Hi,
WashU is extremely expensive, as are most private schools. For the class of 2024 the est. cost of attendance is $324k! I appreciate the transparency but god its a lot.
Anyways if I attend WashU I will try to graduate in 2.5 year- 3 years. How feasible is this for business (conc. in finance). You can get up to 15 credits from AP and take up to 21 credits each semester, which is the perfect amount for 120 credits in 2.5 years (21(6)+15= 120). It’s cutting close, but it’ll save about $121k.
Washington University is a great school. However it is also very academically demanding. You will find it plenty tough enough if you take 15 credits at a time.
I think that your chances of graduating in 3 years are bleak. Any attempt to do this would be likely to have a significant unfortunate impact on your GPA. This would also be likely to have a significant negative impact on what you would actually learn while you are there.
If you cannot handle whatever the NPC says it is likely to cost you for a full four years without debt, then I think that you would be better off choosing a less expensive school. I am saying this in spite of the fact that I had a very productive and very pleasant visit to WUSTL a few years back and I liked the school a lot.
“god its a lot”
Well said!
My suggestion would be to find a college that you and your family can comfortably afford for the full 4 years. You only are an undergrad college student once, get the most out of the experience.
Agree with the posters above. Not a good idea to take 21 units a semester at Olin. WashU is going to be an academic grind. Plus the 15 unit AP credit doesn’t necessarily translate to the appropriate major requirements.
Try to find an academic/financial safety. Not the most brilliant idea to try to graduate college in 2.5 years. You miss out on the chance for internships/making meaningful relationships with faculty and fellow students. And there is the risk of burnout.
18 units would be the most I would advise.
I do not NOT recommend finishing in 3 years. However, it is theoretically possible to come in with 12-15 credits (AP) that will count for your graduation requirements, and then you could theoretically take 18 units (6 classes) per semester. As pointed out your grades will suffer as will your learning and most importantly your overall college experience - ie building relationships etc. with your doormats and classmates. Your college grades will impact the graduate schools you will get into and your college relationships can over the course of your career and life have an even greater impact. College is stressful at times and with 18 units every semester it will be even more stressful. Overall, it is a huge price to pay to finish in 3 years.
WashU costs about the same as other private universities. Some public universities - ie UC Berkeley, UCLA, etc… rank highly (like WahsU) and they are less expensive, however, the college experience at a large public university is very different from a WashU or other top private Universities.
WashU has a large endowment (larger than several Ivies) and it has good financial aid - if the family income is low enough. If not, then WashU has strong merit based scholarships but you would need to apply for them and they are not a guarantee.
Good Luck!
The most useful AP credits at WashU will be AP Calculus. 5 on BC gives you 6 units and completes your math requirements for most majors.
Most AP credits are for general education not related to the major, so they won’t be of much use.
People who take 18+ units at WashU generally are double majors with an additional minor. My son has a double major in Arts and Sciences with a CompSci minor and takes 17-18 units every semester. But he says it’s not the greatest idea since he pretty much spends most nights in the Olin Library. He still had time to hang out with his friends and volunteered at a free medical clinic in St. Louis on the weekends.
If I recall correctly, my son has 90 semester units completed including his AP classes/summer school courses at the start of junior year. And yet he doesn’t plan to graduate early.
The OP has posted a similar question about UVA Business School in another thread. And my answer stands. For the sake of your physical/mental health, DO NOT think of taking an excessive classload. Your academic advisor will dissuade you from doing it.
@tchit87 There are lots of schools where you could graduate in 3 years. Graduating with a finance degree in 3 years, however, is not a great idea. It’s a very competitive field that requires great internships and networking. It will be hard to build the necessary resume in 3 years. Go somewhere that you can afford for 4 years.
@Hamurtle hello i’m an international student and i have several questions about WashU. Is there any chances for me to discuss with you in either ưay ( here or other social media app)
Have you researched taking the average number of courses per semester (about 15-17) at Wash U and taking ~6 credits at a local (instate rates) school during the summer? That might save you a semester at Wash U, maybe even a year but it will still be a lot of work.
There might be a problem with taking classes outside of WashU as some classes taken outside the home campus need departmental approval and there is a finite amount of classes where the units can be transferred.
I still wouldn’t want to graduate early from B-school if it were up to me since you lose out on the connections/chances at internships.