Midwestern Friendliness at Washington University

When the Director of Admissions tells you that “being nice matters” in the admissions process, you know that you are somewhere special. When I visited Washington University in St. Louis, that emphasis on character and community was abundantly apparent. Everyone on campus says hello to each other and I came away thinking that people in the Midwest had a reputation for being friendly for a reason! Although 65 percent of their students come from more than 500 miles away, you definitely pick up on the welcoming feeling that is created by their environment of passionate and engaged students, faculty and staff.

WashU has 6,400 undergraduate students in five different undergraduate schools. Students apply and are accepted to one of the specific schools, however, students can major and minor across schools and more than 70 percent of students have more than one major. I was particularly impressed to learn that more than 60 percent of the engineering students have a second major or minor, allowing them to explore their other interests. They have a great school of Architecture and Art, which is home to the oldest art museum west of the Mississippi River. We got to see some impressive studio spaces and creativity in action during my visit.

To further emphasize the sense of community, all first year students live on campus in an area that is called the South 40. Students are placed into residential colleges and members of the faculty also live in the residential colleges. After experiencing some of the food from one of the dining halls in the South 40, I was not surprised to learn that WashU is often rated some of the best campus food in the country! We also had the chance to eat some native St. Louis cuisine, including Ted Drewes’ frozen custard and toasted ravioli, both of which I highly recommend.

The university is located in St. Louis and they have a beautiful campus that is located right next to Forest Park, which is one of the largest parks in the country- even bigger than Central Park! Students are only a few miles from downtown St. Louis and they are given a free Metro pass to explore the city to go see the Gateway Arch or Busch Stadium.

With an outstanding academic experience that offers students a focus on collaboration between disciplines as well as opportunities for undergraduate research, it was easy to see why the students at WashU were so happy and welcoming. Thank you to WashU for a great visit to their wonderful campus!

Published by: LP