East Tennessee State University Top Questions

As a freshman and sophomore, teachers do their best to follow up with students who are not doing well. As a junior, I have noticed that my core classes are beginning to get very interesting and very intense. Fortunately, teachers are willing to answer any questions from students.

Academics at ETSU is designed to get students jobs in their desired field. With the exception of a few, my teachers have been willing to meet me outside of class and respond promptly to emails to help me succeed. Many of the teachers are passionate about their subject and make every effort to make class interesting and well rounded. General education classes can be boring and attendance is usually lower than upper level classes. Once I began my upper level courses, my college experience changed dramatically. My teachers all know my name, except in auditorium classes, and they are mostly fair and committed. The school requires internships for many majors so that when graduation rolls around, students already have experience and connections. Students are not very competitive. I am a Journalism major; lots of my homework is field work, not necessarily sitting at home writing papers and studying. Last semester was my favorite so far. Each week, I had a story or paper to write, photo assignments and lots of helpful criticism from my teachers. I already feel quite prepared to be a writer though I know I have much to learn. I worked 30 hours a week while taking 18 hours of classes and 6 hours weekly at my scholarhsip job last semester. It was extremely stressful and I seriously considered quitting school. My academic advisor doubled as a life counselor and friend and helped me assess my goals and sort out issues with my family and job in one sitting. I can probably thank her for saving my career, and that is not necessarily her job. The professors and advisors that I have had have gone above and beyond their job requirements to help me. That is how I would describe academics at ETSU, committed to individual success.

The academics are ETSU are -- as I said in the previous answer -- mostly what you make it. You can have a thriving college experience with your classes and professors if you make it happen. There are a lot of groups and clubs on campus that meet outside of classes that can really help you network and impress potential employers in the future. There are study groups and tutoring centers that students can go to if they need the help. So yes -- the academics are definitely a positive thing, and ETSU has new and up-to-date facilities and technology to provide that. My major is Journalism, and one example of getting involved myself is by writing for the East Tennessean. The East Tennessean is a newspaper on campus that is ran entirely by students, and the paper is always looking for writers. I used the opportunity to get published in an actual physical print paper and I have been writing for the ET for over 2 years now -- and I get paid for it as well. In some ways, writing for the ET has given me more experience and an understanding of the newspaper industry than all the classes I have taken, and I do mean that as a positive thing.

It was mentioned earlier that East Tennessee State University offers an abundace of opportunity for personal interaction due to the fact that the university and the classes avaiable are not large. For this reason, it is not difficult for professors to learn the names of each student and become fimiliar with their abilities and learning styles. My favorite class attended at ETSU was History 1010. I have an adimiration for History, so learning about this subject intrigued my interest. Another reason I found this class to be enjoyable was the teaching style of the professor. She seemed very laid back and patient with her students, which in turn made the whole class experience unforgettable. My least favorite class was Practical Reasoning. This was simply because the more in depth material of this course reminded me somewhat of a math course and math is not my best subject. The time spent studying varies with each student. Some students spend all their free time studying, some try to balance out time spent with their friends and the time spent studying and sadly some students do not take time to study at all. This aspect really depends on how deticated the student is with fulfilling their eduction. Once again, due to classes not pertaining a large amount of students; class particiapation is usually very common. Though this too also depends on the student and their dedication to education. The amount of intellecual conversations students have outside of class and the amount of competition each student possesses again depends on the student themselves. It depends on If the student is more concerned with indulging themselves in conversations that stimulate the mind or if the student is more concerned with what is going on in their personal lives rather then the information they are learning. The most unique class I have particiapated in was my sports writing class. The was unique because most of the class was spent not in a classroom, but at sport competitions. This class gave the student a good grasp on what it would be like to be a sports writer. My major is Mass Communication with a concentration in Journalism. The department for this major seems to be a very friendly, easy-going environment. I strive to have as much interations with my teachers outside of class as possible, simply because having one on one interactions with the professors is somewhat a necessity for the student to have a successful educational outcome. The academic requirements this university asks for is undoubtedly classes that each student should take. These classes are essential for achieving the right amount of knowledge for facing the intimidating situations present in the world after college. The education recieved at this college does great with preparing the student to get a job after graduation. Each department lets the students know what to look for, what to expect, how to act and how one should present themselves after the job has been found. If one performs well with academics, listens to the professors and actually takes their education seriously, the college experience one has recieved should prove to be a success in the real world.

There are bad professors and good professors wherever you go. I've had way more good than bad here, even having professors I've hung out with after class. Unless you're in a huge auditorium class, the teacher will know your name. The library seems to always be full of students. After library hours, Late-Night Study is open and is usually full of students also. ETSU is known for its bluegrass program. You can hear the bluegrass music as you walk around campus. I know we have a really good digital media program, too. I don't think it's very hard to get into ETSU, but you best maintain your GPA to keep scholarships if you have them.

Most professors know most if not all of the names of their students (in my experience, anyway but I'm part of a relatively small department) and will do anything they can to help students learn. Class participation is always encouraged and I've been part of many interesting class discussions in a variety of classes because of this. I am part of the Philosophy and Humanities department. We have, by far, one of if not the best department in the South. We offer a wide range of philosophy classes - political, ethical, religious, social, and metaphysical. If you are interested in philosophy, this is the place to be in the South.

Most professors make an attempt to learn students name. Class participation starts out good at the beginning of the year then goes down till finals when campus is packed again. A normal week one will see more people in attendance on Monday through Wed. but after that the attendance rates go down drastically. The most unique class I have taken is Disaster Response Training whihc teaches students what to do in case of a emergency due to weather, and other issues.

Academics at ETSU are good. There is a wide variety of majors at ETSU, although ETSU really does focus on majors aimed at the health field. So, if you are considering the health field ETSU is amazing! I would like to see more classes that focus on technology and engineering. I do believe that is what ETSU is really missing. We offer a great education program, business program, science programs, mathematics, arts, especially music, but not enough in technology. I am currently in the College of Business and Technology and most curriculum gives a great over view of careers in technology, but nothing challenging enough to make us competitive against a lot of other technology-based schools. But this can be expected, ETSU was founded as a teacher's college 100 years ago, and now offers a wide variety of majors and that's pretty impressive. So, we can be sure it will only grow more in the future. Some things everyone can find academically here at ETSU, is really good one-on-one time with professors and advisers. Because ETSU is not too big, not too small, you get a very personal education. Class sizes are perfect. ETSU offers some very challenging courses, but every major has those classes that aren't in your major which can be a pain, but are necessary for an overall education. There are career and internship services on campus which really help students start on their search for a job or apply to graduate schools. You will definitely get a good education at ETSU and for great price, even for out of state. Plus, ETSU offers in-state tuition for border counties in Virginia and North Carolina which helps out a lot of students.

Some of the classes can be very challenging, however you get out of it what you put into it. There is no allowing students to slide by because you earn the grade that you are given, which I think is a great thing. Most professors know your name pretty early into the semester, and are willing to help you. The academics at ETSU are not only geared towards just learning the material, but also to help prepare you for the job force after graduation.

The academics are great. You will always know something about your professors, and in most classes, your professor will know a lot about you too. The average class size is in the 40's, but in some upper level classes, it is not uncommon to have a class of 10-15.