The school is very well thought of, and it's got great professors. Class sizes really are small once you become more specialized in your major. It is also one of the top 15 schools (sometimes, top 10, other times edged out by Northwestern), so you'll have some good recognition. The main complaint is that too many med school students are there all the wrong reasons, and you very quickly become disillusioned with doctors. The school is very adept at trying to take your money. but all in all, a very positive experience.
I loved my time at Wash. U. Some students complained that it was their back-up school because they didn't get into MIT or Harvard or something, but it was my top choice after getting into every school I applied to. I appreciated the top-quality teaching by professors who *wanted* to be teaching (rather than being forced out of their research to do it) and who genuinely cared about students. I had great research opportunities as an undergraduate and was well prepared for graduate school. St. Louis is a great city and I enjoyed seeing things there as well. I would definitely do it again.
For being such a highly rated school, many of its programs are lackluster in terms of funding, faculty, and curriculum. It's a university obsessed with star power, and it hurts a lot of the students who go there expecting all-around good programs. I might have chosen Cornell over this school, which despite the rankings has struck me as much better, in addition to benefiting from a much larger size.
Given that, the University does a good job of taking care of its students' concerns in a lot of areas.
Campus is beautiful, food is decent. The school has a great reputation in medicine, social work, and biomedical engineering. There are a fair number of nice new buildings, but also a fair amount of construction on campus. Good atmosphere among engineering grad students. Summers are incredibly hot and humid. Rent is cheap around campus.
Washington University in St. Louis Law school is located in a beautiful, new building outside of the city of St. Louis. The school is located near "the loop" which has a number of good restaurants and places to hang out. Downtown is a short drive away, although there is really very little reason to go there.
The law school faculty is generally very knowledgeable about their areas and were always willing to meet with a student who had questions or was struggling with a particular subject. Some of the professors were so invested in their students that they would bend over backwards to provide independent study options or tailor research assignments.
The career services office is not helpful for any student who does not want to work in the midwest and is not helpful for any student who is looking for a job in government or in public service despite having assigned one counselor specifically to these areas.
I highly recommend WashU for anyone in the midwest and for anyone who can make their own opportunities elsewhere because the quality of education was excellent and the atmosphere was great.
