Iowa State University Top Questions

What is your overall opinion of this school?

Jelani

Iowa State University is a great school for engineers, medical students, and many other majors people want to pursue. The campus is big enough to fit around 30,000 students, has clean residence halls, also has public transportation to get students where ever they need to go. The school has safety protocols they follow to make sure every student feels safe and have modern means of communicating with whole student body by sending out mass texts and alerts to everyone on campus in the event of an emergency. The university is located in Ames, IA where there are planes and it is a quite place for a university. The university has multiple options for dining and have ways to eat such as buffets and fast food places. Overall Iowa State is a great school for someone who is looking for a quite place where they can fell safe and get a quality education.

Jianyang

friendly, honest,but most of students do not study hard

Catherine

Everyone here is very friendly and welcoming. If I could, I would change how windy the weather can get. I love the size just the way it is. Sometimes people confuse Iowa State with the University of Iowa. Most people just don't really know anything about Iowa State. On campus, I spend my time at the Hub which is a small sandwich shop with a Caribou coffee attached to it, but I live in my sorority house and I usually hang around there or at my boyfriend's fraternity house. Ames is mostly a college town and within the university we have an area we call Campus Town. I think it is very easy to get into this school; there is no requirement to write an essay. There is a lot of Cyclone pride during sports games but most of the time people are Hawkeye fans.

Sally

I love Iowa State because it is just all-around a fabulous school. We have a great campus, a huge variation of classes and majors, and awesome school spirit! Our sporting events are always fun and will definitely be experiences that you will always remember. My favorite memory of college so far would be just walking across campus to my classes because we have such a beautiful campus.

Emma

One of the best things about Iowa State is the school spirit. Most of the sports teams are not the best, but they are all improving. Even when we're losing a football game by 3 touchdowns the crowd manages to stay enthusiastic, and sometimes our teams to pull off amazing wins (like the Oklahoma State game in 2011)! The traditions, like the Iowa/Iowa State rivalry, pull the entire school together. Campus town, while small, is the main site of partying after games. The only complaint I have is that campus town is to small and seems to be very separate from downtown Ames. The school and the town seem separate, even though the entire school sometimes acts as one.

Vanessa

I absolutely love my school. The best thing is how helpful all the faculty are. They want you to do well. The one thing I would change is have more section so everyone is able to have the classes they need. I think the school is just right in size for me.

Molly

I have really grown to love Iowa State. At first I wasn't really sure about going here but ultimately I think it was one of the best decisions I've ever made. The Greek community is so supportive and I have found friends and opportunities here that I don't think I would have gotten at a smaller private school.

Charles

I absolutely love this school. The campus is beautiful and the people are incredibly nice and receptive. It's a wonderful place to learn and grow.

Alejandra

What's one thing all Iowa State University (ISU) students have in common? School pride. Be it off campus or even after losing a game, once a cyclone always a cyclone. The school ties that bond students together here at ISU is probably one of my favorite things. This is best felt during VEISHEA, ISU's celebration of the original colleges and traditions that are still held today. Not to mention, the beautiful campus. Before attending ISU I visited many schools in this is hands down the best campus. Yeah, it is pretty big - but that's just all the more space to grow into and meet more people in. I guess Iowa may not be the ideal location for most incoming Freshmen, I know this was true for me. Coming from the Caribbean, people to this day still wonder "Why Iowa?". My answer is quite simple: academics and an active student life. ISU not only has a great variety of clubs, but also a cozy college town which is not too big, but not too small. ISU is all about balancing things. The staff here is another reason for which ISU has been such a great experience for me. Most of them being from small towns (if not Iowa) they are kind and helpful, and no question is dumb. I'll always remember how coming here for the first time seemed so daunting, but with such friendly staff and employees I quickly adapted and learned how to get around by myself. I can't say that we have many controversies in Iowa, but it is a university like any other - and sometimes kids do get a little crazy.

Mayra

I not only love the College of Human Science on this campus but I also love the campus as a whole. Our campus is ranked at the top when it comes to the beauty of our campus. We have so much color on our campus year round, from white beautiful snow in the winter, to lively orange, yellow, and red trees in the fall, and beautiful cardinal red and gold flowers in the spring. I also love the staff here at ISU, everyone always has a smile on their face and is willing to help you out in any way that they can. I love ISU's traditions as well, from kissing at midnight under the Campinille, to plunging in Lake Lavern in Freezing weather during Greek Week.

john

The biggest thing to know about Iowa State is the opportunities. There is nothing you can't do here. Whether it's music, sports, greek stuff, windsurfing, politics, drinking, juggling...whatever you're into, there's a club, an event, or something for you. There are so many opportunities and so much stuff going on all the time that it can be a little daunting sorting through it all to find what's for you. The best advice is to take your time and figure out what you want out of your time in college, because whatever it is, you can find it here. Iowa State is the most student-run college I know of. The festivals, parties, parades, and everything else are all put on by students. There are real leadership opportunities everywhere you look. Iowa State also has an absolutely beautiful campus. It's kind of cold and windy in the winter, but the people here don't let that keep them from having fun or getting outside. The leaves in the fall and the flowers in the spring make the winter well worth it.

