Kenyon College Top Questions

Most professors know most or all of their student's names since most classes have around 20 students. I'm not sure about other people, but I am please that I have found friends who are interested in having intellectual conversations outside of class. These most often take place on weekends or at the lunch and dinner table. Both of my departments are relatively small with around 20 seniors in the Anth department and around 15 in the Math. Kenyon is a liberal arts college and so for most of the four years, learning is done for the sake of learning (or rather Kenyon operates under the idea that an undergraduate education is meant to shape the way you think).

I know my professors, their families, their dogs, where they live, and what, if anything, they order at the campus bars. I have been to their houses, and babysat their kids. They know and care about me as a student. Kenyon students certainly have intellectual conversations outside of the classroom. Students at Kenyon seem to like to learn, and are curious about all different topics. Not having required specific courses is great. You have lots of say in what classes you take, and it isn't too hard to get in to them.

I love my English class. Generally speaking the academics are interesting but manageable, though I have foudn that even as a first year I've wound up taking a lot of upper level courses to challenge myself, as the intro courses and freshman courses are generally a little on the bland side. That said, I have been thus far happy with my course choices. I feel like most intellectual dicussion doesn't leave the classroom, but it's okay. With some exception, most of the people here are pretty smart, so even just normal everyday banter is more stmulating with the people here than it might be otherwise.

Most of my professors know me by name. We do have small classes which allows there to be a student-professor bond to occur. But there are classes that can come to be about 80 students, and in those type of classes, it is understandable that a professor will not know your name. But for the most part, I am know. In my major, I am close to my advisor, and that is what is great, we get to chose who we want as an advisor. What is also great, is that Kenyon is a liberal arts institution. I came in here wanting to major in Sociology, but then I needed to meet the art requirement, and that lead me to Art History. Granted, I do not know of many minorities majoring in Art History, but that makes it even more special and unique. But I really do not feel prepared for the working force, granted that that is something that one has to do on thier own. But if it were not for REACH and friends, I wwould be clueless.

Professors do you know our names, my favorite classes are my English classes and my least favorites tend to be in history and sociology. Students study very often, but also have fun. Students have intellectual conversations outside of class but are not competitive. Land, Body, Place in Literature and Film is the most unique class I've taken. I love my major and department, and spend some time with professors outside of class. I like Kenyon's academic requirements and believe the education is geared towards learning for its own sake.

I know professors and they know me. That is what I like a lot about this school-- the education is the best part, if the social part is lacking, the education is making up for that. My favorite classes are any where a professor encourages discussions and ideas whether they be different to his own or not. I don't like it when profs just try to get a one sentence answer out of you and then lecture you about their own ideas. I thought we were beyond that-- I want to collaborate with profs, not always be lectured by them, especially once we are out of the 100 level range. Yes, I have intellectual conversations outside of class, I would like some more though. I think my friends are intellectually curious but we don't always talk about things we find fascinatiing. Kenyon is learning for learning's sake-- which I like a lot. I feel like I will still be qualified for a job, based on the fact that I will know how to learn and independently teach myself.

The professors strive to be personal and memorize names. Student study times vary; while some spend tens of hours studying for tests, others finish up in only a couple hours. Fortunately, competition is not a big factor here, it's more about competing with your own previous abilities. Sadly, Kenyon's education so far hasn't convinced me that it's gearing me towards jobs in the future, but more for the sake of learning.

The largest class I've been in was an intro Psych class, with about forty students. Even in that class, the professor knew everybody's names. Students definitely have to work hard to do well, but a lot squeak by without working very much. Class discussions are good, and often lead professors down paths they weren't planning to take. Students are generally here to learn, and conversations are overheard about anything from cheese to politics. A facebook group, titled "Overhead At Kenyon" quotes some of the best overheard conversations. The physics department is a small, close department. Students are encouraged to work on assignments together, and are given keys to the labs when they declare their physics major. My one physics professor is from Sri Lanka, and at the end of the semester had the class over to his house for dinner, and taught us how to play cricket. We've gotten together a few more times since then to play. Kenyon's academic requirements are simple and not difficult to fulfill, especially as a science major. Professors have told me more than once that when an employer sees a Kenyon degree, they know that the person is not only very good at their major, but good at other areas as well.

Not only do professors know your name, but they will ask you to dinner at their house, have a beer with you, give you a call to talk about a topic you found interesting, and send you emails filled with academic insights. Over 90{4a082faed443b016e84c6ea63012b481c58f64867aa2dc62fff66e22ad7dff6c} of Kenyon students have dinner with a professor before they graduate. Professors here are academic resources in addition to personal mentors and friends. Pure lecture classes are unusual and the small class size insures that even a "lecture" class is really discussion based. It's rare to go to dinner and not make a reference to an academic subject. Kenyon students love sharing knowledge with each other and study groups proliferate campus to help with the sometimes heavy work load. One never ceases to be bored as there is always studying to do, though weekends (and some week nights) will always witness parties. Vocational classes simply do not exist. It is a pure liberal arts curriculum and students are thoroughly invested in learning for the sake of learning rather than career advancement or future goals. Nearly every student is academically well-versed and well-rounded.

