Brandeis University Top Questions

Don't let the exterior fool you - what the university doesn't always spend on its buildings is used to hire the best professors around. While the exterior may lack charm, what you'll learn inside the buildings is what counts. Many of our professors are the best in the field and oftentimes they write the textbooks that you use in class.

I wish I had known to explore the tremendous variety of courses and to utilize the shopping period where we can go to as many classes as we want in order to determine our final schedule for the semester. That way, I would have discovered some awesome majors that I hadn't even realized existed when I first was interested in the school. I also wish I had been told to strive to go to more lectures by professors and shows performed by students, because there is so much to see and learn here from others.

I wish I'd known that coming in with an undecided major is far more difficult than it's made out to be. Entering, you're told that you don't need to pick a major until you're a sophomore and that you can just explore. While that's fun, it makes life difficult later. Science people know to go in decided, but I ended up double majoring in Music Performance and International Global Studies, and studying abroad. This isn't easy to complete with very few requirements completed as a freshman, and it makes scheduling stressful.

I wish I had known about the amount of resources available at Brandeis before I came here so that I could have fully utilized them sooner. The 24-hour security and late-night campus shuttles made me feel comfortable traveling, regardless of what time it was. The high standings of the research labs and the qualifications of the staff there encourage students to join them in their fight against a multitude of diseases like Alzheimer’s and ALS. These resources, to name a few, calmed my nerves and encouraged me to accept Brandeis as my second home.

I wish I had known what the food was like, how the classes were spread out about the campus, the distance I would have to walk each day so I would better prepare myself, both physically and mentally. I also wish I knew the different resources that the school provided, especially for its first years in the academics department, resources that would have being of great help in my studies.

I wish I had known the difficulty I was going to face when signing up for the science courses at Brandeis. The science courses are very challenging.

I wish I had known the general system a little better. For example, the way in which the meal plans work, what printing services are available, etc.

I honestly was clueless regarding how to go about picking a college. I wish I knew that a smaller school entails more personal classes but they are harder to get into; likewise, larger schools with larger classes are less personal and more intimidating but you'll most likely be able to take whatever you need. Also, my school is close enough to a city that it is accessible, thank goodness. I can't imagine how boring small-town schools are. I would even prefer to be IN the city, and i grew up pretty rural/suburban.

How wonderfull it was.

I wish I had known to take a foreign language SAT II, as now I have to take three semesters of language classes. Foreign languages do not interest me and I don't look forward to the negative effect they'll have on my academic life. I would much rather be taking other classes.