In looking at the other reviews of St. John’s, I’m curious if they attended the same St. John’s I did. I was a student in the Graduate Institute.
The first class was very telling. The tutor simply walked in, called the roll, and asked a question. He neither passed out a syllabus, nor articulated any goals and objectives for the class. Nor did he articulate what he expected from the students during the semester. Even hints for how to succeed in the course would have been appreciated.
How does all of this ambiguity aid the learning process?
This was true for all of the segments I took at St. John’s. The tutors either could not or would not articulate any expectations to the students, but were quick to criticize at the end of the semester when their internal expectations were not met. Success was always a moving target. At the end of the semester, I was shocked when students were not given anonymous course evaluations to fill out. My undergraduate college took course evaluations very seriously. Why doesn’t St. John’s want anonymous, candid feedback from students?
As for the classes themselves, the tutors did not encourage students to synthesize or take a larger view of the great books. We went from book-to-book with no analysis in between or at the end of the semester. Some tutors did a good job at furthering and guiding class discussions, but most were unimpressive. Most of the time, I wasn’t sure why the tutor was even in the room.
Finally, I would encourage prospective undergraduate or graduate students to ask the right questions. Taking the guided tour of the library and King William Room won’t help you make a good decision about whether to attend St. John’s. Visit a class, but meet with the tutor before-hand. Find out HOW this person runs a class. Ask for a syllabus. Get details.
Finally, while I recommend studying the great books, I don’t recommend attending St. John’s. I’d like to suggest a few cheaper alternatives I found on the internet:
Cal State Dominguez Hills
csudh.edu/hux/default.ht?
American Public University
amu.apus.edu/academic/pr?
Harrison Middleton University
hmu.edu
Thanks,
St. John’s alum