Yes! Kenyon professors will know everyone's name in a matter of days. My favorite classes are the science courses, however, they are extremly challenging. It seems like students study every single day, excluding, but sometimes including the weekend. Class participation is very common and Kenyon students always have intellectual conversations, even in the bathroom. Students are not competitive. We never disclose our grade point averages nor our grades on assignments. Kenyon's academic requirements are quite rigorous, yet not impossible. Finally, if I had a business, I would definitely hire ANY Kenyon student.

yes Students are cooperative not competitive The education is geared toward learning for its own sake.. most people will go onto grad, law, or med school after Kenyon..they're not really looking to work right out of college

Professors you have had in class, and even some you haven't, know your name. In small classes, it is fairly simple to remember everyone, but in larger classes you have to make an effort to connect. Fortunately, the largest class is about 100 people, and most are much less (about a fifth the size). So far, the classes have all been educational, which is essential since I am here to learn. :) They have not always been fun (especially the beginning classes that you need to advance in the field, but are not what you are interested in), but I have learned a lot. Professors usually find a way to make classes relevant and encourage student participation, especially taking advantage of office hours. Kenyon students know how to have fun outside class, but I have also had many academic discussions about class topics, politics, current events, or an article from the New York Times. Although most students are excited to show off their knowledge and be successful, there is not much competition between students. Students are more supporting with each other, though they may be competitive with themselves. I am majoring in psychology. I love my adviser and I am excited to take more upper-level courses next year. I like requirements that you need to take classes in all disciplines (Art, Natural Science, Social Science, Humanities), but I am not fond of the depth requirements. Instead of trying a lot of everything, Kenyon prefers that you take one unit in one department in each of the four disciplines before graduating. This is difficult for me, since I am taking a lot of natural science courses and do not have much time left to complete my major, take the courses I am interested in, and finish art credits. Overall, I think classes are aimed at learning for its own sake, but at the same time this prepares you for fields you are interested in.

Our academics deserve their stellar reputation. I have never felt like I was competing with another student academically. It seems like everyone wants to do well and doesn't worry about beating someone else. I always feel challenged, but I still have adequate time for play. I loved History of Jazz and Cross-Cultural Psychology, and I rarely have a lackluster professor. Requirements are more than reasonable and I love being a Psych major. I get to take the most interesting classes with the most empathetic students and professors around me. I feel well-prepared for a career in Counseling Psych because my profs got me an internship that will open doors and they will write me specific, positive recommendations since they actually know me.

Professors here are great. You'll never have a class taught by a "teaching assistant." Not only are professors around for office hours, but they're always willing to meet with you another time if you can't make those hours. With most of my professors, I feel like I can go in just to chat; I don't necessarily have to go to talk about a paper. I enjoy seminars more than lectures because they're smaller and discussion-based. I get to know people better in seminars, and that always includes getting to know the professor well, too. It's expected, and common, to participate in class dicussions. Frankly, when I meet a quiet and shy student I sometimes wonder how he or she ended up at Kenyon. Freshman year, I took a seminar in the Integrated Program in Humane Studies (which combines classics, history, and philsophy). We had great discussions, and at the end of the semester the professor invited us to his house for a croquet party. That was one of my favorite classes, followed by a 400-level English seminar on James Joyce. Students definitely get into intellectual conversations outside class, whether it's over dinner or in allstu (all-student, entire student body) emails. I got to know my English professor, Kim, really well when I went abroad. She was the resident director for the Kenyon-Exeter program for English majors, and the group of twelve students spent the entire year studying at the University of Exeter in England. Kim was a teacher, a stand-in mother, and a travel guide all in one. She saved us from dorm rat infestations, got us to 17 different plays, and put up with us without complaint. Study abroad in general is really popular here-- about 60{4a082faed443b016e84c6ea63012b481c58f64867aa2dc62fff66e22ad7dff6c} of the junior class goes abroad. Students are generally non-competitive. While people may commiserate over how much work they have to do, they don't compare grades. I don't know what GPAs my friends have. The academic requirements are great in that there is no single class you HAVE to take. If you wanted to go through college without taking an English class, you could do that here. We have distribution requirements, meaning that you just have to have a unit (two semester-long classes or one full-year class) of credit in each of four areas: social sciences, natural sciences, fine arts, and humanities. There's a Quantitative Reasoning (QR) requirement which requires you to take one semester-long course in something math/science related. Students who aren't into math and science can take courses like statistics, economics, Solar Energy, Science Fiction, or Surprises at Infinity. I'm not a fan of the language requirement (one full year of a language course). You can pass the requirement by scoring a 3 or higher on the subject's AP exam or passing a placement test at the beginning of the school year. I took four years of French in high school but apparently didn't learn enough, because I couldn't even pass out of intro French when I took the placement test here. So I took a year of Latin, which I was dreading. It ended up being okay-- it was a lot of memorization, but it was somewhat interesting. I was pretty much forced to take statistics this year to fulfill my QR requirement, and I've never studied that much for any other class. I was so relieved to pass the class, especially since sophomore year I had to drop economics 2/3 of the way through the semester. In econ, I understood the concepts but would get a test and not know what to do. The professor made it more complicated than it needed to be, and often half the class would go to his office hours for help. You don't have to get to Kenyon knowing what you'll major in. In fact, being undecided is encouraged because you can take a variety of classes and figure out what your passions are. You don't have to declare a major until fall of junior year. As an English major, I'm part of the largest major. There are about 75 English majors this year (compared to, say, four music majors). There are usually some really interesting topics (I'm loving my James Joyce seminar), but the unfortunate thing about having so many English majors is the competition to get into particular classes. The registration system isn't the best. This year, a few English majors actually spent the night in a tent outside the English cottage so they could have the first spots in line for class registration the next morning. It's discouraging to get shut out of a class in that way. Kenyon makes you think critically, and no matter what major you're in you'll get great training on being a good writer. I think these are skills that will be useful no matter what field I go into. The unfortunate thing about a liberal arts education is that the degree may not be as specific as some jobs will require you to have. For example, I want to be a high school English teacher. Kenyon doesn't have an education major, so after college I will have to go to grad school for a master's degree and get certified.