Erin

Iowa state gives people a chance. I was not a high-achieving, studious student in high school and did not do well upon taking beginning, liberal arts' classes at a community college; I struggled. The high school I attended in Silverton, Oregon was and is state-rated as being "satisfactory" and did not prepare me for college. Upon graduation from high school, I probably had an equivalent of an eighth-grade education. Overall, I bombed my S.A.T.'s, even though I have a high I.Q., and the S.A.T. predictors determined I would not be a college candidate. Iowa State accepted me, for a semester, on terms that I had to perform well. I decided to transfer there because my husband was an engineering major and was impressed with the programs, quality and preparation of courses. In fact, he decided to attend I.S.U. over all other universities because the engineering program was rated in the top 5, nation-wide, based on graduation rates and around a 95{4a082faed443b016e84c6ea63012b481c58f64867aa2dc62fff66e22ad7dff6c} success-rate of graduates passing E.I.T. exams. I heard great things about the education in Iowa, too. The state is usually ranked in the top ten, and that was important to me considering I was entering the education field. My first semester, I entered as a sophomore and took twelve, liberal classes required for my major. I was amazed at the quality of professors and courses. The school and staff are open-minded, considerate, respectful, helpful and supportive. Staff is full of people with outstanding credentials and diversity. The professors are reasonable, educated and concise. I ended up earning over a 3.5 G.P.A. that semester and was embraced by the university. Every following semester, I made it on the Dean's List primarily based on perseverance and the quality of the professors. There are other education programs in the Mid-west that get high ratings, but continously we had professors from some of those higher-rated programs, and they would say that they were most impressed working for I.S.U., working with the students and the superb quality of work produced by education majors vs. other universities they had worked. Their overall statements were that I.S.U. offered among the best preparation for future teachers, and we had recruiters from all over the country wanting I.S.U. educators. After graduating with honors, we moved to California. I worked as an elementary teacher and quickly was advanced to leadership roles and responsibilities. I felt so prepared to be a teacher and was highly respected by my colleagues. My colleagues could not believe, with a four-year educational degree, at how well-prepared and knowledgeable I was considering I was I newer teacher, and my background knowledge and pedagogy clearly stood out. Since I.S.U., I have attended three other universities to obtain other credentials (e.g., Chico State, Simpson University and University of Oregon). Needless-to-say, I have comparisons. Iowa state was the best university I attended out of all four and is stellar! I appreciated the humbled nature of staff and students with the combination of determination, intelligence and research. I am very thankful and grateful I.S.U. gave me a chance, and the affordable, well-rounded education has paid itself off. My husband is now a top-rated, professional engineer in Oregon, and I have been successful as a teacher and leader with my students achieving higher-state-test scores than other teachers in the same schools, districts and states I worked in.

Alison

I love all the activities and groups at Iowa State. As an incoming freshman last year, I was intimidated to go to a lot of things by myself. Finally, I just went to a couple of things by myself and ended up meeting a lot of great people with the same interests as me. Iowa State is a larger university, but once you get some closer friends and get to know some of the people in your classes (a lot of people are in more than one of your classes) it doesn't seem so big and scary anymore, especially once you get used to your schedule and classes. I probably spend the majority of my time on campus, walking around campus. That is because i chose to live my first year off campus! I think that living on campus would have been a better choice so i would have gotten more involved my first year. The biggest controversy on our campus this year was definitely VEISHEA!!!! Every year there is always big name bands that perform and in the past they have always been free. VEISHEA in 2006 and 2007 were some of the best concerts i have been to. All these concerts were free, and open to the public, students, and administration. This year the commitee decided to allow only students and administration into the concerts by buying wristbands on top of it. You could only buy one wristband for yourself (no friends, no family). The biggest down fall yet is that they were only going to sell 7,000 wristbands. Iowa State's student population alone is 25,000 people! IDIOTS. Anyway.... The biggest problem i came into was that some of my teachers couldn't teach and wouldn't teach the subject matter-- only watch videos, etc. There isn't one particular experience that would be my favorite. I just absolutely LOVE walking around campus each day, its so beautiful here!

Valerie

The best thing about Iowa State is the large amount of opportunity to be involved. There is a club for everything, an intramural sport for anyone, & if you just keep an open mind, there is ALWAYS stuff going on in central campus. The school was perfect size for me because I come from Des Moines and went to a large high school. I liked being able to know a lot of different people with a lot of different backgrounds. There is, of course, a ton of school pride. Don't wear hawk clothing on campus--BAD IDEA! GO CLONES!

