Grand Valley State U. - Insight Desired Please

Parents Forum
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<p>We toured Grand Valley as well. My son really liked the campus. He is also in Nursing. The one thing about Grand Valley (and most schools) is that you apply to the Nursing program after your first or second year. When we spoke with a representative from the Nursing school (which is beautiful, by the way) she told us that it is highly competitive… based mainly on GPA. At the time of our visit (last summer) they were only accepting 60 students each semester. So, definitely check the 5 and 6 year graduation rates because I’m sure most students take longer than 4 years to graduate.</p>

<p>I don’t know about the OOS tuition costs since we are instate. However, the instate tuition really isn’t that much lower than U of M or MSU. Scholarships were not stellar IMO. They do have a scholarship competition which you can get into if you get at least a 28 or 29 on the ACT.</p>

<p>My son was accepted at Grand Valley, U of Mich, MSU, Penn State, Purdue and University of Detroit- Mercy. He chose to attend U of Mich since they direct admit to the Nursing School as a freshman.</p>

<p>Good luck in your search.</p>

22

<p>“GVSU is the third most selective college in Michigan after UofM and Michigan State (and I would say after Michigan Tech which is predominantly an engineering school).”</p>

<p>Really, I would have thought Western would have been more selective. And I’m sure there are a couple more selective private schools. </p>

<p>Anyway, in my part of Michigan GVSU is more for people who are looking to get free tuition for a couple of years before transferring, or for people who just wanted to get out of the area (atleast of anyone I’ve known). A lot of people here seem to have great things to say about it though.</p>

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<p>As I understand it, GVSU is more selective than Western. I base this on my research when I applied (granted was a couple years ago, I could have it wrong), and the fact that I got into Eastern, Central, and Western, and NOT GVSU when I applied before I attended CC. They required slightly higher stats-- Eastern, Western, and Central were matches for me, Northern was my safety, and GVSU was my reach.</p>

<p>What I have found from my research (I expected to be going there after CC) and from my friends who attend, the campus is beautiful, it was recently rated one of the safest campuses in the country (my friend who attends tells me there is a major police presence), and the dorms are supposed to be fantastic as well. I don’t know about the graduation rate. Around here most kids go to U of M or MSU if they can get in, and if not they go to GVSU or Eastern. Must be a regional component here.</p>

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<p>Yes, the main Allendale campus and the Grand Rapids campuses are both very attractive. The university has become very popular, so it is more difficult to get in that it was 5-7 years ago. The downtown medical campus (not owned by GVSU, it’s just how we refer to to it) is large, well funded and well respected and a wonderful resource for students going into health-related fields.</p>

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<p>GVSU is statistically more selective than Western, Central, etc. and yes schools like K, Hope, Hillsdale are statistically more selective. Rumor has it that GVSU is neck and neck with Michigan State with regard to freshman stats. Some claim they have surpassed State. The common data sets from this year will be interesting. Western is “popular” and has been for decades, but popularity is not what is being discussed.
GRCC has replaced GVSU for the regional kids that want 2 years and then transfer.</p>

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<p>I’ve heard about some people from my area who went there and simply loved the place.</p>

<p>A guy from their trumpet studio worked with our band for a day, which was kind of cool.</p>

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<p>more about the medical campus in GR
[Spectrum</a> Health: About Us](<a href=“http://www.spectrum-health.org/body.cfm?id=125]Spectrum”>http://www.spectrum-health.org/body.cfm?id=125)
[Why</a> a Children’s Hospital?](<a href=“http://www.devoschildrens.org/body.cfm?id=1144]Why”>http://www.devoschildrens.org/body.cfm?id=1144)
[Spectrum</a> Health Meijer Heart Center: About Us](<a href=“http://www.spectrum-health.org/body_servicetabs.cfm?id=439]Spectrum”>http://www.spectrum-health.org/body_servicetabs.cfm?id=439)</p>

<p>I could include more links. It’s really quite surprising that all this growth and technology is centering right there.</p>

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<p>[Cancer</a> Research - Van Andel Institute](<a href=“http://www.vai.org/]Cancer”>http://www.vai.org/)</p>

<p>MaFool, you forgot all the biomedical research at Van Andel!</p>

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<p>yes I did!
And the Lemmen-Holton Cancer Pavilion with the Betty Ford Diagnostic Breast Center
<a href=“http://www.spectrum-health.org/body_servicetabs.cfm?id=1198[/url]”>http://www.spectrum-health.org/body_servicetabs.cfm?id=1198&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

30

<p>As to the OP’s question about GVSU being a suitcase school:</p>

<p>That would have been a reasonable description many years ago, but now that the university is drawing from a much wider geographic area, I doubt very much that it is the case now.</p>

<p>And it is safe to assume that weekends with home football games are VERY vibrant! (google the football team.)</p>

<p>“The American Football Coaches Association (AFCA) released its preseason DII poll Tuesday (Aug. 10) and Grand Valley State was picked second with 621 points and three first place votes. Defending NCAA DII National Champion Northwest Missouri State was picked first with 645 points and 22 first place votes.”</p>

<p>"The Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference announced it 2010 Preseason Football Poll and for the ninth straight year Grand Valley State was picked to finish first "</p>

31

<p>Mafool & momofthreeboys, I am so glad to hear about the hospitals in Grand Rapids. My son just started the pre-pharm program at Ferris, and he will be doing rotations in GR once he is in the professional phase. He hopes to explore research-type work, and it’s good to know that there are some good places to do rotations.</p>

32

<p>GVSU is really excited about its new Chinese Studies/Language program. Looks promising for students with an interest in that area.</p>

