<p>Everytime someone mentions Wash. U. to me, they say “it’s a really, really good school”. I’m very aware of the high quality of the WUSTL education. However, unlike U. Chicago/Rice/Georgetown I’m unable to get a handle on unique qualities of the school. Everyone seems to know that its a top school, and it is, but what quirky/unique qualities differentiate it from other top schools?</p>
<p>I don’t know if you meant academic wise or not, but Here are a few of the things that the school is known for</p>
<ul>
<li>Very Liberal Alcohol Policy</li>
<li>Distinguished Architecture</li>
<li>Always constructing new buildings (can’t think of a year when construction wasn’t going on…this can be a good or bad thing depending upon how you look @ it)</li>
<li>Great for Pre-Med</li>
<li>PNP major </li>
<li>Discovery Cirriculum</li>
<li>Probably one of the easiest schools to do interdisciplanary studies (~80 percent of students double major with a minor, some triple major or double major/double minor…also very easy to transfer among schools of the university or take classes in any school)</li>
<li>Bunny as its main statue</li>
<li>1904 World’s Fair was here, has oldest student run carnival, I think studlife might be the longest running student newspaper or something, Forest Park is its frontyard</li>
<li>One of the most flexible and diverse dining systems </li>
</ul>
<p>if you were looking for other types of qualities, let me know and i’ll post some</p>
<p>I don’t know how distinguishing this is from other colleges, but Wash U takes a lot of pride in the flexibility of their undergraduate programs. They encourage dual enrollment in more than one of their five undergrad schools, and that allows people to pursue multiple majors.</p>
<p>if art’s your thing, the campus art museum has an amazing, amazing collection.</p>
<p>It seemed very nurturing when we visited.</p>
<p>Amen to everything Jeffwun said. When I was looking for the same sorts of qualities I found out all of those and he really nailed it. That’s basically why after visiting I was sold. (except the liberal alcohol policy…cus thats bad…right?) :)</p>
<p>how about its student community’s distinguishing trades? is it diverse? i mean, will i meet people who will shock me, amaze me, etc. if i go there? do people like to party? and else do they have fun?</p>
<p>WashU’s student body is quite diverse (raically, economically, socially, etc). Here are some of the reasons why</p>
<p>-About ~25 percent of students participate in Greek Life. The frat/soro scene doesn’t dominate the campus social life, but those who want to particpate in it can do so and have a lot of fun. Frat parties are open to everyone so a lot of people don’t join, they just party with them. Most of the frats (all but two or three) are housed on campus</p>
<p>-WashU students pride themselves with working hard and playing hard. There really is as much emphasis on partying, having fun, hanging out as there is on school work and charity work. Its really a great place to be to have the balanace between very challenging academics and a booming social life.</p>
<p>-As I mentioned earlier, there is an emphasis (espeically with the students) on combined studies. The bulk of WashU students will at least double major.</p>
<p>-Nearly 300 student groups so, any activity that you can possibly imagine participating in, there is more than likely a group at WashU that does it. If there isn’t, then creating on is as easy as posting on CC, lol. The large number of student groups is also a testament to the varied interests of the students and their commitment to doing them and getting others involved. SU has over 2 million a year to allot to Student Groups, so they do a lot of stuff.</p>
<p>-Accapella groups are major here</p>
<p>-Free Pizza (all Student Groups pretty much give away pizza to get people to come to their invents. The chancellor even gives free pizza away a lot)</p>
<p>-Quirky chancellor, Chancellor Wrighton invites students to his house for bowling. He also randomly walks around to talk to students and give them free pizza. Last year there was a see saw-a-thon and Chancellor Wrighton particpated. He is a really cool and laid back guy</p>
<p>-I wouldn’t say there is a lack of school or sport spirit. Its definately different from other schools. There is a group, Red Alert, that gives free pizza to students who come to sports games and wear special t-shirts</p>
<p>-IM sports are taken more seriously than varsity sports. This is a testament to students being serious about their work and loving to have fun playing their favorite sports.</p>
<p>Those are some of the things that popped into my head. If I think of anymore later that I think are important I’ll post them. Whether you meet people who will shock or amaze you is really relative to who you are. From my experience, I can’t be more impressed with the types of individuals I’ve met here. People told me I was pretty amazing in H.S. but coming here makes me feel like I was just another fish in the sea. So basically, I think that WU students are quite unique. Most people here were the coolest nerds in high school. You know, the really smart kids who were also very popular, involved, athletic, etc.</p>
<p>How is WUSTL’s Engineering program on the whole??? or atleast which engineering programs is it known for??</p>
<p>I think its engineering as a whole is ranked in the upper 40s or something. It most popular program in the engineering school (and I think its ranked pretty high) is Bio-Medical Engineering. I hear its really tough. I am doing a second major in the engineering school (computer science) and I have had nothing but good experiences in the school. Professors are great and approachable. There is always some innovative engineering undergrad research going on. The engineering school throws this cool party called Vertigo where they create they create their own dancefloor (each year the dancefloor does something different and cool) and people can program graphics that will be projected on the dancefloor throughout the night.</p>
<p>Here’s an example of some of the cool things that WU engineers/scientists are doing: <a href=“Sensor networks protect containers, navigate robots - The Source - Washington University in St. Louis”>Sensor networks protect containers, navigate robots - The Source - Washington University in St. Louis;
<p>Also, a few other distinguishing research/factors that make WU stand out, that people seem to always ignore.</p>
<p><a href=“Teenager moves video icons just by imagination - The Source - Washington University in St. Louis”>Teenager moves video icons just by imagination - The Source - Washington University in St. Louis;
<a href=“The Record - The Source - Washington University in St. Louis”>The Record - The Source - Washington University in St. Louis;
<a href=“Siteman Cancer Center gains nationally recognized leader in cancer prevention - The Source - Washington University in St. Louis”>Siteman Cancer Center gains nationally recognized leader in cancer prevention - The Source - Washington University in St. Louis;
<a href=“http://mednews.wustl.edu/news/page/normal/7330.html?at[/url]”>http://mednews.wustl.edu/news/page/normal/7330.html?at</a></p>
<p>Thanks for the links they were really informative…okay i have decided this is where i want to be if i dont enter my other reach - Cornell</p>
<p>With WashU’s great medical school, it should come as little surprise that the biomedical engineering department here is one of the top in the country. I hear it’s a really intense program, and the research opportunities are fantastic. It’s a program more than worth checking out.</p>
<p>People at WashU have clear-cut goals but are not cutthroat competitive. That is, they are competitive, but they are also very friendly and supportive!</p>