Do you have answers to stuff a freshman needs to know?

Colleges and Universities A-Z Ohio State University
1

<p>My daughter has some questions for current students (or their parents):</p>

<ul>
<li><p>Do all cell phone carriers work well on campus, including T-mobile?</p></li>
<li><p>What dining plan is the best to choose, and can you switch mid-year?</p></li>
<li><p>At the time of course registration, does OSU post the names of the professors teaching each section of each course? If not, is it easy to switch sections later to get a good prof?</p></li>
<li><p>What’s the best deal for microwaves and fridges?</p></li>
<li><p>Mac or PC for a math major?</p></li>
<li><p>What else should a freshman girl know about living on south campus (safety, dining options, other stuff)?</p></li>
</ul>

<p>Do other posters have questions to add? Thanks for your answers!</p>

2

<p>Well, I can answer a few of your questions…
Dining Plan - My son had the Block 350 and felt like it worked out well. Gives the most flexibility as far as places to eat. He did have some blocks left over at the end of each semester, but not too many.</p>

<p>Each dorm room will have a micro-fridge - you do not need to buy one.</p>

<p>Names of professors are not always posted and are subject to change anyways. Switching sections may or may not be available. Once incoming freshmen schedule, they cannot make any changes without their advisor’s approval. Just because someone thinks a prof is “not good” doesn’t mean your child will necessarily have a bad experience with them. </p>

<p>They will go over safety at orientation, but the biggie is never to go out at night on your own - always with someone else.</p>

<p>I’d check the Math dept. webpage about computers - I think either Mac or PC is fine anymore.</p>

<p>I’ll check with my son about phone carriers, but I think all should work fine there.</p>

3

<p>For computers, schools need to be able to handle both. Personal preference.</p>

4

<p>The only cell plan I have ever heard of problems is Sprint.</p>

<p>I had 350 block plan and really liked it. I know people you had unlimited and liked it as well so it just depends where you see yourself eating.</p>

<p>Professors are often not listed and even the ones that are listed might change. There are only a few universally bad professors, so many of the professors that one student doesn’t like, another student feels they taught the class well.</p>

<p>Dorm rooms have “micro-fridge” which is their clever way of naming a unit that is both a mini-fridge and microwave. Students are not allowed to bring their own fridge or microwave.</p>

<p>Either works, it is personal preference. Students are expected to be able to read and write.edit in the microsoft office formats though.</p>

5

<p>I would definitely recommend the 350 block plan for freshman. You have 2 weeks to switch your plan if you want. If you end up running out of blocks (which is very unlikely) you can add more blocks individually online. However, if you have extra blocks you basically lose the money because they don’t roll over. Also, I would avoid the unlimited plan because you get 10 blocks per week plus unlimited cafeteria style food. Depending on where your daughter ends up liking to eat she might rarely go to Kennedy Commons on South campus that is the cafeteria style food. This happened to me freshman year so I quickly switched over to the block plan and liked it much better. (blocks work on the cafeteria style places too.)</p>

6

<p>I’ll answer the one thing no one else seems to have answered. Cell phones should not be an issue on OSU campus. It’s located in downtown Columbus, the capital of the state, and you can bet all major carriers are invested in tapping that market. Tmobile has all of campus listed as “excellent” in their coverage map.</p>

7

<ul>
<li><p>Do all cell phone carriers work well on campus, including T-mobile?
Pretty much. Unless you’re using an obscure carrier, you shouldn’t be roaming. I use U.S. Cellular and they don’t service Columbus, however, I get signal from other towers with no roaming fees anyway. Also, WIFI on campus is very good. You can basically get it everywhere, so there is always access to internet.</p></li>
<li><p>What dining plan is the best to choose, and can you switch mid-year?
I use the Block 350. It’s way too many blocks for me (like 40 extra a semester and I buy other people food) I like to eat, trust me, the freshman 15 and I were well acquainted. If she uses her blocks well, I think the 350 plan is the best (even with the leftovers) simply because this allows her to get food at any of the on campus dining locations.</p></li>
<li><p>At the time of course registration, does OSU post the names of the professors teaching each section of each course? If not, is it easy to switch sections later to get a good prof?
Sometimes, but not usually. She can try to switch out of her classes, but it could be a chore. Classes are all about perspective, anyway. If she makes a serious effort to succeed in a class, she will.</p></li>
<li><p>What’s the best deal for microwaves and fridges?
OSU provides a microwave and a mini-fridge for every dorm room, so no need to worry about it. It’s pretty nifty, actually. </p></li>
<li><p>What else should a freshman girl know about living on south campus (safety, dining options, other stuff)?
Try everything. Don’t limit yourself to one food place. There’s some seriously tasty stuff all over campus, but you’ll only experience it if you trek over and buy it. </p></li>
</ul>

