Washington University in St Louis Top Questions

I wish I knew it was okay to make mistakes, say "no, " change your mind, and pursue your own path. I wish I knew that I didn't have to plan everything and figure out my life in those four years- be open minded and let people inspire you, not hold you back, from becoming your true self! WashU is an amazing school with such creative, caring, and compassionate staff and students- take advantage of the resources!

I wish I knew more about white privilege and racial disparities; As a white female I was unaware about ways in which to become involved in redefining communty experiences by engaging with diverse students.

I wish I had better understood exactly the academic rigors I would have to put myself through. I found high school to be pretty easy, and to be honest, most of the classes here aren't incredibly difficult. However, taking a laissez-faire to college here is a sure way to murder your gpa. If you come, come prepared to work and work hard. The work is both fulfilling and rewarding, but it is still a lot of work.

I wish I had known more about the ease by which an undergraduate student can find an interesting lab for a work study. I chose to be assigned to a lab, out of fear that I would not be able to find on otherwise. Unfortunately, I soon realized that the research did not strongly interest me, and that my peers were easily finding jobs in labs of their choosing.

I wish I had known just how academically challenging this school would be so I could have prepared my parents for the GPA with which I would return home at the end of each semester.

Previous to this college, I attended a small community college in Illinois which was very affordable. Being that I was extremely sheltered at the time, I wish I had knowledge of typical university costs. I also wish I would have learned more about financial aid and student loans. I believe I would be much more comfortable attending if I had been more familiar with these things at an earlier date. A wonderful thing to know, as well, is how badly the professors and other facaulty here want you to succeed.

How big the classes were.

I wish I would have known what is was like to slow down before I went to college because I was used to stretching myself. I went in with the same mentality in college without considering there was going to be a transition and I suffered for it. I learned my lesson, but not without a cost.

I wish I would have known

I wish I had known that even if you go to a really good high school, it doesn't always prepare you for all the things you'll come across in college. College is way more than just academics, and it's important to focus on those of course, but it's also important to interact with people and professors and to try new things.

I wish I had known that sports weren't such a big deal and that greek life is a bigger deal than it seems. However, if you want to be involved (or don't) in either, it won't change your life all that much. It's all about the decisions you make and the priorities you set for yourself. I was a bit too focused on grades at first, so it's good to know that they're not the end-all, be-all.

Our school is well known for academics, not much for athletics. Basketball is pretty strong compared to other sports here, but because of lack of athletic enthusiasm, there's not as much school spirit as other schools like USC. If you want to feel the pride in your school very strongly, this school will not help you feel the strong spirit. However, our school is not as conservative as it seems like. It is open-minded about what you want to do and is quite loud in Friday nights and weekends. This may be a problem for you or not.

Before coming to Washington University in St. Louis, I thought I would be absolutely trampled with work and not be able to succeed. After first semester, I look back and wish I could have given my high school self some advice. While classes were the expected amount of difficult, college offers more homework with a purpose for learning instead of the busy work of high school. This fact, along with the many free tutoring services and office hours of professors, really eased the stress. There are so many cool people, and the students help instead of compete with each other.

I wish I had known about all the courses and academic departments available to us as freshmen and had come in looking to explore and find my interests instead of going in with a one-track pre-medical mind.

N/A

Before I came to WashU, I wish I knew how fast time would pass and I wish I had an idea of how much I would grow and learn in a single year. Not only did I learn what was taught in the classroom, but I learned a considerably greater amount outside of the classroom being a strong leader, a good follower and a good friend.

I wish I had known how to really study material to gather an understanding of it rather than just to do well on tests. In all of my exams this first semester, at least a third or more of the total score depended on understanding the material rather than being able to punch buttons on a calculator.

nothing

How that it is a relatively liberal school, but it could be much more liberal and open! I wish it was!

I didn't think Wash U was as academically challenging and highly regarded as it actually is

I wish I knew more about the January Program (of which I am a part)

I wish I had known which classes are best to take right away.

Before I came to this school I wish I had known that as a pre-medical student I would have to deal with large class sizes, and although there are plenty of opportunities to get personal help outside of class, this can make asking questions in class very daunting. Also, I wish that I had known that backround knowledge in physics would have been beneficial to have for many classes.

nothing that i didn't already know

I wish I had known every opportunity available to me both financially and educationally offered by the school. After applying and recieving my acceptance letter, I wish I had known the many scholarships available to me through the school that I needed to apply for, and I wish I had done more research on the summer programs, special programs for freshman, and other such opportunities.

I wish I had known that the minority population at Wash U was so low and dispersed among the University. Also, the knowledge that the city of St. Louis closes down like a small-town and there is not much to do outside of eating (brochures are a trick!). It would have been nice to know that it rained so much too(BUMMER). I do wish I would have known that there are no girl fraternity houses allowed on campus and there aren't many outside activities to do. But, anything you could need dealing with education is readily available.

I wish I had known how much I would have to rely on myself in college. While it is not true that professors are too busy to care about students, there are still many more responsibilities than in high school. Living essentially on my own has proved more difficult than I expected, and I wish I could have prepared myself better.

I wish I applied to more scholarships, I am a little broke right now. I also wish I did more research about the school because there are SO many things I could have done my freshman year that I simply didn't know about which is sad.

WashU is VERY expensive. you think you know and if you're lucky mom and dad will just pay it all for you, but if you're like me and your parents want to teach you "responsibility and independence" and you'll be taking out student loans: beware!! Most colleges nowadays are super expensive, but WashU is definitely on the high end. There's great financial aid here, but make sure you can pay everything back. also, everyone here is smart and teachers will challenge you, so you'll have to study hard in your classes to succeed!

nothing i didn't already know

I wish I would have known more about everything that the school really has to offer. There is so much opportunity here.

More accurate picture of the Jewish community on campus.