Iowa State University Top Questions

I love the campus! Even though it sounds BIG, it has a small atmosphere to it.

The best thing about Iowa State is the wide variety of majors. I liked that it was so easy to change my major, and I had a ton of majors to choose from at the very beginning. Something I wish were different was the town. Ames is basically Iowa State and campus town.

Best thing- Tailgating One thing to change- Phys221/222 and Calculus classes need to focus on teaching the material as well as weeding students out rather than just weeding students out of high science and math degrees. I did fine in them, but I can't say I learned anything. Another thing to change- the new budget program being put in place by the university will cause smaller, more specified classes to be removed, focus on profit for the colleges, and hurt education

The best thing abut Iowa State is the campus itself. You can really appreciate its beauty and all the nature that surrounds you. I am constantly challenged. Iowa State holds a lot of fun events and activities; the biggest one is Veishea. Iowa State also has a very strong Greek community.

I think Iowa state is the perfect size. There are just enough people so you can walk on campus and see people you know, but not so small where you know every person on campus. The biggest recent controversy was that someone was allegedly found with a gun in willow hall.

The best thing about Iowa State is that it is a beautiful and inviting campus. Right when I got to Iowa State it felt like home already. The campus was spread out enough but centralized and easy to navigate my way around.

I really love it here at Iowa State. I thought that I would hate it because it's small, its kind of in the middle of nowhere and so different from where I grew up. But in fact, campus is just the right size, and I don't miss the traffic and rude people in the city. People here are so much nicer than the people I knew from back home.

Everyone you meet is your friend. Seriously the only thing I would change are the winter walk to class, although I never have to walk that far. Iowa State is DEFINITELY NOT a small school, but we aren't huge either. We are slightly above just right! When I go home and talk to my neighbors, parents colleagues, other professional, I always hear amazing stories of when they or their friends attended. Not once have I heard a bad story about Iowa State University. To prove my point...the most recent controversy was over setting a limit for students to attend VEISHEA! First big flashing sign, Iowa State Students have so much fun during our annual tradition that no student wanted another to be left out. Another recent change was the adoption of a team of faculty members and two students to assist President Geoffrey in making our Campus more sustainable. This came after students voiced their concern for our planet. Just goes to show that Iowa State really is an adventure that the STUDENTS decide!

I think that Iowa State is a great school. There are so many things to do, and so many new people to meet. The campus is beautiful which makes it nice to walk to class.

i chose iowa state because of the beautiful campus. everything is close and convenient. its a big school with a small school vibe.

I think the Greek system is a GREAT part of Iowa State University. It's a great way to get involved with a diverse group of people. I think ISU is a "just right" size school. I'm from a small town and wanted a big school feel but not too big where I feel overwhelmed with people. I spend most of my time at the Gerdin Business building. It's a great building and I love that I can grab a quick lunch at the cafe in it before or after class. I believe it is a college town. Especially around the Welch St. area. I think the ISU administration is very knowledgable and helpful. I'm very grateful for my advisor and all the help she has give me. As you can tell I am very PRO-ISU! :)

I think Iowa State is the perfect size. It has a large number of students but not an overwhelming amount. The campus is BEAUTIFUL. It's something the students take pride in and love to show off. I believe the Greek Community plays a huge part in at Iowa State. They are involved and care about the university. I spend most of my time at the College of Design, but absolutely love it. As weird as the building is, I'm in it more than my actual campus home. I think the biggest complaint of students is the parking. The thing is it sucks really bad.

If I were to describe Iowa State to someone who has never been there I would first tell them about the beauty of the campus. Each building, old and new, has character and is unique. The Memorial Union fountain, the campanille and the lake were something I looked forward to seeing every day. The trees are established and magnificent. I especially like the budding trees in the spring. If someone were to ask me about the size of the campus, I would say it is perfect. I graduated high school with a class of 40 and was involved in everything. Many of my Hinton classmates asumed I would be lost in the vastness of ISU. I was not. The reason I did not feel lost was because I joined a sorority. This gave me an immediate base of support, friendship, and confidence. I stayed involved in sorority activities. AOII also encouraged their members to "expand their horizons" and to be involved in as many on campus organization as well. The more I became involved in the more I realized there was to do. If my memory serves me correctly, there were over 250 student organiztions or clubs to be involved in. If the Greek system would not have been for me, there were plenty of other opportunities to explore. In addition to the beauty of the campus, and the unlimited organizations to be involved in, Iowa State has something else going for it... the city of Ames. The city itself is full of unique and traditional shopping experiences, restaraunts, and friendly people. Ames is also centrally located and is only a 30 -40 minute drive from DesMoines.