Steven

The school really gives a rewarding feeling to college. Your surrounded by an enviornment that talyored to you as a college student. The university accommodates just about everything one would ever need. Beyond that the campus itself is beautiful. There is most certainly a place on campus that would inspire anyone. The most important part of the college though is the people that run it. Everyone associated with you and your college experience are geared to towards your future and reaping all the benefits of the college possible.

Alex

Iowa State is the perfect campus size. The campus is beautiful and all the academic buildings are clustered enough, yet spread across a wide open campus.

Ryan

Iowa State within itself is a wonderful college! With around 26,000 students attending it feels as if the size is just right. No one is lost among the mass amount of students and everyone is very friendly. That is one of the reason I chose to attend Iowa State, the people are friendly and wiling to help you out if you're lost. The campus is beautiful and I love walking through central campus. Iowa State is also in enriched with the many traditions such as the Zodiac, "Campaniling", the Beardshear run, VEISHEA, and much more! There is always something to do whether it's studying at the library, going to the cafe, sitting on central campus, being involved with the many clubs here, or just hanging out with friends. Of course, everyone has much school pride and there isn't a day where you don't see an Iowa State shirt. The athletic events are also fun and you can even become a part of Cyclone Alley. The academics are also amazing. Professors are willing to help you out because they want you to succeed, there's a tutoring program, and so many more academic programs to help you in college. For example, there are Supplemental Instruction classes that you can attend, academic workshops, and your college's work places. I'm proud to be a Cyclone and have the most dominant mascot in the country!

Laura

ISU has some great traditions. We have a bell tower on campus called the Campanille which chimes every 15 mins and plays a concert at noon. This provides a cool atmosphere. We are also known for our swans lancelot and elaine who patrol the local pond, and are not afraid of the students. While we do have a campus town of sorts it is mostly comprised of bars, a few fast food places, tatoo and piercing parlors and one small movie theater. It could be a bit bigger. Our big rival is the University of Iowa and we are in the big 12 conference. Our football team is not the best and I personally would like to see some of the money spent on other male athletics to bring back men's swimming and baseball. Women's athletics are pretty good. I also would like to see the music department be able to hold their concerts on campus at the lovely CY Stevens auditorium, but the university over charges its own music dept for the use and they can not afford it and have to play at the city auditorium accross town (bummer). It really is a great school though with tons of clubs and opportunities. We have a great outdoor recreation program and recreation services department. Our central campus is gorgeous and was designed by the same people as central park in NY. We have a great student festival called Veisha in the Spring.

Meredith

Most people here are very polite: opening doors and saying hello. I would say there is a lot of school pride. Especially at football games-the energy of the fans is amazing, even when we are losing.

Jessica

I enjoy many things about Iowa State- the people, the classes, the teachers, the students, the Greek Community. As of now, I'm not a big fan of the tuition spike that will be occurring next semester as well as the extreme Rec Renovation and the fact that we have to pay so much more money over the next few years.

Valerie

I think ISU is an amazing school and it is the perfect size. There is tons and tons of school pride here and that is one of the things i really love about this school.

Elizabeth

I love Iowa State. I went to ISU fall of 2006 and left because I initially thought that it felt too big. I then transfered to Drake University. This situation was one in which i didn't know what i had until it was gone. I love ISU's campus. I love the education. I love the professors. I love the busing system. I love the Greek life. There is nothing I don't like about ISU.

Maggie

The school size is just right for me and we have a beautiful campus. Something I would change would be the way faculty treat the students. They treat us like we are children, when we are in college and adults learning about the real world when we get out of college. So treat us with respect too.

Taylor

The Iowa State campus is amazing. It is all in one area, instead of spread throughout a city. It is a beautiful campus, with great architecture. Often people outside of Iowa assume that my major should be farmer. I spend all my time in the college of design, the basement to be more exact. The basement sucks, but the people rock. Ames is kinda boring, but Des Moines is pretty close, so that's nice.

Kayla

Iowa State has a beautiful campus. The layout of it is great because for my major most of my classes are in the same building. It doesn't exclude me from meeting people in other majors though as all of the building are near each other. Iowa State is just the right size for me. As you get older you become really close to those in your major. Iowa State has a lot of unique traditions, the most well known being VEISHEA, and comes with a lot of history behind it's name. I will always remember how well I was treated as a student. I was never treated as a number within this college and that is something that makes learning more enjoyable.

Brooke

the campus is pretty and clean

Taylor

The campus is very nice, it is kept up extremely well and is visually pleasing.

margaret

Iowa State's size is just right, not too large that you get lost in the crowd but not too small that everyone knows just about everyone else. The campus is beautiful. There is a lot of school pride even though our athletic teams are not that great.

