<p>Re: the neighborhood at Xavier. It was my impression and conversation with people that it wasn’t really suggested that students wander (by foot) too far from campus. Sounded like students would drive or take a bus to shopping and such, but not nearby. Also another indication is that two years ago Xavier was building a little shopping area of sorts near to campus to provide some nearby shops/restaurants - I think this was in response to the fact that indeed the surrounding neighborhood was not student friendly. Could be wrong but that was my impression. This was to be a smallish strip, nothing extravagant - not sure how it turned out. </p>
<p>U of Cinnci is also in a not so desirable spot I hear - but they are not right near each other.</p>
<p>Dayton—as far as the drinking scene I have never heard anything particular about it. I think it’s no different than any other school…definitely there, but no more there than any other school. Which is sad…but that is how it is at almost all schools.</p>
<p>Im a long-time lurker, never posted before but thought our experience might be helpful. Son is a sophomore at Dayton. He also applied and was accepted to Wooster, Denison and Miami. All gave him merit aid, all good except Miami which was very small and would not make a dent in OOS tuition.
The kicker…his HS GPA was only 3.1. Weighted. His other stats:
1400/1600 SAT (obviously helped, I guess he showed potential despite being a classic underachiever)
Tough course load, but not crazy
Medium level of ECs, nothing spectacular
Strong essays and recs </p>
<p>Denison is the most competitive, what I think helped him there was a very good interview with admissions rep. They clicked for whatever reason. She was looking at him holistically, not just at his grades. So strong B candidates can get into these schools with the right mix. Ive heard the same for OWU and Xavier from other B parents.
After all was said and done, Dayton was the best fit (his dad liked Denison, I leaned toward Wooster, but he was instantly home at Dayton). BTW, Dayton just opened up a new award-winning cafeteria. It is a market style, with lots of choices. The kids say its good.</p>
<p>Current Dayton student here, and I LOVE my school. I shamelessly promote it at any chance.</p>
<p>For business and pre-law, Dayton is very strong - although I’m a science major so I don’t know too much about it. If you’re able to visit any of the academic departments, ask if they have a list of required courses for the given major.</p>
<p>When you visit Dayton, try your best to eat in one of the dining halls. The food is absolutely fantastic. Marycrest is close and you’ll probably go straight through it if you take an official tour. Try to go at an “off” time for best timing… on MWF try around 11:30, 12:30 or 1:30 and TTh try 11:15ish or 12:30. that way you won’t be standing in line with all the students just getting out of class and you’ll be able to get a table to yourselves. btw, the lunch ladies are awesome :)</p>
<p>Edit: ^^ Yes, the new dining hall they’ve opened here is wonderful. It’s two concept restaurants, one that serves sushi, mongolian bar and burritos and the other has soups, salads and sandwiches (think panera) but the downside is that it’s more expensive than the rest of the on-campus dining.</p>
<p>No, not in any of my experiences. The weekends here are certainly crazy (as they are at many schools) and some underage students go to the local bar on thursday nights for 18+ night. Weeknights are tame, even when there’s a ball game. We’re not much of a tailgating school. But Fridays and Saturdays are fair game.</p>
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<p>IS the reason I did not go to Xavier. I grew up in Cincinnati and my family owns property in Norwood (XU area). Definitely not somewhere you want to be walking around. Many high school classmates of mine attend XU and several years ago a large group of boys were held up off campus… so i certainly wouldn’t go walking around by myself as a small girl. The rest of Cincy is not bad, but that area as well as Over The Rhine (i have no idea why any XU students would go there anyway, so I wouldn’t be worried about it) are not particularly safe.</p>
<p>And I’m not speaking from a Xavier v Dayton rivals position- I’m talking about personal safety and welfare. I did not feel comfortable in the XU campus area.</p>
<p>I’ve posted my opinion that Dayton IS a party school, and yes, I do believe there are parties every night in the ghetto. The ghetto is university owned housing so I was really shocked. I have since learned from another mother that they call the concept “the circle of life”. Dayton student will tell you that that means juniors and senions are to provide alcohol to freshmen and sophomores and they are expected to do the same when they are upperclassmen. I think Dayton can be a great school for some kids, kids who know when to say “no”. Unfortunately my daughter was not one of those kids and is no longer at Dayton.</p>
<p>If you are in the area, you should not let the comments we have made about the neighborhood discourage you from visiting Xavier - it is a class act school and there is definitely a part of me that WISHES we could have made it happen for my son. The COA was just way out of line with other offers he had - financially, it didn’t seem like a good decision.</p>