<p>Safety is pretty decent. I lived on South as a freshman and never felt uncomfortable. Just don’t venture off campus alone when it’s late, on campus at night can be somewhat sketchy, but as long as you are where there are other people, you should be fine. Be smart.</p>

<p>Learn how to use the buses, both the COTA and the CABS. If she can get the hang of these, it will make things so much easier. the CABS bus if for campus and the routes are accessible on the OSU mobile app. If you haven’t downloaded this already, DO IT. It seriously saved me so much grief as a freshman. The COTA buses are handy for getting around Columbus.</p>

<p>Experience Columbus. Don’t just stay on campus all the time. That’s one thing I wish I had done differently as a freshman. Columbus has some interesting events and places, check them out. </p>

<p>Get involved. This is very cliche, I know, but I can’t stress this enough. There are so many student organizations to get involved in. It really makes OSU smaller and more accessible. During the involvement fair, go knowing about some orgs. already. It can be overwhelming otherwise. </p>

<p>Talk to your professors. Your class performance will increase dramatically if you put the effort in to make connections with your profs. It can seem intimidating, but trust me, they will help you, it’s their job. OSU has so many other resources, too. Don’t be afraid to ask for help.</p>

<p>Get a pancake at Sloopy’s. Just one. Trust me, that’s all you’ll need.</p>

<p>Good luck!!
Sleepy.</p>

8

<ul>
<li><p>Do all cell phone carriers work well on campus, including T-mobile?
Yes, the campus in Columbus which is fully covered by all major providers.</p></li>
<li><p>What dining plan is the best to choose, and can you switch mid-year?
You can always switch, BUT you must pay $5 for each block you spent on your old plan and then you new one starts off with a balance of 0 blocks. The traditions dining plan is the cheapest (by hundreds of dollars) but gets boring. If you wants three meals a day take the 450, but if you can survive with less then take the 350.</p></li>
<li><p>At the time of course registration, does OSU post the names of the professors teaching each section of each course? If not, is it easy to switch sections later to get a good prof?
For gen ed courses the professor will not always be shown, but for nearly all major classes and unique classes (such as History of Rock n Roll) there professor will be shown. I select all my classes by professor, but I can’t verify if this is true for other colleges than Fisher. It is easy to drop classes before the second week, but picking up a new class is hard for the popular courses.</p></li>
<li><p>What’s the best deal for microwaves and fridges?
Not quite sure what you are asking, but both come pre-installed in the dorm.</p></li>
<li><p>Mac or PC for a math major?
For business you definitely want a PC, although I have seen business students with Macs. They simply use programs like Access in the multiple computer labs throughout campus. For math I doubt the department even cares, but I would guess most people in math have PCs (however Macs are very common in the liberal arts). I would also personally suggest a PC for college as nearly all programs work on it and Office is better on Windows in my opinion.</p></li>
<li><p>What else should a freshman girl know about living on south campus (safety, dining options, other stuff)?
South is definitely the louder side of campus and most people who live there like to party. For this reason it is not quite as safe as North or West, but nowhere on campus is really unsafe. Dining is also much better on South at the moment.</p></li>
</ul>

9

<ul>
<li><p>Do all cell phone carriers work well on campus, including T-mobile?
Not sure about T-Mobile, but I have Sprint, and it works fine, except for at the football games!</p></li>
<li><p>What dining plan is the best to choose, and can you switch mid-year?
350 is the best plan to me! You can use your blocks anywhere on campus, and you get $150 BuckID cash, which can be used on or off campus.</p></li>
<li><p>At the time of course registration, does OSU post the names of the professors teaching each section of each course? If not, is it easy to switch sections later to get a good prof?
I think most of the instructor names are posted. There are a few classes, like math, that are posted at the very last minute.</p></li>
<li><p>What’s the best deal for microwaves and fridges?
The free one’s that are already in the dorms!</p></li>
<li><p>Mac or PC for a math major?
I don’t have any experience with a MAC, but my Windows Laptop works great!</p></li>
<li><p>What else should a freshman girl know about living on south campus (safety, dining options, other stuff)?
Basic things. Be smart, and be alert at night!</p></li>
</ul>