ask a current student anything

Colleges and Universities A-Z Michigan State University
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<p>just wanted to bump a new thread up here...I'm open to any questions you may have about classes, admissions, social life, dorms, food etc. (and other MSU students will likely answer questions here as well)</p>

<p>Just a little background...I am a current Michigan State sophomore, out-of-state student in James Madison College (residential college) and in the honors college. I am majoring in economics and international relations. Anything more, just ask! I'll do my best to answer everything to the furthest extent of my knowledge.</p>

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<p>How’s the general atmosphere of being at MSU? Is the honors college competitive, and what are some perks?</p>

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<p>I can chime in to. I am a first-year (sophomore) in the Residential College in the Arts and Humanities with a double in anthropology. In-state. </p>

<p>Harambee, the MSU atmosphere is, in my opinion, very laid back and welcoming. That’s the best I can sum it up lol.</p>

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<p>Just a quick question about scholarships:
I’ve looked at quite a few using the MSU search engine, but have yet to see an application form. Would I be automatically in contention for these after submitting my FAFSA? Or is there something else I’d need to do?</p>

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<p>I’m OOS even though I’ve grown up in East Lansing most of my life, but how is the college in terms of FA?</p>

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<p>are there alot of Asians hahaha. Specifcally Koreans LOOL. Is it a good education?</p>

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<p>Jarvill: Yes. Once you submit it (priority is November 1st) you will automatically be considered. I know that there are a few that if you are eligible they will send you a notification for an application. A lot of it depends on your major though (as a lot are major-specific). </p>

<p>Harambee: It depends. Being OOS is not great unless you are in the honor’s college. If you are instate, it is pretty good. However, the financial aid is taking a cut this year just because of the whole budget mess, so there really isn’t one good way to answer that question :(. I would highly suggest applying for outside scholarships if money is a big issue. </p>

<p>junsung: Yes, you can get a very good education here. Like all colleges, you get what you point in. You can skate by and take easy classes and get 2.0s in all of them but learn nothing, or you can challenge yourself and get a lot out of that 23k or whatever one is paying during the year. Can’t answer the Asian question because my major is mostly white lol.</p>

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<p>i kind of want to add onto that “asian” question. I had a relative (he was of hispanic descent) who went there and said he was miserable because of the racism he experienced. I think that was around 20 years ago now, but i’m still a little scared. That’s the only thing really holding me back from this school. So i guess my question is, are there any racial prejudices that i should be concerned about?</p>

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<p>As someone who is half Hispanic, I can assure you that I’ve never experienced any racism here whatsoever. That being said, there is racism in every corner of the world. As I said though, I have personally never experienced it. I have plenty of friends from all end of the color spectrum and they all have said that they have not experienced anything as well. I am also a part of MRULE (Multi-Racial unity living experience) and we talk openly about race issues. All agree that racism is not a big thing on campus nowadays because of the liberal leanings of most college students and professors. Hope that helps!</p>

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<p>Thanks! This is really helpful.</p>

<p>Have any of you used the study-abroad program? I know MSU is known for that.
Also, how big are most of your classes and what’s the level of difficulty for most classes?</p>

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<p>That is a huge, multilevel question lol. It highly, HIGHLY depends on your major. Most of my friends in like pre-med classes have over 100 kids in each class because they’re lecture classes. In my major, (residential college in the arts and humanities), I have absolutely no classes right now with over 25 kids. Next semester, I have 4 classes with less than 25 students and one with 7 (400-level anthropology class). </p>

<p>As for difficulty, again, highly, HIGHLY variable. Most introductory classes aren’t difficult if you are interested in them. However, it all depends on your interests and on your major.</p>

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<p>Hey, everyone. I’m a current sophomore electrical engineering major at MSU. So if you have any questions about the engineering department, let me know.</p>

<p>Class size, I have had one class so far that has had fewer than 50 people in it. It really depends on your major, like romani said. Your intro level math and science classes are going to be large. At least for engineering, once you get into your major-specific classes the class size goes down.</p>

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<p>Anyone know anything about the study abroad program?</p>

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<p>Everything I’ve heard about study-abroad has been positive. I talked to a group of students that went to Costa Rica last year and it was one of the best experiences of their lives. Plus, there are a ton of scholarships available for study-abroad.</p>

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<p>~How’s the general atmosphere of being at MSU? Is the honors college competitive, and what are some perks? </p>

