<p>Just looking for some first hand reviews of the school. I am just starting to explore options for my D who is a rising h.s. junior from NY.</p>
<p>My D visited Miami on a very cold day during spring break, yet she came away with a very warm feeling about Miami. She had been reluctant to consider a college not in a big city but Miami changed that view. We spent time with two girls who were staying on campus over the break and they had nothing but good to say about the college, their teachers and their classmates. It remains one of my D's favorites for applications this fall. She plans to visit during a football weekend this fall to get a better feel for the campus atmosphere.</p>
<p>Feel free to PM me if you have any specific questions.</p>
<p>I really enjoy my majors (Zoology and German), and most of my professors have been wonderful. I have a lot of opportunities at Miami that I would not have had at other schools-- a faculty mentor, a summer tuition waiver that will enable me to study in Germany for 8 weeks, almost all expenses paid. The club sports program is strongly supported by the university; I've been told that it is the best funded in the country. It would be nice if there were more places to eat (I like international foods!) and more activities in general uptown, but I can always find things to do.</p>
<p>+
The Campus
The Food
The People
The Opportunites
The Hockey
Rising Academic Reputation
New Buildings
Uptown</p>
<p>-
The Location
The Negative Stereotype (which I don't think is accurate)</p>
<p>what is the negative stereotype?</p>
<p>that Miami is "J Crew U"... and extremely preppy. (Truthfully, there are a lot of white suburbanites), but a any school of 16,000 students there is going to be diversity and you are going to be able to find any type of person you want. The media has overblown the steretype, and Miami isnt bad.</p>
<p>Bridie-
A lot of the other threads about Miami have a good variety of comments. What is your daughter thinking about studying? What EC interests does she have? Are you an in-state or out-of-state for Ohio?</p>
<p>Bridie-
PS-My D is rising HSJr too and Miami is her top choice for Studio Art/Photography, Business and/or Education.
She is into Theatre, Dance Team, Forensic Speech Team, Student Government and Soccer.
We are out of state and Miami fits her size and environment preferences (10K+/Quad style campus within a small college town yet near a big city[Cinci]).
Hope this helps.</p>
<p>We're out of state (NY), My D is possibly interested in psychology, counseling, education or health and human services-or human resources if she heads toward business. Truthfully, she doesn't have much focus yet. She likes photography and plays 3 school sports, which doesn't leave much time for anything else, though she is in a service club and will do some other community service next year. On the surface, Miami seems to be the right size, scope, environment--though she says she wishes it were called something else because everyone will think she's in Florida (the concerns of a 10th grader!). Thanks for all the answers so far.</p>
<p>Tell her this:</p>
<p>Miami University Founded 1809</p>
<p>City of Miami, Florida (named by an Ohio Native) founded 1897
University of Miami (Florida) founded 1925</p>
<p>We also used to say one of two things, depending upon the audience:
"I was educated at Oxford"
"Did you know that Miami was a college before Florida was a state?" (Florida admitted to statehood in 1845)</p>
<p>I was talking to my daughter this week about Miami and the popped collar "J-Crew" image. She noted that everyone she knows who goes to Miami doesn't fit that stereotype at all, yet she agreed it does seem preppy. But then she noted that most of the other colleges she is interested in also have a somewhat preppy image. So it is no big deal to her. She feels she'll find her own niche wherever she goes.</p>
<p>Bridie, as requested, here's a copy of my post from the "2006 Master Trip List" thread in the Parents Forum:</p>
<p>(As a side note, my D is intrigued by Miami, but wants to find out more. She'll be emailing her assigned Admissions Counselor in the next few days.)</p>
