Did anyone go to the University of Arizona?

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Discussion Overview

The discussion centers around experiences and opinions regarding the University of Arizona, particularly its astrophysics program and research opportunities. Participants share insights about the college's facilities, research environment, and course offerings, as well as personal anecdotes related to their interest in the university.

Discussion Character

  • Exploratory
  • Debate/contested
  • Conceptual clarification

Main Points Raised

  • Some participants express enthusiasm about the University of Arizona's astrophysics program, noting its impressive facilities like the mirror lab and ongoing research projects.
  • Others argue that while the university is highly regarded, it may not be the top institution, and the quality of courses and teaching staff has been criticized by some former students.
  • One participant mentions a personal scholarship offer and highlights the opportunity for undergraduates to engage in significant research projects, such as working on instrumentation for telescopes.
  • There is a shared sentiment that involvement in research is as important as the quality of instruction, with some participants advocating for a double major in physics and astronomy.
  • A participant reflects on the practical aspects of working in astrophysics and the value of hands-on experience in the field compared to theoretical studies.
  • One participant expresses a personal interest in cosmology while contemplating the appeal of working with telescopes, indicating a dilemma between two paths in astrophysics.

Areas of Agreement / Disagreement

Participants generally agree on the value of research opportunities at the University of Arizona, but there are differing opinions on the overall quality of the academic experience, particularly regarding courses and teaching. The discussion remains unresolved regarding the university's ranking and the balance between research and instruction.

Contextual Notes

Some participants mention specific experiences and opinions that may depend on individual expectations and academic interests, highlighting the variability in perceptions of the university's offerings.

Entropee
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I toured the college a week ago (and they are aparrently the top college in the nation for astrophysics) and I loved it. The mirror lab was HUGE and they were working on mirrors for the LSST and the GMT at the time. Just wondering if anyone here has gone there and if they would recommend it.
 
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I wouldn't say they're the top college, but they're definitely up there. They do have a lot of great facilities and NOAO is right there as well. There's a lot of research going on, but not in every field, so if you have specific interests you'd have to check those out. I didn't attend myself, but I've been there many times for observing, conferences, and to work with collaborators. It's a great environment. However, friends of mine who attended were not impressed with the courses offered or the people teaching them - they said it's worth it for the research, but not the courses.
 
I had a scholarship offer there and would have loved to have attended, but the air-fare would have been ruinous (1960's), effectively stranding me there all year. I have a young friend from Mongolia who was allowed (as a freshman) to join some grad students in the construction of instrumentation for world-class telescopes.

For practical application, research, and collaboration in some premier programs (think NASA), you could do FAR worse than U of A!
 
That was honestly my exact thinking guys, thanks so much. Yeah they really encourage you to double major in physics and astronomy and to be involved in research while you take courses there. I almost think being involved in real research as an undergrad is just as important as having top notch teachers.
 
Entropee said:
That was honestly my exact thinking guys, thanks so much. Yeah they really encourage you to double major in physics and astronomy and to be involved in research while you take courses there. I almost think being involved in real research as an undergrad is just as important as having top notch teachers.
Quite right! Getting dirty and sweating out nights and weekends trying to make projects come out perfect is a good counterpoint to lectures and labs. If you do well, you could end up with a life-time of gainful employment in what I consider the most desirable field of all - building telescopes, probes, and instruments to expand our knowledge of the universe. Cosmology is a theoretical field. Astronomy is the real deal. I'd have given up a lot of things in my life in order to have positioned myself for participation in a project like SDSS (all kids, compared to me!) but things didn't go that way. I stayed in Maine, and only got active in observational astrophysics after a forced retirement due to disability.

Go, have a great time, and prosper. BTW, it's a DRY heat! ;-)
 
So did you do cosmology at all? Cause that's what I think I really want to do, but working on telescopes is awesome too. Hard choice!
 

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