<p>Does UVA have a good Astronomy program?</p>
<p>the answer is in the stars</p>
<p>hahahahaha i crack myself up. :) just joking. and i have no idea. and i know the difference between astronomy and astrology so please, to anyone who may feel compelled to do so, no lectures!</p>
<p>Surreale, I doubt that you're going to get an answer. If there is an astronomy major, it will be small. The chances that you will get an undergrad to discuss it are also small. </p>
<p>I can tell you that there are astronomy courses and there is an observatory. My son took university astronomy his first year (two years ago). It was a drink from the astrophysical fire hose: the underlying theory behind star formation and life cycles, fundamental particle physics and its impact on stellar classes, etc. There was a lot of math and, did I mention the physics?</p>
<p>Lots of folks take an astronomy class thinking they're going to learn about the constellations, and instead find they're calculating the Swartzchild radius. That cures the astronomy 'bug' pretty fast. So, be careful what you ask for.</p>
<p>Well, I'm a fourth year Physics major/math minor at UVa and I considered astronomy for a while before this. </p>
<p>I won't elaborate on stats because you can get accurate ones from <a href="http://www.virginia.edu%5B/url%5D">www.virginia.edu</a>. </p>
<p>But from an undergrad's pov, my astronomy major friends have to work pretty hard. Before you get to do the "cool" things such as looking at the stars, calculating lifetimes, recording actual, visible realities, you'll probably spend 3-4 years doing hardcore things. </p>
<p>I agree with redbeard in suggesting that you have to make sure you are willing to learn all the math and physics behind the amazing posters you might've seen of frames of the universe, blackholes, dark matter, etc. </p>
<p>As an undergrad, for the first 3 years, you'll be learning the tools for use later. And usually, these are classes that people weren't expecting when they were motivated by the glitter that in reality, would come much much later in their academic careers.</p>
<p>As a corollary, I'll say that if you are sure you want to pursue astronomy, is quite passionate about it, and have gotten into other more focused schools, then don't come here. </p>
<p>UVa does not have a stellar astronomy department.</p>
<p>"Does UVA have a good Astronomy program?"</p>
<p>Is there really such a thing?</p>