<p>I got waitlisted from MSU and my 2nd choice is GVSU. For those of you who are aware of both colleges, which one would be better to attend?</p>
<p>Based on your user name, it would be better for you to attend MSU if you get in. MSU is probably a stronger academic institution with Grand Valley a notch below. Grand Valley is a good back up for MSU.</p>
<p>haha well I made this username before I decided to go to GVSU. and btw I got deferred from MSU back in october :/</p>
<p>MSU has better programs (ex: Eli Broad and James Madison), but is a bigger party school that GVSU. The people at are GVSU are more mature, while MSU has a work hard play hard mentality.</p>
<p>They are both great schools, though it depends what you want. If you want the huge classes, hardcore partying, and pretty good academic atmosphere MSU would be a good choice. GVSU is good for small class sizes, professors teaching classes, and lower cost/more scholarship options GVSU is probably the better option in that regard. In terms of GVSU being a backup to MSU maybe a little bit, but those kids usually are at the lower end of the GVSU applicant pool/freshmen class. The true “backup” to MSU would be Central and Western. Feel free to look at the numbers for admitted students at both schools if you don’t believe me. Overall I chose GVSU and like it a lot, but it’s all about fit, if you’re fit is more MSU then definitely go there. Also East Lansing beats Allendale in terms of a college town, but GVSU has GR right next to it, which is a great city, much better than the Lansing/East Lansing combo in my opinion.</p>
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<p>I have only been in one lecture class (140ish people). I have never been drunk or done any “hardcore partying” while here at MSU. I have also never been to anything other than a cast party. I still have a really good social life and am rarely bored. </p>
<p>gv is right that it’s all about fit. I have a few friends that are really happy at GVSU and a few friends who transferred out because they hated it. It is smaller and cheaper. There is hardcore partying there same as MSU, but since it is smaller it seems like less. There are ways to avoid big classes here at MSU (residential college for example). Overall, you just need to visit both and decide which is better for you.</p>
<p>Yes, there are huge classes at MSU (my biochem class has >500 students!) but you can get individual help from the professor or TA’s.</p>
<p>^ Or you can not take biochem :p. (Lol jk- I’m just not a science person hehe)</p>
<p>Another thing about both schools is that not only in this year but in the future it will be harder for in state students to gain admission. Not only are MSU and GVSU getting more U of M rejects since U of M is reducing their freshmen class sizes and probably accepting more out of state students, but from my vantage point the two schools are both accepting more out of state students at a higher rate, (at GVSU it is increasing a lot especially kids from Illinois due to cost to quality ratio due to GVSU’s very low OOS tuition) and MSU having very known reputation of being a Big Ten school and doing more advertising outside the state. So if you’re a Michigan resident planning on going to a good in state school (U of M, MSU, GVSU, etc.) you better be hitting the books pretty hard right now.</p>
<p>Also romanigypsies,</p>
<p>I think the residential colleges are fantastic at MSU (from what I hear) but the fact of the matter is only a certain amount of students can be in those classes, so unless you’re a top student applying to MSU, you can’t expect it to be easy to get into the residential colleges.</p>
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<p>NOT true in the least. There is no separate application process for any of the RCs. They are all on a first come, first serve basis. And since people add and drop RCs all the time, if you can’t instantly get in, you are rarely on the waiting list very long. It has NOTHING to do with being a “top” student.</p>
<p>Ten years from now, if you tell people that you got your degree from “Michigan State,” everyone will nod appreciably. If you say “Grand Valley State,” no one outside the state of Michigan will have any idea what you are talking about, and quite a few from within Michigan also won’t have heard of GVSU. This means that people won’t know if GVSU is good, bad, or in between. Yes, students and parents of seniors know that GVSU is a nice alternative to MSU, but your degree is going to follow you for the rest of your life-- better get it from a name brand school, in my opinion. </p>
<p>Regarding partying, MSU has a wide range of students. If you choose to hang out with the people who begin their weekends on Wednesday afternoon and spend the next 4 days drunk in the gutter, well, that’s your choice. You can instead choose to hang out with people who work hard and get good grades. You have to make the choice but it is a choice that you get.</p>
<p>MSU is also going to have way more range of classes and programs that may interest you, and activities like music, lectures, fairs, etc. throughout the year that GVSU can’t match.</p>
<p>thanks for the advice everyone. I wrote this post a month ago so my choice has changed since then. I chose GVSU because of the smaller school, cheaper price, good resources, and it’s a good school in MI. True, people out of MI won’t recognize my degree from GVSU, but who cares…especially if you plan on going to graduate school (which I will)</p>
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<p>Well… the graduate school will care (not saying that GVSU won’t get you into a grad school, but a degree from MSU is more recognizable and thus may carry more weight). And what are you looking into for grad school? As a research university, MSU has many more resources for research and the like than GVSU. Grad schools like research.</p>
<p>@romani: well I meant as far as jobs goes. Jobs will mostly look at your graduate school then where you got your bachelor degree from. Also, I hope to go to medical school, but if that doesn’t work out then a physician assistant program.</p>
<p>^ Yes… but you need to get into grad school first. I am just saying that you may have more research options and a more recognizable undergrad degree from MSU. </p>
<p>Anyway, you have to weigh that against less debt which is what you would get at GVSU. I am just laying out some options, but I’m sure you’ll be fine at either place :).</p>
<p>yeah true, and thanks</p>