I think that Iowa State is just right the size it is. If it were any bigger, life here would be a lot less personal. If it were any smaller it would be just like high school all over again. I absolutely love our campus and how it is designed. There is a lot of school pride at Iowa state even though our athletics are not always on top.

I think Iowa State is large enough that you don't know everyone, but small enough that you aren't just a face in the crowd.

The best thing about ISU is all the large on campus events (Homecoming, VEISHEA, Greek Week), ISU is the perfect size (only as big as you make it), there are people I see everyday and some that I'll probably never meet, it all depends who involved you get and what you make of your experience. People typically have a positive reaction when I tell them I go to ISU. We have a great reputation w/in the college of ag and life sciences...I get a uh response from Hawkeye fans but whatever. I spend a lot of my time on the east side of campus along ag row with typical econ and ansci classes. It is definately a college town on Welch Ave; however, it also has a small town feel as you get closer to down town. ISU's administation wants us to succed and is there to help with all academic aspects along with situations outside of the classroom. ISU seems to have a unusually large amount of traditions and superstitions.

The best thing about Iowa State is the school spirit! Even when the football team sucked, thousands of students still attended the games religiously, and there many ways to get involved in school spirit on campus. I also really like that Ames is a college time. The summers in Ames were the best! There was not a lot of traffic, and not many pedestrians. No lines at the bar is the thing I remember liking the best during the summer :) It was kind of like a break from the hubbub of the school year. Living in Washington now, people react strangely when I say that I attended Iowa State. They say things like, "Isn't it in the middle of a cornfield?" or "Aren't all the students there hicks?"

When I attended ISU, there were many ways to get involved, one of the best things about ISU was VEISHEA, what VEISHEA really stood for. It was the celebration of the first 5 colleges at ISU, each individual college would showcase their successes, the parade showed the great knowldge of the engineering college, with outstanding floats that moved, and had so much character! It is a shame it became a huge weekend for partying visitors, that ultimaltely led to the cose of the celebration! I have great memories of building VEISHEA floats, and the VEISHEA parade, the carnival, and the atmosphere of the campus that week! ISU is a great place to get a great education, i always found great advise with all my advisors and deans, and found people to help me through some tough times. My worst experience was with the student health, long story short, I went undiagnosed with pnumonia for a month, and ended up in the hospital!

The best thing about Iowa State is the culture and the history. We have such a rich background and history filled with many traditions that allow the students and alumni to really feel like part of the campus. I think that ISU is just the right size, big enough for you to get the experience and culture yet small enough for you to get one on one attention if needed. I spent most of my time on campus in the MU or around the Lago area. It's so pretty anywhere you go on campus why not enjoy it?!

The biggest controversey on campus when I went to school was the dedication of a building on campus to Carrie Chapman Catt. I will always remember VEISHA before it became over regulated. It was a great celebration with so many fun activites. I'm not sure there is as much attention on it nowadays.

Lots and Lots of Fun. I miss it every day and wish I could go back. I made so many life long friends and really grew into a person that I am proud to be.

Iowa State has a beautiful campus and is known for their architecture. At Iowa State, we have Veisha which is a celebration of the different majors at ISU. The week consists of BBQs on campus, tournaments, speakers, musical performances, and a parade. It is one of my favorite times at Iowa State and is something I will always come back to visit.

I really enjoyed ISU. Curriculum was average or better. I liked the college town. I was in a sorority and found a community there. I thought the size was just right. When I attended there was school pride evidenced in Veisha.

Iowa State is a large school with a small town feel. It's nice for those coming from out of state without any friends or family for miles. The Greek Community is extremely welcoming and gave those of us far from home a new one.

Iowa State has a beautiful campus. I would eliminate smoking in the bars.

