<p>So it’s down to the last stretch. And my choices are between OSU and UMD. So here are my pros and cons and I want you guys to give me reasons on why i should or shouldn’t attend any of the two schools. </p>
<p>Ohio State Pros
-Big School with a lot of oppurtunities
-Good business program with easier path for me to transfer into sophomore year.
-Great Sports
-Awesome social life and more modern looking buildings.
-Good reputation amongst employers</p>
<p>Ohio State Cons
-Freshman classes might be too big
-Lack of diversity(i’m black)
-Might be too much of a party school?</p>
<p>Maryland Pros
-Very Diverse school
-Good business program
-I’m in state and i have a lot of friends going there
-Great Social life like OSU</p>
<p>Maryland Cons
-Buildings are on the older side
-Sports haven’t been too good lately
-It will be harder for me to transfer into Smith than for me to transfer into Fisher
-The dorms when i visited kinda well sucked…(note: I haven’t seen OSU dorms yet)</p>
<p>So yea that’s all I can really say about the schools. Please give me your take as I should know where I’m going by next Monday. Thanks!</p>
<p>Well we don’t burn crosses or anything.</p>
<p>I have a classmate who interned at Baltimore, he hated it.</p>
<ol>
<li><p>“Great Sports”–take that off your list of school qualifications. It absolutely has no bearing whatsoever on the kind of education you will receive. Actually, scratch that. Schools with better sports programs often have WORSE academic standards. See William Dowling’s “Confessions of a Spoilsport.” Very eye-opening. I would recommend this book to anyone who thinks they should pick their college based on the athletic program. </p></li>
<li><p>“more modern looking buildings” – again, campus aesthetics should have no bearing on where you do your education. You can learn just as well in an old building as you can in a new building. And you should also know: OSU’s buildings may “look modern,” but many are run down. Money is funneled to very specific programs at OSU while other programs go without. </p></li>
<li><p>Diversity – this is something you need to come to terms with on your own. At OSU, you will indeed sit among a sea of white faces. But many parts of the country are also a sea of white faces. So you need to ask yourself how comfortable you are with this dynamic or if you personally yearn for a more diverse experience. Columbus is not as diverse as the DC area, but you’ll find that the city itself is very tolerant of African Americans–maybe even moreso than the DC area. I noticed a lot more racial tension in DC than in Columbus.</p></li>
</ol>
<p>UMD and OSU are very similar schools–second-tier state universities. Is cost an issue? If you get in-state tuition for Maryland, I would suggest going there. The exorbitant out-of-state cost of OSU is not justified by any difference in the rankings.</p>
<p>Oh, and where are you getting this information about OSU as more competitive among employers? What is your evidence for this? Is this something that the admissions office has told you? The Fisher Business School? Know that these people will feed you whatever line they have to to get you in the door, especially when there’s out-of-state tuition at stake. I’m not saying that it isn’t true, but you need to evaluate where the information is coming from. </p>
<p>Do your research carefully. Get a better sense of <em>where</em> OSU and Maryland are placing their graduates, how many they place, and in what career paths.</p>
<p>You say that it’s more difficult to get into Maryland’s business school. Well, why is this a bad thing? Do you anticipate not working hard? You should <em>want</em> to go to a school where you have to work hard to be among a select elite. Such a thing will equip you to survive in the business world.</p>
<p>I hate sports’ coupling with academics and resent its popularity, but I’ll admit that a perk of going to a sports-crazy school is the excellent and plentiful gym and exercise facilities, almost empty on game days so I can workout in peace!</p>
<p>I’m biased because I think OSU’s campus is beautiful, not to mention their great academics and a multitude of opportunities.</p>
<p>But I usually advocate for the instate school, or the school that is less expensive. So that would be Maryland.</p>
<p>My D did not like the dorms at OSU.</p>
<p>I got a lot of financial aid from osu so money isnt an issue. So can you guys give me actual reasons that might sway me to one college? Please offer explanations as well.</p>
<p>I have been very happy with the large number of employers who recruit business students at Ohio State, both for internships and for full-time jobs. I had a professor recently ask, in a class of senior finance majors, for those of us who had jobs already lined up to raise our hands, and most of the non-international students had their hands up (visa and sponsorship issues make it more difficult for international students to find jobs in the U.S.). The average reported salary for someone in my major, finance, is 53k now, which is almost 10k above the national mean. </p>
<p>Fisher also recently jumped a huge number of spots on Businessweek’s rankings for undergraduate business programs, and is now ranked 34th in the nation. </p>
