<p>How hard are classes at Brown? How hard are they compared to other ivies?</p>
<p>I went to a very competitive and challenging high school and I still find the classes here at Brown very demanding. Obviously I couldn't tell you how it is compared to other ivies apart from what I've heard from friends... But in my experience (which, keep in mind is only about 2 months here) if you are a humanities person you will have huge amounts of reading as well as numerous papers throughout the semester. And as a science major, between labs and problem sets (which are very high-level), you will be pretty damn busy. Anyone agree/disagree?</p>
<p>I have heard that Brown is what you make it. If you want to be challanged you will be, if you want to have a good time and take it easy for four years surrounded by a lot of bright, friendly people, you can.</p>
<p>Well I would disagree with the hard science classes, but it's probably just me, coming from a science hardcore background. There is still some work to do, even if the course is easy, which I don't like at all. All work no thinking. And labs, ***. I Usually spend 3-4 times more on a lab doing primitive experiments than doing homework, attending lecture an studying for midterms put together. Something is awfully wrong here. Besides the lack of mayo</p>
<p>I think that you'll encounter a similar workload in humanities courses no matter what college or university you attend. English courses will always have high demands as there is much material to cover, and you'll be getting loads of reading to do.</p>
<p>I'm not currently in college, but this is what I gather from friends who are and from what my siblings told me of their four years.</p>
<p>The lack of mayo is a ratty thing. Go to the VW. mayo galore. ive have attended two college so i will say Brown is much more demanding than most of my previous classes save a couple which are about the same. im a humanities person btw. so the statement about classes being about the same is false.</p>
<p>the teaching style is also very different. then again, classes are much larger here. </p>
<p>as far as being able to take it easy I didn't encounter that. I shopped classes and looked at plenty of syllabi and even the ones that didnt require a really long essay still require hours and hours of reading.</p>
<p>As long as you do the homework regularly and attend lectures regularly, the math/CS coursework atleast is easy. Which is not that bad a thing since it gives one time to focus on one's private projects and extracurriculars from which you learn much more than you would do with super-hard problem sets. Keep in mind that I'm a freshman though and have only a month's worth of experience. Dunno about the comparison to other ivies though.</p>
<p>My earlier comment regarding taking it easy at Brown has some foundation in the grading policies which may have changed in the last year. My understanding is that an unlimited number of courses may be taken pass/fail. I also have been told, but don't really believe, that a Brown student can take a course under a provisional pass/fail that grades pass/fail only if that student's grade will fall below a certain level as stipulated by the student. Also my sources regarding the difficulty of Brown's curriculum are from students matriculating from the nation's most elite and academically demanding prep schools. These factors combined with the create your own major/curriculum serves as the foundation of my informed opinion. My niece graduated Brown a year or two ago and recently got a Fulbright. I know Brown kids are smart and accomplished, it is just a very much more relaxed environment than at Chicago, Penn, Northwestern, Cornell or Wellesley, for example.</p>
<p>I'm going to come out of retirement for this one because almost everything Icy said is inaccurate.</p>
<p>Yes, you can take as many classes as you want pass/fail, but you have to decide this within the first four weeks of the semester, there is no way to get a course ot be pass/fail if your grade is below a certain point, and most professors purposely don't give too much formal feedback before this point in the semester.</p>
<p>Only three people had independent concentrations last year out of nearly 1500 students.</p>
<p>modest is correct</p>
<p>Interesting, renix. My brother (a Duke grad, English major) and sister (a UF grad, not an English major but took plenty of English courses) both noted that a college English course will have what seems like a ton of reading at first in comparison to what you experience before, but the amount is something you eventually get used to. And this is basically what I've heard from friends who have graduated over the past three years. I didn't say they are the same, but that the workloads are comparable at most schools.</p>
<p>as for large class sizes, you might've just gotten unlucky. the english department's website lists several courses with only a handful of spots available to students. either way, obviously teaching style is going to be different; that you encounter between professors themselves, not just between each school's department.</p>