Iowa State campus is beautiful and Ames is the perfect size college town. I wish the athletics were a little better - football and basketball, but there is a lot of school pride. Tailgating is awesome and there are a lot of fun traditions at Iowa State that make it unique. There is something for everyone at the school.

I am originally from the Chicago area. In 1988/89 when I was deciding where to attend I knew I wanted a larger school for architecture and looked at a lot of the typical ones my friends were going to - Notre Dame, university of Michigan, University of Illinois - Champaign-Urbana. Neither really felt quite right, but I had pretty much decided to go to University of Ill. On a whim I asked to go see Iowa State. The minute I walked on campus for the visit, I fell in love and felt like I belonged. The campus was beautiful and the people were terrific. In addition, I later found out that my parents, who were with me, knew it was the right place for me. The people they spoke with while I was doing my things were helpful, respectful and re-assuring about the topics they had questions/concers they had about attending school 6 hours away. I lived in the dorms for my first two years, in a sorority the next two and off campus during the summers from my sophomore year on and during my 5th/senior year. The Towers, which were residence halls not even shown on the campus map when I attended, were a blast. When I first received my room assignment I was extremely upset b/c it was so far away from campus and not even on the map, but once I got there, I would not change it for the world. You have your own little world out there and it is not as far away from campus as it seems. There is a lot of school pride and many, many activities for students to participate in.

Iowa State is a vibrant school with students from many backgrounds who are studying various disciplines. Iowa State draws very talented students and produces alums who go on to be leaders in their fields. One of the best things about ISU is the beautiful campus and the Campanile. Other great assets are the people and VEISHEA, which showcases the school. Ames is a phenomenol college town that supports the university. Campus town is vibrant and easily accessible. Students strongly support the extra curricular activities. I'll always remember being an usher at Hilton and feeling the basketball court floor vibrate from all the noise of the crowd.

You know the saying "hindsight is 20/20"? Well, luckily, my foresight in picking ISU was just as precise as 20/20 hindsight. The class sizes were large in the beginning of my business curriculum, but that forced students to work harder and the cream rose to the top. When we got to more specialized areas of study, class sizes decreased. At every level, the professors were just as interested and would invest just as much time as the student. The one thing

VEISHEA is a great event for incoming students, current students and alumni. It exemlifies what Iowa State colleges are all about.

I absolutely loved my time at ISU...I really wish I could go back! It made me feel very much at home, I was able to get involved in the things I wanted to, and campus...oh wow...if the campus wasnt so amazing, I dont think I would have enjoyed it as much. I live 30 minutes away from Iowa City and so many people have asked me why I didnt go there. Besides the fact it was too close to home, I told them the campus. It means a lot to me when deciding on schools. I didnt want to have to drive everywhere and I wanted to feel safe when I went out. I loved that I felt safe and could walk everywhere I needed to be when I was at ISU. And I think the thing I'm going to miss the most come this spring is those lazy days on Central Campus. It was so nice to sit out there and take a break and enjoy the sound of the campanile. Tell me, can anyone at Iowa do that!? Didnt think so....

Ames is a definate college town, which I loved. I think the school is beautiful, and really enjoyed my experiences there. The only thing I wish I would have known about was more of the programs they offered. I probably would have picked a different major if I had.

ISU is a great size school with opportunities to meet a lot of people and gain a great education

I loved that ISU has such a great civil engineering program. That is why I choose to go to ISU. There isn't much of a college town. When I was going to school there wasn't many things to do. Not too many places to go out to eat, shop, galleries etc. I wish there would have been more non drinking activities to do.

One of the best things is the school spirit! It is amazing and it creats a tightly knit community that I love! If I could change anything it would be cancelling classes on days with pouring rain or insane snow that makes going to class a drag. I LOVE the size of the school. It is absolutely perfect! It is big enough that you can be anonymous when you want to be, but you still run into people that you know pretty regularily. People don't have much of a reaction when I say I go to Iowa State unless they have some sort of connection with the school. I spend most of my time on campus in class. Other than that, I like to be in my room. College town. I don't have much of an opinion on ISU's administration. The biggest recent controversy on campus is definitely the VEISHEA wristbands - SO dumb. Why exclude 2/3 of the students? There is an amazing amount of school pride!! The beautiful campus makes Iowa State unusual. I will always remember being in a sorority! I love it! The most frequent student complaints are the dinning center food, and the PARKING TICKETS!!!