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<p>Kelsmom if you have not been in GR for a number of years you will be delightfully surprised. While the medical corridor is amazing, the city on a whole is on the right track with the GVSU campus, the urban housing, night life and “day life.” Ferris is running Kendall College so has deep tentacles into the city. Like Ann Arbor with Google and Toyota, ERIM and others GR is a “bright spot” on the Michigan radar. To add to that it is sort of like what the “Cultural Center” in Detroit envisioned but was never able to quite bring to fruition. I lived in both GR and Detroit in the mid-eighties and what GR has been able to accomplish is quite something. I have two boys in another state but would be happy to see #3 stay in Michigan.</p>

34

<p>We have a cottage on the west side of the state so we frequently pass K’zoo … that city is also really thriving. We have only passed on the outskirts of GR on our way to Big Rapids. We will have to stop to see GR. I haven’t been there since the Amway Plaza was new!</p>

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<p>Kelsmom, you really should take a look! PM me if you want further information. I work in GR, though it sounds like momofthree may live there (?) so she may know more.</p>

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<p>I am not from Michigan - I get Grand Valley State near Grand Rapids mixed up with Ferris State (where my cousin went to college) in Big Rapids; off topic, but Ferris State gives in state tuition to students from so many states now. *California New York Florida Ohio Illinois Ontario,Canada Indiana Pennsylvania Iowa Tennessee Kentucky Virginia Maryland West Virginia Minnesota Wisconsin Missouri * Trying to be less of a regional school, maybe. Do any other Michigan colleges do this?
[Ferris</a> State University | Financial Aid | Great Lakes](<a href=“Out-of-State Students”>Out-of-State Students)</p>

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<p>Oh, I see - Grand Valley State does something like this too. This is nice!
[Out</a> of State Awards for Excellence - Grand Valley State University](<a href=“http://www.gvsu.edu/scholarships/24-out-of-state-awards-for-excellence.htm]Out”>http://www.gvsu.edu/scholarships/24-out-of-state-awards-for-excellence.htm)</p>

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<p>Big Rapids is no Grand Rapids but Ferris has a pharmacy program…and those are few and far between so there’s a plus for an OSS kid looking for a pharm program.</p>

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<p>That’s what my son is there for. The honors pre-pharm guarantee is really good, and the advisors seem very committed to helping students meet the requirements to get into the pharmacy program (unlike many other schools with pre-pharm guarantees). FSU’s pharmacy program has been around forever, so their ties for clinical rotations seem to be really strong. My son’s pediatrician and a surgeon we know both encouraged him to pick FSU over some other schools to which he was accepted. Big Rapids is … small … but students seem to enjoy the school, Grand Rapids isn’t too far away, Lake Michigan is within an hour, and it’s not too far to good snowboarding!</p>

40

<p>I’m a current GVSU freshman and I can proudly say that I love it. I’m a music education major, so I don’t quite fit the typical student description, but I know from my friends here on campus that the university really doesn’t have a “bad” major. Great music school, AWESOME nursing school, great engineering and other science programs, lots of study abroad opportunities, etc.</p>

<p>The freshman dorms are very nice. I opted for the “apartment-style” dorms, where I have my own bedroom (yes, with a door! that closes! and locks!), and I share a kitchen (fridge, oven/stove, some cabinet space) and a bathroom with one roommate. It’s so nice to be able to close my own bedroom door at night, and yet I don’t feel isolated from my roommate or my other dorm-mates. There is also a suite option (two people to a room, four people to a bathroom, community kitchen) and a traditional option (two people to a room, community bathroom and kitchen) for those who prefer the more traditional college dorm experience. Just a note - despite being very good, none of the freshman dorms have AC, so a window fan is a must!</p>

<p>Food is a win-win situation on campus, especially for freshmen. The standard meal plan gives you 14 meals a week, and depending on where you live you get a certain amount of “Debit Dollars”. Since I have my own kitchen I got less Debit Dollars than some of my friends who live in the traditional-style dorms. You can use these at any place that sells food on campus, whether it be “hot lunch” or just a convenience store. And plus, the food, from all of the places you can get it (buffets, food courts, convenience stores, pizza places), really is very good and healthy. Overall, the food situation at GVSU is really great – there are no drawbacks to speak of. If you want to know more or see the full list of places to eat, head over to [Home</a> - Campus Dining - Grand Valley State University](<a href=“http://gvsu.edu/campusdine]Home”>Laker Food Co. - Grand Valley State University) and check out the menus.</p>

<p>The campus itself is large and gorgeous. Academic facilities are very modern, with the most recent just having been built this last summer, and two more massive classroom buildings having been built in 2005 and 2008. The groundbreaking for the brand new library just occurred a few weeks ago. The older buildings have had major renovations during the 90s. Computer lab use and printing are both FREE, and there are both Windows and Mac OS X labs all over campus.</p>

<p>Being a music ed major, I don’t have the typical academic schedule, but the one general-education class I do have is Writing 150. This class is a requirement for graduation for all students. So far it’s been very good – my professor is very nice and connects with the students very well, and the curriculum and pace of the class, while quite challenging, are very much geared towards helping me write my best papers, rather than beating me into submission with horrendously difficult assignments. For those interested in the music program, I can give you two thumbs up. I’m in the trumpet studio here, and it is TOP-NOTCH. I am playing in amazing ensembles (Concert Band, trumpet ensemble, Marching Band) and learning so much from my other music classes (theory, aural skills, piano).</p>

<p>I feel like I’ve written way too much already, so if you have any questions for me, just ask and then I’ll respond to your specific question. I hope this post helped at least somebody!</p>

<p>GO LAKERS!</p>