Any opinions on Ohio U. and Athens

[Clevelander17]

Decent school, nice party scene (lots of drugs if you're in to that), located in a town stuck in 1970. Nothing special about it either way. I would aim higher if I were serious about my tertiary education, but that's just me. If you're looking in Ohio, Miami and Ohio State would be better public university options.

[ksu sucks]

Originally Posted by Clevelander17

Decent school, nice party scene (lots of drugs if you're in to that), located in a town stuck in 1970. Nothing special about it either way. I would aim higher if I were serious about my tertiary education, but that's just me. If you're looking in Ohio, Miami and Ohio State would be better public university options.

I agree wholeheartedly. If you're into the whole, "Leaving home and reality for four years" then OU is for you. That town and university needs a wakeup call. Many of it's sports programs are underfunded and they've cut multiple sports recently.

I agree with Miami as well. OSU, not so much. You're nothing more than a number there and the campus is...well...ugly. If you are looking for an urban setting for any kind of engineering and science major I'd look at Akron in Northern Ohio and Cinci in southern Ohio. Much nicer campuses and not as overwhelmingly large.

[WeSoHood]

There has been a spike in crime in Athens, County. Mainly outside of the University. There have already been a couple drive by's and other homicides. Which is quite alarming for a community of 25,000. There are also a spike in assaults and felonies - the Sheriff stated the highest numbers in quite some time. I will try to find the article I read, but the drugs are becoming a problem. Apparently, Somalis and MS13 gangs are in a few areas surrounding Athens. But most of this crime is located in the outlying areas with extreme poverty and drug problems. In and around Athens campus has some nice historic homes, albeit you are in the middle of no where. OU's campus is beautiful as well, my favorite in Ohio tied with Miami.

The drug scene at OU is overstated. Most kids drink and MIGHT smoke marijuana. Surely, with 20,000 kids, people will be doing other elicit drugs as well (but not more so than any other Ohio University). The party scene gives the school a bad reputation, although most of the big party weekends are comprised of thousands from Ohio State and Miami, etc which ruin the campus and cause a lot of troubles. I would assume that Miami has a much higher coke usage rate, as I've heard this from fellow students as well. My friends have told me there is a growing rap/hip-hop scene as well as indie Rock. The amount of beautiful women I see far exceeds other schools I've visited in Ohio.

There are some great schools within OU as well. The business school is within the top 50 in the nation. The Scripps school is rated on of the best in the nation. Great telecommunications school as well - many end up working for NBC I believe I was told. Not to mention sports management, engineering, etc. Overall, the reputation of OU is far overhyped and many people don't know the area/school and assume far too much.

[Clevelander17]

My sister went to OU, so I know a bit about the school. You're right about the comm school, though, it's one of the best in the country. Immediately off of the top of my head I know that Matt Lauer is an alumnus, and I'm sure there are other names you'd recognize.

Don't get me wrong, I don't think OU is a bad school, I just don't think it's spectacular either way.

Originally Posted by ksu sucks

I agree with Miami as well. OSU, not so much. You're nothing more than a number there and the campus is...well...ugly. If you are looking for an urban setting for any kind of engineering and science major I'd look at Akron in Northern Ohio and Cinci in southern Ohio. Much nicer campuses and not as overwhelmingly large.

True, Ohio State's campus is huge, both in geographic size and enrollment. But, in my opinion, it's much nicer than Cincinnati's campus, or at the very least, no worse. And Columbus, as a city, offers more opportunities than Akron. And one thing I am certain of, in general, a degree from Ohio State carries much more recognition and prestige than a degree from any other public university in the state. Certain other public universities have "niche" programs and departments that are better than individual departments at Ohio State, but on the whole, Ohio State is the best public university in the state. After all, it is the state's flagship public university for a reason.

[WeSoHood]

Ohio college graduation rate is 54.5%, American Enterprise Institute study finds; U.S. rate 53.7% - Metro - cleveland.com

Not saying you are wrong Cleveland17, but you are misinformed. This article only confirms that OU is one of Ohio's top uni's. It brings a LOT more to the table then you can imagine. 90% of the people I talk to only have neutral things to say about OU, when in reality, it's only getting better.