The best thing about ISU is the atmosphere. It's a great learning place where the teachers as well as the students really want to help you succeed. The school spirit is evident and makes activities most enjoyable! The greek life is another one of my favorite parts of the school. There isn't anything that I can think of that I would change about ISU. The school is the perfect size for me not to large or too small it's easy to walk around and find places on campus. Most of my time is spent in the buildings that I have classes in as well as at the library where most of my studying gets done and at the UDCC where I can meet up with friends on campus and enjoy a meal. One thing I will always remember is formal recruitment in August for the sorority. I met so many great girls that continue to be great friends of mine!

The school itself I think is fantastic. However, it would be much better suited in a different town. Ames is too small, too rural, too conservative. I was in town last summer while classes weren't in session and it was a completely different feel. I hated it. But in all honesty, its Iowa. You don't get much besides small and podunk... And this is coming from a life-time (so far) Iowa resident.

The campus is the best part

The scenery is amazing. Beautiful big trees, beautiful big buildings with great architecture. The size of campus is perfect, not too big or too small. The amount of students is perfect. Most of my time on campus is spent at class and at the library. There are many, many traditions, which makes it unique to be a cyclone :)

campanille, sorority, intramurals

I love Iowa State University and the diversity of the people here. The size is great, so you can meet a new person everyday, and it is a beautiful campus!

To me ISU has a place for everyone in every major. I'm involved in Greek Life and for me that is the big picture that goes along with my kinesiology major, which is offered through an amazing program

Iowa State is a great place to go to school. I come from the Chicago suburbs, so it's definitely a drastic change...but the people and country are friendly and down to earth. I'm proud of the traditions at Iowa State. I have a lot of family history not only with the school but the Greek system as well, and I can say that I am glad to say I belong to both. The administration is always looking for ways to improve student life. My adviser knows me - I'm not a number, and I don't have to remind her what my name is. She is always easy to contact and patient with endless, helpful resources. The only thing I would change is that I miss more of the busy city life...but that is something that I was ok not being around for 4 years if it meant I got to have the experiences I did at Iowa State.

Iowa State it the perfect size. I spend a lot of my time in my dorm, sorority house, and library. Iowa State's administration is great and are always very helpful. Iowa State's school pride is very powerful especially in the Greek Community. When I tell people that I go to Iowa State I always get positive remarks.

I think that Iowa State is the perfect size. In fact, it is quite large with about 26,000 students, however, in the town you would never know it. The town has a very small feel to it, not as in it is 'backwards' just that the town is a college town. The school feels very safe, peaceful, and is beautiful.

The campus is beautiful and the people welcoming and friendly. The teachers are easily accessible and more than willing to help. I'll never forget my first day. I was extremely nervous and worried about how I would do. I have proved over the years that this fear was misplaced. I have had no problems keeping up with school work and maintaining the lifelong friendships that I have made.

The best thing about Iowa State is its traditions. Veishea, especially, has been one of the best kept tradition. Traditions regarding the campanille, Lake Laverne and the Zodiac in the Memorial Union are also unique to Iowa State. When I first came to ISU, I was so impressed with how nice and helpful everyone was on campus. Everyone was very friendly.

I would like there to be a nicer and bigger campus town with stuff to do. Also, it would be nice if the bars and clubs were 19 and older so that more people would have stuff to do. Students mostly complain about there being nothing to do around here. I like our central campus area...it's beautiful and convenient.

I think Iowa State is just the right size. Some people react as if Iowa State is awesome and I'm getting a great education and others think i'm less human for choosing it. Lots of college kids are like that. It's more of a college part and a not college part. i love how campus is separate from the rest of the town.

I love how there are so many opportunities to get involoved on campus. I think Iowa State is just the right size. Even though over 25,000 people attend this college, once you get your set group of friends, this campus seems so much smaller. When I tell other people that I go to Iowa State, they usually shrug their shoulders and tell me that I should have went to Iowa. Personally, I think Iowa State is an awesome college and I think it has a really good education program. To be honest, I spend a lot of time in my dorm Maple and at my sorority.