By Adrienne Andros
It was a time when wages were 90 cents an hour, when students had to stand in lines to register, a time when everyone recognized everyone else on campus.
Brigham Young University was much different in the 1960s than it is now. One of the most obvious differences is class size.
According to the BYU fact file, current student enrollment is 32,771. This is 300 percent more than in 1960, when enrollment was 10,305, said Janet Rex, information manager for University Communications and BYU graduate of 1961.
Some students feel the size of the student population affects their learning, while others feel it affects their social lives.
Others say they haven''t felt the impact of the number of students roaming campus.
The biggest drawback students say they feel accompanying hefty enrollment is the size of classes. In classes with over a hundred enrolled, students do not get the one-on-one attention they may prefer.
'The ideal class setting is personal,' said Dale Rowley, 23, a senior from Utah majoring in mechanical engineering.
Rowley said as long as it did not take away from the prestige of the school, an enrollment of 6,000 would suit him fine.
Less students would allow for a more pleasant learning environment, he said.
Some students also said they feel they are constantly fighting for space on campus.
'I can never find parking,' said Amber Thompson, 20, a sophomore from Fla. who has not yet declared a major. Thompson said there are always 'seas of people' on campus and it is hard to get to where she is going.
There are also long lines at the bookstore, in the testing center and in the computer labs, Rowley said.
But according to a 1960s BYU graduate, some things have not changed much.
Rex said many of the student complaints she hears now are the same she heard back then, as well as when her six children attended BYU in the 1980s.
'We used to have to sit in the hall to listen to our favorite professors because there wasn''t enough room in their classes,' Rex said. It was still a struggle in the 1960s to get in the classes you wanted with the teacher you wanted, she said.
'It is a hassle to get into the classes you want,' said Chris Winters, 21, a sophomore from Sandy, Salt Lake Co., majoring in political science.
Winters said even when the class he needs is open, it is not at the time or with the professor he wanted.
'I don''t think the class size was different,' said Kirk Tolman, an associate professor of mathematics and a BYU graduate of 1960.
Tolman said classes still held 50-60 students. And in some cases, like the math and non-major classes, it was more.
But socially, both current and former students said they feel the scene has improved.
'In smaller schools, students are limited in the social aspect,' Thompson said.
At BYU, there is more of an opportunity for influence from a variety of people and their experiences, she said.
Rowley said he enjoys meeting lots of different people from around the world.
Nearly 33 thousand students make for quite a crowd. And for some the thought of getting involved is overwhelming.
'It is hard at first to try to get to know people when campus is so big and you don''t see a lot of people more than once,' Winters said.
But, he said, it is fun when you do, because there is always something going on and something to do.