[Clevelander17]

Originally Posted by WeSoHood

Ohio college graduation rate is 54.5%, American Enterprise Institute study finds; U.S. rate 53.7% - Metro - cleveland.com

Not saying you are wrong Cleveland17, but you are misinformed. This article only confirms that OU is one of Ohio's top uni's. It brings a LOT more to the table then you can imagine. 90% of the people I talk to only have neutral things to say about OU, when in reality, it's only getting better.

Misinformed about what? That Ohio State is the best public school in the state? That Miami University is a close second? And that Ohio University is a bit ways back in third, but well ahead of Cincinnati, Kent, and Bowling Green, which are all next in line (in no particular order)?

[ksu sucks]

Originally Posted by Clevelander17

Misinformed about what? That Ohio State is the best public school in the state? That Miami University is a close second? And that Ohio University is a bit ways back in third, but well ahead of Cincinnati, Kent, and Bowling Green, which are all next in line (in no particular order)?

....You're right. As far as perception goes, OSU and Miami are the top two. OU is a great university, but it's definetly in third. The rest is all arguable. After the top three it all depends on what you plan on majoring in, because as you mentioned, every school has it's niche.
For example, I'd pick a few schools over OSU if I were majoring in engineering. And if I were going into journalism, I'd certainly look at a couple others before OSU.

If I could group Ohio public universities in Tiers it would probably look something like this:

Tier 1
1.t-Miami
t-OSU
2.OU

Tier 2
STEM(Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics):
1.Cinci
2.t-Akron
t-Toledo

Liberal Arts/Non-STEM:
1. Kent
2. BG.

Tier 3:
1.Wright State
2.CSU
3.Youngstown State
4.Central State
5.Shawnee State
6.Wright State



I know this is overgeneralizing, but I'd say for the most part this is rather accurate. Akron and Toledo are sister schools, and Cinci has a slight edge in the research department because of funding, hence the ranking there.

[Clevelander17]

Originally Posted by ksu sucks

....You're right. As far as perception goes, OSU and Miami are the top two. OU is a great university, but it's definetly in third. The rest is all arguable. After the top three it all depends on what you plan on majoring in, because as you mentioned, every school has it's niche.
For example, I'd pick a few schools over OSU if I were majoring in engineering. And if I were going into journalism, I'd certainly look at a couple others before OSU.

If I could group Ohio public universities in Tiers it would probably look something like this:

Tier 1
1.t-Miami
t-OSU
2.OU

Tier 2
STEM(Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics):
1.Cinci
2.t-Akron
t-Toledo

Liberal Arts/Non-STEM:
1. Kent
2. BG.

Tier 3:
1.Wright State
2.CSU
3.Youngstown State
4.Central State
5.Shawnee State
6.Wright State



I know this is overgeneralizing, but I'd say for the most part this is rather accurate. Akron and Toledo are sister schools, and Cinci has a slight edge in the research department because of funding, hence the ranking there.

That's pretty close, though there are some differences in the way I see it, it's just not worth arguing about.

Bowling Green and Kent are sister schools, too.

[sparrow123]

Athens area is a beautiful area. But, downtown is just gross, dirty, smelly! Broken bottles, trash!! Does anyone cleanup?? The rental apts, and homes in downtown are just slums and the landlords nothing better than slumlords!
Far from a charming town!!

[WeSoHood]

Originally Posted by sparrow123

Athens area is a beautiful area. But, downtown is just gross, dirty, smelly! Broken bottles, trash!! Does anyone cleanup?? The rental apts, and homes in downtown are just slums and the landlords nothing better than slumlords!
Far from a charming town!!

Never saw an uncleanly town when I visited. Pretty clean. One of the best campuses in Ohio tied with Miami.






Majority of the rentals uptown are occupied by College students. They, like any other college town (Columbus, Oxford) will have a fair share of cheaper rentals. There are also very nice housing options too. I've seen some amazing apartments down there. But the uptown area (Court St) is not dirty at all. Rather clean.