in Red Square every other day about some political or cultural activism. People walk right by and avoid eye contact. There are plenty of people at Western with something to say; there are very little people who want to hear it.
That said, if you have the drive, the financial resources, and some know-how about universities, Western has the potential to be a great school for you. I would say it's better suited for a person not just out of high school, but given the limited age diversity of the students and their hesitancy to meet anyone markedly different, one might have trouble meeting people and making friends. Have some knowledge of registration, credits, and financial services. If you need any help, with registration, credits, majors, or classes, you have to go and find it because absolutely no one will notice you struggle and offer help. It requires some awareness, and active involvement on the part of a student.
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