Emory University Top Questions

Academics are challenging at Emory, but by no means overwhelming. The GED's (general education requirements) can be frustrating for students who only want to pursue the classes that fall within their major. However, students may find that they enjoy a poetry or sustainability class -especially as more intense classes such as organic chemistry or financial accounting come their way. What separates Emory from other schools is its wonderful faculty -professors are always open to listen and have won multiple awards. For students pursuing pre-business or pre-med, they can expect to find professors who are well known in their industry. TA's are always available but used quite a bit in larger classes. Graduate students can be a mixed blessing -some take their classes too seriously and others with much less severity. If you put in the effort you will usually get an A. Beware of the business school curve, make sure you spread out prerequisite classes rather than loading them all on yourself at once and you will find a healthy social and academic balance at Emory. Most students study but won't talk about it -don't let yourself be confused! Everyone who puts in the time in usually does well.

Emory's academics are great because of the amazing professors and plethora of academic options. There is enough leeway to change majors and minors, and meet with such an interesting spectrum of highly intellectual leaders in the fields of medicine, art history, english, whatever! My favorite class right now is my Global HIV/AIDS class because it is a tight knit class where discussion is encouraged and I love to comment on the readings and pertinent issues for class discussion. I don't have a least favorite class here because every class I've taken at Emory so far has been highly interesting and well-taught. Students study almost everyday, but enough to get by. Pre-med students study the most here, and a couple of people sleep at the library, but this is only personal preference. I'd say academics at Emory are well balanced and well taught, so there is no need to pull your hair out over the next exam. Just do your work and study on a regular basis. Class participation depends on the class, but it is definitely encouraged for better grades. I love having intellectual conversations with my peers and friends and Emory is a great place for this kind of discussion. The best thing about students here is that they are willing to help each other, and aren't as competitive as other schools. Everyone is very open to studying together and it seems as if competition is mostly with yourself. I personally love to spend time with my professors so I make an effort to see them, and I HIGHLY recommend this because these professors are so interesting and brilliant in their field of study. I learn so much about the school and other things while at office hours or just meeting up for coffee. The school's academic requirements are pretty hefty, but I appreciate how much balance and curiosity they promote with their general education requirements. For the major and minors, it is pretty similar in terms of breadth and depth as well as availability of classes. I think it's so great that students find shopping for classes an exciting time for them each semester. Education here is for both getting a job for your PASSION. Emory's big thing is a healthy lifestyle which is fitting for most of the students here who are Pre-Med and Pre-Health. Everyone at Emory is passionate about something and I think it shows through their activities as well as their student body's motivation to succeed in life while striving to sustain a healthy life.

Emory has a lot of "general ed" requirements compared to other places because one of their goals is to offer a well-rounded liberal arts education. Even PE credits (something you thought you'd be done with after high school) are required. I think this is a good thing but if you already know what you want to do, you may not want to be stuck taking so many general ed classes. I will say that within the requirements there is a lot of freedom. For example, with PE credits, you can join a club sport and have that count towards your PE. They also offer fun classes like white water rafting and rock climbing for PE. I'm an English and Spanish major and my classes are usually pretty small. My professors almost always know everyone in the class and will meet for one on one discussions about class. I don't do an ungodly amount of studying; however, I do write a lot of papers.

Emory places a huge emphasis on being a liberal arts school, but at the same time, a large number of students are in the business school, are pre-med or pre-law. Generally class size varies depending on your major and what level of class you're taking. Introductory classes like all the 101's, are lecture size with 60-120 students. Smaller seminar classes can have as little at 5 students or 15. I'm a journalism and Spanish major, both of which are small programs compared to other majors. I know all my professors personally and they greet me by my name outside of class. I frequent their office hours from time to time. My class-size has usually ranged from 10-20 students throughout my four years at Emory. My favorite class has been my News Video class in the journalism program because I learned how to shoot video, write news packages and edit it all together using professional software for broadcast, which is what I'd like to pursue after I graduate. My least favorite class has been Political Science Methods, a statistics class for poli sci majors. I took it before I switched my second major from political science to Spanish and I absolutely hated it. Generally, students participate a lot in class and class participation is usually required in most class syllabi. Most students also study a lot and have high GPA's. Emory students are quite competitive in that way. Emory's academic requirements are pretty well-rounded and allow students to take advantage of the wide variety of classes offered to them, like the history of jazz or the Harry Potter class in the American Studies department, which is new next semester and satisfies a writing requirement. Whether Emory is geared toward getting its students jobs or learning for the sake of learning, I think it depends on the major you choose. Business school students are all about getting jobs and being successful when they graduate, but the more liberal arts departments, like the Spanish or philosophy department, is concerned with gaining knowledge and inspiring thought for its own sake.

