Washington University in St Louis

Date: Dec 14 2006
Major: Physics (This Major's Salary over time)
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 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.

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.

There's a ton of EC's here, more than 200, each benefiting from the Student Union's budget of about $2 million per year. It's pretty easy to start up a club if it doesn't exist when you get here. NCAA athletics aren't that popular here; this is a D-III school with only a few really competitive teams, like volleyball and soccer, and students generally don't go out to sporting events that often. The social scene here is good; students tend to work hard during the week and then go out and have a good time on 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.

Still, on the whole, my experience here has been very satisfying. It's a challenging but cooperative academic environment with great professors, excellent quality of life, and good social atmosphere.