Text Size: AAAPrint

People

Some of us come from Rockbridge County. Some of us need a passport to get home. Some of us went to public schools, some private. Some of us are the first in our family to attend college. Some of us have been visiting the Colonnade since we could walk. Some of us stand at the front of the classroom every day. Some of us greet you every morning with an egg-white omelet. Regardless of where you come from, what type of school you attended or who you are, once you’re at Washington and Lee…you’re a General. And that’s an experience that doesn’t end with the shake of the president’s hand on Graduation day.

Our current students represent 48 states, the District of Columbia and nearly 50 foreign countries. We bring unique faiths, fashions and food to campus. From down the street to around the world, W&L attracts a diverse, unique student body. In true liberal arts form we believe that you can learn just as much from your roommate who hails from Bulgaria as you can from your English professor. The learning doesn’t stop when you leave the classroom.

When you are in the classroom, however, you’re being taught by only the best. All of our classes are taught by full-professors (no TA’s!), 96% of whom hold the terminal degree in their field. Best read up! That textbook you were assigned for reading might have been written by your professor. But just because they’re at the top of their game doesn’t mean they’re too busy holding press conferences and publishing research to be teachers. All professors are required to post “office hours,” times in which the professor is required to be available for students. Many, however, go above and beyond the required. Professors commonly hand out their home phone number on the syllabus, their AOL screenname, invite you to their house for dinner. Great professors? Yes. Great people? Absolutely.

Commencement. The end of college… the beginning of a lifetime as a Washington and Lee alumnus. They might be gone but they won’t let us forget about them. Because of our generous alumni we’ve built two internship programs- the Washington Term and the New York City Internship Program. Our alums welcome and encourage our students as they step into the job world. Not to mention the fact that our graduates go on to do some pretty cool things. Tom Wolfe, author of The Right Stuff and Bonfire of the Vanities, inevitably met a few “merry pranksters” during his four years at W&L. Famous broadcast journalist Roger Mudd also graduated from W&L. The first streaker? George William Crump, class of 1804, is also a graduate. Besides these famous names W&L boasts 4 U.S. Supreme Court Justices, 27 Senators, 31 Governors, and 65 U.S. Congressmen, 7 ABA Presidents.