Tufts University Top Questions

Academics are difficult but it really depends on your major. Classes are pretty hard.

You either got it, have to work really hard to get it, or you just won't get it

suck

I'll just talk about study abroad, since I've spent the past year doing Tufts in China and Paris. Tufts is a hotspot for study abroad lately, with some-really-high-percentage of kids going, and there is a reason behind that for sure. Both of my programs were really awesome, and we had more opportunities and Tufts-funded trips than any other programs I've heard of. In China we spent the semester in a big city (Hangzhou) and took trips all over the country: to Beijing, Shanghai, Shaoxing, Lijiang, and even spent a week visiting peasant villages nearby. I absorbed so much language and culture just by living day to day life. It was the best time of my life, and I know it would have been so different if I had chosen any other program. In Paris, we lived with a host family, took classes at real French universities, and went on group trips around the country. Tufts makes staying with a host family mandatory, which is such a great system-- you are forced to learn to communicate your needs in French (even if you don't want to?) and you not only get a glimpse of French family life, you LIVE it.

While there are certainly a couple professors that are beyond awful, most of the professors do care about their students, will meet for coffee to discuss a paper, and know their students' names. Most classes are pretty small (except for some intro courses) and usually range in size (at least from the classes I've taken) from 10 to 20 people. The amount of discussion versus lecture in a class depends both on class size and topic. The core requirements might be a make or break for a lot of students applying to college. Compared with Brown University that really has no distribution requirements, Tufts feels like all you do in your first two years is fulfill requirements; however, since so many course meet distribution requirements, you really should have no problem finding courses you will like to complete them.

There are many intelligent students at Tufts. However, most students are always willing to lend a helping hand if there is something that you don't understand on a homework assignment or other course related work.

Professors did know our names at Fletcher and were involved with students development both in the classroom and in the professional, after-Tufts life. The education was a balance of academics and career preparation.

Academics at Tufts are hard as hell. Don't come here if you aren't looking for a challenge. The professors are available and give you the tools to succeed.

Tufts academics is the main draw, which I'm sure every student looking into the school is aware of. As the cliche goes, Tufts is tough. Every student coming in got straight A's since kindergarten and it's a rude awakening when you get your first paper or test back. I sometimes felt like professors or TA's refused to give A's for no good reason. In fact, I know for a fact that my IR professor told his TA's to give out only eight A's for a class of around 150 students. It is not an easy school. I have developed a very close relationship with the library. It is truly a fantastic place and I study there many hours everyday. In general, students study hard. I never heard of kids studying on Friday nights until I got here, and the stress can be overwhelming at times. Despite how bad this might sound, though, I feel like if you got into Tufts, you wouldn't want your academics any other way. I personally am not a big talker in general and have found class participation very difficult. I found some professors particularly intimidating. There are definitely opportunities to participate in class, though. In fact, my Ethics professor has been criticized because he allows too much class participation. All professors and TA's hold office hours. TA's are definitely helpful during paper time and realize that freshmen may need even more guidance. I came into Tufts undecided. After taking Intro to International Relations, I was blown away by the material and the professor and will most likely major in it, maybe a double major in French or something in Political Science. Tufts is definitely known for its IR department because of the Fletcher School (grad school for IR). I guess the only negative is that so many kids major in it. It's easy to feel lost in a crowd. The major itself has its pros and cons. After the intro class, there isn't really any IR follow-up. The requirements are made up of classes from pretty much any department you can think of -- Political Science, the languages, Economics, Philosophy, English, even the sciences. While this interdisciplinary aspect is certainly a draw in itself, it almost seems like the IR part of the IR major is a bit lost after the intro class.

Tufts is a pretty serious academic school. The big majors are premed, international relations, plus there's an engineering school. Class sizes can be a couple hundred at the intro level, but most tend to be under 20 students, so professors will often know your name. I take mostly science and math classes, and in those you can get away with not participating in class. A lot of kids are pretty genuinely interested in what they're studying, so they will talk about it outside of class to anyone who's interested. Most people's semesters start off pretty easily, but from the first midterm to the end of finals, most student's academic calendars get pretty hectic. Tufts has a lot of requirements. Six semesters of language, two of math, science, humanities, and social science, and one of "World Civ." Between that and your major, you don't have many credits to take classes that interest your outside your major.