So I may end up at fsu but as of now, I haven’t visited and have no visit planned. I have visited uf, USf, ucf and um and I have heard fsu has a similar vibe to uf. Overall, what are your favorite things about the school and what is it like being there?
We’ve visited UF, UCF and FSU. Honestly FSU wasn’t that high on my son’s list until we visited. The staff was INCREDIBLY helpful, and the campus was absolutely gorgeous, even in the rain. The vibe was very friendly, everyone from bus drivers to students to people working in the dining halls or campus bookstore. It was all about “How We Can Help You Achieve Your Goals,” and “We Have Tons of Resources and Basically It’s All Free” (once you pay your tuition/fees, of course, lol!).
Honestly our whole family was taken aback at how well we liked FSU. I wanted to go there after the visit! UF was pretty nice too, very beautiful campus, if a lot more spread out. The student tour guides were great. The admissions team was a little off-putting, they sort of said most of you won’t get in, you’d be very LUCKY to get to attend here. Whereas FSU said “we hope you all make it, we’d LOVE for every one of you to become a Nole.” Now of course logic dictates that FSU can’t possibly let every applicant in, but every person in that room felt like the staff wanted them to get in, regardless. Just a different mindset, I guess.
FSU took us into a dorm, the guides fielded questions, everything from what can you bring, to what if you have a roommate problem etc. UF basically had us stand OUTSIDE a dorm, and the guide tried gamely to describe how the housing system worked while many students tried to squeeze past our whole tour group as we were stuck in this walkway between one area and another, and had a hard time hearing the guide.
Honestly it’s a small detail, and certainly NOT a reason to choose one school over the other, but it did contribute to the overall impressions of both schools. That’s why I told my son to not rely on first impressions, and that he should go to an accepted students day at UF if he gets in, to give it more of a chance to show what it’s all about.
All my interactions with FSU have confirmed my impression of them as being extremely “customer friendly.” Still, the final decision has to be about the total package and how it relates to YOUR goals. FSU is strong is certain things, and UF may be strong in others.
We liked UCF a lot too. They have a lot of good stuff going on, campus is more fresh and new instead of stately and traditional like FSU/UF. The school spirit seems a little less vibrant, but I hear it’s on the upswing.
@Trisherella thank you. Everyone has told me the overall campus/tour were “better” at fsu.