Questions about reed!! :)

Colleges and Universities A-Z Reed College
1

<p>I am a rising high school senior thinking of applying to Reed. I have done a lot (A LOT) of research on it, but I still have some questions and would love it if any current or past Reedies, or people familiar with the school could comment on it, as I will not be able to visit unless I get in with a good amount of financial aid.</p>

<p>I remember reading in Reed literature that with such a small student to faculty ratio it is really easy to get to know your professors and to work with them and that they love helping their students, but I have also read some contradictory statements online. Are they very helpful? Or unwilling to work with students outside of the classroom?</p>

<p>I know that Reed is extremely rigorous and difficult, but, going along with the first question, I have read that there are a lot of opportunities to get extra help, if needed. Is it fairly easy to get assistance if you are struggling?</p>

<p>What is the drug situation REALLY like? I have read plenty that leads me to believe that it is not nearly as bad as people may stereotypically think, but are there people there NOT involved in drugs?</p>

<p>I know that their grading system is qualitative, and not quantitative, and was wondering if anybody knows how that is received by graduate schools. I know that Reed's track record of sending students on to graduate school is excellent, so I can't imagine it would be that much of an issue, but am still concerned.</p>

<p>Keeping with that, how difficult is it to determine how you are doing in a class? If you were to ask a professor to roughly equate your progress with a letter grade for your own understanding, would they do so? I have received papers back from teachers now with very little comments and a poor grade, and papers filled with comments and suggestions that I have gotten As on, so I am worried about knowing if I am doing well or not!</p>

<p>And lastly, residence. I know that housing is not guaranteed every year, which is scary because I would be going from the East Coast and would not want to have to deal with finding housing. Are there any accommodations they can make for students who feel that they NEED on campus housing? If not, how hard is it to find off campus housing, and can the school assist with that? Also, what on earth is the bathroom situation at Reed?! The only information I can find is that they are co-ed, which is entirely useless. I did read something on housing that said that students must sacrifice a degree of privacy...is that true?</p>

<p>Also, could anybody comment on their experience in applying and being accepted? Is it very, very hard to get in? I have about a 3.85 GPA and by the end of my senior year will have taken five APs and several honors courses and I have a lot of extra-curriculars and work experience through internships. Do you guys think it would be possible? Also, how is the financial aid? I don't remember reading anything that talked extensively about their financial aid process.</p>

<p>Thanks!!!!
:)</p>

<p>PS. Is everybody REALLY a hippie? Because I read somewhere that Reed has all kinds of students, including those who wear J.Crew. Would a J.Crew-wearing student who does not drink or do drugs fit in? :)</p>

<p>PPS. How competitive is the atmosphere? It seems like it is pretty relaxed, but are students willing to help each other?</p>

2

<p>I’ll comment on the grading system. Reed faculty give number grades to students. Those grades go onto your transcript. Graduate and professional schools therefore get transcripts with course lists and grades from Reed. </p>

<p>That said, the grades are de-emphasized at Reed. At the end of a course, you don’t directly receive a grade report but you receive an evaluation of some kind. And if your performance is well below par, you will be informed by your advisor and may be subject to some form of academic discipline.</p>

<p>Grades are not part of the common discourse among students or between students and faculty. Instead, in most courses, the discourse between students and faculty is qualitative, substantive, e.g., in written comments on papers. To be sure in many courses, you know whether you’ve got right or wrong answers to math/science problems, whether you’ve mastered the material in a language course, and so on.</p>

<p>I never saw a transcript from my Reed years until after I had graduated! My grades were, I suppose, pretty good. Good enough for me to gain admission to major doctoral programs and some of the best law schools (I choose to get a PhD). But I never saw a transcript of my grades until after I was in grad school! That lack of a focus on grades was refreshing to me; but it’s a source of some angst for others, and if students really want to see a grade report they can have access to it even while still enrolled.</p>

<p>Take a look at the “Grades at Reed” section in this page about transcripts on the College registrar’s page of the Reed website: [REED</a> REGISTRAR TRANSCRIPTS & GRADES](<a href=“http://www.reed.edu/registrar/transcripts.html]REED”>Transcripts and Grades - Office of the Registrar - Reed College)</p>

3

<p>Hi, mom of freshman Reedie here, just back from orientation week,</p>

<p>Housing - We were told the school has sufficient on-campus housing to guarantee a room for all freshmen and sophomores, plus some. Reportedly, a number of seniors return to live on campus because the conditions are so comfortable/convenient while they are working on their theses.</p>

<p>Dorm bathrooms - The coed bathroom in my daughter’s dorm featured a single stall with locking door for using the toilet, two curtained, single-use showers and two common area sinks. (Obviously, it serviced a small number of kids. Dorms are not “cookie cutter” in design at Reed, so I’d guess there are larger bathrooms, but that the same basic privacy features are present.)</p>

