<p>I am a propsective math major. Does WUSTL have a good program? I mean I would assume so, (CAS is ranked 11th in the country source wikipedia-> usnews) but after a chat with a WUSTL grad, I am unsure. She ccommented that the professors or to be more accurate, grad students, would offer multiple choice test and when trying to explain proofs they would run out of space on the chalk board and just claim that it was too messy. They also spoke little english. So can someone quell or reinforce my concerns?</p>
<p>God help you, cuz I can't stand math. </p>
<p>But on a more serious note...
Film major here! And I have similar reservations about the program (NYU being where I was recommended to apply by a film prof. at another institution).</p>
<p>S took Calc III last semester, and yes all of the exams were multiple choice. Ridiculous don't you think? I don't recall S ever mentioning grad students teaching class though. Not sure about the math program.</p>
<p>WashU math is good, but not awesome. If you want a great math program check out MIT, Caltech, Stanford, and Berkeley.</p>
<p>I was pretty satisfied with the first few math courses that I took (Calc 2, 3, DiffEQ), and thought the teaching was pretty good... but I also heard rumors that the only good math professors in the department were the visiting ones :) I also took Matrix Algebra, which was mostly taught by a grad student who barely spoke english and couldn't explain things well at all. I'd like to think most of the courses are better than that, especially the upper level ones, but I'm not really sure.</p>
<p>calc w. m.choice, OMG</p>
<p>I'm doing a second major in math. The program is really excellent. The professors are honestly fantastic. I can't say the same for my other major, Comp Sci. </p>
<p>No classes are taught by graduates. Most classes have at least 50% multiple choice (although with 8+ choices). Some classes will have a free response section in addition, and some will just have a free response section. It generally depends on how many students are taking the course.</p>
<p>When a professor prof. 2 section of say Calculus 3, with 100+ students in each, it will be all multiple choice.</p>
<p>My Dif EQ prof. had 2 sections with about 200 total, yet still managed to have the exams 60% mc, 40% free response.</p>
<p>My Linear Algebra prof., who taught 35 people, had the entire thing free response.</p>
<p>It depends on the number of people and the inidivd prof. him/herself. </p>
<p>However, I would highly recommend the department.</p>
<p>One more thing, I don't see a problem with the tests being MC. You work out the answer, and mark it down. It's not like there are are four or five choices, and you can eliminate some. With 8-10 choices, you have to work out the problem. Although you don't get partial credit, it is made up by being able to find small mistakes when no choices match.</p>
<p>You don't lose points for getting anything wrong.</p>
<p>Thank you! I had the gut feeling that WUSTL is a good school for me, and now, I can sleep easier about the quality of the program. I am almost certain to apply!</p>
<p>Of course there are great math programs at places like MIT, Berkeley, Princeton, and Harvard. But if you really want to go to college in the midwest, you should also look at the University of Chicago. They probably have the best mathematics program in WashU's region. As for WashU, below is link to a ranking of mathematics departments from the National Research Council.</p>
<p>The University of Chicago is ranked 5th nationally, whereas WashU is ranked 37th. Also placing above WashU are midwest universities such as UMichigan(9th), UWisconsin(13th), UMinnesota(14th), and Purdue(25th). Sure this ranking also evaluates the research activities of math departments. I must admit that hardcore mathematics research is not for everyone. But judging from WashU's math tests, you'll have a pretty easy time if that's what you're looking for.</p>
<p>MC college Calculus that makes me laugh. I wonder why their Engineering program is so low ranked (41).</p>
<p>Not all these rankings will be reliable now. Remember that this survey was back in 1993, back when WashU was still growing academically. If they do this survey again, WashU will definitely move up in many areas.</p>
<p>kolliparap,
Sure these rankings may have been from the NRC's 1995 report. (I think a newer edition was due in 2005, but it may have been delayed due to a lack of funding. If a more recent ranking is available, I apologize for not being able to provide them.) Sure WashU may move up in some areas. But I doubt that the quality of their mathematics program improved after ten years. The fact that there are still MC Calculus tests speaks for itself. I've seen community colleges do better than that.<br>
As for the issue of WashU growing academically in the 1990s, let me just state that the university itself was founded in 1853. I'm sure they had ample time to grow academically. After all, Justin Carroll, the Dean of Students, boasted on the 2005 US News and World Report that "The schools we compete with have a lot of years on us." Does this mean that they are too good to compete with younger schools such as MIT (est. 1861), Stanford (est. 1885), Caltech (est. 1891), Johns Hopkins (est. 1876), and the University of Chicago (est. 1892)? Well of course not!! The point I'm trying to make is that WashU had years to grow academically and the current quality of their mathematics program is indicative of WashU's dedication to educate prospective mathematicians, scientists, and engineers. The University of Chicago had even less time to develop a decent mathematics program...not to mention earn their impressive number of affiliated Nobel Prize laureates. And after ten years, I doubt that WashU will be able to compare with younger legitimate places like UChicago, MIT, and Caltech.
