Colorado State University-Fort Collins Top Questions

What is your overall opinion of this school?

Leo

This is my first semester here, but so far I am very impressed. The campus looks very nice and is surrounded by the mountains. The school itself seems like it has a great science program and the people are very freindly.

Richard

Sounds like a practical education and not too heavy on the theory regarding water resources.

Rebecca

It is a great school with a beautiful campus. The administration can be hard to contact and the school is often difficult to work with.

Gabriel

An accepting and happy environment with numerous resources and helpful students and faculty.

Kelsey

Colorado State is an amazing university to be apart of. The campus is beautiful with newly renovated buildings and a great view of the Rocky Mountains. Fort Collins is a great community to live in. Everyone in the town and in the university have been very kind and welcoming throughout my time here. As a College of Business student I have been provided with an exceptional education and career resources that will assist me in finding a job when I graduate. Even though the business school is the largest undergraduate major on campus it still provides a small college atmosphere. Most students are involved in clubs and organizations and there are always new ways to get involved on campus and in the community. CSU has provided me with the tools I need to find a fulfilling career and the faculty and staff have worked with me on achieving my goals every step of the way. CSU is a great university to study at and Fort Collins is an even better place to live.

Laura

My overall opinion of this school is that its crowded and somewhat over populated. While I love the huge campus and the opportunity to meet new people every day, it gets really frustrating having to wait twenty minutes to get to the dining hall, and having to weave in between people in a coffee shop on campus, and not having a place to leave my car that's within walking distance.

Jeannie

I absolutely LOVE it at CSU. I've learned so much since I've been here and the dorm food isn't half bad. Fort Collins and CSU is very biker friendly so that's always a plus and it's so close to Old Town.

Jessica

The best thing about CSU is it's combination of a warm welcome and lots of resources. Even if you want to feel out of place at CSU, it's almost impossible to actually do so. The students are all friendly and so is the faculty. Beyond the warm welcome, CSU has great resources for everything from athletics to academics to careers to comedy tours. There is an excellent amount of student life and involvement at the campus and that helps students feel really united.

Jessie

I love CSU!

Megan

Michelle

As a transfer student, my experience at CSU has far exceeded my expectations. The entire environment is very friendly and welcoming. While it is a large school, the community makes it feel a lot smaller. There are many opportunities to get involved and meet new people. There is also a great Greek community, which is fairly laid back compared to the Greek system at other schools, and it does not make up a large percentage of the student population so there is no pressure to join one. Fort Collins also has a small little downtown called Old Town which has many restaurants and little shops. It is always a great place to hang out with friends. The culture is also very active. Many students go snowboarding, skiing, hiking, rock climbing and other physical activities quite frequently. However, one of my biggest complaints about CSU is the school is constantly under construction. They are currently working on a new addition to the library as well as other buildings and dorms. This takes away from the school's beautiful atmosphere. Another drawback to Fort Collins is it has a lot of traffic around the school so it takes a while to drive somewhere around town.

Hannah

I love this school because people are so friendly, and they work hard but also know how to relax and have a good time. I think this school is the perfect size because there are always opportunities to meet new people, but you also run into people you know on campus a lot. Fort Collins is a beautiful town to live in, and there's always something to do or somewhere to go hang out on or off campus. I think CSU's environment is the perfect balance between academics and fun

Nikki

One of the best things about this school are the professors. I've mainly only had classes in the College of Ag, but even my general classes are with professors who have outstanding experience truly care and want to see their students do their best. CSU is located just minutes from the foothills and horsetooth reservoir as well as Old Town which has some of the best places around to eat and shop. Right now campus is under construction with additions to the library and new buildings. Normally the campus is beautiful but this last year it isn't too much to brag about. But, the new buildings are state of the art and will add a lot to campus when they're finished

Krista

Overall, I adore my school! The best part about CSU is our beautiful campus and our proximity to the Rocky Mountains. Our campus is both easy to navigate and covered with Colorado's most striking flora. The campus fits our medium-sized population well because there's always enough room for everyone to hang outdoors. CSU is situated in a lovely college town, complete with an old-fashioned candy shop and cheap thrift stores. If I could change anything about CSU, I would alter our administration so that students have more say in the decision-making. For example, the most recent controversy revolves around building a new football stadium; this endeavor would cost over four million dollars! I believe this money could be better spent as scholarship money or to renovate the older dorms. Other than that, CSU has been a perfect fit for me. We have some unusual traditions such as the Undies Run in the fall and drag shows in the fall/spring, but they add diversity to our days!