<p>[Best</a> Undergraduate Business Schools 2013 - Notre Dame Takes Top Spot Once Again - Businessweek](<a href=“http://images.businessweek.com/slideshows/2013-03-20/best-undergraduate-business-schools-2013#slide35]Best”>http://images.businessweek.com/slideshows/2013-03-20/best-undergraduate-business-schools-2013#slide35)</p>
<p>Wow, according to that data, business majors only study 14 hours a week. That’s ridiculous. I used to spend 14 hours on one class.</p>
<p>malia56–Do you have some type of personal vendetta against OSU? I’ve only seen you post negative comments about the school. I’m in grad school there now, but did my undergrad at a different (and much higher ranked) state school, and the two are actually quite comparable in terms of quality of undergrad education from what I’ve observed in teaching at OSU. </p>
<p>I’m hoping the OP is not using the sports program as his/her main criteria for chooing a school (and I’m sure that’s not the case), but if you’re a sports fan in general it does add to the campus experience, which ties into the personal “fit” of a school. It’s not only at state schools where students go crazy for college sports–ever heard of Duke?</p>
<p>As far as the campus facilities, I think OSU is putting a lot of money into the STEM areas, so if the OP is in one of those fields I don’t think the facilities are “run-down” at all. Also, Sullivant is being completely rennovated for the Dance department. If you take foreign languages, Hagerty Hall (my neck of the woods) was completely revamped in '05 (?) and the foreign language learning facilities are suberb. I should know–I’ve visited several other depts at big-name schools and many weren’t even comparable in terms of resources. </p>
<p>Btw-What’s your definition of a 2nd-tier state university? Where would you consider Ohio U or U of Dayton? OSU might be below the likes of UVA or Michigan in terms of rankings (and to some extent the quality of undergrads), but offers comparable opportunities as these schools. I don’t think many would consider OSU a “second-tier” school these days.</p>
<p>I’m curious about malia56 as well. His profile indicates he is 30, but only started posting in December, and only about OSU, and never positive. Malia if you truly spent more than 14 hours a week on every class you took I think the problem is you had no social life. Lets face it, when you are 18 it is very important that you develop into a well rounded adult and that includes interacting with other people with a variety of backgrounds. It is an extermely important facet of college. I’ve worked with very smart people who can’t get any colaborate projects succesfully completed because they can’t relate to other people. But, a smart person with a personality can accomplish a lot and it seems effortless.</p>
<p>My son goes to OSU majoring in biomedical engineering. My biggest complaint about OSU were the dorms, but they are revamping them now. As an engineer myself, I compare his engineering experiences with mine and my peers and I think OSU is doing a great job. While sports shouldn’t be a reason to attend or not, it can be indicative of student life and the social atmosphere of the campus, which I find exhilierating whenever I visit OSU. </p>
<p>One of the key characteristics I looked at when evaluating schools with my S was the freshman retention rate, I believe it is in the mid 90s for all freshmen, and upper 90s for honors freshmen, though you should check the college profile to verify the actual number. It was surprising to me that a school the size of OSU had a retentivity that high. The freshman class is large, but you’ll find that once you start taking classes in your major they get small very quick. Also, if you are an honor student your honors classes are limited to about 35 students. My S first year in engineering about 80% of his classes were honors.</p>
<p>Lol, nice show of anti-intellectualism, jjw6455. Believe it or not, there are universities out there where students actually thrive in and out of the classroom and take pride in their studies and intelligence. Hard to process from a buckeye perspective, I know!</p>
<p>Malia, you’re acting like a ■■■■■. Is it so hard to be nice?</p>
<p>Malia56, Pride in what you believe and practice are very important. But, pride is expressed by being positive and holding it up for people to see and being proud of the achievement. Nothing you have expressed on the OSU board says anything about pride, for any school. My interpretation is that you have nothing to be prideful in so you sink to trying to bring down a school that is very high on their own acheivements.</p>
<p>My son has been in engineering at OSU for 2 years. I visit the campus, talk to his fellow students, take part in his engineering presentations. Believe me, the students I talk to are intelligent, driven and they succeed in many areas. Is OSU the best educator in the world ? probably not. Best sports program ? doubt it. Most active campus life ? no. But when you consider all these aspects, along with a goal of being a well rounded, productive adult, prepared for the world, I think OSU ranks pretty darn high. When you add in more personal decisions such as distance, convenience, in state tuition, clubs… it becomes a top contender. 93% of the people who start there, continue to their 2nd year. That tells me that OSU has something going for it. If you’re part of the 7% OK, move on. Express pride in what you believe in, go to your school’s board and tell everyone why they should go there, be a positive influence for change, not a negative one.</p>
