Ohio State - Student Experiences

[IrishBuck]

Hello,

This post is geared toward the people who have attended Ohio State as a student. I'm a junior in high school way out in Southern California. I am hoping to leave the state for school, and Ohio State is one of the schools I am looking at. Obviously, I do not have any personal experience with the University being located so far away, so I'm hoping you folks can help me out.

Basically, I just want to read about your personal experiences with the University. I guess I'm asking you to review your University based on your own personal experiences, focusing on as many of the different aspects as you can, such as food, dorms, campus, safety, effect of such a large student body, classes, social life, the city of Columbus, sporting events, and so forth! Any insight provided, no matter how obscure, will certainly be appreciated.

A couple of the other schools I am considering in "the area" include Ohio U., Dayton, and Indiana, so if any of you have anything to add as far as experiences with/at those schools, that would be great as well.

Thanks everyone, and I look forward to your responses!

 

[Steve19]

The key question would be: What is your intended major?

 

[IrishBuck]

Sports Management/Marketing (name is different at each school). I think it's called Sports Leadership/Humanities at OSU, but I don't have much info on it yet. I know their grad. school is exceptional in this department though , so I figure undergrad is similar. Thanks

 

[Cornerback6]

I got three degrees from OU and I can give you a great rundown of Athens and what not when I have more time. I am on the run right now, but I've spent a few years of my life in the Columbus area (love it) as well and spent many days on tOSU's campus with my girlfriend, so from a young guy's perspective, I think I can help you out. Just check back tonight. Busy day ahead!

Ciao!

 

[rocketman]

Well, while I can't really say what your experience will be like at tOSU specifically for your major, I can give you a little taste of what it's like here.

The school is huge. Its size is a huge advantage if you are comfortable with living/working/playing in such a large environment. There is no shortage of things to do here, whether it be campus activities or social activities. And since there are about 35,000 students living on campus, you will meet A LOT of people your first year here. That I think is the coolest part. Of course, while the commercials might say "I didn't come to Ohio State 'cause of the football," we all know that is entirely false. I would not have known what the hell Ohio State was had it not been for watching football games since I was 9. Football is a religion here, and it is a sight to behold in the autumn.

Now, the stereotype of a big campus is "you're a number, not a name." And at Ohio State that can be true, but isn't always the case. If you make it a point to get to know your faculty and advisors, you will get the "one-on-one" experience that small schools offer.

If you want to know exactly what "social activities" there are to do here then I'll say but right now its too much to list.

 

[ScarletBlood31]

I am also looking to apply to Ohio State probably in the next year or so, and any info you guys have would also greatly benefit me, as well as IrishBuck.


Being as unbiased as possible (take the scarlet and gray goggles off, please ), how would you rank the school academically? I know that it has a great business school (Fischer-?), and since that is what I want to focus on in college, it means a lot towards what school I'm going to choose. I would call myself a pretty good student (my GPA is about a 4.25, but thats my sophomore year), but I would not call myself an "elite" student, that would be a solid choice for an Ivy League school.

I've heard different things about Ohio State as a school (academics), and if I can get a few more fair opinions that would help me out a lot. Thanks.

 

[stxbuck]

Couple of things

1-OSU is very, very solid in just about every discipline except journalism-if you want to go into journalism, go to OU. A major advantage to this is that if you decide to switch majors-which happens a lot-you do not have to choose between staying at a school you like but doesn't have the new major. Also, at OSU, you can major in just about anything-the array of degrees available is staggering. Business, agriculture, and engineering are top notch, the humanities are solid.

2-Campus safety is a 2 way street. OSU students are murdered every year, and OSU abuts a very shady area on the east side of the campus area-E. of Summit/S. of 9th. On the other hand, w/ a student body of over 40,000,l statistically, a murder would be expected to happen. In the same vein, if you stay out of the dangerous area, the denizens of the dangerous area pretty much stay away from campus-too much heat if something happens. Bottom line-if you want to go to a school where you don't need to be as safety conscious, go to OU or IU. If you use a few common sense precautions, OSU is fine.

 

[BuckeyeTillIDie]

Well, there's no better place on Earth when it is Autumn quarter at Ohio State. Very biased, but it is truly great.

Oh, and 40,000+ students = lots of babes on The Oval spring/summer, which is always an uplifting experience.