Tiffany

I moved from Denver to Fort Collins, and this move was a hard transition for me. I grew up hanging out in the city downtown, and skateboarding in the skate park. Fort Collins was much more secluded than the colleges my friends attended (such as CU Boulder, DU etc). However, I grew to love Fort Collins as a town. The entire city has a sense of community, and you can get around easily with a bike. I would spend a lot of my time on campus, in Old Town (downtown Fort Collins), and hiking in Horsetooth during the summer. Colorado State University has a beautiful campus and everyone in the city has a great amount of school pride.

Victoria

I transfered to CSU from a small liberal arts school and it was the best decision I have ever made. I thought it would be so huge and I was very intimidated, but it honestly doesn't feel that way. Yeah, sometimes when you are walking to class it does, but even in 300 person lectures I have never felt lost or out of place. Everyone is so friendly, people always hold the door or ask if you need help/are okay if you look distressed. It's amazing! All my professors have been great, as well (fingers crossed). They are all willing to meet with you if you need help and they don't feel like this higher power you can't even speak with. Although CSU does have some good spirit, I wish it was even more and that we would support all our sports teams more (even the ones that tend to struggle cough football cough). Fort Collins is a wonderful town, as well. It has it's family neighborhoods but is also a great college town. There is downtown/oldtown with wonderful restaurants and some bars. There are so many outdoor activities, as well. We are right by Horsetooth reservoir where you can go to bike, hike, run, swim, etc. There is a lot of construction on campus right now, which is super annoying but, hey, it's for the best right? I mean when they are all done, the buildings are going to be amazing. Our rec center is fantastic! It is brand new with lots of space and new equipment. Registration can be frustrating, but it's like that at all schools I feel. All in all, CSU is fantastic. Oh, and I love that our president sends out personalized emails almost every week (well not personalized to each person at the school but they feel more personalized then generic- he addresses us as a student body very well!).

Hillary

CSU is an awesome, friendly, innovative school! Ii's hard to believe that it's such a big school because it has such a close, friendly environment.

Colton

One of my biggest worries coming into CSU was the size; 25,000 undergraduate students is a lot of people, and I was very worried that I would get lost in the crowd. However, that was not my experience at all. Event though it is a big school, and it is possible to get lost, it is easy to find a niche where you fit in and find your place in the school. Mine happened to be with residence life, through which I became a Resident Assistant. You do have to put forward a little bit of effort to get out of your comfort zone and try new things, but there are so many clubs and organizations on campus that you are bound to find a place you fit in with people you love. On the other hand, being a big state school offers a lot of perks, such as a beautiful recreation center (complete with 30 person hot tub and a rock climbing wall), great free events, tons of student organizations and involvement opportunities, and awesome dining halls (relative to other university dining halls). Fort Collins is a great college town. The community is very accepting of Colorado State University and Old Town Fort Collins is packed with awesome restaurants, cafes, and places to hang out. I did find that virtually everything i need is on campus though, so I don't really have a need to get off campus very much (and I don't have a car, which doesn't help that situation). My biggest complaint would be the class sizes. I have received an excellent education at CSU so far but the class sizes are a little large. However, professors are typically very willing to talk to you, even for five minutes after class, and they all have office hours during which you can talk to them. I was worried that I wouldn't be able to learn in lecture style classes but the only thing that's really different about a lecture is the teacher won't yell at you if you fall asleep or don't show up. If you have self motivation though, there's nothing holding you back.

