University of Georgia Top Questions

Class size varies widely at UGA. Honors classes have fewet students per teacher. Some classses have only 30 to 40 students. Lectures can have nearly 300 students, but those often have lab sections that break the class into smaller groups once a week. UGA knows its a big school, so the administration tries to compensate for that accordingly. Around half of my professors probably know my name and would recognize me around campus. One of my favorite classes thus far has been Credibility, a journalism course taught by Professor John Greenman. Professor Greenman is very knowledgeable and experienced, having won a Pullitzer Prize for his work. He uses a variety of teaching methods that allow students to learn from him, their peers and the outside world all at the same time. My least favorite course was Astronomy because we only learned from lectures and textbook material. It's a personal preference. There are many excellent professors at UGA, and every student will appreciate some teaching styles more than others. At UGA, it's important to apply yourself. There are so many students that class participation and hard work are required if you want to stand out. This is especially true for anyone adopting my major, Journalism. Being memorable for teachers is vital to insure that you can obtain written recommendations if ever you need one. I would advise making friends with at least one professor per year. The university is very career-oriented and offers many services to help get you where you want to be professionally. Take advantage of that.

No matter what college you go to, academics should always come first. Here at the University of Georgia, this is no different. Classes can vary in difficulty, but can always seem fun if you are enjoying what you're learning. Now, I'm not going to lie and say that there aren't classes that I don't hate, because there always will be. But all in all, as long as you keep your head on straight when it comes to classes, you should be fine. My favorite class so far, would be TELE 5170, which is actually an independent study. I am a Broadcast/Digital Journalism major in my last year. With this class I am able to host my own talk show (which happens to be the nation's first college daytime talk show) while gaining class credit. My professor grades my progress through empirical observation, as well as assisting me in whatever technical needs I may have. My least favorite class was BIO 1104. I am not a science person at all. And my professor knew that. Before I continue with this story, let me say this before I forget, GET. TO. KNOW. YOUR. PROFESSORS. It is vital to your academic career. If your professors know who you are and your work ethic, they're bound to help you out if you're struggling. An example of this would be my BIO 1104 professor, Dr. Lemons. Professor Lemons knew me, out of a class of about 250, because I took the time out to meet with her the first week of class (not just because I knew I'd be struggling, but because I knew it would benefit me if I met her). As the semester progressed, I kept failing her tests. It was horrid. So, I went to her office to talk about how I could improve in her class, and she welcomed me with open arms. I will always appreciate her smile and positivity, even though I was horrible at knowing the functions of ribosomes and other scientific jargon. And to answer the question about spending time with professors outside of class....yes. I do. I am actually going to my Journalism professor's home tomorrow night for dinner with him and his wife. Professors aren't monsters, they're people. You just have to take the initiative to get to know them! Education at this university is geared towards learning. If a job comes out of it, then spectacular! But, one piece of our mission statement says that students "inquire into the nature of things" and that's what we're hear for. To help answer a student's inquiries to the best of our abilities, so that student may learn how to achieve success in the future.

Academics are great at UGA. I am a psychology/sociology major but am currently working on my core classes. The core classes are essential to making UGA students well rounded and prepared for the real world. Studying is essential in college. Half of my life is studying or reading for my classes. But I don't mind because all of the material is interesting. If I need help with anything, my professors and teaching assistants have office hours so that I can ask questions. Since I am in my core classes, many classes have up to 300 students. This is not a problem because the teachers teach in such a way that you feel like they are speaking directly to you. Like high school, each class is different. But in college, I know for a fact that every class will be intellectually stimulating and will help me be more prepared for my future.

Some people claim that the classes are extremely difficult and others say that they're much easier than in high school. If you're going to take classes like chemistry, biology, calculus, etc. you're going to have to work really hard to get a good grade. I really haven't had any problems with classes because I'm not taking any of the ones I listed above. I found that my workload was significantly less than in high school. (My classes this semester were English, Spanish, Geography, Math modeling, and the Role of sex in advertising.) The hardest thing to get used to about classes at UGA is that you have to be accountable for yourself. A lot of times, homework is not required. Also, many of my classes only have two tests and a final so you have to make sure that you do well and study for these exams without your professor telling you to do so.

In my small classes the professors do know my name and almost every class offers a smaller class size. My least favorite class is English just because I am not a strong writer but my favorite class is history because it really seems to interest me. Students are sort of competitive here. There are lot of students that can make good grades and not try because they are very intellectual too. We are all here to make good grades and stay in the organizations we participate in. The most unique class I have taken was my freshman seminar and it was about endangered languages. I didn't realize that there were so many in the world and the class really made me think about that. The education at this school is really geared to getting a job. They offer the necessary classes that will provide us with the information we need to excel at our jobs.

