bluesweetie

- Is it well-known enough? So many people ask me if it's in Washington state or DC... Is it well-respected by grad schools and employers?
- Do kids work hard, play hard, or are people nerdy/school-obsessed?
- Since it draws so heavily from NY and NJ, are people very type-A and neurotic? Or is there some Midwestern charm on campus?
- Does anyone known anything about the Medicine and Society program?

If anyone (esp current Wash U students) could answer my questions, I'd really appreciate it!

Jalexis

1. WashU strikes me as one of those schools like...those who NEED to know about it, will know about it. Even though they added the "In St. Louis" part to the University name to avoid any confusion about location, it still gets the same old reply of "Why would you go all the way to the west coast?". It's getting a lot more popular these days, but I think that generally, WashU is sort of the "hidden prize". I admit I hadn't known about it beforehand, but now, I can't even imagine a time where I haven't known about it. If that's...weird...enough.

2. Definitely a work hard AND play hard atmosphere. Kids there are very serious about their education and progress, but also are very social and looking for a good time. The general atmosphere is also very supportive and cooperative - not cutthroat or UBER competitive.

3. Everyone I've met from the University are actually quite laid back.

4. I don't know anything about the program itself, but whenever I see Medicine and WashU associated, I never really have a doubt that it'd be a poor decision.

salpert

-Obviously the name WashU will not carry as much weight as Harvard. Personally, I like that if I tell someone where I'm going, most likely people who I would want to know the prestige of the school (intelligent people) will know it and people who don't know a lot about colleges won't. A few years from now though, IMO, it will be MUCH more well known.

-Work hard/play hard. Part of why I love it.

-It's known as VERY laid-back and not competitive. Except maybe premeds.

-Most people will agree that anything involving medicine is the highlight of the university.

nervous1

bluesweetie,I think it is fair to say that WashU has low "man on the street" name recognition compared to many other top schools. You have to decide how important that is to you personally. There are alot of top schools that the general public have not heard of-- Williams, Pomona, Bowdoin...etc. Lots of people also think that Univ. of Penn and Univ of Chicago are mediocre state schools but think the world of tier 3 schools with great football teams!

That being said, I do think WashU's name recognition is growing. If you are looking for a career in the medical field, I wouldn't be concerned at all about WashU's name because it already has a fabulous, well known reputation in medicine and the sciences.

As for the student body, you will find all types. But one thing you will find is that they are all smart. To me, being surrounded by a high caliber student body is one of the biggest benefits of going to a highly selective school. These smart kids are definitely not one dimensional, they are very involved in extra-curricular activities and sure do love to party! I think work hard/play hard is a good description. Although I have to say that when I speak to my D it often feels like she's doing more of the play hard than the work hard!!

I've never heard any complaints about WashU being cut throat. I think that is a result of the "midwestern charm" of the school. The environment is warm and supportive. The professors, deans, staff, RA's...etc do everything they can to help students succeed and be happy.

HartinGA

blusweetie, This same question comes up pretty often, so you can search older threads and read much of the same advice as above, which is good. I would summarize it by saying that there are people you NEED to impress for your career, and other people you do not need to impress. 99% of the former group will know about Wash U and respect it. If it is important for you to impress the other group, then you might want to go somewhere else, but as Nervous1 points out, that group might be more impressed with Penn State than with Penn.

tetrisfan

What about science majors? Is it collaborative and non-competitive for these majors as well?

dg5052

Weighing in from the mom of a recent Wash U alum--second everything about the work hard/play hard atmosphere, plus the intellectual benefits of everyone being smart. Since we are not Northeasterners, S was a little concerned initially about all the NY/NJ kids there--but remember, these are the NY/NJ contingent who chose to LEAVE that area. The Midwest charm definitely prevails.

nngmm

tetrisfan,

The premeds will be the stressed-out bunch at any school (not to say they are not collaborative). Science majors are collaborative and non-competitive from what I've seen.

avocado

Hi! I'm in Medicine and Society so I'll talk a little about it. Medicine and Society is a 4-year program that begins in your freshman year. If you wish to be a doctor or go into the health field, this is a GREAT program to get into. The first year consists of 2-semesters of seminar centering on issues and debates in cultural and medical anthropology. The program's founder, Dr. Stoner, is just a really amazing and fun guy who is eager to help his premed students succeed..

Sophomore or junior year you take on an internship at a health org site in St. Louis. The class is pretty tight knit as nearly everyone is premed, interested in getting a broader perspective on health care, and there are also planned events.

Keep in mind the program is mainly a medical anthropology program. A lot of ppl double major in anthropology and some other field and the MedSoc courses tend to be pretty laid-back.

They choose their class of 20 based on SATs, geography, potential for med school, and very importantly your essay. So write a good essay. I think 90 people applied my year.

Bash1186

About name recognition, yeah, its true many people have no idea where or what WashU is. But the plus: Do you know any Harvard/Princeton/Yale kids? I know plenty, and having people "oh" and "ah" every time they say where they go to school really really gets to their heads. WashU students are really down to earth and I think that is one of the biggest reasons. We don't have everyone else who doesn't go to WashU tell us how great WashU is, instead we actually just work hard and have fun and enjoy ourselves. Like everyone has already said, the "right people" know WashU.

anxious89

I've heard rumors that there was grade deflation at wash u. is there any truth to this?

Bash1186

That depends on your definition of 'grade deflation'. The rumor is that Chancellor Wrighton recognizes that the lack of name recognition means that WashU has to produce a "higher caliber" graduate to improve its standing and make people take notice, meaning that A's are not as easy to come by at WashU as they might be at other top-tier schools that are "known." The joke is that premed students could never get into the WashU Med School because its the toughest to get into in the country and so you need a 4.0, which is near impossible here. It really depends on the department and the professor, but there is no institutionalized grade deflation written on a memo somewhere that has mathematical formulae.

showmethedata

Several posters have indicated that ave GPA at WUSTL is ~3.3-3.4. Judge for yourself what this says about grade deflation.

eleph

Also, except for the engineering school, WashU has pluses and minuses....which means if you get an A minus, it only counts as a 3.7. Obviously a lot of schools have pluses and minuses, but some don't.

kindofblue

Are you sure about that? I am fairly sure the Arts and Sciences school is not like that.