Leslie

I have a few high opinion of the school. I came to CSU from Hawaii and I always get asked why. I tell them it has one of the top vet schools and I like the environment. The weather is not to bad even though it is not as warm as Hawaii and it is a college town so there is always something to do. The classes range from large lecture halls to smaller classes. The only issue I have is that we really don't get snow days even if the weather is -15 degrees F and you should not be outside for more then 5 minutes. They really need to work on their school closure policies.

Kendall

Colorado State University is a pretty large school with a population of students around 25,000. This can be a little overwhelming when you start coming to school here, but that nervous feeling quickly goes away. CSU does a great job at including students in clubs and activities that get you to meet other students. Within the first month of being to school here, I felt like I was going to a school that was one fifth the size. The only real negative circumstances a large school can bring is large lecture classes with less participation, which are not my favorite, but you are out of those classes pretty quick. Also, students here have a great sense of pride for the school. We are CSU Rams and proud to show it! I think this is because CSU does such a great job with it's social activities and getting students involved with games. Aside from the social aspects, this university is also amazing academically. It is known for being above average at many majors, giving students ample opportunity to decide what they want to be without feeling like they have to sacrifce the quality of their education. I am a journalism major and I have loved all of my professors but one. Professors here, including those outside my major, are very helpful and love getting to know their students. They also make sure you feel you are getting good information from the class, Professors here do not simply teach and leave you be. They are sincerely concerned about your education. One of the things that makes CSU so great is the town it is in. Fort Collins is an amazing college town. Businesses all over the town solely do events such as sales for college students. It is really easy to find cheap food and cheap fun here. There are so many activities to do in this town! Fort Colins has everything from a drive-in movie theatre to an art museum. We even have a bike library! Colorado State University is a great university and a place many types of students can find the college experience they want.

Whitney

There is a lot of pride that comes along with being a Ram. We may not have the best sports teams in the nation but I think we have the heart to make us contenders in that arena. In general it feels like CSU is a very laid-back place--a lot of people are very active and you can tell by all the outdoor stuff we have offered here and especially near by. I would never be afraid to approach anyone and ask them a question because everyone is so nice and approachable.

Jesse

CSU is a wonderful school. It is a large school, but the individual colleges break down the size. It is nice being able to walk down the halls and see a lot of familiar faces. Ft. Collins is a great college town. I grew up about 20 minutes from Ft. Collins and could not bring myself to leave the area. A lot of people take advantage of our close proximity to the mountains and love spending their time outdoors. Our school lacks in school spirit, the past few years our sports teams have done very poor. My favorite place to go on campus is to the Oval, it is a beautiful part of campus during all seasons. My freshman year was absolutely amazing! I loved living in the dorms, there was always something going on. Some of my best memories have been from playing intramural volleyball, soccer, and flag football.

Richie

I think that CSU is a great school. We have a great beautiful campus with very smart proffesors. I love the location of this place here in Fort Collins. When I tell people that I go to CSU a lot of them think I am an enviromentilist hippi. There is a lot of school pride here and most people are proud to be a CSU ram. I wuill always remember the football games.

Laura

Two things: The best and worst of CSU. One of the best things about CSU is the town it's located in. Fort Collins is an awesome community that is just the perfect size. It's not too small, but it's not a thriving metropolis, either. There's so much to do that is all within an hour away and having things like that can really enhance your college experience. Now, the worst thing about CSU is that a lot of the improvements that happen on campus sometimes don't really seem like they are for the improvement of students. Sure, they build new buildings all the time. But in doing so, they take away parking lots and add to frustrations already associated with parking. The administration continually raises student fees for all these things, but somehow, students never really reap the benefits. Classes are still overcrowded in many departments, due to lack of funding. There's not enough money to hire new teachers to create more classes, and as a result, students get stuck waiting to take the classes that they need. CSU expands it's dorms, to be able to accept more freshmen each year, but then never accounts for accommodating any of those extra students.

Krista

Whenever I tell someone that I go to Colorado State I always get the response, "Good choice!" I love going to CSU I would not want it any other way. I feel I made a good decision.

Heather

CSU is comprised of people from many different backgrounds and cultures. Coming from Illinois, I have already learned quite a bit from my fellow students and faculty at CSU. On top of having a beautiful campus, Colorado State is located in a wonderful town. Fort Collins is a great place to live, and although CSU makes up a large part of the town, Fort Collins would still thrive without it.

