<p>The college visits thing is having issues, and people can't seem to post their visit reports, so I'm just gonna post mine here for now. All ratings out of five.</p>
<p>Visit date: Monday, February 18, 2008</p>
<p>Visit Activities</p>
<p>Information Session--Yes, it was Meet Mizzou Day, so they had a variety of information sessions. I attended a basic information session, "The Scoop," which was a panel of students who answered questions about life at the school, and the Journalism School's session and tour. Very helpful, and I learned a lot.</p>
<p>Campus tour--Yes, toured most of the campus, including a separate Journalism school tour.</p>
<p>Mizzou Campus</p>
<p>Friendliness/Courtesy of Students: 5--All of them were very nice and helpful and answered any questions I had. The ones at The Scoop didn't mind answering at least 50 questions they received about FIGs.</p>
<p>Friendliness/Courtesy of Staff: 5--Didn't see much of the staff, but the representative of the journalism school was nice and did an informative presentation and answered any questions he could.</p>
<p>Appearance of Campus: 5--Absolutely gorgeous, and it really took me by surprise. Beautiful architecture, a lot of green space, and it's a pretty small campus despite having 20,000 undergraduates and 28,000 overall. A lot of construction, but it didn't detract from the campus much, and most if it will be done within the next year.</p>
<p>Building/Facilities Maintenance/Cleanliness: 5--The recreation center and journalism schools more than lived up to their reputations as top-notch facilities. The rest of the school was fine; nothing to complain about, but nothing spectacular. Cleanliness didn't seem to be an issue at all.</p>
<p>Dormitories: 3--Nothing fancy, but it wasn't awful either. I won't end up choosing a college for its dorms anyway.</p>
<p>Security/Safety: 5--Didn't see any cause for concern.</p>
<p>Overall Campus Impression: 5--Phenomenal overall campus. I came in with high hopes, and Mizzou exceeded all of them.</p>
<p>Off-Campus</p>
<p>Area Immediately Surrounding Campus: 4--Columbia isn't the most bustling town in the world, but it has enough and is a nice enough place. It's much better than a college right in the middle of a city, and it seems like there's enough to do on campus to offset any downside to the town.</p>
<p>City/Town/Community: 4--See above. Columbia and Missouri basically overlap.</p>
<p>Campus Visit Notes</p>
<p>Visit Description: We started by just driving around the outskirts of the campus to get a general overview. The buildings were all beautiful, and the football stadium looked nice as well.</p>
<p>The information session was very informative, if not a typical college information session. It went over everything: academics, athletics, clubs, etc. That along with a folder with booklets and pamphlets we received at the door provided us with all the information we needed.</p>
<p>The tour was amazing. The campus was beautiful, and we got to walk through the incredible rec center, with 10 basketball courts, three swimming pools, and more treadmills and weight machines than I could count. The student center was very nice as well, and I got a sweatshirt at the bookstore (note: expensive, like all college bookstores are).</p>
<p>The Scoop gave a very good opportunity to ask students what life was like at Mizzou, and the students were able to answer any questions we had.</p>
<p>Lastly came the Journalism school, which was just as impressive as the rec center. The students and faculty produce the morning paper for Columbia, the Columbia Missourian, and the paper ranked ahead of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. The newsroom had all the latest technology, and it confirmed the J-school's stellar reputation.</p>
<p>Hotel Recommendations: Hilton Garden Inn. Pleasant stay, if only for one night. I would recommend it.</p>
<p>Restaurants: Shakespeare's Pizza was very good. We didn't eat at any other local eateries.</p>
<p>Other comments: Parking was the only issue. The place we were told to park was completely full, so we had to park in town and feed the meter. Other than that, an excellent trip. I'll certainly be applying next fall.</p>