<p>Op sorry to have hijacked your thread, obviously I like OSU but don’t know anything about the other contenders.</p>
<p>Malia56, I don’t know what happened to you at Ohio State, whether it was academic or social or both, but clearly it’s left you a very bitter young man. I went through all of your posts, and it would certainly seem that you created this account entirely to ■■■■■ any threads about Ohio State and slam the university, its students, its reputation…even, on one occasion, its newspaper. Such activity accounts for about 9 out of every 10 posts that you’ve made on this website. </p>
<p>Maybe someday you’ll find some sense of closure and be able to move on and focus more on posting about the positives of wherever you ended up. Until that day comes, I rather pity you.</p>
<p>I provide an honest perspective. You welcome to disagree with me, but I’m not going to mince words about OSU to avoid hurting the feelings of the people who like it there. If you want to read nice things and nice things only, then I don’t know, hang out around the admissions office? Develop a thicker skin about OSU. If you can’t handle a few mild criticisms without resorting to ad hominem attacks or anti-intellectual attitudes–well, then that certainly doesn’t speak well of your OSU education and ethos. You should also know that the criticisms I’ve leveled against OSU pale in comparison to what others have said elsewhere. Here’s a sample: [What’s</a> Wrong With the American University System - Jennie Rothenberg Gritz - The Atlantic](<a href=“What's Wrong With the American University System - The Atlantic”>What's Wrong With the American University System - The Atlantic)</p>
<p>As I’ve said over and over again, OSU is a good bargain for an instate student without means or scholarships to go somewhere else. I actually think it’s decent school for a self-motivated student who desires to stay in the area, or who is academically talented enough to get a good education in an impersonal setting. But no, I’m not going to sit here and lie about the school and say it offers a much better experience than it really does, or that its academics are rigorous, or that it has a great reputation outside of Ohio. Of course you’re welcome to disagree. But seriously, buck up. If you love your school so much, then why does it matter what anyone else says?</p>
<p>Malia, you say all that with such earnest and smug certainty. I might actually believe it if your anti-Ohio State rants were mitigated by something. I don’t know…something…anything? Perhaps a couple of positive things about anything at the university…and not the condemnation by faint praise exhibited above. How about a bunch of posts extolling the virtues of the university you transferred to…where is that again? Some thoughts on higher education in general? But alas, you don’t post those either.</p>
<p>There is such a petty, immature and single minded obsession to your activity on this board in denigrating every little thing about Ohio State that I can’t help but think that bitterness is rooted in something very traumatic. Did Ohio State reject you, and your whole bad freshman year is just a ruse to badmouth the place? Did you flunk out? Did nobody like you in the dorm and you spent the weekends alone on a desolate floor? Whatever it was, you’re not coming across as an intelligent and objective observer of the institution in question. You’re coming across as an embittered child, stamping his feet and saying mean things about those who did him wrong. As I said earlier, I don’t resent you…I just pity you and hope you gain some sense of closure so that you can move on with your life.</p>
<p>Malia56,
I am interested in information from all sources about OSU since I am about to make a 4 year commitment and do not have any experience with the school. I am not from Ohio but I can tell you that it does have a good reputation outside of Ohio. One example of many is when we saw a ENT yesterday and brought up our college search, to our surprise, he graduated from OSU’s Medical School He then completed his internship at Washington University. He told us that he had a great experience at OSU and the staff and students were great. Went on to tell us about a great ice cream place in Columbus. And then said we could not go wrong with our OSU decision. Our friends son (IQ of 170) graduated from Vanderbilt then took a job with OSU’s physic’s department. Worked there for seven years now he is at Vanderbilt head of their physic’s department.
You did not graduate for OSU is that correct? Are you basing your opinion of OSU from your own experience there and another college experience you had? If so from where and what area of study? Understanding your background would give your statements more creditability and not make me wonder if you are posting just to be posting since you are negative in most of your information. As others have said you are only posting on OSU’s forum which does seem odd. I really do not want to offend you, everyone has a right to their opinion. I just want to make sure I am getting a clear picture from people. I actually am most interested in non-Ohioian’s opinions. Not as bias.
Best Regards</p>