@RJDailey98 Assuming you get in to UW, I would ask some very specific questions about opportunities for undergraduate research. Is there a grad program in Chem E at UW? How many grads as opposed to undergrads? There may be statistics available about how student performance in the entry level “weed out” courses - how many drop out of given classes or out of the major altogether. Some research on your part will either confirm or alleviate your fears.
Wherever you go, I guarantee if you consistently sit at the front of the lecture hall, even if it has 500 people in it, the professor will get to know your face. Visit office hours and the professor will know your name. If you are proactive, you won’t be nameless and faceless and opportunities will flow.
They are both great options - as you investigate further you will have a clearer idea of which place feels better for you!
If you end up at WSU, Pullman is only a 15 minute drive to Moscow, ID, which is a great college town, if you feel like you’d like a change of scenery. If you are into nature, it also has lots of outdoor options.
@ucbalumnus , oh yeah totally forget about that option, I might go ahead and do that this weekend, see how well I do! Do you think that I should give myself any refresher at all before taking one of the finals I find, or just go into it with no review? Haha I’m worried id get almost all the calculations wrong without revisiting the formulas… Guess that might be a hint for me to retake the class 
@mamaedefamilia , all this advice is awesome, thank you so much I am going to go ahead and do that research, I’ll report back if I find any useful info. Thanks again.
If you can find more than one final exam for the course, you can try it first without any review, then use the result to tell you what topics you need to review, then try another final exam after doing review of those topics.
@RJDailey98 I was also accepted to the WSU Honors College, and am intending on being a Chemical Engineering major as well. Like you, I have also applied to UW as a chemical engineering major (that being said, i’m seriously considering pre-med, so ChemE might not be the best fit anyways). In terms of the academics, the campus life, the proximity to Seattle and my parents, UW is a better fit for me personally. So, if it’s between UW and WSU, I will pick UW. However, if you know you want to pursue Chemical Engineering for sure than it sounds like WSU would be a great fit! Side note: you have great stats, so you have a great chance at being a direct admit at UW!
No, it’s not a joke. My oldest son is a junior at WSU and my daughter is a sophomore in the Honors College so I got to see both sides. One of my D’s best friends is a chemical engineering major, interned at Hanford after freshman year. Four of my son’s five roommates are engineering majors, all seniors. My D also lives in the Honors Dorm - apply for housing today if that is your first choice, it may already be full.
A lot of college involves group projects. In Honors, you know the shared work will be exemplary. In regular classes, some will be good, some will be terrible, some won’t be completed. The first English course at WSU is English 101, roughly a repeat of high school English. In Honors, the first is Honors English 298, a hands-on course in conducting and publishing original research. You say you’re hoping to do research?
Don’t underestimate the importance of early registration. Popular courses fill quickly and kids get closed out of required classes.
At least at WSU, a 3 in AP Chem can be used for general science credits but not for a class required in your major (at least what I was told). Chem is also a huge weedout class.
I know a whole bunch of kids at UW also, including my youngest’s best friend, but the information you have there is pretty solid.
Good luck, and let me know if you have any more questions.
^yes, I definitely wouldn’t skip a class for which I got a 3 on the AP exam that’s also weed out and required for the major.
@theaussie , looks like we have a lot in common! Im glad to see UW is a great choice for you, and appreciate your positive reinforcement. Did you happen to take AP Chem in high school?
@Magnetron , thanks for the reply! It is nice to hear your viewpoint considering you have an outside perspective on both sides. I am not sure if you know the answer to this, but can you apply for housing without declaring which school you will be attending? I went to apply for the honors housing, but it seems as though I cant do it without depositing my enrollment fee. Also, is your daughter glad she is part of the honors college? Is the extra work worth it?
Thanks for the help!
@RJDailey98 I did not-- I’ve taken AP Biology and am taking AP Physics right now. I did take Honors Chemistry in sophomore year, and initially I signed up to take AP Chem for my senior year. However, over the summer my counselor told me that I should take AP Physics, since I only had half a credit of Physics on my transcript (It’s a long story involving an international move. She implied that not having a whole credit of physics would jeopardize my applications to engineering schools). However, I was accepted to a very tech-oriented school, Georgia Tech, so I don’t think it effected my application that much. I wish I had taken AP Chem though!
Also, I realized I might have been a bit negative about WSU in my initial comment. That is definitely not the case. The Honors College option within WSU makes it a great option overall. It seems like they have a pretty bustling bioengineering and chemical engineering department. In fact, the WSU counselor I’ve emailed on-and-off told me that they’re some of the most active departments on campus research wise. Those departments attract some really motivated intellectual-types. Plus, the Honors housing looks really good from what I’ve seen :).
To apply for housing, you have to submit a $200 housing deposit. If you end up not attending, you will forfeit that $200. For kids who really want their first choice housing, they are willing to risk the money and submit for housing as early as November. My kids did not do this and they were comfortable enough with their freshman dorm experiences.
Yes, she is glad, and most likely would not have attended if she were not part of the Honors College. It’s not so much that it is extra work as it is different work. They will assume you have the baseline knowledge already dialed in so the freshman courses will be more similar to junior/senior year courses. Instead of “position” papers you would be writing publishable research papers. Instead of the required “Capstone Project” you will be expected to submit a Senior Thesis. Some honors level kids choose not to be part of the Honors College because they know they can skate through the freshman level classes with minimal effort.
My D doesn’t drink and doesn’t go to parties even though she is pretty social. Her group of friends is a lot like her even though most are not in the Honors College. Yes, you can find staggering drunks on Tuesday nights, and it does earn that reputation, but it will not define your experience.
I think you have a pretty good shot at direct admission Chem E. I know someone who got in with worse GPA and less AP’s.
@theaussie , I dont think your initial comment was negative at all It is reassuring to hear that the research you have done on the honors college is all positive.
@Magnetron , im glad to hear your daughter has had such a great experience! If I end up attending WSU I think ill for sure join the honors college. Thanks for the help!
@Pulsatix , thanks! That is awesome to hear, I am anxious to see the results in march.