University of Washington-Freshmen Information Sessions & Campus Tour

The University of Washington is one of the best Universities to attend in the North West for Undergraduate,Graduate,and post Graduate studies and Research. Locally in Seattle theUniversity of Washington, is called the UW, pronounced U-Dub. My youngest sister Arrianna,came up from Los Angeles,CA for a visit a few weeks ago to take the University of Washington Freshmen Information Sessions.

She plans on studying Anthropology,one of the reasons that attracted her to the University of Washington was the fact that the UW is one of the top research institutions in the nation. She signed up for one of their weekly freshmen information sessions, called the Programs for Prospective Freshmen and a 90 minute guided tour. This was a special program created to give potential freshmen and their families an inside look at their admissions process and what the University of Washington has to offer. For incoming freshmen the UW offers a very unique program just for freshmen. It is called the Early Fall Start program. It gives incoming freshman a chance to make the transition to college early, meet other incoming freshmen, and learn their way around the very large campus at the UW.During that month before the Autumn quarter starts, freshmen can participate in one of 25 Discovery Seminars, which are small classes just for freshman; that cover a range of topics such as art, music, geology, literature, history, philosophy,cultural studies,etc. They are 5 credit, 4 week courses designed to give freshman a taste of what is to come during the regular school year.

Another program that is available only for freshmen is called the Freshmen Interest Group, otherwise known on campus as FIG. FIG is basically a small cluster of freshmen (20-25) that share the same academic interests and share the same cluster of 3 or 4 courses their first quarter at the UW. It is unique because it creates a social support network and a learning community for freshmen since they are new and may not have too many friends. The UW offers more than 160 FIGs in the autumn, which covers a rangeof interests and topics.Other programs offered are Freshman Seminars, University Honors Program, and Phi Eta Sigma.

Overall the Program for Prospective Freshmen was informative, and the campus tour not only introduced parents and potential students to the beautiful campus, it offered a heads up on all of the opportunities for freshmen.From experience, starting a big University,  can be very overwhelming and scary, especially since your parents, friends and family will not be around.

The University of Washington offers unparalleled support for their freshmen and think ahead with these unique programs.My sister sent in her application before she left and we will be anticipating an acceptance letter this spring.

A few facts:The UW is the number one public institution for attracting the most federal research dollars, for their research programs.At the UW students can have access to and take advantage of their large array of academic opportunities.From picking a major, to student research, to finding a great job opportunity, or if a student was looking for challenging courses, or if they were interested in studying abroad.The University of Washington offers many resources that can help students take advantage of a variety of opportunities from one of the nation's top Universities. 

The UW Vision Statement: 

The University of Washington educates a diverse student body to become responsible global citizens and future leaders through a challenging learning environment informed by cutting-edge scholarship.Discovery is at the heart of our University.We discover timely solutions to the world's most complex problems and enrich the lives of people throughout our community, the state of Washington, the nation, and the World.

For more information on any of the above listed programs, just click on the links or click

UW Freshmen Apply.

Carlene Pride 

Buyer Specialist

206.619.3117

Smartest City Ever

I am intrigued by this month's Seattle Metropolitan Magazine. There are several great articles, but this one caught my eye right away...Smartest City! This is what I have been hearing everyone talk about for the past summer. First I learned the statistic that Seattle is actually the Most Educated city in the country. Not only is there a great educational system, but then the tech industries draw even more people with lots of degrees and achievements under their belts...now imagine all these people in a relatively small space.

I'm going to discuss this a bit more with some of my sources of Seattle Lore, but love this quote from the magazine: "How Seattle is inventing the future, winning the Space Race, saving lives, and spreading the religion of international geekdom." It goes on..."Not that it's news to you, but you're living in the brainiest city on the planet. Seattle ranks as the most literate and educated place in America. We have the most bookstores, the highest number of advanced degrees. And we are changing the world...for decades companies like Microsoft and Boeing have lured brainiacs to our fair city. When those minds set out on their own, take up hobbies, or spawn the next generation of geniuses, the results alter the planet. Technology from Seattle is saving lives around the globe, revolutionizing the way information is processed...Seattleites were the first to embrace a word that was formerly a term of derision: geek. Geeks are problem solvers. Geeks aren't afraid to flaunt their astronomical IQs. Embracing the term means embracing the idea that intellect is power, that our minds can overcome any obstacle, that our knack for high-level thinking should be celebrated. Let's face it, geeks run the planet and Seattle is the geekiest place there is. Here's why:"

It goes on to talk about Kirkland's Bungie Studios (gaming..."thumb to thumb combat"), UW Computer Science Professor Oren Etzioni (data mining..."The Sultan of Search"), Dr. Daniel Rubens of Children's Hospital (cause of sudden infant death syndrome..."Man of the Ear"), UW physicist John Cramer (physics/time travel "Back to the Photon Future), The Liftport Group, Bremerton (aerospace/space elevator..."the 27,280,000th floor"), Microsoft product team manager Brad Wright (aerospace ... "backyard rocketeer"), CellarTracker's Eric LeVine(data storage..."Cyber Tipplers"), Allen Institute for Brain Science (biomed..."Mind Over Gray Matter"), Belltown-based Cranium, Pioneer Square's Sceneit, Renton's Wizards of the Coast (entertainment...brainy board games), Western Washington U's Eric Leonhardt & students (energy..."Cow Pie Power"), and eight or nine others. Wow, I'm stunned. I knew I kept meeting really smart people, but...better get geeking! And by the way, if you are my client reading this, I'd be happy to send you a copy of this month's magazine if you don't have it!

Edy Kizaki, Realtor