<p>This is a report on the Sunday 28 September 2008 college information session (“admissions reception”) by Washington University in St. Louis (usually spoken as “Wash. U.,” usually abbreviated as “WUSTL”) in Bloomington, Minnesota. My wife, son, and I attended this event together. This was the first time any of us had seen an information session by WUSTL. I referred to my own notes and my wife’s notes in writing up this report. My son has been getting email and postal mail from WUSTL since last school year, presumably because he took the PSAT as a sophomore. I know some alumni of WUSTL, and my mom has a good impression of WUSTL after studying nursing in St. Louis decades ago and doing a rotation at the children’s hospital affiliated with WUSTL. </p>
<p>The admissions reception was held in a hotel conference room in a suburban Marriott hotel near a beltway superhighway and the Twin Cities airport, and reasonably near to bus and light rail lines. (I’m not sure what Sunday afternoon schedule there is for public transportation to that location.) There was a table outside the conference room with WUSTL literature such as a WUSTL brochure and a card about campus visits, as well as sign-up sheets for students attending the meeting. There appeared to be students from quite a broad geographic area around the Twin Cities attending the meeting. </p>
<p>We found seats inside before the meeting started. Senior Assistant Director of Admissions Scott Crawford was checking his equipment for the video presentation, and he politely asked us in the audience, “Is it too dark in here for anyone?” I looked at my note paper, saw that I could see it just fine, and was about to say so when he joked, “I look better in dim lighting,” at which several of us smiled. Soda pop was available for refreshments, as my son noted, and he had a Mountain Dew. </p>
<p>Mr. Crawford opened the meeting by saying he had a ten-minute video he would save till the end. He said he had visited about a dozen high schools in Minnesota already that week, and would visit a few more after the information session. “When we’re done visiting high schools, we like to sit and read files during the admission season.” </p>
<p>He asked for a show of hands of how many students were juniors and how many seniors, and it was about half of each. He asked how many seniors had filled out the Pre-Application Data Sheet/Supplement (WUSTL’s supplement to the Common Application or Universal College Application) and a few already had. He mentioned that WUSTL is structured into five undergraduate divisions: arts & sciences, engineering, business, art, and architecture. Because WUSTL is a liberal arts institution, all students take courses from the College of Arts & Sciences. All students, in whatever division, can take courses from all areas. </p>
<p>There are more than 200 student organizations at WUSTL. There is a wonderful advising system at WUSTL. </p>
<p>The WUSTL campus is square in the middle of the St. Louis metropolitan area. It’s about seven miles from downtown St. Louis and one-and-a-half miles from Clayton, a secondary downtown. There are business and residential areas near the campus, and the campus is well defined. The campus is 130 acres, with 40 acres in the South Forty, where most of the dormitories are. About 75 percent of students live on campus. Housing is guaranteed for all four years and freshmen are required to live on campus. </p>
<p>Extracurricular activities include athletics and other activities. There are twenty varsity sports and forty club or intramural sports; varsity sports are NCAA Division III. WUSTL is the site of the 2008 vice-presidential debate. There is a free bus pass for WUSTL students for St. Louis public transportation, and there is a light rail line from the campus to the airport. About two-thirds of students participate in community service activities. And about two-thirds are in performing arts activities; there is no need to be a performing arts major or minor to participate in those activities. WUSTL encourages students to get involved in different activities at the level you are comfortable with. </p>
<p>WUSTL allows students to explore different areas of academic study. About 90 percent of students graduate in four years. More than 3500 students are in arts & sciences. At least 60 percent of students do more than major in just one subject. In engineering, there are majors in biomedical engineering and other engineering majors, and higher than the national percentage of female engineering students. The business division includes a center for entrepreneurship. At least 40 percent of the business curriculum is classes from outside the business division. Students choose their majors at the end of sophomore year. </p>
<p>There are many programs for study abroad at WUSTL. Study abroad programs include both research opportunities and internships. There is also an office of undergraduate research. Interaction with faculty is important at WUSTL. One adviser that all undergraduates get is a career center adviser. There is career practice all four years. There are several pre-freshman summer programs. </p>
<p>All freshmen taking Writing 1. This is also an orientation to academic support; it is capped at twelve students per section. Interdisciplinary programs and freshman seminars are available in all divisions. A class size of seventeen or eighteen is the average undergraduate class size, with 85 percent of classes being twenty students or fewer, and 50 percent ten students or fewer. There are large lecture classes with up to 150 students. </p>
<p>WUSTL asks high school seniors to choose one division, to get a taste of course work you would like as a freshman. But you can always change; fifty students changed during summer 2008 after admission. </p>
<p>Merit scholarships are divided into areas corresponding to divisions. Mr. Crawford said, “Every student I talked to who got a merit scholarship didn’t expect to get one, so please fill out the academic scholarship application.” </p>
<p>About 60 percent of students get need-based financial aid. The budget for that was $60 million last year and will be $65 million this year. WUSTL doesn’t want finances to be an obstacle to any admitted student. Call or email the financial aid office; get to know the people in the office. </p>
<p>As for admissions information, the early decision program is a binding agreement. The deadline is November 15th, and you will know the result by December 15th. WUSTL should be your main choice if you are applying ED. OF COURSE apply regular decision to other colleges to keep your options open. ED is not for you if choose colleges based on merit scholarship awards; WUSTL awards those in one pool. Recent admission rates have been 20 percent of applicants in the RD round and 30 percent of applicants in the ED round because the pool of applicants is stronger. </p>
