<p>CR,
You can insinuate all you like about something being “wrong” or “fishy” with my posts.
It’s not that complicated. AU met my son’s needs very well when he was an IR major. He may decide on a career path where another school MIGHT better suit those needs.
AU has been a positive learning experience for my S. Stop trying to turn my posts into something they’re not, to serve your own negative, anti-AU purposes.</p>
<p>The ranking is understandably low, when you can even get into the GenEds you need and the school wants you to take them in your first 2 years. The Intro Bio Geneds are already almost filled!! My goodness. Are these all Juniors and seniors taking it, and not the freshman and sophomores for whom these courses are really intended??? My daughter cannot graduate on time without the required courses in her major if she is continually closed out. She can’t put together a decent schedule, because every time the course is filled up to capacity with this pririority registration. Instead of putting money into buildings and research, how about putting the money into actually having classes. DUH!!!The advisor even complained. So why doesn’t anyone respond to the problem. It is stressful.</p>
<p>@cadmiumred - I have to be honest, in three years as an AU student I have never heard of ANYONE having problems like you describe. Nor does what you’re saying have anything to do with the original topic of this thread. If nothing else, at least try to stay on topic. Thank you.</p>
<p>I am on topic. Another poster said the AU ranking is low because arts and sciences isn’t strong, and our problems with the art major is living proof of this. There are very very few art majors, and the smallness of the program was actually their selling point to us at admissions, but they never said there weren’t enough classes for art majors.</p>
<p>She couldn’t have been an art major until this semester. So it’s simply untrue and unfounded.</p>
<p>“I have to be honest, in three years as an AU student I have never heard of ANYONE having problems like you describe.”</p>
<p>The reason you haven’t heard them is because they (and perhaps 'red daughter herself) don’t exist.</p>
<p>Excuse me, “intended art major” mini.</p>
<p>Anyone on the entire campus could be an “intended” art major. The fact is, she wasn’t an art major (is she now? do you even know?) and from the Art Department’s point of view, apparently she doesn’t even exist. And I have to agree with them.</p>
<p>All of you need to cut it out this instant…</p>
<p>Dont make me turn this thread around!..</p>
<p>LOL :)</p>
<p>@choppergirl:</p>
<p>If you are still reading this thread…just wondering how your son is leaning now - AU Honors or ND. I have a student in the same situation.</p>
<p>Mini: My daughter does exist.</p>
<p>She should take it up with the Art Department.</p>
<p>I have just found this “thread” and am looking for some concrete information about American U. My daughter was accepted into the College of Arts and Science, would this be considered the liberal arts track? And if her goal is International Relations (Studies) what are the chances of moving to that track once there? She was also fortunate to received a Dean’s Scholarship and just recieved a packet about “University College” which is ? She has also been accepted at Davidson. We live in the west and I do not have a real sense of either these schools. I would appreciate any useful information and experience that you can share. Thank you.</p>
<p>@ ssmjmm: Welcome to AU’s board!</p>
<p>The College of Arts and Sciences isn’t really the liberal arts track – it’s where Math, Econ, History, Theater etc. are all combined into one ‘school’. They’re really just the majors that don’t ‘fit’ into any of the other schools that AU has. It is very easy to transfer schools within AU as long as your daughter keeps her grades up. The School of International Studies has higher (though not unreasonable) standards than the rest of the schools at AU. </p>
<p>University College is a living and learning experience. Instead of taking a first year writing seminar, the University College seminar is a group of 20 students who live together AND are in that freshman seminar class together. Your roommate will be in that class with you as will everyone on your floor (or section of your floor). They also have excursion outside of class to places in DC – in my experience people generally like it. They tend to bond very closely with these people since they’re the first close group of friends made at AU and make the transition a little easier. </p>
