<p>I have one more day to make my college decision. I am leaning heavily towards the School of Journalism at the University of Missouri (aka Mizzou). I love the journalism program, the campus, the college town, and the school spirit. Still, as I come to a decision, I am growing more nervous about it. It is hard to tell whether it is a simple case of nerve surrounding a major life decision or that there is something to it. </p>
<p>One of my concerns lies in the overall academics. While the J-School is widely considered the best, the rest of the school isn't great academically. The school that I would be passing up, Newhouse at Syracuse, is a better overall university despite the fact that I like the journalism program better at Mizzou. I am hoping that my acceptance to Mizzou's honors program will help offset what may be subpar academics.</p>
<p>So, please help me address this and share your thoughts on the University. All comments and insight are greatly appreciated.</p>
<p>University of Missouri? I never heard of it, usually within a state… a college name University of ( states name) is the states top university. Usually University of Washington comes to mind for Missouri.</p>
<p>Go to Mizzou. Big 12 universities have much more laid back atmospheres than schools in the East, and you’ll find that within the world of journalism Mizzou has an incredible reputation. Not so elsewhere, like Wall Street, the medical profession, etc… but I have a lot of friends that recently graduated college and work as reporters. When it comes to journalism amongst the Big 12 schools, Mizzou and OU are tops. Going to one of those two you have the best broadcast facilities, some a lot better than what actual television channels have got, and you get a degree with a reputation that is highly respected in the middle of America AND on the East Coast.</p>
<p>(Hope I was helpful! I just know people that went there and say it was the best decision they ever made.)</p>
<p>go tigers! mizzou has the best j school in the country, and it will cost a lot less than syracuse would. the honors program feels like a smaller liberal arts college, so you shouldn’t worry about the quality of academics. besides, it’s probably easier to get a stellar gpa at mizzou then it would be at syracuse.</p>
<p>can’t believe we’re still discussing this…please PM geezermom…her son made this choice last year; she will be the best person to tell you about Missouri’s academic rigor…</p>
<p>Well, you’ve heard from me before on this issue, but here goes again. There are many very, very fine students at Univ. of Mo, just as there are at flagship publics across this country. Not every super bright kid can afford to go, or wants to go, to a private school or out of state to somebody else’s public university. You are not likely to find yourself at the top of most, or possibly, any of the classes you take.</p>
<p>Take advantage of the honor’s options to avoid the super-large lectures (which may not be any larger than you will encounter at Syracuse for freshman classes). Get to know professors who seem interesting. Large universities often do require some extra effort on the part of students who want to get as much out of their education as possible. Don’t just sit back and wait to be offered research positions, internships, etc.</p>
<p>By the way, I have a close relative who transferred out of Syracuse to come to MU for J school. He was never sorry in the least, enjoyed his time at Mizzou very much. Sorry, I don’t know the details about why he transferred.</p>
<p>You’ve heard from me, too, and again I second what midmo says. Someone on this board once suggested that the way to choose between two colleges is to flip a coin: in your case, heads = Mizzou, tails = Syracuse. If it lands on tails and a feeling of disappointment washes over you, then you’ll know.</p>
<p>I rather go to Syracuse in terms of location. Missouri really doesn’t have much there and Syracuse does not have a bad journalism school. Though, Syracuse isn’t no NYC. I also agree that Missouri’s overall academics are way below Syracuse. But Mizzou is like the top journalism school in the country and the name itself will go pretty far. I personally would pick Syracuse, but that’s just my two cents. I would go with your heart and do not flip a coin, lol. I also think their is a little bias towards Mizzou, lol. I for one do not go to either school and wouldn’t really want to go to Mizzou or Syracuse. I’m more of the NYU, Northwestern, USC type of guy. Good Luck!</p>
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University of Missouri? I never heard of it, usually within a state… a college name University of ( states name) is the states top university. Usually University of Washington comes to mind for Missouri.
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</p>
<p>Anyone else have no clue what he just tried to say? I’m guessing he’s talking about WUSTL.</p>
<p>Excuse me, but I was just giving my own personal unbiased opinion on the two schools. I wanted him/her to know that my opinion is not one sided, thank you. I don’t think I asked for your opinion.</p>
<p>I was curious why you and other posters have made the assumption that the undergraduate student body at Syracuse is SO VERY MUCH stronger academically than that of MU, so I looked up the ACT scores of the last fresman class on College Board web site.</p>
<p>Get ready: Syracuse (mid-50) 23-28</p>
<pre><code> University of MO (mid-50) 23-28
</code></pre>
<p>In case you are unfamiliar with what that spread means, it is a way of comparing the middle 50% of the school’s student body. 25% of both schools’ freshman class scored below 23, and 25% of both schools’ freshman class scored above 28.</p>
<p>Here is the SAT data:</p>
<p>Syracuse: CR 520-620 M 550-650</p>
<p>Univ. of MO CR 540-660 M 540-650</p>
<p>And no, I do not have them reversed.</p>
<p>So, do you have any evidence that the top 25 % is so very much better?</p>
<p>Now that we have established the essential parity of the student bodies, and you have stated that you love MU and the town it sits in the middle of, why don’t you just stick a stamp on the post-card?</p>
<p>(Also, keep in mind that J-school students are, as a group, the strongest students on campus, so the students you will be spending time with are likely to be stronger–using scores as a metric–than the average student at Syracuse.)</p>
<p>You love everything about MU and it is the top journalism school in the country. Unless you are uncertain about journalism, I think the choice is a no-brainer. My daughter graduated from Mizzou in journalism and was also in the honors program. She felt very good about her choice. The J-School is a close community and they are very loyal to their program and their graduates. You would have a great network of alumni around the nation that love to hire Mizzou grads.</p>