Elizabeth

It's a good sized school because there's always something to do and get involved in. Most of my friends party at fraternities and apartments off campus. It carries a good reputation because people in and out of state all have a lot of pride.

Ellen

Ames is a total college town, but there's not a lot to do here!

Alyssa

I'll always remember Greek Week at Iowa State. It takes so much preparation and is a week of pure fun for everyone on campus, most specifically the Greek Community. VEISHEA always closely follows Greek Week and is even more sweet activities that are available on campus. One mistake with VEISHEA this year: $5 limited wristbands to attend the concerts. The acts aren't even that great this year, and most people are pissed so they'll probably boycott. Taste of VEISHEA is awesome though.

Leah

Iowa State is amazing and the campus is beautiful I absolutely love it here!

Theresa

Iowa state is the perfect size, in a safe city, could use more restaurants and social places.

Dylan

I feel that Iowa State is large, but thats one of the great aspects about it becasue it allows you to get to know a variety of differnent people and learn a lot of differnet ways to approach a situation by wtaching how others handle some of the same situations. Most people are aware of Iowa Satte since it is a well-known university here in Iowa.

Gina

Best thing about Iowa State is all of the traditions. I think the school is just the right size; big enough that you don't have the same people in all of your classes, but small enough that you always see at least one person you know when you walk to class.

nicole

I think the best thing at iowa state for me are all of the Intramurals they have. I really enjoy playing sports. I think the school is just right really i mean ya there are a lot of people but it could be more. If I tell people I am going to Iowa State they say good for you and congradulate me. I spend most of my time at the Lagomarcina building. One experience I will always remember is when I rushed to see if the sorority life is for me and it was.

Becky

I think that Iowa State is just the right size for me. I come from a really small town and so I love coming to Iowa State. It's big enough so that you can meet new people all the time, but its small enough to where you can recognize different people on your way to class.

Katie

My favorite thing about Iowa State is that I feel so comfortable here. I can always find something to do and something to do it with, I think that is just because I am in a sorority though. Ames is definitly a college town, I think about half of the city of Ames is due to the students who attend the university.

Jerry

Iowa State is a large research school with a small-college feel. There are many things to be involved in that will provide you with your "niche." The school is rather large, and it's easy to be cynical about the school's bureaucracy, but they take care of business. I spend much of my time in campus and in the academic buildings. I live on campus, so I spend a lot of time in the residence halls. Many people study in the library. There is quite a bit of Iowa State pride in the athletic program, but if you aren't into athletics, there isn't a whole lot else to be excited about.

Erin

I think there is a decent amount of school pride, but compared to that of schools in the south there isn't as much. I have NEVER seen a sold out crowd at the Stadium, which even when southern football teams suck you'll still see sold out crowds! I am not sure how to motivate students (cheap/free tickets?), but its sad to see the stadium empty even at bit games like ISU VS IOWA.

Alex

The best thing about Iowa State is it's campus. It is gorgeous. I love walking to my classes when it's nice outside. It's a big campus but not big enough that you can't walk to your classes. I also think that we have a lot of school pride. You can't help but love Cy when you go here. I wasn't the biggest Iowa State fan, but when I came here and started to be around the wonderful atmosphere I quickly became a huge cyclone fan.

Tate

I believe we have a beatiful campus. The Cyride is amazing and is very helpful. They class room atmosphere is also wonderful. The Greek system is something amazing to be a part of also.

Carol

Iowa State has a gorgeous campus with tons of trees and places to sit outside and study in nice weather.

Kelsey

award winning greek community, great atmosphere, great academics, great student involvement, every service possible is available to students, great school pride, amazing opportunities.

Sarah

Iowa State is an amazing institute of higher learning! I am so proud to say I graduated from Iowa State University!

Charlie

I think the best thing about Iowa State is that it is just big enough that you don't know everyone, but it is small enough that you feel comfortable. I spend most of my time at my sorority house and classes around campus. I think that the administration here at Iowa State is pretty good. I haven't heard of any complaints recently about the administration. Iowa Staters have a lot of school pride I think. You always see people walking around in Cyclone clothing and wearing it with pride.

Alex

best part...teachers, town, people, programs...best school ever

Andy

Iowa State has great school spirit. Ames needs to be cleaned up a little bit and more college/family friendly. Iowa State stays true to it's roots and has lots of traditions.

Allard

I really like the campus and the small town-large university setting. I think that the size of the university is great, and we're not treated like numbers, we're treated like students that matter.

Morgan

Iowa State exemplifies the college experience...a small town that seems bigger than it is because of the school, a college that is dedicated to educating students and helping them become active and responsible adults and a community that supports both students and faculty in their endeavors.