WHY ARE CLASSES SO LARGE?
and
CLASS AVAILABILITY AND COURSES TAKEN AT OTHER COLLEGES



Why are some Texas A&M classes so large?

It is true that some course sections are very large. Introductory courses often present basic information that can be communicated adequately, if not perfectly, in a large classroom setting. A large student-to-teacher ratio in the introductory courses permits departments to limit the sizes of more advanced, upper-division courses that cannot be taught without more individual interaction in the classroom.

Texas A&M is one of the largest universities in the United States. We cannot maintain our size without compromising on student-to-teacher ratio unless we receive state appropriations that match our size, and State funding has not kept pace with the university's growth. The consequent shrinking faculty-to-student ratio allows us to continue to teach a growing student body only by increasing class sizes. We are currently teaching the largest number of students we can with the resources available to us.

Why doesn't each professor just teach more classes to make classes smaller?

We could, but if we did, the character of the university would change. A decision was made many years ago to make Texas A&M University one of the great research universities. Our efforts have been successfully directed toward this goal for several decades, and as a result we are already ranked among the top 10 research universities of the United States in several subjects.

It would certainly be possible to reverse our direction and become a school devoted primarily to teaching. Our best researchers would probably leave, and the international reputation we have gained would evaporate. Should we do that? We believe not.

Couldn't we make introductory classes smaller by shrinking the number of students here at A&M?

We are already turning away thousands of students each year who are qualified and want to attend Texas A&M University. Should we turn away still more? We believe we should keep class sizes at the maximum possible given our responsibility to teach well, thus turning away as few students as possible consistent with that goal.




Why do students take some courses at Blinn College, and others here at TAMU at the same time?

We have a few basic courses that are in such demand that students cannot find an open seat in them at TAMU. In such cases, if the course is offered at Blinn, it is reasonable to take the course there.

Why don't you just open up more sections?

It costs a lot of money to open a section, and the students' tuition and fees don't cover much of that cost. Until this year, the Legislature has been effectively cutting resources to the universities and colleges of Texas by giving increases that didn't match inflation. The result is that we cannot open more sections.

What about students taking courses at other schools when you do have openings?

Many students return home during the summer and can save money by taking courses at local colleges while living with their families. But not all students study elsewhere for that reason. We have asked them why they opt for junior or community college credit in courses where we have openings. They have pointed out that the content of courses and the level of performance at other schools typically are believed to be less demanding than they are at TAMU. Moreover, the Common Course Numbering System guarantees that they can transfer the credit to TAMU. So some students take courses they consider difficult, such as science, mathematics and foreign languages, at colleges where they believe they will face less competition and less expensive tuition and fees.

We do not believe that searching out less demanding courses is in the best interests of the students. Because of the large number of people seeking to become students at Texas A&M University, our average student is significantly better than the average at most other colleges and universities. To serve these uncommonly good students, we have set the level of rigor in our courses above that in similar courses elsewhere. Thus, although those of our students who take a course elsewhere receive excellent teaching, they do not get as much from the course as they would at Texas A&M University. Unfortunately, by State law we have little control over where our students take their courses.