The motto here at the University of Georgia is "to teach, to serve, and to inquire things of nature." Faculty and staff are committed to serving the student body in every way possible to further our education. Wether you are in a class of 300 or 30 participation is key. If you don't show up, keep up with the reads, do your work or study then you can kiss good grades goodbye. Never be afraid to ask questions because chances are one of the 299 other students in the class is just as confused as you are. In the 4 years I've been hear I have not had a bad professor yet. They are not here to hold you back, but to help you excel. As students we rely on each other to pass along informations about classes and how professors teach. As freshmen we are all required to take about the same required core classes so chances are if you ask around you will find a gold mine of information on the courses your enrolled in. Each class is unique in its own way. You can take classes where you learn about chocolate or get to grow plants. Just this semester I took a class that had a lab where we cooked every week. At UGA it's not just about sitting in lecture and studying but it's about hands on experience and figuring out what you'll need to know once in the work force.

They key to success at UGA is finding classes that interest and drive you to become a better student and a better person. I found this in the Comparative Literature department; my freshmen year I took a 1000 level course called Western World Lit, it encompassed a lot of books I had read in high school such as "The Iliad" - but the teacher took a new direction with the lessons and viewpoints we discussed in class. I quickly found out that participation and talking with the teacher outside of class helped me to understand my professor's expectations, and eventually got me a great recommendation. This is not to say that all classes demand these actions, but in smaller classes it is common for teachers to expect participation, many even include this as a percentage of your final class average. In bigger classes, I have found it beneficial to set up a time to meet with the teacher, usually during their posted office hours. Because there is less one-on-one interaction in class getting help and asking questions is easier if you do it face to face. This is also a great way to meet the professor and have them learn your name and face; trust me, this goes a lot farther than you think. Professors are almost always willing to set up a meeting, and most of them are flexible about time and location. What you will learn is that the teachers want you to succeed and they try to make themselves as available as possible to help you along the way. UGA is home to professor's whose resumes and experience is absolutely astounding. I took an Ecology course during my second year with a professor who had been featured in movies, newspapers and news reports all around the world for his breakthrough research. I make it a goal to take one class each semester with a unique professor or in a unique field - and this is not a challenge at all because UGA boasts a wide variety of courses, taught by an academically brilliant staff.

There are around 35,000 students at this school. Let's be honest--the teachers physically can't pay attention to all of us. The freshman classes are kind of terrible--most of the teachers are just there to go through the motions and I can't really blame them--they're teaching the general core classes (unless you are in the art school. Those are some good teachers.) As the classes get harder, teachers do get better but you have to really research to find the good teachers. Once you find them, there are some amazing people who work at this school. Still, there are some god-awful teachers in that some don't speak English, some don't know how to organize, some don't know how to use powerpoint. I think this is pretty standard for most schools. Basically, if you want to take classes that you're really going to enjoy, be prepared to do some research.

If you are not used to studying in highschool.... you better learn when you come to this college. I study more than you can imagine and I never studied in Highschool Classes are ridiculous sometimes with teachers giving ridiculous assignments or even tricky tests that even previous UGA alumni thought were ridiculous. This school has definitely gotten harder that's for sure. Some of the academic requirements are helpful and expand your mind. Education for this school is geared to getting a job for graduates though with this unfortunate economy there are no promises, but the university does offer help for job placement My least favorite classes at the Georgia include: accounting, chemistry, economics, and calculus. AT ALL COSTS IF YOU CAN AVOID ACCOUNTING!! it will KILL YOU. Take it some where else or even at a community college DO NOT TAKE IT HERE.. and Chemistry as well if you can!! - class participation is very rare and depends on your major - currently I am a Fashion Merchandising Major and I love Fashion but personally i feel like some of the teachers are hard graders especially for Fashion Merchandising But my favorite Teachers above all are Mr. Charles Gilbert and Mrs. Emily Blalock! They are the best - And also I would recommend taking a speech class. I have high speech anxiety and taking theses classes have extremely helped me and the teachers really care about you in this major. - If you consider speech take either Dr. Kate Stahl or Dr. Kristi Schaller and get to know them. They are extremely nice and super helpful if you give them respect

Science and accounting classes are the hardest at UGA, but they are not impossible. There are a lot of study groups and tutoring sessions available to aid in learning the material. Lower level classes are usually held in big lecture halls with 200+ people and the teach will not know your name unless you introduce yourself or go to office hours for help. Foreign language classes and higher level classes are generally smaller with 15-40 people and the teacher will most likely learn your name.