nowhere else - Whitman College

Whitman’s wireless network connectsall the academic buildings, the library,the campus center, residence halls,interest houses, and Ankeny Field.Whitman’s General StudiesProgram ensures that Whitmanstudents gain broad exposureto diverse areas of study.Many students think they knowwhat they want to pursue incollege, only to discover anew interest along the way.Distribution requirements(six credits in each of fourmain academic areas, onecourse in QuantitativeAnalysis, and two coursesinvolving alternative voices)help Whitman studentsacquire breadth and perspective—givingthemgreater insight and exposureto subjects beyond theircomfort zone.Whitman students immersethemselves in their majors.Once students choose a major(or develop their own individuallyplanned major), theydevote about a third of theircourse work to in-depth studyin that area. By senior year,they’re ready for Whitman’swritten and oral seniorassessments—a culminationof projects and comprehensiveexams through which studentsdemonstrate how wellthey’ve assimilated and integratedfour years of learningin their chosen major.Across the curriculum, studentsconduct research with theirprofessors. Collaborativeresearch exposes students toscholarly work—and can takethem to the far reaches ofthe world. Alongside facultymembers, students haveexamined flower-bee interactions,studied biracial identity,and traveled to destinationsfrom Jordan to Sweden toMongolia. Whether it’s donein Whitman’s Penrose Library,a science lab, or aroundthe globe, working with aprofessor on a research projectis common here.The Innovation in Teaching and LearningFund supports creative approaches tostudent learning. For example, studentsinterested in cross-cultural psychologyand Asian Studies have the opportunity toenroll in a summer course entitled Shinrigaku:Psychology in Japan. The courseculminates with fieldwork in Japan.Student performers—such as theAztec dance concheros—makethe all-day Whitman UndergraduateConference a dynamic event.Whitman’s UndergraduateConference showcases theresults of student researchand scholarship. One dayeach year, students participatein a campus-wide celebrationof student academicresearch. Students give talks,make poster presentations,exhibit their art, and performoriginal work. This Whitmantradition, one of the few suchconferences in the nation,pulls together the results ofcourse work, theses, summerinternships, collaboration withfaculty, and study abroad—andprovides students an exceptionalopportunity to developtheir oral presentation skills.Friends crisscross campusall day long to catch eachothers’ presentations.Senior comprehensives makea difference. Nearly a centuryago, Whitman was the firstcollege in the nation torequire oral comprehensiveexaminations in the academicmajor of each student. Thechallenge of comprehensiveexams has led Whitman studentsto graduate with exceptionallysolid knowledge oftheir fields and a strong senseof intellectual self-confidence.They leave Whitman wellprepared for graduate andprofessional school, as wellas for careers.8 Academic Excellence: Liberating Perspectives Academic Excellence: Liberating Perspectives 9