Finally to mikenthemaddog66, you still have a chance to apply and explore other options. The University of Chicago's acceptance rate is higher than WashU's and they both cost pretty much the same for tuition. Do the math! You have a better chance to get in a better program. How lucky could you be?</p>
<p>Yeah, but remember, it's not only the best program you should be looking at. You have to take into account the atmosphere of the school and such, too. After all, you'll be living there for four years. And from what I've heard, the UChicago's atmosphere is COMPLETELY different than WashU's.</p>
<p>I have a friend who is a mathematician at NSA and he tells me that the math dept. at NSA views WashU as having one of the finest math programs in the country. A bit anectdotal but interesting nonetheless</p>
<p>In the 80s and 90s, WashU was VERY good in math, regularly placing teams in the top 5 in the Putnam Competition, which those in the know know is for the real undergrad hotshots. See <a href="http://www.maa.org/awards/putnam.html%5B/url%5D">http://www.maa.org/awards/putnam.html</a> </p>
<p>They haven't been atop the leaderboard in a few years, though. I don't know if this is random fluctuation or if there's been a decline in the department.</p>
<p>I'll agree with johnshade. WashU was once very good at math a long time ago. However, I would advise against correlating the quality of the math department with the school's top finishes at Putnam. I know that some universities "aggressively" recruit math olympiad people from other countries just to boost their Putnam performance. In fact, I think UChicago had a top performance after recruiting some members of the Russian IMO team. Now these math olympiad people are really really good and have proven problem solving prowess. The math department knows that they won't require that much additional attention just to perform well at Putnam. Hence, a school's Putnam performances really cannot say much about what their math department can really offer to those underneath the math olympiad cloud.</p>
<p>I sort of agree with OutlierLove. If you want to pursue serious research career and aim to have a Ph.D. in mathematics, then you should consider Princeton, UChicago, Harvard, etc.. If you are not sure, and treat Mathematics not that seriously, then maybe you will be happier at WashU, depending on your own circumstance.</p>
<p>New NRC's are due December 2007. If anyone has the USNews grad rankings, what's WUSTL's survey rank this year? UChicago is 6th I believe.</p>
<p>WUSTL has definitely grown academically during the last decade. Carroll's questionable statement doesn't change that (though I can imagine contexts in which the statement would be wholly justified; WUSTL is a newcomer to the top of undergrad education even compared to schools founded later).</p>
<p>Caltech: the math program wasn't even top 10 in the last NRC ranking. Heck, NYU had a significantly better score. Tech schools don't automatically do better at all math/science fields. Props to people who mentioned Princeton and Berkeley as top math places, btw. (I'm not ragging on Caltech here. I consider it the best undergraduate school in the country within its range. Also, I'm too lazy to go buy the USNews grad rankings. If Caltech's improved it's math standing in the last decade, I think it's only fair that I eat my hat).</p>
<p>You will get a great math education at WUSTL. If your ambition is to get into a top mathematics grad school, it might be a better idea to go to Harvard, Princeton, Chicago, or Stanford. If not, I'd go to WUSTL if it's your kind of place. </p>
<p>What's with the reference to Chicago's laureates? They weren't in the math department (aside from a few who got math degrees from us and then taught in a different subject). It kind of makes us look bad when we bring that stat up all the time, especially when it has nothing to do with the topic.</p>
<p>Caltech has improved it's ranking in the last decade to just below Chicago, so disregard that whole argument. Excuse me while I eat my hat.</p>