<p>Okay so I was just rejected from my only instate public school San Diego State University. I'm really shocked, but now I'm completely focusing on my two favorite schools. </p>
<p>I'm looking to compare Indiana and FSU. I will have a significant amount of loans at both of these schools, but financially I believe it will work out. But I know for sure FSU will be cheaper than IU by at least 6k/year based off of tuition.</p>
<p>Okay so here's my pro/con list.</p>
<p>Indiana Pros - The most amazing school in the world. I plan on majoring in finance and minoring in sports management, and Indiana is amazing in both of those areas. Bloomington sounds like a great college town, and the campus is absolutely beautiful. The OOS population is more than 40%, and while both schools are residential, IU has more people living on campus. Also IU allows you to specialize your GE requirements..and I also love communications and I could specialized in that...so that means I won't have to take classes I have no interest in. And the average starting salary for a Kelley finance major is 4k more than the national average. And IU basketball is amazing...and football is on the rise. Love the Big 10 atmosphere!</p>
<p>Indiana Cons - Really cold, and really far from the beach.</p>
<p>Florida State Pros - FSU is amazing. Seminole football games are insane with 80k people. The weather is absolutely perfect. 6k/year cheaper than IU. Only 2 hours away from Panama City Beach. Nice compact campus.</p>
<p>FSU Cons - I don't like it as much as Indiana, and only 12% of students are from OOS.</p>
<p>Have you been admitted to either school yet? Regardless, assuming that you are admitted to both, then Indiana seems to be a better match for you.</p>
<p>Since I hate hot weather and big-time football and basketball, it's hard for me to offer any advice based on those factors. :) It does sound as if Indiana is a better match for you academically, and I think it has more of a national reputation, which may help with employment outside their respective regions.</p>
<p>I would also note that Indiana State Dunes State Park is a remarkably nice beach. You would almost think you were at the ocean, except that it isn't salt. :)</p>
<p>I want to address the concern with Florida schools having fewer out of staters. If it's diversity you are concerned about- don't be. Florida's population is diverse, and many Florida residents are not natives. When I think about my own kids' friends- here's a sample of where they are 'from' (even though they are currently Florida residents)- Maryland, New York, Ohio, Washington state, Texas, West Virginia, Massachusetts. My kids are the only ones in their group of friends who were actually born here in Florida!</p>
<p>Florida State is by and large not a place for serious academics. It is the worst school in the Atlantic Coast Conference (defining schools in terms of the athletic conference is not meant to conflate academics with athletics, but it is a useful yardstick as to a pecking order). I would avoid FSU at all costs unless you can identify a particular department that it is strong and be very assured you want to stay in that field.</p>
<p>^^^I don't think this type of post is helpful. SoCal applied to San Diego State, FSU and Indiana Unversity, all similar with respect to academic profiles. To put down any of her choices serves merely to demoralize. If she had been asking for feedback with, say, FSU vs UNC that would be different, but she did not.<br>
SoCal, FSU is a wonderful school, obviously not as highly ranked as others in the ACC, but many serious students do attend FSU and do well. You can't go wrong with either FSU or Indiana- best wishes!</p>
<p>I agree with doubleplay regarding the diversity issue. I actually come into contact with very few native Floridians. In fact, we don't even have a single one on staff where I work. </p>
<p>As far as quality, I'm from the camp that believes it will be what you make of it wherever you attend. FSU is very large, and offers a lot of resources to its students. Many opt to not take advantage of that, and indeed, FL high schools, in general, which feed FSU, are pretty mediocre to begin with. So I understand Mam's senitments. However, none of that means diddley for those who go and take advantage of everything that's there --- which is a lot. And as far as reputation, I don't think FSU will necessarily open fewer doors than IU at all. Your success will be a function of your individual performance more than what school you attend IMO. </p>
<p>IU feels more like a private school and I think the student body is more homogenous. It is definitely a great school, and yes, does have a better reputation IMO. I really liked the atmosphere there when we visited. Of course, I'm also from the Midwest so you can take that FWIW. </p>
<p>From a practical standpoint, I don't think I would spend 24k more over 4 years to attend IU over FSU. However, if costs were the same, or of no concern, I would pick IU. I do agree that you need to consider the strengths of the specific departments you may be interested in as well though. </p>
