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Nicest College Campus You've Visited?

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Will second Pepperdine and Chapel Hill.

New to my list in the main campus of the University of Toronto, tucked right into the high-end part of the city. There's a multi-million dollar condo property being built right next to UT's varsity field (think Morrill - Shoe distance). Too bad the football program kinda sucks.
 
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Off the top of my head, these are the schools I have visited: Ohio State, Ohio U, Miami U, Cincy, Dayton, Otterbein, Denison, Capital, Case Western Reserve U, Michigan State, Michigan, Butler, Purdue, Depaul, U of Chicago, Northwestern, Harvard, Cornell, Georgetown, Roger Mason, UVA, William & Mary, Christopher Newport, Hampton, Old Dominion, Auburn, Arizona State and U of Washington. I love many parts of Ohio State's campus, and think that the south oval in the spring is the most beautiful part of campus and compares favorably with any school in the country. Having said that, this is my top three:

3. Miami University - the college in Oxford is everything a campus should look like. Beautiful academic buildings that match well together with aged trees and lots of green spaces. I like to think of it as a poor man's...

2. University of Virginia - from the academic lawn to main campus to the little pocket of heaven called north grounds where the business and law schools are, this is where the American south meets the Italian and Parisian architectural styles that Jefferson brought back as an ambassador in the early days of the union. Scott Stadium incorporates some of that architecture, with the football stadium sitting partly below ground and partly above, with open air Roman-style columns above one end zone. It doesn't hurt that the surroundings of Charlottesville and Albemarle County are beautiful in their own right.

1. Cornell University - I visited Ithaca in July and I have never seen a more beautiful place, let alone campus. The campus sits up on a hill overlooking the finger lakes, gorges, and town below. Most of the campus buildings, chapel and dorms are built out of stone from nearby quarries. I would have attended grad school there in a heartbeat if not for that gloomy 9-month winter they have. Here are some pictures of (1) the campus at sunset, (2) the outside of the law school, and (3) the inside of the law library (the picture doesn't even do the library justice):

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Not a large campus or University by any stretch, and certainly not in the best location, but the Indiana Wesleyan University main campus in Marion, IN is a very nice campus. All brick buildings, the majority of which are no older than about 20 years. The architecture is great, and all the dorms are air-conditioned. :biggrin: Of course, some of the beauty is lost due to the fact that there is always at least one new building under construction at any time, usually two, and sometimes three at once. Being the fastest-growing private institution in the nation means constant construction.

My one trip to Northwestern wasn't at a great time; it was my HS's "spring break," which was more like late winter break, at the beginning of March. So the trees were still bare, flowers weren't there, and the sky was a lovely shade of grey. The cathedral was very majestic inside, though, and the pipe organ was absolutely stunning to both hear and see. I've heard that UCF has a pretty nice campus, and I will be checking it out as I intend to transfer so I can stay in sunny Orlando. :)
 
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[quote='BusNative;168944;7]Duke's campus was made as a copy of the Princeton campus. Those [censored]s couldn't even come up with original architecture.[/quote]Incorrect. The Gothic architectural style was chosen because those who planned Duke loved the beauty of Princeton, but the campus isn't a "copy" of anything.

Duke and Princeton are as pretty as any campuses I've visited. Auburn University is gorgeous. William & Mary is beautiful, blending as it does into Colonial Williamsburg. UNC Chapel Hill is also stunning. Rice University is lovely also.

Frankly, I think UVA is pretty ugly - flat, treeless and monotonous. Other ugly campuses include Columbia, Harvard, Cleveland State (lol), and Notre Dame.

Of course, the most hideous campus in the USA is the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor. Yuck. :scum4:
 
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We started touring colleges when my daughter was in ninth grade. We would hit a couple every spring break or vacation trip. I really liked the following in no particular order (excluding OSU):

Duke
NC at Chapel Hill
Pepperdine
College of Charleston (this is where she goes)
Loyola of Chicago


On the flip side I did not like:

Tennessee
IU
Purdue
 
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MaxBuck;1689990; said:
Incorrect. The Gothic architectural style was chosen because those who planned Duke loved the beauty of Princeton, but the campus isn't a "copy" of anything.
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The Duke family plantation is just up the road from Princeton... literally one road... 20 minutes due north... so no doubt they would have seen the campus umpteen times... The Gothic architecture was/is all over the town.. and there is a lot of stone used on the Duke estate, which still exists...

Princeton was the hottest college in the US for southern plantation folks... that was the marketing strategy for Princeton... so the civil war had HUGE ramifications for the university... the ultra rich students even brought their slaves who slept in the hallways... they were pulled back home when the war broke out

And I can't believe you said that other school's name.. even if it was to bash them :tongue2:
 
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Ive been to quite a few. The ones that stand out -

Princeton
Duke
UNC - esp in the spring.


Edit - have to agree with those above who said that Columbia is ugly. The main building - the Low Library - isnt even a library anymore. The building right behind is the b-school, Uris Hall, which at the time I attended was one of the most ugly campus building I have ever seen this side of Denny Hall. When you leave the confines of the campus, it sure doesnt get any better either.....
 
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Great list so far. Of the ones listed I've seen, I have to agree. Adding my $.02:

Among the Big Ten, both Northwestern and Indiana stand out (along with the older portions of Ohio State, not crazy about a lot of the newer construction). Pepperdine is in a great setting, but not particularly stunning in terms of architecture. An interesting tiny school in San Diego that's got about the best views you could ask for is Point Loma Nazarene.

I'm sure there's lots of other tiny universities deserving of a shout out. One I visited years ago that still stands out is Washington and Lee University in Virginia.

Among the underwhelming, "Da U" is surprisingly disappointing and looks like a community college. Rutgers, Georgia Tech, UC San Diego, and UT Austin all look like state universities in the wrong way; lots of modern, square buildings lacking charm. USC is generically Georgian brick, flat, crowded and surrounded by the worst part of LA. There may be no greater cognitive dissonance than that experienced by a Trojan grad who suddenly becomes aware that he or she did not attend the most beautiful campus in the known universe, though at least it has a leg up on UCLA. I was also not overwhelmed by University of Florida.
 
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MaxBuck;1689990; said:
Incorrect. The Gothic architectural style was chosen because those who planned Duke loved the beauty of Princeton, but the campus isn't a "copy" of anything.
Click to expand...

Incorrect. When Mr. Duke was "snubbed" by Princeton (he offered a shitton of money, but insisted that Princeton be renamed in his honor), he started his own thing down in Dirty Durham, sans original architecture.
 
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