"Exotic" courses

Colleges and Universities A-Z Washington University in St. Louis
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<p>*for current students/recent graduates</p>

<p>I've set up my preliminary plan for my next four years in WashU, and it has come to my attention that I have about ~30 credit hours left to fill with any courses outside of my major and minor. I was wondering, what courses have you taken at WashU that you liked a lot and was stimulating/insightful/interesting? </p>

<p>Have you taken any classes you strongly recommend that I take before graduating? I want to fill my extra credit hours with some insightful classes that are not directly related to chemistry/finance (which I plan on majoring/minoring). </p>

<p>I'm not looking for leeways or easy courses. I would just like some input from current students, who know WashU better than I do. Thanks in advance.</p>

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<p>There really are a lot of interesting courses offered. Let me start off with by saying that while many people make a list of courses you want to take each semester before they start, 99.9% of the time your actual classes are nothing like what you imagined. Every year, some courses are no longer offered, new courses are introduced, your interests change, etc.</p>

<p>Here are some thoughts though…</p>

<p>A first semester of Computer Science (CSE 131) is really useful
Some of the philosophy courses are interesting (Philosophy and Science/Mind in particular)
Another interesting choice is the Greek Mythology course.
Since you’re interested in finance and will likely take first year econ classes, some of the economics courses can be interesting as well </p>

<p>Flip to a random page in the course catalog and find something you’d like there.</p>

<p>You can also browse course evaluations at evals.wustl.edu once you have your webstac info. </p>

<p>But once you get to campus, when you’re registering for Spring 11, ask your friends what they thought was a worth while course.</p>

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<p>^ What’s Spring 11?</p>

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<p>Crozet: Spring courses you’d take in 2011. </p>

<p>However, I think students still have to register for Fall 2010 courses once you get to campus. It’s always helpful to ask kids there what’s a good course they could recommend, who’s a good professor.</p>

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<p>Freshman year: Definitely take a FOCUS or freshman seminar course if you can. I haven’t heard a bad thing spoken about any of them – they keep adding new ones for each incoming freshman class, they’re very small, and they’re really interdisciplinary.</p>

<p>Besides that, I’ll try to recommend a broad array of courses so that people reading this thread who are not chemistry+finance majors like the original poster can get some ideas. I’ve taken a few of these; the ones that I haven’t taken come highly recommended from conversations with friends.</p>

<p>Art Sci:
Banned Books
the Homicide course (don’t remember the exact title)
The American School
African American Politics
Latin American Politics, take it with professor Rosas
Infectious Diseases, in the Public Health department
Crossing Borders
Shakespeare - take it with Professor Ake… she’s amazing
Masculinities - it’s a Women Studies course… from the perspective of males
Any course in the Film/Media Studies department… I took Intro to Screenwriting
Business, Government, and the Public (taught by one of the more prominent Poli Sci professors who was an economist in many presidential administrations)
In the Archaeology department: “Fantasies, Frauds and Hoaxes”, and the course about the Cahokia mounds where you do field work at the site
In the Political Science department: The Mathematics of Elections; Americans and Their Presidents; the National Security course; Negotiating Legislation
In the Art History department: the Michelangelo courses… we have the world’s expert on Michelangelo on faculty
In the Urban Studies department: “The study of cities and metropolitan america” and “The American City in 19th and 20th centuries”
In the American Culture Studies department: “Geology of National Parks”, “History of the Beatles”, and one of my friends is taking “Regional Topics in AMCS: St. Louis and the Cultural Landscape of Beer” next semester</p>

<p>There is a program in Children’s Studies that seems to have a fair amount of interest; there are lots of courses on Children’s literature, films, etc. In McMillan Hall, there is actually a pretty extensive historical toy collection for that program (although anyone can visit it). </p>

<p>Overall, in Arts & Sciences, the departments that seems to offer the greatest percentage of those “fun” elective courses to which you are referring would definitely be the American Culture Studies department; the Religious Studies department; Political Science; Film and Media studies; International Studies; and possibly the Art History department if you find that sort of field interesting. If you like literature, the English department has at least 100 different classes offered each year. Take some time to peruse the listings in those departments. </p>

<p>Business:
Investment Praxis (the finance class where you have a portion of the University’s endowment)
Olin Grand Rounds/Healthcare Management
The Hatchery (the class where you work in groups and create a business proposal)
Personal Finance with professor Gordinier. EVERY Wash U student should be required to take this course. </p>

<p>Architecture:
I haven’t taken any of these, but I know you can take architecture courses if you aren’t actually majoring in it… might be something you want to pursue?</p>

<p>Art:
Printmaking courses, Urban Books course, GLASSBLOWING!, Furniture Design, the Sculpture major courses (especially blacksmithing, and metal working), the introductoty Fashion Design and Textile Design courses
I took a semester each of Digital Photography and Black&White photography and loved those courses
If you are at all creatively inclined, you really should check out the Art School… I think most people are shocked when they learn how extensive it is at Wash U, and how it’s not all about painting or drawing</p>

<p>Engineering:
As the person above said, Computer Science would be good. I’ve heard our courses in that department are pretty small and fun. Beyond that, I don’t know many NON-Engineering majors who take Engineering courses. I know you can, but the students in the Engineering school are pretty serious… the school isn’t really designed to offer those elective-type courses that you take for more of a fun educational experience if you’re not an Engineering major.</p>