Since neither of these schools have their own section, UGA seemed most appropriate, as most people who fail to get into UGA end up in one of these schools.
The Decision
It’s about time for me to head to a new school. I’m divided between KSU and Georgia Southern(henceforth abbreviated as “GS”). I’m not looking at any other schools. I’m not open to going to any other schools. These are my two choices. I’m going into accounting, and not sure which one I’d prefer.
The Big Four
The Big Four apparently recruit out of both, so I don’t know how much that plays into my consideration. But I suspect that they recruit much more heavily out of KSU. Reason being, KSU is 30 miles from downtown Atlanta, while GS is something like 200 miles away. It seems like it’s much more of an ordeal to travel down there, so I would suspect the Big 4 do more recruiting out of KSU than GS. I feel like I may have better opportunity to develop professional contacts while in school at KSU than GS.
The Staff
I know more people who have attended KSU. The problem is, most of these people commuted there(often by 50+ miles). I’ll be living either on or just off-campus. Most of the people I’ve met who went to KSU, dropped out within 3 semesters.
I’ve heard that KSU has very good teachers in the Coles school of business. I know two people who graduated out of their accounting program and they felt KSU’s teachers were mostly good and helpful.
I only know people who have graduated out of GSoU with general degrees, like Communication. I don’t have first hand, personal anecdotes about their teachers.
Social Life
On the social front, I’ve heard that KSU is party central. Greek life is huge, and I intend to join a fraternity(probably Delta Chi at KSU).
GSoU seems to be much the same. There are apparently bars dispersed throughout the dorms, which is quite awesome.
But I can’t get a clear feel on the culture of either.
About Me
I’m very laid back. I’m a good student, but I don’t get stressed or work too hard. I like people who are open, non-judgmental, and social. However, I’m not overly extroverted and I’m not really a party animal(though I do drink, smoke green and casually do some other drugs). I’ve been pretty involved with my business student organizations, and i has lead to good things for me. One of my biggest complaints about my current community college is the overwhelming number of obese people. It wasn’t uncommon for there to be no more than two attractive women in a class. It’s almost a miracle that I consistently had a girlfriend the whole time I was here. I don’t think I’d repeat that luck for another three years(I’m getting a CPA so I’ll be here for three more years). I would really prefer a school where a decent portion of the women actually take care of themselves. The guys too, really, because I like having friends for activities. Most of my male friends I met at the gym or through sports.
Churches in Statesboro
One other thing that is important to me is quality, youth oriented churches. I’ve always been very involved in my church and I am afraid that there may not be much around GS, considering it’s in tiny Statesboro. Obviously KSU is on top of Atlanta and I have basically limitless selection of churches.
Kennesaw Vs Georgia Southern - Culture
Having visited both campuses, I much prefer GS on the campus front. But the campus is very much a secondary factor.
I spent a day at both places and GS seemed more laid back. I saw a lot of people just randomly bumping into each other and chatting. People just standing around, hanging out. Everyone was always walking at KSU. I didn’t see many people just hanging out. They were getting from point A to point B.
I also saw a lot of racial intermingling at GS. What I noticed at KSU was informal but pretty consistent segregation. Now I’m not hellbent on this, I’m white and I don’t feel some deep drive to have perfect racial diversity in my friends, but I think it speaks to a broader culture at the schools. I get the sense that GS is more open and friendly, while KSU is more cliquish and probably conservative(and I don’t mean politically).
People seemed less stressed at GS. I went to study halls and most people looked pretty chill and just casually getting work done.
At KSU, I sensed a lot more stress. It could be because a lot of people seem older there and may have full time jobs to boot. It could also be the commuter thing.
I also met a couple of guys from the biggest frat house in each school. The ones from GS seemed cooler and more intelligent. But it’s a small sample size.
Summary
GS seems to have a younger, more friendly, laid back culture. But it’s far away from Atlanta(and Atlanta businesses). Based purely on culture, if my first impression is correct, I think I would prefer GS.
KSU doesn’t seem bad, I just like it less than GS on the surface. However, I’m ultimately going to school to get a job, and I think I’ll likely get better business contacts at KSU. I also know that KSU has good teachers, but I have no idea about GS’s business teachers.
If the business opportunities are similar, I’m basically going to GS. But KSU seems perfectly fine if it’s a much stronger school from a “get a good job” prospect.
Your input
So would you say my first impressions are off and if so, where specifically am I off base? Thank you for helping me with this major decision!