Wake Forest University

Date: Nov 30 2003
Major: English (This Major's Salary over time)
Wake allows for upward mobility of ambitious students within their major or area(s) of interest. If they can tell that you're excited, your golden with professors and they become more like mentors—some treat you as colleagues whose oppinions they value with vested interest. I've had much fun at Wake, but now that I'm a senior I've also found my academic niche ,and both realms compliment eachother. It's ok to be 'dorky cool' here. Actually, people admire it, I think, as originality…as long as you still make time to hang out and drink. Grades are often not reflective of your understanding or effort when it comes to divisionals, but my professors who are writing—rather asked to write for me!!--letters of reccomdenation for graduate school, easily look past that and the Registrar includes a note about grade deflation on transcripts. All in all, I made my own experience here. On the one hand, no one will seek you out to be active on campus if you don't want to be, but on the other hand, the school is small enough that professors stimulate original thought and diaglouge in class which, in my case, was the spring board for my dreams; that being, the act of another drawing me out from my aloof, shy, etc demeanor. People here do care a lot about eachother, from friends to interclass relations, and in general will help you through rough times (as in those weeks when you feel really behind and as for help). Winston is actually a cultural mecca but people just dont know it, nor can I say that I have fully taken advantage of the arts, music, and downtown scene as I could've. However, downtown has taken great strides in improving awareness—its the first city in the country to have free wireless internet, there's a trolley that takes you down to the restaurants, galleries, NC school of the Arts, and GREAT music. Small and big bands come here often, and the best part is that either way they often play at smaller venues, one in particular called Ziggy's, where you're one in 500 and tickets are 5-25$$. Anyways, plenty to do when you're not busting your ass in the library. Oh yeah, the campus has wireless internet too, and of course you get two laptops during your four years at Wake.

There are things that I dont like, such as the PARKING, but there again, it's one of the only private schools in the south to all freshmen to bring cars. There isnt a whole lot of diverstiy if you look at numbers alone, but in the classroom, minorties will often speak the most and argue the best points. You might not intermix outside of class a whole lot if you dont try, but within the classroom experience the most valuable take-home lessons are those of differing perspectives…ok thats enough I suppose. Its late.