Student Profile
Jamie
- Class: Freshman
- Major: Education
- Gender: F
- High School: Grandview High School (Aurora, CO)
- Transfer Student: N
Big Picture
k what's the best thing about ASU? all the choices - classes, majors, places to live, ways to get around, people. one thing i'd change? the FREAKING OUT OF STATE TUITION. and parking. what a RIP OFF. size-wise? ASU could be too big, but the way it's set up, you don't have to get lost in the crowd, academically or socially. how do people react when i tell them where i go? depends. a lot of people are surprised that a square like me is at a school like "that". but people know the name and most people seem to consider a good school, despite its rep. where do i spend most of my time on campus? everywhere, really...im all over the place. i will need all new shoes for next year, even though i got all new shoes at the beginning of this year...i do that much walking. favorite places are my dorm (now that i'm free of my evil roommate), hayden library, and the dining halls. college town? well we've got mill avenue, which is like pearl street mall in boulder, colorado. aka, awesome. and there's great public transportation and a lot of cool stuff that's easy to get to and not far, like the ever-wonderful tempe marketplace, home of target. <3 ASU's administration? eat some fiber, visit the bathroom, and then turn around and look before you flush - that's my opinion of ASU's administration. biggest controversy on campus? people chasing you down asking you if you have a minute for the environment or for gay and lesbian rights, people standing and screaming about how masturbators and girls in strappy tank tops are all going to hell, etc. you can't go anywhere without dodging swarms of them. school pride? oh heck yes. i was shocked to see people actually WEARING the ugly school-themed t-shirts they give out free all the time. people get real into the whole sun devil thing (this does not include me). anything unusual about ASU? i wouldn't know...i've never really been to any other college. XD there's a lot of navajos and a lot of barely-hispanic people with national hispanic scholarships, i noticed. one experience i'll always remember? stupid question...how can i choose just one? party roommate, moving dorms in the middle of the night, tutoring little kids in south phoenix (which is NOT the nice part of town), all my classes so far, the orbit... most frequent student complaints? inflated out-of-state tuition, far away parking that costs a small fortune, foul dorms, overpaid president crow, campus stalkers (see above), the HEAT, internet (cisco clean access agent = evil incarnate), overpriced markets (where you can get toilet paper and odwalla bars and the like), dining hall hours that seem better suited to a retirement community that a college campus. (you're not allowed to be hungry at night or on weekends, pretty much) oh and math teachers that don't speak english. oh and one other thing just to mention...ASU gives our scholarships like leftover candy after halloween. oh and one thing that sucks about ASU is that you can't take pretty much ANY art or music classes unless you're an art or music major.
Academic Life
do professors know your name? if you want them to. i've never had a problem talking to a teacher before or after class, over email, or during office hours. or if not a professor, at least a perfectly nice and knowledgeable TA. my favorite class? this semester, MUE 310: music in early childhood education. we play with rhythm sticks and crayons and do clapping patterns and sing silly songs. but i also feel like i learned a LOT, especially with regards to becoming a teacher. last semester it was probably POS 160: Global Politics. who knew something as boring-sounding as political science could be such a blasty blast (props if you just went "ahaha dane cook yay!")? least favorite? DAN 194: Latin/Ballroom/Swing I. i could go on and on about that class, but just for one example: the teacher stood up and said he had no patience for beginners. and me...well let's just say the hokey pokey is pretty challenging for me. class participation common? actually, yes. even i, famous in high school for giving death glares if teachers tried to make me talk and for being the girl who stands up to give a presentation and hears "has she always been in this class?", find myself participating in my classes. do ASU students have intellectual conversations outside of class? well some of them. remember that 60,000 students part? yeah...it depends on who you're talking to. many of them do. are students competitive? i...don't really know. i avoid any hint of competition. most unique class i've taken? ballroom dance, music in early childhood, children's lit, service learning (tutoring at-risk kids)...there's a lot of awesome classes at ASU. my major is multilingual/multicultural elementary education. basically it's elementary education, with a bilingual/ESL endorsement. you finish your general ed and a few required education classes your first two years, then you apply for the ITC - initial teacher certification, the professional program. then you're in a four semester block where they give you the classes to take, which ends your last semester with student teaching. i've gotten to take a lot of fun classes so far, like MUE 310 and RDG 311 (music and children's lit). there's also a fine arts requirement for education majors, which i think is AWESOME! i switched my major on a whim when i was registering for second semester (i started as spanish). i'm so glad i did! do i spend time with professors out of class? well i don't...but i think some people do. i know lots of people go to TA's and peer tutors and suchlike a lot when they need help. is the education at ASU geared towards getting a job, or learning for its own sake? well both and neither and everything in between. the great thing about ASU is that it's so big, with so many choices and resources, that you can make what you want of your education. i chose a path that is geared more towards getting a job. my sister is on a path (the double major in japanese and creative writing path) that is more geared towards learning for its own sake.
Student Body
what kind of students would feel out of place at ASU? i don't know that any student would feel out of place - it's a pretty diverse campus, and very welcoming and accepting. what do most students wear to class? whatever the hell they want. and nobody cares what you're wearing, either. do different types of students interact? yes and no. i see a lot of blobs of similar-looking students walking around, but at the same time you see very colorful, heterogenous blobs too, and you never feel weird talking to someone who's different from you, or surprised if someone different from you talks to you. where are most ASU students from? arizona, seems like. but then there's also a lot of californians and east coasters. then it's maybe chicagoans and seattleites. coloradoans are few and far between... what financial backgrounds are most prevalent? i'd say, middle of the road for the most part - not primarily wealthy, not primarily poor.
The Best Things
mill ave, DARS, classes, clubs/groups, living options on/off campus, resources
The Worst Things
price tag, ugliness, weather, party scene, dorms, dining hall hours/meal plans in general