Ok. I'll be honest. Emory is a hard school. If you don't like to be challenged, Emory is not the place for you. Professors here are thought-provoking and expect a lot from you. However, you'll become a better writer and thinker over your 4 years here. Also, since many of the professors have amazing connections, the harder you work in your classes, the more likely you are that they'll help set you up with a great job or internship (I got to work at CNN this summer because of this). Emory offers so many different classes, so there is really is something for everyone, except for engineering. Emory requires two gym classes, but they are fun and really help you meet new people (I took yoga). It's not hard to get into classes here, and class sizes are small for the most part (I've had a class of 4 people (a journalism class) and I've had a class of 200 (chemistry). I'm a journalism and environmental studies double major. I highly recommend both programs here. The journalism department is fairly new (only 10 years old) and small, but all of the professors have had huge careers in the media industry and have the most incredible connections. Journalism is a really hard major and requires a lot of time, but if you're interested in it, you'll enjoy it. The environmental studies department at Emory is larger, with about 20 faculty members and growing. It is also a strong department, but it's easier to get lost in. A few faculty members are very focused on their research and not as available as others. There are about 10 who care so much about your success and go out of their way to help you in whatever you want to do. There are a couple weaker teachers in this department, but the rest are incredible. The classes are fairly challenging, but not too hard, and very fun. You get to go on field trips a lot as a major. I went to the Bahamas for two weeks as part of a class! Overall, the envs department is great. However, you have to make the effort to meet those amazing professors and make those connections.

As an English major I have had a different experience than many of my friends who I call "the science kids" at Emory. Unlike them, the largest class I have attended at Emory has been comprised of 40 students. In fact, the majority of my classes have ranged anywhere from 18 students to 6 (in a 6 person class you MUST always do the reading! Don't find that out the hard way like I did). The small class sizes at Emory has not only given me the opportunity to get to know the other students in the class and engage in the material, but establish a close relationship with my professors as well. The Emory English department caters itself to students who enjoy participating, love discussion based classes and who want to be challenged in a creative and intellectual environment. English professors will not only know your name, but wave to you on campus and if your lucky, invite you to dinner at their house. Like any major at Emory, the English major is competitive but manageable. The class material is often difficult but so intriguing that you can't help but learn it and enjoy writing the papers. You will of course, come across the occasional English teacher who does not "believe in A's" and who only allows you to read books authored by them. As ridiculous as that sounds, it does happen, trust me. However, not to worry, these teachers are usually easy to spot from a mile away. And luckily, the majority of teachers in the department are engaging, passionate and genuinely care about the success of their students.

As an English major I have had a different experience than many of my friends who I call "the science kids" at Emory. Unlike them, the largest class I have attended at Emory has been comprised of 40 students. In fact, the majority of my classes have ranged anywhere from 18 students to 6 (in a 6 person class you MUST always do the reading! Don't find that out the hard way like I did). The small class sizes at Emory has not only given me the opportunity to get to know the other students in the class and engage in the material, but establish a close relationship with my professors as well. The Emory English department caters itself to students who enjoy participating, love discussion based classes and who want to be challenged in a creative and intellectual environment. English professors will not only know your name, but wave to you on campus and if your lucky, invite you to dinner at their house. Like any major at Emory, the English major is competitive but manageable. The class material is often difficult but so intriguing that you can't help but learn it and enjoy writing the papers. You will of course, come across the occasional English teacher who does not "believe in A's" and who only allows you to read books authored by them. As ridiculous as that sounds, it does happen, trust me. However, not to worry, these teachers are usually easy to spot from a mile away. And luckily, the majority of teachers in the department are engaging, passionate and genuinely care about the success of their students.

Academics at Emory are very strong. Being one of the top 20 schools in the nation speaks for itself in that students are given an extraordinary education from very highly regarded and renowned professors. Because it is a liberal arts school, Emory offers a wide variety of courses for students to take and majors and/or minors in every single concentration. I came in to Emory with the intention of being a Criminal Psychologist but after sampling other courses and testing the waters in fields I had never even considered before I switched my studies to a dual major in Journalism and Sociology. Being in a school with some of the brightest young minds in the world of course breeds a little bit of competition. But this competition never exceeds appropriate boundaries and pushes everyone to succeed and work harder to better themselves. Because class sizes are smaller, professors will almost always know you buy name after just the first few days of class. This allows for a much more personalized learning experience for each student.

The professors are good. My favorite class is my freshman seminar, where the teacher is so animated and passionate about what she is teaching. Though not all of my teachers are like that I have a pretty pleasant experience overall.

Emory's reputation as an academic powerhouse is well deserved. Although exceptions exist, the professors are not only intelligent but accessible, and most classes beyond early introduction lectures are between 20-30 students in size. It's possible to find classes that are easy A's, but most classes are difficult, and the average student works hard to do well. Most students are able to maintain social lives despite the heavy workload, but finding space in the library on most weeknights is difficult, especially during midterms and finals. The classes are rewarding for the hard work though, as most professors care about their students and their topics, and keep the class interesting. Emory does not have a competitive tone to it's academics. Students often study or do work together, as cooperation helps immensely with classes. Most students are pre-professional, especially premed, and the focus is on the sciences as a result, but the liberal arts programs are also strong - the political science department, for instance, has professors that are recognized worldwide in their field, and benefits from the proximity of CNN and the Carter Center. The academic requirements are not very difficult; most of them will be taken care of naturally through majors, so most students will only have to take a few undesired courses over four years. One such course will inevitably be PE 101, a health class required for all students. It's a 300 person lecture once a week, followed by a 30 person discussion group, also once a week, and everyone hates it - the collective complaining that occurs is the only enjoyable part of it. The class is an easy A though, and doesn't take up much time.