<p>Let me put it another way - florida high schools are by and large awful, and the University of Florida gets the lion's share of the good students it does have. FSU does not. This is not to say that Florida State does not have good departments - it does in areas - but it is hard to characterize FSU as anything other than a football team with a school attached (a football team that has had scandal after scandal with scant attention paid to academics who has seen fit to memorialize their coach in a stained glass mural akin to making him a saint). I can't see spending good money to go there unless one has a real focus on what it is they want to do, and believes the school can deliver. Employers know its reputation - a close relative is a CEO of one of Florida's few sophisticated large public companies - and they will by and large not hire FSU graduates - it rarely produces the rigorously educated. Compare IU's reputation in Chicago with FSU's reputation in Saint Petersburg or Orlando - it is not at all close. The marketplace speaks. </p>
<p>FSU is, however, a great place to have a good time - most of us, however, don't have that kind of money to waste....</p>
<p>This is not true at all. FSU has a good reputation and the thing about employers is just a completely unfair statement. It really all depends on what you want to go for. If you want to go for business type things than IU is a better choice, but to say that employers won't hire FSU graduates is not true. While UF does get more of the good students, FSU has a lot of great students also. To say that FSU is a football team with a school attached and UF is not is quite laughable.</p>
<p>Reading your pro/con list, I'd go with Indiana. Your pros for Indiana encompassed both atmosphere (campus, football, college town, OOS students) and academics (you like their GE requirements, and they have great programs in your prospective major and minor). Besides the 6k issue, your pros for Florida were only atmosphere-- football, weather, beach. I think you should go for the school you really like that is also great in the academic programs that interest you, and that seems to be Indiana. </p>
<p>If you can afford that extra 6k, go with IU.</p>
<p>thought you had decided to go to the University of Portland? I suspect the academics in Portland are better than FSU. IU is a solid Universitythough and the midwestern states take great pride in their state Us</p>
<p>doubleplay - I just wanted to point out that I'm a guy.</p>
<p>And thanks for all of the opinions. I'm for sure going to major in business, but I want to take classes in other areas such as sports management and communications.</p>
<p>And I don't care if one is more serious about academics. I know these are both big party/sports schools, and that is one of the reasons why I applied there. </p>
<p>But along with that atmosphere IU comes with a top 10 business program, and FSU while still decent, will save me $24,000. So I'm trying to look at it for the long haul. Assuming I do well at both, will my job opportunities from Kelley School of Business outweigh the amount of money I'll save by going to FSU?</p>
<p>I know this is a big decision for you, but haven't you started a number of threads on this topic over the last few months? Go with IU. It seems to fit you much better. Don't count on seeing much of the Dunes, though. Whole different part of the state.</p>
<p>I have not visited any of these schools yet...but I'm for sure going to eliminate Portland. While I'm sure it's a great school, it's just not right for me. And it doesn't have any other redeeming qualities to help overlook its negatives.</p>
<p>But I don't need to visit IU or FSU to eliminate one of them. It basically comes down to is IU worth the extra $24,000. Right now I'm thinking yes...but I plan on calling FSU to get their job placement statistics.</p>
<p>"Florida State is by and large not a place for serious academics."</p>
<p>mam1959,
What a ridiculous statement to make. You obviously don't know much about FSU, so keep your opinions to yourself. Indiana University is considered a huge "party school". Does that mean they're not serious about academics? Of course it doesn't.</p>
<p>You're also comparing FSU to ACC schools like Duke, UNC, UVA, Maryland, and BC. The ACC is an academic powerhouse conference. Academically, FSU would be a middle of the pack SEC or Big 12 school.</p>
<p>For future reference, please get a clue before posting some nonsense on a message board.</p>
<p>It's obvious that mam1959 has a personal agenda against FSU. Maybe mam was rejected from FSU or maybe his/her kids were rejected from FSU. I sense a good amount of bitterness coming from his/her posts. Regardless, that whole statement about companies not hiring FSU grads is completely ridiculous and a flat out lie.</p>
<p>Here's a list of some FSU alumni, just to give you a general idea:</p>