Cameron

CSU is just right size wise. I don't enjoy the 400 count classes though, its a terrible way to learn. I spend most of my time on campus in the student center, my dorm or the library. A lot of people are in the library. We sure live in a college town, fort collins embraces CSU so well. It's not a separate city from the campus. There is a lot of school pride, many love to say they're rams.

Madelyn

Fort collins is a big city with a small city feel. CSU is the heart of the town and in my opinion is a great atmosphere for shool. the campus has a good feel. the school is pretty large but offers opportunity to get into smaller programs, making it just right for pretty much anyone. overall i feel CSU has a pretty good rep and i am proud to say i attend this university.

Greg

The school is huge, which is good in the respect that there are alot of people to meet. If i could change one thing it would be the weather.

Jenna

The best thing about CSU is the students and the helpful faculty. All of the professors that I have had have office hours, or at least are willing to meet with students by appointment. The people here are also really nice- everyone seems very open minded and helpful. The size of the school is also nice- there are plenty of people, but you still run into a lot of familiar faces on your way to and from class. People are also pretty CSU-spirited around here- you'll see a lot of students wearing CSU items on a daily basis.

Alyssa

The best part about CSU is all of the campus events. In ASAP we bring sneak peaks of movies and musical groups to campus. Last year we brought Common here for a free concert and we just showed a free sneak peak of Forgetting Sarah Marshall! My favorite place on campus is the Oval. In the spring, the trees are gorgeous and it's so nice to just sit in the grass and relax. The campus is really small to me. It makes it really nice because you see a lot of people you know, but it seems a little closed in and there aren't very many places to wander when you get bored of sitting in the Oval. The biggest recent controversy was over the ASCSU elections. Somebody was bothered that Taylor Smoot and Quinn Girrens won the election by a landslide, so they brought up an appeal saying there were unfair advantages allowed in the campaign. The most frequent complaints I hear are that the business lab in Rockwell 105 degrees no matter the weather outside and similarly, the Clark building is hot in the summer and cold in the winter!

Lisa

CSU is a great school. If you get involved, there are many opportunities to make a lot of friends. I think it's just the right size. I spend most of my time in class when I'm on campus. I don't think Fort Collins is too much of a party town. There is an active nightlife, but Fort Collins is also a well-known retirement community. The buildings don't get the care they need, yet athletics gets money they don't deserve. There's school pride when our football team is doing well.

Amanda

The first thing I remember thinking about CSU is how big the campus is. It was the biggest campus I looked at when I was applying to colleges. I think that's part of what makes it beautiful. It has the same things other campuses have, but our residence halls are broken up by our football practice field and intermural fields. I remember wondering if I'd get lost. Once you get to the academic part of campus, though, it's not as large as the residence hall part of campus but it's still got "the oval", a large oval-shaped field with huge trees and buildings all around it. The important thing to remember is the campus is huge but there are many different pockets into which you will fit. It seems daunting but I found some of my best friends living in the dorms and I found some of my best study groups in the academic portion of campus. And anywhere you look on campus you'll see something natural and beautiful.

Ashley

CSU is located in Fort Collins, CO. This town is a great area - it is a good sized town without being overcrowded or too rural. The main CSU campus has a lot of open areas for students to relax, study, play pick-up games, etc. Compared to other universities, the parking situation is pretty good, too. I hardly ever had a hard time finding a space in time for class.

Ryan

I grew up in a fairly small community where everyone knew everyone and everything. At CSU if you leave 5 minutes later or earlier than usual, you will see completely different people on your daily walks to and from class. If you go through the same path to your classes everyday at about the same time, you start to see the same people, obviously, but with a school that is so big, it can be daunting when you are walking or studying in the library and you look around and realize that you don't know anybody there and you've been going to the school for 3 years. You form really strong bonds with epople in your dorms you're first year. I made seven really close friends, anong others, and while some of us have left to go to different schools, we all still talk and hang out. It's nice to know that the people you met your first semester in college will probably still be there for you and visa versa in 20, 40, and even 60 years.