<p>MIAMI of OH- Our first stop, and the weather the day we were there was terrible; 95 degrees and nearly 100% humidity (and I wore long pants-hah! Stupid me!) No cold drinks were offered in Admissions, but there was a vending machine. There was an information session, which I found rather dry and I could tell my D was falling asleep. Not much student perspective was offered in the presentation, which I found disappointing. When it came to the tour, there were only 3 guides available for almost 200 people, so our group had about 60 people in it. It made it very hard to hear what she was saying, because there was a lot of construction going on and it was very noisy outside. THE PLUSSES: Beautiful campus, not too big, not too small, even though they say its over 2,000 acres. Even though there are 15,000 underclassmen, you can walk across campus in under ½ hour. If the weather is rotten, you can take Metro bus, which has four routes on campus. The freshmen quad is enormous; you can fit a football field inside it with room left over! The freshmen all pretty much live in the center of campus. My D also liked the town of Oxford more than any of the towns weve seen so far. Even though its not very big, its geared towards the students, with plenty of places to eat (but not much in the way of other kinds of shopping, unfortunately). I liked the fact that the campus does appear to be very safe they have an escort service that will pick you up anywhere and take you where you want to go. Academics sound great, they have her major, but .(see the minuses!) Great school spirit for intramural athletics, the most popular being broomball which is played on ice without skates. Id have to see it to believe it. The athletic facilities are wonderful, you cant get much better; however, varsity athletics do not have a good reputation except for ice hockey. THE MINUSES: Hubby & I think its too big, too far away, and not close enough to either a city or even a major highway! (It took us almost an hour to get to Oxford from Route 70.) When they say its in the middle of a cornfield, they mean it really is in the middle of a cornfield! None of the usual suburban shopping opportunities nearby; the closest mall is near Cincinnati. My D has problems with the academic rules; for example, you can start as a freshman as pre-Journalism but then you have to be accepted into the program (i.e. have a 3.0 and be invited) .what happens if you dont get in? This is the same with many of the other popular majors. Students are more or less encouraged to live off campus after freshmen year, and theres hardly any guarantee of housing for those who want it. Although my D would be allowed to have her car (you must live more that 200 miles away to have one as a freshmen) the 24 hour lot is a hike from the freshmen quad. And the only other on-campus parking is on the street, where students are not allowed to park during the day M-F and the parking fines are outrageous $75.00 for a parking fine?????</p>
<p>I don't know where route 70 is...but how far is the campus from the nearest airport? Did you feel there was school spirit? How big is greek life? Did you feel that the students are serious about their studies? How did you feel about the academics in general?</p>
<p>Drew, the winner of Big Brother 5, went there. i guess that's a good thing.</p>
<p>Bridie, I-70 is the main east-west highway that just about cuts Ohio in half--it goes right through Columbus. Oxford is approximately 45 miles south of I-70 (seems longer). There are no other closer major highways. Cincinnati is the closest airport, 38 miles away. There is shuttle that the school provides before and after school holidays; however, we heard of another that will take you to the airport just about any other time. Since it was summer, we didn't get much of a feel for school spirit, just that there is a lot of support for the intramural program and the varsity ice hockey team. The only students that were there were taking summer classes. We saw a few students going to class and others were working out in the Rec Center. Greek life is VERY big, about 30% of the students are part of the Greek system. We found out there are over 20 sororities on this one campus. As for the academics, they are top-notch, it is one of the "Public Ivys" and many of the majors are very difficult to gain entrance to. The engineering and architecture programs are particularly well-regarded. The students for the most part seem to be very serious, however, I think most of them like to have fun, too. In other words, it seems to be a nice balance; lots of studying with a little bit of fun in their extracurriculars and a little partying. Any other questions, just let me know, hopefully I'll have an answer!</p>
<p>A few things to add and clarify, in no particular order:</p>
<p>+The car issue: Having a car in Oxford is really not necessary as everyone knows someone by the end of freshman year and there is a "Rider Board" in the Shriver Center so people with vehicles can connect with those without for almost every weekend of the year. Anytime I wanted to get to anywhere (including home which was 7+ hours away in Atlanta) I found a ride within 24hours. Because the layout of the campus is easy to get around and the academic buildings are all pretty much in central quad which is mostly pedestrian, a car is going to be slower than biking or walking. I didn't have a car until my senior year when I lived just off campus and I only ended up using it to go to the laundry and home at Thanksgiving and Christmas.