<p>A difference between Brown humanities and most schools-- courses in the humanities are the equivalent of "four credits" and conduct themselves that way at Brown.</p>
<p>ok, whats mayo</p>
<p>relaxed does not mean easy or not challenging. </p>
<p>relaxed is an approach one takes towards a difficult and challenging situation, as opposed to wicked stressed out.</p>
<p>Another thing most posters who comment on the difficulty of classes at brown don't have is any source of comparison. </p>
<p>I went to Tulane my freshman year, which is a very good school. No where near the prestige of Brown, but still very good. Classes here are MUCH harder.</p>
<p>Jason, what does it mean to conduct themselves as the equivalent of 4 credits?</p>
<p>by the way, i really appreciate your insight into Brown. i don't know about anyone else, but i was definitely sad when you stopped posting. even if you don't continue, thanks for everything.</p>
<p>"both noted that a college English course will have what seems like a ton of reading"</p>
<p>I took three English courses at my previous college and they only required a small amount of reading. </p>
<p>"but that the workloads are comparable at most schools."</p>
<p>like i said the first time - false. period.</p>
<p>"you might've just gotten unlucky. the english department's website lists several courses with only a handful of spots available to students."</p>
<p>I'm not an English major. does this apply to me?</p>
<p>"either way, obviously teaching style is going to be different; that you encounter between professors themselves, not just between each school's department."</p>
<p>Okay, get this: I have been in college for 2.5 years already. I have had a myriad of teachers. The style here at Brown is different. I talked to a dean here about it and she agreed that Brown does things differently. Have you been to another college for a couple of years? No?</p>
<p>and look up mayo on google for christ's sake if you dont know what it is.</p>
<p>Earl-- I'm going to simply trying and post less and ignore certain things that I used to post about frequently.</p>
<p>Essentially, most schools are on a credit system. The majority of full classes are 4 or 3 credits, often science classes are 4 credits, etc, and these credits are supposed to reflect how much time the course is supposed to take essentially.</p>
<p>At Brown, all courses are simply one course, there is no credit system. However, each course is designed expecting to be approximately 1/4 of your workload, which when looking at a credit system, would work out to 4 credits each on average. Essentially, Brown professors know that they're able to assign you work that takes up 1/4 of your time, not say, 1/5. I don't know if this is what literally makes the difference, but it's something to ponder.</p>
<p>And I agree, renix, about teaching style. FWIW, so does Dean Bergeron (who taught at Berkeley for many years before coming here), Shelia Blumstein, Jim Morone, Mike Paradiso, and Amit Basu, to name a few. We've had conversations on the Task Force about the unique challenges faced by professors teaching Brown students versus other students and vice versa. I'm not sure I can put my finger on it, because I haven't been to other schools, but I can tell you that when I talk about courses, even in the sciences where there should be a lot of overlap, the way in which we went about things here at Brown is always different, and it's more than just professor's style.</p>
<p>Similarly, because I haven't attended other institutions, I'm never sure if the work really does translate the way it should. However, as Rachel (ClaySoul) already said, transfer students pretty much unanimously feel our courses are challenging, in my experience. In fact, one of the first things I asked Rachel about when I met her was whether or not the courses do work out that way or if it's totally bogus (are our 4 really as much as 5 somewhere else... this was at Louis at about 510am btw).</p>
<p>Of course, there are courses that you can find that are less challenging, just like anywhere, but there are certainly courses available to challenge all levels of students, and there is no red tape involved in getting into graduate level courses, simply sign up, so if you're that advanced, feel free to move to a higher level. I have a couple of friends who only take graduate level courses.</p>
<p>As for the sciences, American students seem more challenged then internationals, in my experience, and you're international, Negru, correct?</p>
<p>modestmelody: You should read your own post. You support most of what I wrote. Four weeks is a long time to decide on whether or not to proceed pass/fail. Why are you so defensive and so negative? Especially when your post confirms my post which you are allegedly trying to discredit.</p>