University of Maine Top Questions

I feel that we have a great academic program. Everyone participates in classroom discussions and everyone is passionate about school. The teachers are more than willing to help and I've found that also true with other faculty members like the receptionists in the dean's or program offices to the burser's office.

As far as academics go, I like the way UMaine provides for us students. Almost all professors learn your names in class since there are not TOO many huge lecture halls. It is often a good student-teacher ratio. Class participation is often necessary in many classes as discussion is often important. Even when going out for dinner or lunch, you hear many intellectual conversations about classes or competitive arguments. The most unique class I have ever taken is also my most disliked class. I took Intro to Astronomy and it just was not my thing. However, it was very interesting and there were many resources that could have been used (that I didn't use) to make it an awesome class). I think overall, the school is geared toward getting you a job post college over anything else. Most majors are forced to take classes that set students up for the "real world." As a whole, I find that the academics are quite strong at UMaine.

Professors tend to take a interest in every students progress here at the University of Maine! However many find it hard to learn every students name because they see so many students throughout a day. I feel that the more effort you put in to making sure the professor notices you, the more they will remember your name. The students at this university are friendly but very competitive in the classrooms considering that every person in your major could be fighting for the same job. This creates a very competitive atmosphere but also allows many to see how it will be later on in the real world!

Almost all of my professors have gotten to know me by name. I love establishing relationships with them because it enhances my learning, they all hold office hours and are fairly easy to get ahold of. Class participation may be more common in some classes versus others, but either way there is always participation. I really love my major, mainly because of the people that are in it. The Director of the department knows me really well and helps guide me. I have a lot of good friends within my major, and I really like the professors. I wouldn't want to go anywhere else, because I feel so taken care of by my department, I feel another school may not be able to offer as much one-on one advice and oppourtunities.

Coming from the Honors College, I know a lot of students that are highly motivated, pre-med, pre-vet, or planning on attending grad school immediately after college. That being said, most of my friends are NOT members of the Honors College and range in academic ability from 2.5 all the way up to 4.0. Academics is very much a personal choice at UMaine. Being the state school, a lot of people expect to coast, and a lot do and still graduate. But visit the library during finals week and don't expect to find a single open seat. When the grades really matter, it is not unusual to overhear someone talking about their all-nighter and how it isn't their first time. UMaine I think is really special in regards to class sizes as well. Freshman year I had a lot of big lecture classes, which is expected, but I never figured that my German class would only have 15 students and that I would get to know my teacher so well. And now in my sophomore year, my biggest class size is 50 students; and I personally know 3 out of my 5 teachers. Just wait, soon you will be invited over your teachers house for a HOME-COOKED MEAL (big deal).

I feel like the academics here are beneficial and give a lot of opportunities to students to do research and get involved in their fields, without being to overbearing. At first your classes are large but as you get more involved in your major the class size gets smaller and smaller and you are able to build closer relationships with your professors. Also, all professors are required to have office hours where they are able to be accessible to their students or you can make a separate appointment with them if you are struggling.

All of the administration in my college. which is engineering, I have found to be very approachable and helpful. From professors to advisors to TA's, they have all contributed in some way to my two years of academic success so far at UMaine. From the perspective of other colleges, based on what I hear from a lot of friends, they feel the same way. Job fairs are happening on campus every year and they attract a lot of student's attention. SO, it is not only just a typical College with athletics and academics to get a degree, there are also opportunities on campus and in local areas to also begin a working career or establish a path to one.

My freshmen and sophomore years I felt like a lost student--just following the schedule of my classes and working a LOT. Professors at that point in the game don't take the time to remember your name unless you visit in their office a lot. Classes like biology, A+P, chemistry, etc tend to be about 300 students and fill up fast! As a nursing student, my classes began to shrink, and at this point all of my classes are with the same group of 24 students. My favorite class was taken with my fiance, Beginner modern dance 1 and 2. The nursing major at UMaine is hard. As if there isn't enough real work to be done, you will also then get nailed with unusual amounts of busy work. My non-nursing friends would tend to be frustrated with me because I never had time to just hang out. You need to maintain at LEAST a 3.0, which may have changed to 3.2 GPA for nursing students, and you cannot get below a 75 average on any nursing exams in order to pass a course. I warn you, be prepared to lose almost ANY spare time if you plan on graduating in 4 years with a nursing degree. I'd say they do try to prepare you to pass the NCLEX exam after graduating, but you may sometimes feel as though the professors don't care about you, but about the NCLEX pass rate percentage of the previous semester's students.

Most of my professors at the University of Maine treated me like a high schooler who needed to be kept in line. 1.) My grades were based more on showing up and producing work 2.) Professors acted unprofessionally towards me and were unjustifiably pompous 3.) I learned very little real knowledge. It was too antiquated and subjective for my taste. On the flip side, there are some genuinely talented teacher at the University, too. They're just hard to find.

Most professor's are really easy to get in touch with. The professor's who are on "the 10 year plan" and who can't be fired are TERRIBLE. Most advisors and professor's are really personable, not so much in the science department as the liberal arts.