Emerson College Top Questions

Emerson has a great reputation, and you will probably get a pretty decent job upon graduation. Having said that, the classes are for the most part a joke. Very easy classes, I didn't have to read a book until late my junior year, attendance is rarely taken (weirdly enough the only classes that seem to take attendance are the worst ones I have taken).

While the first year or two you may not feel like you are fulfilling your major, it gets much better once you get to the classes you really want to take. Because so many of the classes are so small, you are able to really connect with the instructors and it makes for the best learning experience.

The classes are very small, 45 people is the biggest class I've had. There are a lot of adjunct professors and most of them are really cool. They hate meeting students in their cubicles so most are happy to go out and get a coffee with students and get to know them. It is hard to get into the classes you want sometimes.

Emerson is very geared toward each students industry. Depending on your major, you may spend most of your time taking out cameras, lighting equipment, etc. Other majors do a lot of projects or for the writers, it's all about writing different genres. We tend to procrastinnate work that doesn't involve our major but class participation in all classes is common. Professors that teach outside of your major are willing to let you experiment with your presentation so you can incorporate your major. As a broadcast journalism major, I know many of my professors by name and they know mine. They are around after class to help answer questions or just chat. The hardest thing for me is that they can only teach you so much. Half of Emerson's education is extracurricular activities and internships. If you don't get involved, you're wasting your time here, at least as a journalism major.

All my professors know my name and encourage all the students to come speak during office hours. They are very ready to help and they are helpful because most of them work in the field of study that they are teaching. My favorite class is improvisation with Ken Cheeseman. He's brilliant. The most interesting and amazing man I've ever met, but I could say that about a lot of my teachers. Class participation is a must because the classes are so small, but the conversations are usually really fun, open, and interesting. We are adults discussing in class as opposed to kids just talking for a grade. The acting department is amazing. You can never miss class, but mostly, you never want to miss class. All my teachers are sincere and sweet and very intelligent. They make things interesting and I love going to class. The general education classes really suck though. Research writing and expository writing, which are the required courses are no fun, but can be interesting. I had Grad. student teachers for both classes, so I got an easy A but it wasn't interesting and I don't feel like I learned much. After that, other required classes are fun. I took a class called Love & Eroticism that was ridiculous. So much work, but so worth it. I don't know if I've ever worked harder, but after that, I felt like a college student because I started to think differently. I didn't just try to conjure up an answer, I had to think critically and way outside of the box. It challenged me and the teacher really cared about challenging us. We were all different thinkers after that class.

Yes! Almost all of my professors knew my name. I love that most of them treat you as colleagues. Hard to say what my favorite class was. Any of my drama as education classes were awesome, but I also loved Judaism 101 (mostly because Rabbi Al is awesome) and World Literature because it made me think. My least favorite had to be speech-- I was in the PA program, so I know how to speak in front of people. It was also at 8 am. Class participation is common, although in gen-ed classes this sometimes turns into three people speaking just to hear themseleves talk. My advice is to speak up when you have something to say. Intellectual conversations outside of class didn't happen much for me. Students don't seem to be that competitive, but that might have been my major (Theater Ed) which is all about fairness and promoting equality in the classroom. Theater Education is great-- there was a department change my sophomore year which threw things off, but I know they're back on track now. The professors in the department really care about you. I have spent some time with my professors outside of class and a few of them I know I'll keep in contact with. Theater Ed was about learning, but then in my student teaching we focused on how to get a job.

The teachers here are great. They really know their shit, and give you the most real-world experience you can get in a classroom. I love the film and video classes - they give you cameras and top-of-the-line editing suites and get you working on projects starting your first semester. Teachers all go by a first-name basis, and are always willing to talk one-on-one or by email whenever you have problems. You really need to be able to put up with competition and group-work situations.

Classes at Emerson can be intense. Especially classes geared towards a major. Emerson students really get into class and in some instances, try to outsmart each other. Since Emerson is a very focused school, so people here know what they want to do for the rest of their lives. They know what they came to school for and most likely have known for a very long time. So, people really know what they're doing here. Emerson students are very intellectual and most likely you'll be having intellectual conversations outside of class, but it depends on who you're talking to. Emerson's classes are geared towards getting a job, and preparing you for the real world. In fact, I believe Emerson students will be more prepared for the real world than most students. In the journalism department we have equipment that some TV stations, newspapers etc don't even have. We're really proud of that and teaching students with such great tools. A unique class I'll be taking next semester is called "Queer Identity" it should be really interesting.

Emerson students are amazing. My writing classes are respectful and extremely helpful and supportive. Classes are about learning for their own sake and for the students sake. Learning about writing is focused on writing that will help get you publish and it helps you bring your story to a place where it's at it's best. I thought that students would be very competive in classes but they are compettive to get certain teachers or classes, once in a class they fed off one another. I don't think there is a such thing as a class at emerson that doesn't emcompass student participation. Professors aren't always there is get to know you (which when they do it make sthe experience much better). they will take a while to learn names but the keep here is to be the stand out student and on day one they will remember your name.

Participation is really key for every class I have been in... even the larger ones. Because it's a communication school, talking counts for a lot. My favorite class in my major was my film production class which I took my first semester - I got to make a website and learn how to use the programs within the first few weeks, which was really cool. It was also nice to have access to quality equipment so fast. For classes, I took a great one called Love and Eroticism. It really taught me a lot about my life, and is influencing the film I am making right now. My major is one of the more difficult ones to get in to (film production), so there is a lot of competition among the most devoted students, but in this case, I think the competition is really good motivation. Emerson also really sets you up to get a job... just the fact that I know I am going to have an internship in L.A. my last semester of school really makes me a lot less nervous that I will be living on the streets of some city begging for change.