Rhys

What I love about CSU is its drive to excel. CSU is at the front for finding more environmentally ways do business and to cut our uses in fossil fuels. CSU also tries to get a very diverse atmosphere on campus and so there are many students from China, Japan, Taiwan, and the middle-east. But what I like most is the welcoming atmosphere, the people here are very friendly and are here to work hard and play hard. School spirit is very big at CSU. There is always someone wearing green and gold "the school colors" on campus and the football games are exciting. As far as the town goes, Fort Collins is a wonderful place to live. The one aspect of CSU that isn't so great is that some of the buildings are not pretty to look at. But the school is working on changing that and it becomes more beautiful every year.

Dan

The best thing about CSU is how open the community is. If I could change one thing though, I think that I would change the management of the Collegian. If I was to say how someone reacts when I say I go to CSU many people are generally are impressed. This is without a doubt a college town. I feel as though Fort Collins really embraces us.

Dale

The stuff and proffessers are the best thing about CSU, but the buildings need more caring to be like the biggest universities.

Abdullah

The best thing about CSU is that getting things is so easy.

Eric

I love where CSU is located, in Fort Collins. I would raise the degree of difficulty in getting accepted to CSU. CSU is the perfect size, a little small if anything. I spend my time in my dorm. College town for sure!! The administration should chill out and let us live our own damn lives. There is a lot of school pride, which is great.

Charles

If I could change one thing at CSU it would be the grading system. I feel that all classes campus wide should all be graded the same. 70-80 should be a C 80-90 should be a B and 90-100 should be an A. Simply put, I feel that the grading system would be flawed if it continues this way. Equality is important and it should be addressed. Our school spirit is not good and I feel like recruiting top athletes should be a top priority. It''s proven that a school with good athletics atracts a larger amount of people.

Carly

I love CSU because I love the campus. The campus is so spread out and beautiful. I also love the town, very calm and relaxed. I love my dorm as well because we are a community and we do things together as a group

Justin

I like how environmentally friendly it is. Schools can pruduce so much waste and we do a great job reducing the waste we create.

Tate

everything i love

Andrew

CSU is a very open campus. People are inclined to say hello or to take care when engadging in conversation, more so than the school I transfered in from. The people and the activities available in town are a big attraction. CSU's administration and teachers are comparable to any other school. There are those who care and want to teach, and then there are those who just give information and say "you're on your own". They don't teach or help the students, but for the most part, the administration and the teachers are very caring.

Whitney

The best thing about CSU is that it is in Fort Collins, which is such an amazing town. The atmosphere is small town, but with big town ideas(I think because it is so close to Denver). I think the size of the school is just right, although some people that come from out of state think it is huge, but its really just spread out. The biggest controversy on campus is probably the parking situation. There is never anywhere to park...EVER! And then it is so easy to get a ticket, that part really sucks. As far as school pride, I don't see an exreme amount, but then again, we aren't really that great at any of our sports. I really can't say that I have been at CSU long enough to have a special moment related directly to the school. The very worst part of CSU and Fort Collins in general is the police. There is something like 1cop for every eight people, but I guess thats what makes it such a desierable city. Its super safe, or rather "vanilla valley".

Torry

The best thing about CSU is that unlike most schools it has a lot of grassy areas and plants and trees. I think that CSU is just right. On campus i spend most of my time sitting outside when the weather is nice or in the student center or library.

Scott

I think CSU is a great school. I've always wanted to go here, so it's like a dream come true. It is the perfect sized school, not too big and not too small. I'd say Fort Collins is a college town, there's like 70 liquor stores and hundreds of restaurants. Unfortunately, CSU athletics are pretty poor, but hopefully they can recover in the next couple of seasons.

Dan

It is a great campus and the students are very friendly. There are not a lot of rich kids which is cool because nobody is arrogant. The staff is great and there are lots of extracirricular activities.

Lauren

I think that CSU is a perfect size school, it is large enough to be a good University but not too large where it is overwhelming. People love the town of Fort Collins and love the school.