<p>Wife and I took S to wustl this past Thursday/Friday. S has narrowed down his decision to wustl and northwestern. S is going to preview nu next monday/tuesday. Here's trip report from wustl from a father's point of view:</p>
<p>---Campus: Absolutely beautiful. Looks like the queen can be in residence there. For those that think someplace like Duke is pretty, well, you have to see wustl. Also, very manageable. Students out all the time even though days we were there were quite cold. Also, wustl tries very hard to have new structures that are being built look like the others that have been there for many years.</p>
<p>---Students/Faculty: Everyone we met was very nice and accommodating. Our impression is that everyone there wants everyone to succeed and thrive. As well, the school makes every effort to try and let you pursue your academic interests no matter how they may change during your time there.</p>
<p>---On-Campus Food: Excellent....lived up to its reputation of having some of the best college campus food in the country.</p>
<p>---Residential: Excellent....freshman and sophomores live on the "South 40". 40 acres south of the main campus and right across the street from it. Dorm setup is really topnotch. As well, campus felt really safe as did surronding area. Clayton is a very nice suburban area 6 miles from downtown St. Louis. The campus is surronded by very nice homes and borders Forest Park. Forest Park is the second largest park in the country after Central Park. It is an amazing place. 10-15 minute walk away is the loop....funky, cool area that kids like to go to for nightlife, etc. </p>
<p>---Miscellaneous: 20-30 minute drive to airport. There's a metrolink right on campus that can take students directly to airport (or downtown). Metrolink card is free to wustl students. For parents visiting, center of clayton is a satellite business center of st. louis that has hotels and is a five minute drive to campus. We did not get a chance to visit downtown St. Louis so I can't give you our impressions of it.</p>
<p>Just want to suggest that you post your visit reactions in the CC site for college visits so more people can read it. On my screen, there's a bright red "NEW!" and College Visits. You can post it there.</p>
<p>mtldad - We also took D to visit Thursday and Friday - small world! Seemed like a lot of students were visiting, both juniors and admitted seniors. This was our 2nd visit, but first time since D was admitted. She is trying to make her final choice so we have visited 4 schools in a little over 2 weeks - we are definitely too old for this!
Did you son visit any classes, and if so, what did he think? D visited a biology, chemistry, and psychology, and a small part of another science class. She was surprised to find students "playing" on computers, talking, etc. in class. Also surprised to see kids coming in late and leaving early. Maybe this is normal practice, who knows! She thought the professors were fine (from the little she saw), but has also been surprised by how little student/professor interaction there are at these top schools (also, again, as seen in her limited time). Maybe that is also the norm.
Like your son, my nephew has also been admitted to Northwestern, WashU, and also, CalTech. They are visiting NW next week, and then onto CalTech prefrosh days! My sister and I are looking forward to a decision from our kids!</p>
<p>Hello! I was probably in those classes (well bio and chem at least). They are rather large. However, the professors will answer student questions when asked. Generally though, people wait until after class, or office hours to ask them, so as not to disrupt the class. Also, I don't know where in the class you sat, but generally from my experience the front of the class is more studious than the back...I too find it surprising that there are kids who read the newspaper in class, or are blatantly not paying attention while on the computer. However, generally, if you're sitting in the frontish rows it's not a distraction.
Although it is by no means a justifiable excuse, one of the reasons that attention is, shall we say, lax, or nonexistent is that the chemistry lectures are video streamed, so with the class password you can review them later at your own leisure. Bio for the first time this year (I think) was not streamed, and I think that more people show up to biology than chemistry....interesting side note. </p>
<p>Also, about the low student/professor interaction....well, the classes she visited are among the largest on campus. There is a lot more student/professor interaction in the smaller classes. Currently I'm in two ~12 person classes, which are basically run on class discussions, and last semester, I was in two ~25 student classes, and we had a lot of interaction with the professors...And I will also add that during chem lab, Dr. Mao comes by every lab and talks to everyone for a few moments to make sure they're not having any difficulty. So it's not as low-interaction as a single lecture may seem : )</p>
<p>haha...I know this sounds a little longwinded, but I hope it reinforces what you saw/adds more insight. Good luck with the decision, and have fun with the rest of your visits!</p>
<p>Thanks eleph, this is good to know, b/c when I visited an orgo class last semester, I was kind of disappointed with what I saw, especially since I loved every other thing about the university and the lecture experience just paled in comparison. I guess I should have sat in on a smaller class as well.</p>
<p>As far as students reading newspaper, etc., in back...well, I went to law school at a pretty highly-rated place (haven't practiced in many years) and, as another poster said, kids in the front are in the game and kids in the back read the newspaper. Saw that at my law school....nothing really changes, does it?</p>
<p>eleph - Thanks for your comments - they make a lot of sense. I haven't been to college in over 25 years, so you forget. D is just looking for a place where professors know their subjects and teach it in an understandable fashion, a place where they promote student/professor interaction, and where professors are accessible when you have problems understanding the information. I hate to say she hasn't had that in high school - it's been mediocre at best.</p>
<p>Thanks to mtldad for a great post. My kid is admitted but doesn't want to interrupt his glorious spring term to visit. We're using your post as a guide!</p>