Florida State University

FSU was actually my second choice college(first being Gatorville). After visiting both campuses, the people at UF seemed to be full of themselves while the people at FSU seemed friendly and wanted you to feel comfortable. Because this might be a big chunk of info, I'll break this down a bit.

As far as the party school rumors goes, yes this town does have parties everywhere but don't assume that EVERYONE drinks. I have some friends who do not drink but still find tons of stuff to do. If you do want to party, go to most of the bars in the Tennessee strip, there are tons of them. In most of the apartments they have public parties going on which are really fun. There are rare occasions where the cops come, but if they do: Make sure you get out of harm's way first. It will save you a lot of trouble later on.

FSU is not a difficult school, especially the first year. In all honesty, if you cannot maintain a 3.0 average, it is either because you are an idiot or lazy as hell. Although the stuff I'm about to say is for biology/premed people, the above is true for everybody. If you're a Biology major or doing pre-med, depending what math you have depends on how long it will take to do your prerequisites(sp). I reccomend starting with MAC1140 first. If you took Pre-Calc in high school or Calculus, don't make them let you take College Algebra. You can take the CLEP test to take the math that you want. The reason this is important is that College Algebra is a joke class(or so I heard) and you will be wasting your time. If you're like me who does not like to take a class I already did, then make sure to get that checked. The people might scare you to think this major is hard, but it is not that bad. For some people Chem or Bio may be tough, but it depends on your teacher. One last thing, depending on your major, most of your classes will be small classes where more discussion is used or lecture hall where the teacher talks the whole time.

If your looking to work out or play sports, FSU is the school to go to. Almost everyone I know goes to the Leach Center or plays IM sports. They are a lot of fun and easy to apply. You can make your own team or join a club team or if your in a fraternity, they have pre-made teams for you. The Leach is open really early and closes at 10:00 so it fits your schedule. It has a large pool, lots of equipment, and even has dance and workout classes. You can also get a Personal Trainer too.

Umm...what else...Parking is a bitch. You'll probably notice that the first week of class. If you live in a dorm, park in the dorm lot not in the parking garage; that way your spot won't get taken. Even if you don't have a car, getting around is not bad. There are lots of places you can go with walking or biking, or the bus, which is free with your FSUCard.That's all I can say for now. FSU is a great school and I would reccomend it!

1st Year Male -- Class 2008

Social Life: A+, Scholastic Success: B-

I was a German major and U.S. history minor when I attended FSU from 1986-1990. I had a great time and look back at my time there with a great deal of fondness. I currently teach for the Department of Defense Dependent Schools in Mannheim, Germany (ESL & yearbook). At FSU, the professors were awesome, the program was challenging and the social life was incredible. I went back to school at University of Hawai'i to get my teacher's license and then really appreciated my time at FSU, as it was much more challenging and fulfilling than my University of Hawai'i at Manoa experience. I am currently finishing my M.A.E.T. or Master's of Arts in Educatinal Technology with Michigan State University in Plymouth, England and can honestly say I see no real difference in the quality of programs between FSU and MSU. Nest year I will begin my Ph.D. with the University of Nebraska and suspect I will find much the same. Having graduated from such a well-known school has been a major advantage in my life and I wouldn't change a thing. The thing I like best is how well FSU is known throughout the world...that is probably the best way to judge its quality, by its international reputation. Hope this helps.

4th Year Female -- Class 1990

Faculty Accessibility: A+, Innovation: F

My undergrad degree is somewhat related to the field I want to go into, especially as the base for each is in research methods. Therefore I would say that the undergrad allowed me time to explore my interests and taught me a core of information. The opportunities are here for gainging experience, doing reserahc, etc but you have to want to do it and work hard. It is not simply a given.

Alumnus Male -- Class 2000