<p>I will look into all of the restaurant ideas! I am sort of an “over planning zealot” who likes to have a detailed plan. Sometimes the family is happy about that…othertimes…not so much!</p>
<p>Note to self: Miami University…not University of Miami! And Check out food at Dayton if we have time. </p>
<p>Big Question: Denison? Really? I would not have thought that he would have a chance at all at that school. Much less for a merit. Granted I think he is a terrific kid, but I am pretty sure that I don’t count much in admissions! He is coming from a very small Catholic high school that is not well known at all. Do you really think he would have a chance?</p>
<p>^ Probably not if you’re looking for merit aid. And yes, Miami U is sensitive to being mistaken for that other school down south when MiamiU is 100 years older.</p>
<p>I went to Miami, am from Cincinnati, and now live in Dayton. </p>
<p>Food at Miami - I second checking out the Bagel Deli. It’s uptown, but I don’t think they have seating there - that may have changed though. If it’s nice out, you can sit on benches outside and people-watch.</p>
<p>Food at Dayton - try Dewey’s Pizza. It’s wood-fired pizza and really good. There’s a place called Milano’s too that may have steak grinders.</p>
<p>Food at Xavier - hmmm, can’t help you there. I do want to say that Xavier is really a great school, with a fantastic basketball program and a really tight alum community. It makes me wish that I had gone there. The neighborhood is really not bad.</p>
<p>My DS is a sophomore at Miami. Some other good food options in Oxford include Kona Bistro and Sushi Nara. For informal dining, Mac and Joe’s has very good “pub grub”.</p>
<p>Miami has great food on campus. One of the better on campus varieties. I loved Xavier and esp. Cincinnati. Have to have Skyline chili, its a staple and Graeter’s ice cream. Yum!</p>
<p>John Carroll, try Little Italy. It’s close to campus, the food is great, and it’s a fun place to go.</p>
<p>I have two D’s at Miami (and a son who just submitted his application last week) and I second Kona Bistro for a nice dinner.</p>
<p>Steinkeller is a fun German spot–not healthy eating with schnitzels, brats and mets, but makes you feel like you are overseas for sure. D1 did a semester abroad and atmosphere brings back pleasant memories of Europe. You’ll have to look hard to find it even though it is on High Street. The entryway leads down the stairs to the pub/restaurant. You can order beer samplers with six in each order–It might not be the best place to take an incoming freshman. It is less of a hangout for under 21. </p>
<p>The best breakfast is Patterson’s on Spring Street. If it’s a weekend, get there early as there will be a line. All fresh ingredients and nice atmosphere. I got there late one time and decided to order a burger. I’d have to say it was one of the best I’d ever had, but I have never been there for dinner. Thursday evenings they serve a Thanksgiving type meal. I would bet on it being good.</p>
<p>Eating well in Oxford is never a problem even if you eat on campus. The food is good. If your son likes Miami U at all, I would recommend he try the campus food, either in a dining hall or food court type place. They have many eating options.</p>
<p>We are back from our very very long college trip! The good news is that I didn’t kill Muppetson while we were gone. Honestly, we tried to see too many schools in too little time. Muppetson was ready to kill us! He said he was so tired of smiling, being nice and making small talk! I will break the trip down into sections.</p>
<p>FOOD:
We started in Cleveland and ate at Michael Symon’s Lolita for dinner the fist night. The big board of pressed smoked meat products and cured meats was a hit. Muppetson had the carbinara and ate some of his dad’s duck proscuitto pizza. We had a great time. It was kinda neat to see the food network playing in the bar instead of ESPN. I love the food network.</p>
<p>We tried to go to Michael Symon’s B spot for lunch on Friday. But, the wait was too long and we had an appointment at Otterbein. So, we ate lunch at diBella’s Old Fashioned Submarines. Muppetson said the cheesteak was very good and the sesame roll was way better than subway. One 12 inch cheesesteak assuaged the hungry beast and we were off to the next college!</p>
<p>Dinner on friday was at BDs Mongolian Grill. This is a chain that we frequented while we were vacationing in Michigan. Muppetson loved it then and picked it for this night. It was good and he went back three times for more!</p>
<p>Lunch on Saturday was sandwiched between Wittenberg and Miami. We tried out the bagel and deli on the main eating street. It was very good and packed full of students.</p>
<p>Saturday night we ate at Bonefish Grill in Dayton. This was not a success. It was not the restaurant I had chosen (a pub/sports bar). But, it was close and everyone was tired and grumpy. Food did not really help.</p>
<p>Sunday lunch was at U of Dayton on Brown street. we walked around and chose a place that looked like Chipotle. Muppetson was impressed with it. Said it was as good as Chipotle (which was down the street). </p>
<p>Sunday night we ate on the road going home. Buffalo wild wings…Muppetson said my wings were better…but he really enjoyed catching up on FOOTBALL while we were eating!</p>