<p>I looked at Davidson too (though never applied) and quite frankly the schools couldn’t be more different. AU is in a huge city – obviously the nations capitol. Davidson is in Davidson, NC with a total population of 7,100—and that’s including 1,700 college students – franchises outside of CVS and Ben and Jerry’s are banned from the town. The closest ‘big’ city is Charlotte, NC which is 20 miles away. AU has about 6,000 undergrads which to me is enough that you see a few people you know every day, but don’t know everyone in your class. Davidson has just over 1500 – which is smaller than the school I used to go to. Davidson has 95% of their students living on campus – while AU has most Juniors and Seniors living off campus. AU has a state of the art, brand new international relations building, one of the top ranked international relations programs, and extensive course offerings. Davidson college doesn’t even offer the major.</p>
<p>Hope that helps, good luck on your search! Feel free to message me or post here with any further questions.</p>
<p>It was my son’s experience that AU makes it easy to change in the first year. And with a Dean’s Scholarship, she is well positioned for SIS. My son says his friends in SIS love it and would highly recommend it.</p>
<p>I applied to American because it was free on the common app. I didn’t check the rankings until after I was accepted and when I did look them up I was a little put off, but my mother urged me to look at their website and to take a visit. I was sold on my visit. Don’t get me wrong, American definitely has room for a lot of improvement, food and the shuttle program being at the top of my list. But I digress. Before I applied to American I didn’t even know it existed. However, since coming here, I have been pleasantly surprised by the faculty and programs. Of course there are the occasional bad professors but so many of professors have been great educators and really have a passion for the subject they teach. Some of my professors have amazing connections that they are more than happy to put you in contact with. I started out in SIS and one of my first professors used to be an advisor to the Russian Justice system. I am now a Public Communications major and one of my professors works for USA Today and another used to be a speechwriter for many congressmen.<br>
I feel like one of the reasons it gets ranked lower is because it gets overshadowed by GWU and Georgetown. But after being here for 2 years, I now know that American’s ranking definitely deserves to be higher. They have great schools and our career center is ranked as one of the best in the nation</p>
<p>I can’t help but wonder whether AU faculty, many of whom have been practitioners in their fields instead of lifelong teachers, might be deemed less worthy by their academician peers at other institutions. </p>
<p>From USN&WR:</p>
<p>“The U.S. News ranking formula gives greatest weight to the opinions of those in a position to judge a school’s undergraduate academic excellence. The peer assessment survey allows the top academics we consult—presidents, provosts, and deans of admissions—to account for intangibles such as faculty dedication to teaching.”</p>
<p>Academicians respect other academicians, but according to ratemyprofessor.com, AU students appear to like their teachers just fine.</p>
<p>Compare AU’s overall rating (3.46) to, say, Cornell (3.17), Emory (3.29), or Duke (3.32).</p>
<p>Sure, ratemyprofessor.com is not scientific, but neither are the opinions of unnamed professors polled on mysterious intangibles by USN&WR.</p>
<p>Rankings are driven by reputation, and reputation is driven by rankings. The whole affair is (for want of a better term) a gigantic circle-jerk.</p>
<p>Oh my God! Wow!</p>
<p>The last time I came onto this site, it was somewhere aroung the same time last year. I was accepted by AU for the Class of 2013. Today, I’m two days away from ending my first year at AU! Sniff =')</p>
<p>I can’t believe this. Cadmiumred you’re still rambling about your daughter’s problems! WHAT! It’s been a year and she’s still having problems. I’ve had no problems, and never have I heard of anyone else having problems with registering for GenEds. While, that might just be my experience, the fact that you’ve been complaining about AU before and after your daughter has gotten in really seems to be “fishy” on your part. If you and you’re daugghter are the exception, I pity you. Really. But its really unfair that you seem to be so anti-AU on this site, providing a negative and unsubstantial representation of AU. I’m in AU now. I of all people would know this. You seem to have been detestful to AU from the onset. Really, I don’t understand why you even keep your daughter here, if she is struggling (which I can’t believe) that much.</p>