<p>What WUSTL looks for is </p>
<p>I. Academic Strength </p>
<p>Every student is serious about academics, but every student feels free to explore academic interests. WUSTL is NOT focused on class rank and G.P.A. WUSTL looks at the transcript and the profile of the high school. Admission officers travel to know the schools. The question the admission committee asks is “Does your course work make sense for transition to college courses in your area of interest?” For standardized tests, WUSTL accepts either the SAT or ACT, one of which is required; SAT Subject Tests are not required, but the admission office will look at those you take. WUSTL records the best scores you achieve on each test section and gives you a new composite score. </p>
<p>II. Good Community Members </p>
<p>WUSTL looks for good people as well as good students. Recommendations are required from teachers and from the high school counselor. WUSTL wants a well-rounded COMMUNITY; but if you are committed to one thing, tell the committee about that. You need to have time-management skills, so tell the committee about those.</p>
<p>Be genuine. Be yourself. What impresses us? When students are genuine. </p>
<p>Mr. Crawford then played the video he mentioned earlier. It included a lot of quick cuts showing campus scenes, and various students spoke on camera, with identification of their home towns, which were all over. The students particularly mentioned lots of interaction with faculty and plenty of research internships. One girl mentioned that she was going to work for Goldman Sachs after graduation, at which most of the audience laughed, because of recent news, but I actually thought that was good news, because that firm is surviving the current financial downturn better than most. </p>
<p>Mr. Crawford then opened the meeting to questions. </p>
<p>Parent Question: When there is a financial aid award letter, will the financial aid office speak about that to parents? Is there a privacy issue? </p>
<p>A: The primary interaction about financial aid is with parents. </p>
<p>Parent Q: Is there a combined undergraduate-M.D. program? </p>
<p>A: The University Scholars program has combined undergraduate-postgraduate degree programs in medicine, law, or business. The vast majority of students don’t use those programs, but if you are sure now that’s what you want to do, you can apply and then all you need to do to get into medical school is maintain your G.P.A. and get a certain score on the MCAT. </p>
<p>Parent Q: When is a good time to visit? </p>
<p>A: At your convenience. The majority of the year WUSTL has Saturday information sessions and tours. Of course during the school year you can visit classes. </p>
<p>Parent Q: When looking at a high school transcript, do you consider weighted or unweighted grades? </p>
<p>A: That’s why admission officers visit high schools, to understand the transcripts better. WUSTL reads admission files by region. More than one admission officer reads each application, and the territorial reader is the first reader of the file. </p>
<p>Parent Q: What is the admission rate? What is the yield? </p>
<p>A: There is about a 20 percent admission rate; of 4,000 students admitted, there are 1,400 in the entering class. </p>
<p>Only 10 percent of the students are from Missouri. Most are from more than 500 miles away. Between 95 and 98 percent continue on to sophomore year. </p>
<p>Parent Q: How do we know that you know about a particular high school? </p>
<p>A: We get on the phone or email the high schools; we want to make a fair decision. </p>
<p>Student Q: Are undergraduate research projects chosen by the students or by the professors? </p>
<p>A: You can create your own project, or you can pop on board a professor’s project. </p>
<p>Parent Q: Applicants don’t need SAT II tests? </p>
<p>A: We look at whatever is submitted. </p>
<p>Parent Q: But you don’t require Subject Tests? </p>
<p>A: We don’t require any. </p>
<p>Student Q: How is Greek life on campus? </p>
<p>A: About 20 percent of students are involved; it’s there but not overwhelming. </p>
<p>Parent Q: Of students who graduate, how many get jobs? </p>
<p>A: Among the students who take advantage of internships and advisers, about two-thirds go to the workplace, and about one-third go to postgraduate school. The Career Center and other resources are there for all students. </p>
<p>Parent Q: Are there full-need financial aid awards for students from middle-class incomes under $100,000, like at some highly endowed institutions? </p>
<p>A: The first change in our policies this year is that loans were replaced by grants for all students with a family income less than $60,000. These criteria are changing; all schools are evaluating such policies year by year. </p>
<p>From the same parent: Do awards continue after the first year? </p>
<p>A: Absolutely. I forgot to mention that if you change your division, you keep your scholarship if you do well. We support students to help them keep their grades up. </p>
<p>Parent Q: Is there financial aid for study abroad? </p>
<p>A: Yes. </p>
<p>Student Q: Do you accept credit for AP, IB, or College in the Schools study during high school? </p>
<p>A: This depends on the division. Usually an AP score of 4 or 5, or an IB score of 6 or 7, can get some credit. Previous college-level courses can get credit or advanced placement. </p>
<p>Parent Q: Is the environment competitive or collaborative? </p>
<p>A: It’s collaborative, because there is advising on the many opportunities at WUSTL. </p>
<p>After the general Q and A, Mr. Crawford noted that the announced time of the meeting was over, but he was happy to stay and answer further individual questions. I saw quite a large group of parents and students move to the front of the room to ask more questions, as I left to go to another meeting. </p>
<p>Since this meeting, my son has begun receiving the WUSTL Washington World newsletter by postal mail to our home. We’ll keep WUSTL in mind as my son refines his application list for next year (fall 2009). </p>
<p><a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/college-search-selection/530012-fall-2008-events-where-students-can-meet-admission-officers.html[/url]”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/college-search-selection/530012-fall-2008-events-where-students-can-meet-admission-officers.html</a></p>