<p>Financial Aid - Reed dedicates a lot of funding to financial aid.</p>

<p>Fit - If pressed to offer a shorthand description of Reed culture, I’d use “tolerant,” as in “respectful of others’ choices.” So…you will see all kinds of choice in appearance, including kids wearing J. Crew, and some students use alcohol and drugs, others don’t. I think the issue for some people is not whether they feel accepted, but whether they can accept. Sometimes, when we’re honest, we surprise ourselves with our true feelings!</p>

4

<p>Professors- All professors have weekly office hours, when students can come in and talk to them or get extra help. Most professors would also make themselves available outside of office hours if you requested extra help. There may be a few curmudgeons who hate the world and would send you to Academic Support Services instead of helping you him/herself, but that doesn’t seem to be the norm. It is a small campus, so you will get to know your professors and they will get to know you, for better or worse.</p>

<p>Extra assistance- Yes, Reed offers A LOT of support services to their students, like individual tutoring sessions, walk-in tutoring and homework help, office hours, etc. They advertise them and strongly encourage students to make use of them. I feel like faculty and staff really want you to succeed.</p>

<p>Drugs- Some students do them, some students don’t and their choice is respected. I fall into the latter category. There is a sub-free dorm for students who are straightedge if you wanted to go that route. I think there is more hype/jokes/discussion about drugs than perhaps actual drug use… However, it is my personal impression (not to be taken as absolute fact) that even though the amount of students who choose to use drugs would be comparable to most other colleges, the drugs they use may be “harder” or more obscure. I’m sure there are plenty of people who would disagree with me on both points.</p>

<p>Grades- Other posters have pretty much covered this. Reed sends a little note with transcripts to grad schools which explains the lack of grade inflation. I think most people in academia are familiar with Reed and understand this; employers, on the other hand, may not.
I heard someone say that even though they didn’t see their grades, they had a very good idea of how well they were doing in class and could accurately guess their grade. I would suggest asking professors how you could improve in class rather than asking them to tell you your letter grade. The point of the whole thing is that you should be focusing on learning and doing your best, not on some arbitrary grading system.</p>

<p>Housing- Upperclassmen can live on campus if they choose and there is room for them. Housing isn’t guaranteed to them in case everyone decided to live on campus all four years, which isn’t likely to happen. A lot of upperclassmen choose to live off campus in the surrounding neighborhood and arrange that via ReedLJ and craigslist (school administration isn’t really involved in that).</p>

<p>Admission- My best advice is to be yourself, not who you think the admissions committee wants to see (they aren’t looking for perfection at 17!). Put some thought and effort into the application as a whole and the “Why Reed?” essay in particular.</p>

<p>Financial Aid- It is need-based, not merit-based (i.e. no academic/music/athletic scholarships), and Reed promises to meet 100% of your need through loans, grants, and work-study. Your need is the gap between the amount your family can pay (determined by FAFSA and CSS PROFILE) and the cost of attendance. In other words, the financial aid is generally very good for lower and middle class folks, and not so hot for students from wealthy families who are able (at least on paper) to pay their own way.
On the flip side, some people may complain that the formulas used by FAFSA or PROFILE are flawed/outdated and overestimate the amount they can afford to pay.</p>

<p>Hippified: No, not everyone dresses like a hippie. What the hell is a hippie, anyway? Some people do dress like they’re homeless, but I’d say the prevalent fashion on campus right now (at least for the ladies) is a blind love affair with the '80s via Urban Outfitters.</p>

<p>Competition: None, really that I can see. Maybe there is more in the freshman class (trying to prove their worthiness of Reed)? Students are willing to help each other, and actually certain classes expect you to work collaboratively.</p>

<p>Last thing— COME VISIT! You can read and research all you want, but that will never replace actually flying to Portland and experiencing Reed for yourself.</p>

5

<p>Hey, I am a freshman at Reed myself here and I can tell you a few things about drug culture and fitting in:</p>

<p>There is definitely drug scene at Reed, just like any other college in the U.S. I personally don’t think the drug culture at Reed is so prevalent as the stereotype suggests otherwise. Many get the idea that Reedies do hardcore drugs due to the honor principle we have here (which means respecting others’ choices); however, not a lot of people would take advantage of that and harm themselves in a foolish way. Some students use drugs for recreational purposes, but their choices are just as respected as students who decide not to participate in substance uses. As far as fitting in, I am only 5 weeks in and I have already run into all kinds of freshmen. My good friends are consisted of hippies from the west and bros from the east (which is a completely weird combination but it works). No matter what you do and who you are (either intentional or not), you don’t get a judgmental stares when you walk pass people here at Reed and you can always find your niche in the community which I think is great!</p>