<p>Awesome. Laid back but exciting at the same time. The honors college is not necessarily competitive - although honors kids are pretty darn smart, they all have a relatively relaxed nature, similar to the rest of the students. We don’t go to UofM…we aren’t crazy competitive here. But there are quite a few smart ones. Perks of the honors college…first priority for class registration. Better recognition when it comes to grad school. More scholarship opportunities. Research seminar opportunities etc… </p>

<p>~Just a quick question about scholarships:
I’ve looked at quite a few using the MSU search engine, but have yet to see an application form. Would I be automatically in contention for these after submitting my FAFSA? Or is there something else I’d need to do? </p>

<p>Applying before november 1 gives you the best consideration for any scholarships available through MSU (automatic). As for financial aid just apply before the end of january and you’ll be fine. </p>

<p>~I’m OOS even though I’ve grown up in East Lansing most of my life, but how is the college in terms of FA? </p>

<p>Financial aid in Michigan has been cut 61% this last year (because the governor and the state government really stinks…). But FA at MSU really isn’t that bad. Even when the promise scholarship was cancelled, persay, MSU used its own funds to pay for the amounts promised to students (at least for this year). Scholarships-wise, if you are in the honors college are excellent but otherwise not too plentiful. </p>

<p>~are there alot of Asians hahaha. Specifcally Koreans LOOL. Is it a good education? </p>

<p>Education = top-notch for nearly any program…no complaints here. Although gen. ed requirements are a pain, everything else is awesome. Asians-wise…it depends on your major. Business/pre-med/engineering…loads of asians. International relations/liberal arts majors? not very many asians at all. Lots of international students though…the Korean population is 2nd to the number of Chinese at MSU. Plus there are loads of organizations for the asian community that are really active and involved in all sorts of activities. </p>

<p>~ kind of want to add onto that “asian” question. I had a relative (he was of hispanic descent) who went there and said he was miserable because of the racism he experienced. I think that was around 20 years ago now, but i’m still a little scared. That’s the only thing really holding me back from this school. So i guess my question is, are there any racial prejudices that i should be concerned about? </p>

<p>No. Racism exists in every setting, but MSU has a very welcoming community. I am also in MRULE and I love it…students as a whole are very accepting of everyone. I wouldn’t be concerned about it really whatsoever. </p>

<p>~ Have any of you used the study-abroad program? I know MSU is known for that.
Also, how big are most of your classes and what’s the level of difficulty for most classes? </p>

<p>Class size is highly variable, as romani mentioned. Some classes…200-500 students (all introductory classes). Others…10 to 30 students. Once you get past the lame general ed requirements the class sizes are pretty small. I haven’t studied abroad yet (will go this summer) but I’ve only heard awesome things about it. Everyone, including some of my best friends who went abroad last summer, recommends going to study abroad. There are loads of options for any interest (and MSU has the largest selection of programs, period).</p>

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<p>Thanks for answering my questions!! I hope to get a full-ride to MSU.</p>

<p>One last question, what’s one thing that you dislike about MSU?</p>

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<p>The only thing I dislike is right now, too many freshmen party because it’s their first time away from home (and lets be honest, MSU IS a party-school). I have a feeling that will change VERY quickly once semester grades come out.</p>

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<p>Hmm dislikes…to be honest I don’t have many at all. Parking is a pain in the butt? But freshmen aren’t allowed to have cars on campus their 1st year anyways. East Lansing can be a little boring? But there’s always something to do on campus (and there are surrounding towns/malls). I guess I really don’t like the fact that we are often overshadowed by U of M even though we have all these great programs (especially if you go out of state, people constantly get Michigan state confused with U of M). Then we do have a rather large party-school reputation (which is mostly deserved, although I think we overall have a pretty balanced work hard-party hard mentality here) - negative attention because of cedarfest hasn’t helped our school’s image much either. Finally as an out-of-state student I wish there were more out-of-state students here (88% students at MSU are from in-state). These are all really minute things though, and I could give a million reasons why I love MSU.</p>

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<p>Oh, thanks for reminding me lena, parking is a pain. I am a first year, but a sophomore, and my parking lot is over a mile away from my dorm. Plus, I go to and from there 3 times a week for work.</p>

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<p>I’m considering staying in-state for college, and I was wondering if you know anything about James Madison in comparison to the Political Science program at U of M. I haven’t gotten my UM decision back yet, but I’m in at James Madison and the Honors College at State (something that won’t be offered to me at U of M). I’ve always had Michigan much higher on my list because, quite frankly, it’s a better, more prestigious school, but if James Madison’s program can hold a candle to UMAA’s, then I may have some reconsidering to do!</p>