 

[jimotis4heisman]

2-Campus safety is a 2 way street. OSU students are murdered every year, and OSU abuts a very shady area on the east side of the campus area-E. of Summit/S. of 9th. On the other hand, w/ a student body of over 40,000,l statistically, a murder would be expected to happen. In the same vein, if you stay out of the dangerous area, the denizens of the dangerous area pretty much stay away from campus-too much heat if something happens. Bottom line-if you want to go to a school where you don't need to be as safety conscious, go to OU or IU. If you use a few common sense precautions, OSU is fine.

i think anyone who goes to any school needs to be saftey concious. often times its a whole new world out of your plush suburb for most kids. that being said kids get jumped, raped, assaulted at every campus. i dont know the crime stats, but you hear about it everytime about it cuz its in a city. one thing you will realize if your are lucky enough to go to college is that although you think you are a "poor college kid" many people who work and live in the area are poorer, and some will attempt to take advantage of this in any means necessary. i dont know if that really makes sense to you guys, but keep in mind im just a dumb b10 grad, not a domer.

 

[OSUsushichic]

Irish,

If you can, take campus visits. That's the best way to get a feel for the school and whether or not you can see yourself spending 4+ years of your life there. Many professors will also let you sit in on a class. That helped me make my decision.

 

[Jagdaddy]

Being as unbiased as possible (take the scarlet and gray goggles off, please ), how would you rank the school academically? I know that it has a great business school (Fischer-?), and since that is what I want to focus on in college, it means a lot towards what school I'm going to choose. I would call myself a pretty good student (my GPA is about a 4.25, but thats my sophomore year), but I would not call myself an "elite" student, that would be a solid choice for an Ivy League school.

I've heard different things about Ohio State as a school (academics), and if I can get a few more fair opinions that would help me out a lot. Thanks.

My info. is a bit out of date as I graduated from OSU in 1991, but IMO it's as good a school as you want to make it. You can get lost, take huge classes, and do the minimum and graduate if you want to, but I highly recommend the honors program, which I'm pretty sure would be happy to take you. Part of learning comes from the school and part of it comes from the students you take classes with, and the honors program gives you classes with kids you might learn more from. Also, I'd double major (or at least add a minor) in a liberal art that requires a lot of writing because that's a skill that a lot of business-type folks lack, and it can help you both see outside the box and stand out in the future.

My law degree is from an "elite" school, but I'd stack my OSU education, which included a lot of honors classes, up against what they taught me in law school any day of the week even factoring in that my law school classmates were generally a lot sharper than my OSU classmates due to the weeding out process that occurred before we all got there. Given OSU's rising academic standards, I'm sure you can get an even better education than I did.

 

[OSU_Fan14]

Hey, i'm going to piggy back off of what irishbuck is asking.

I live about 1 hour north of Chicago. I love OSU and really want to attend the school. I'm a soph. now....going to be a junior in the fall.

Academics wise, how hard is it to get into the school? Right now i carry a 3.67 GPA with 2 honors classes, 3 more next year. I'm hoping that a 3.67 and a bunch of good looking co-curricular activities such as sports and leadership conferences can get me in. If I could attend, I would look at majoring with someting along the lines of Forensic Science. Any help would be appreciated.

 

[stxbuck]

With a 3.67, you would need to score at least a 25 on the ACT. Given that you are taking honors classes, your GPA should be sound, but you have to get the test score. ACTs in the low 20s are not cutting it for OSU anymore.

 

[jimotis4heisman]

id say its atleast a three step process for you kids
1-convince your parents you need visit ohio state
2-schedule your visit 11/17
3-say "wow mom and dad we should stay for the michigan game the 18th (convincing them to shell out for the tix)
4-enjoy the visit friday
5-enjoy the game
6-if that doesnt sell you, you wont ever be sold.


in all seriousness, its not the same school it was when many of us went there, its getting tougher and tougher every year with avg test scores 26ish now. buckle down in school, do well on your act/sat, get involved in high school, find someone to write you a great letter of req. and most importantly do your homework. coach tressel actively tells kids to look elsewhere, its not for everyone, but for those who the ohio state university is for will become part of a special group...

 

[Buckeye86]

I'll just chip in that I came from a small town (graduated with 108 in my class) and I had no problem adjusting the the big school atmosphere. I always laugh when people are so terrified of "big schools" and ask me how I can deal with it. So if that is a concern I'd say don't worry about it, but of course visit and see for yourself before deciding whether you like the "big" atmosphere or not.