+On-campus vs. Off-campus living. Miami has more residence halls(per capita) than most of the schools my D has looked at. If after freshman year, a student wants to stay on campus there usually is room and has been that way for a long time (current students please weigh-in here and correct me if I am wrong). I do know of situations where freshmen students who have registered/committed late where put in temporary housing, but after a couple weeks were found places in the residence halls.
+School Spirit-Do everything you can to attend a home football weekend, that will tell you everything you want to know. Football is HUGE at MU. It is known as "The Cradle of Coaches". Basketball and Baseball are also strong. Check out: <a href="http://www.muredhawks.com%5B/url%5D">www.muredhawks.com</a> and subscribe to their newsletter for weekly updates.
+Broomball is the real deal and such a blast. It IS huge at MU too.
+While hockey is awesome at MU, the impression that SpringfieldMom got about it being THE sport at MU was probably due to the fact that the new hockey arena is the big current event happening in Oxford and they are all very excited about it at Miami these days. I believe it is safe to say that Football reigns supreme at MU :)
+Distance from major city and getting there: It all depends on what one is looking for. Oxford is not a suburb, it is a small town. By my standards it is plenty close to Cinci, and the northern suburbs of Cinci are even closer if one needs a mall fix. D is a shopper and she has already found a cute clothing boutique at the end of High Street that she thinks will tide her over nicely in between visits home. Plus, she says "I'm going to be poor and busy studying [oh yes I am sure that is all you will be doing, I say]. I'll get my city fix when I come home for visits." Believe me, that is saying A LOT for her. If a metropolitan or suburban campus is what your kid is looking for, Miami will not be it.
The airport is easy to get to and all the major airlines fly out of there. The relative seclusion of Oxford does create a great learning environment and a somewhat safe and protected one at that. Again, it all depends upon what you are looking for.
+Getting into the more selective majors: It is pretty much based upon whether or not you have the grades after Freshman year. Also, if you are accepted into the honors program, you are automaticly admitted to those majors as freshman (I think, current students, please clarify). The School of Business, School of Education, Pulp and Paper Tech, and Mass Comm are all stellar academic reputations too.
+Greek students ARE about 30% of the student body, but because the sororities do not have houses, it doesn't dominate the campus as it can at some universities. Many women end up living with roomates either not in THEIR sorority or with women not in any sorority. 20+ years after graduation, out of the 10 friends that I have kept in touch with, only three are "sisters". My sorority was only one of my five extra-curricular activities.
+MU has an outstanding study abroad program with their own campus in Luxembourg.</p>
<p>Miami's website is one of the most informative I has seen, check it out for the best most accurate information:
<a href="http://www.muohio.edu%5B/url%5D">www.muohio.edu</a></p>
<p>It is unfortunate that SpringfieldMom's & D visit was in the summer. It IS a hot and humid area up until after Labor Day (that is why the airconditioned dorms were always so "hot" in demand). That kind of weather will color everyone's attitude and opinion.</p>
<p>Good luck and happy college visiting everyone...</p>
<p>I just read through Springfield Mom's post and would like to add my input on a few things.</p>
<p>Varsity Athletics are excellent. The Football team has recently been in the top 10 in the nation, and the Ice Hockey team was #1 for a few weeks last year. Miami consistently wins conference championships in many sports, and is hands down above all others in the Mid American Conference (All Conference Titles...Miami has won 24 out of 47 possible times...and there are 11 other schools)</p>
<p>There are several quads of Freshmen dorms, they aren't all in the same place...but each has plenty of freshmen.</p>
<p>Parking...you don't need a car, and when you do need it to leave town, the hike isn't bad.</p>
<p>Hockey rivals football as the number 1 sport with the recent success (#1 ranking etc)</p>
<p>If you aren't accepted into your major.. you can appeal the decision, and in many cases win.</p>
<p>And Students are very focused, but also know how to have fun. I go to Miami and I've been to other schools and at Miami everyone legitimately cares about their grades, but also want to have fun.</p>
<p>good luck in your college search</p>
<p>bumping too, this might help socalgirlie27.</p>
<p>wow, this helped a LOT. thank you!</p>