<p>AU RANKINGS</p>
<p>I’ll admit it, I’m a rankings and prestige whore! I drool when someone mentions Harvard, Yale or Princeton. Hopefully, I’ve promised myself that I will never go to gradschool unless I get into one of those top notch universitites. That’s just me. As for AU lets see.</p>
<p>AU has become pretty selective, and needs to be even more selective in the future. My class had an acceptance rate of 53%. The Class of 2014 had an acceptance rate of 43% which is a good thing.</p>
<p>College Rankings weigh heavily on endowments and research. Sadly, AU hasn’t had that much of money in comparison to most others. This is because AU is a relatively new school in comparison to lets say GU or Harvard! Endowments and research from a university play a great deal in determining rankings. Just look at all the top universities. See anything in common? They are old and filthy rich. AU hasn’t had that privilege.</p>
<p>I would love AU to be higher ranked. But sadly, its not. It’s not bad, I mean it is in the the top 100. Top 100 of 4000 universities in the US. I think AU has been sadly under-rated. Another reason for this is its admissions rate. The more selective the rate, the higher up a university normally ranks. Sadly, AU lacks this too. But, like I said, AU is making progress on this.</p>
<p>I hate that AU doesn’t have the best rankings, but what I’ve come to love about AU (so not a cliche, if I hate something I say it) is its functionality. Professors give a **** about you here. You’re not a number, you’re a student. The advisors remember your name. The people here remember your face. The career center goes that extra mile. The education challenges to you to an extent which makes you want to blow your brains at times. These ideals are not considered in rankings. Moreover, you don’t get these advantages in big universities. There’s something about AU, which has made me realize, that even though the world hasn’t considered AU as one of the best (here, I mean in general, AU is one of the best in many aspects, especially IR) I really know how good it is, and what it really should be. If you take the chance, I’m sure you will too.</p>
<p>jamesnew, you are exactly right. AU is a very young school, younger in fact than its 1893 founding would suggest. Ground was broken in 1896. But the first students weren’t enrolled until 1914, and they were graduate students. Then came WWI.</p>
<p>Undergraduate programs didn’t start until 1925 and the university struggled mightily to stay open through the Great Depression. By 1940, enrollment was up to 1,000 students but then WWII stalled progress yet again. </p>
<p>It really wasn’t until the end of World War II, a mere 65 years ago, that American University really got off the ground. The school is by any practical measure an infant compared to all those venerable names that occupy the Top 30. Yet many of its programs are nationally recognized and it is, overall, rated 80th nationally. That’s really a remarkable achievement.</p>
<p>You mention AU’s functionality. That is precisely what I was getting at when I pointed out that all of AU’s teachers are not traditional academicians. Many have extensive, real world experience in their subjects. 25% of the USN&WR rankings is based on competing academicians “opinion” of “intangibles”. I have no evidence to support this, but I would guess that AU’s faculty is rated lower by peers than it would be if it were dominated by ivory-tower academicians and the school had been around two or three centuries.</p>
<p>Higher rankings would be a good thing, but only if AU stays true to its identity and does not try to adapt itself to the arbitrary and rather meaningless measures on which the rankings are presently based. </p>
<p>AU really is a different kind of school, and should keep on doing what it’s doing, only better each year. I think that is happening under the current leadership and AU’s continued progress will be reflected in measures apart from the bogus USN&WR rankings.</p>
<p>By way of illustration, the president of AU from 1952 - 1968 (arguably the University’s period of greatest growth), Hurst Robins Anderson, never completed his PhD. This happens more frequently now than it did then, but it still causes great consternation among academicians who find it hard to believe that someone without a PhD could possibly lead a “real” academic institution.</p>
<p>Thanks ncdad3. Wow, that’s news to me. Good to know =)</p>
<p>I’m sure at this stage of a university’s “life”, the top notch universities would have had acceptance rates higher than 43%. It is only now, a few hundred years later, that they have 7.9 - 20% acceptance rates. Interesting.</p>