Best B1G campuses
First ever post. long time reader of this blog. Several years ago longtime Michigan friends of mine were discussing the B1G campuses they visited, their son was Mark Mees UM tennis coach, and they stated that Madison was the most beautiful campus. Would just like the thoughts of fellow Mgo bloggers. I have only been to two, Ann Arbor and UCLA many moons ago. I live in east central Ohio and wouldnt go to OSU campus, cause I despise the city of Columbus. Thanks in advance
October 31st, 2019 at 11:26 AM ^
Wisconsin is really nice. Northwestern's new business school is amazing.
October 31st, 2019 at 11:29 AM ^
The actual school campus of MSU is very nice, particularly in the fall. One step off of the campus and it is one long strip mall eye sore permeating with the smell of Axe body spray and onion rings. But the campus proper is very nice.
Not the best campus in the BIG, but credit where credit is due.
October 31st, 2019 at 11:43 AM ^
I'd amend that to say the northeast corner of MSU's campus between Grand River and the Red Ceder with the hills and bell tower is really quite pretty. The remaining 70% is quite unremarkably bland.
October 31st, 2019 at 12:00 PM ^
I think this is a more appropriate response regarding the MSU campus. I dated a Spartan my freshman year at UM and wasn’t a very big fan of the campus. It’s a “nice college campus” but nothing special considering the size of the school and the amount of money going through there.
We are all probably biased toward Ann Arbor, but I really think it’s one of the more beautiful cities around.
Having been to Wisconsin, I can completely understand why someone would say it’s the nicest of all the B1G. It’s like Ann Arbor if Ann Arbor was a bigger city and was actually a city that consisted of much more than just the university. Madison is definitely worth a visit. The town itself has a bunch of cool foodie places and beer etc.
Sadly, that’s all I have to offer on the subject. Lived in Chicago area for a bit, Illinois campus looks decent from driving past, but Northwestern’s didn’t do a whole lot for me.
Have only driven through Columbus and seen the OSU campus from afar, but that’s more than I’ve ever wanted. I have heard UM at OSU in the horse shoe is worth the trip tho
anyone been to PSU?
October 31st, 2019 at 12:02 PM ^
Yeah, the original part of their campus is very nice, but it sprawls on for a long way and those other areas are totally nondescript.
October 31st, 2019 at 12:13 PM ^
Yes, once you get away from the river, a lot of MSU's campus is reminiscent of North Campus, with maybe less scenery.
October 31st, 2019 at 12:49 PM ^
This is a much more accurate take. Given the narrative of how pretty MSU's campus is, it's really just that one area that is nice. The campus for the most part doesn't have a lot of charm..
I'd take U of M Central Campus over MSU any day.
Northwestern is very nice and it has the benefit of being in the Chicago metropolitan area.
Also, this isn't a B1G school, but Notre Dame is a very pretty campus. South Bend is nothing to write home about but the ND campus is nice.
October 31st, 2019 at 11:46 AM ^
MSU’s campus is long as hell and incredibly boring tbqh
October 31st, 2019 at 11:30 AM ^
For my money, the top of the pack are Michigan, Wisconsin, and Northwestern. Columbus is actually a cool city and not a bad campus, as painful as it is to admit. Throw OSU, Iowa, Minnesota, Indiana, Illinois, MSU into that middle of the pack. And in my opinion Purdue has to be the worst.
October 31st, 2019 at 11:36 AM ^
Someone else who still can't believe that rutgers is in the B1G!
October 31st, 2019 at 11:41 AM ^
But Rutgers is in the B1G. And Piscataway is something else. Frequently confused with Paris.
October 31st, 2019 at 11:51 AM ^
Rutgers campus is fairly nice. The giant power plant of North Central Jersey around it isn't, but campus proper is nice.
October 31st, 2019 at 1:29 PM ^
Yeah, my car's navigation system had me exit off northbound I-95 to head to the Basking Ridge supercharger station (final destination Chatham, NJ). The route took me right by the Rutgers football stadium and the valley in which the University is located. I was more impressed with the whole setting and vibe than I thought I would be.
October 31st, 2019 at 11:37 AM ^
Someone else who still can't believe that ped state is also in the B1G!
October 31st, 2019 at 11:38 AM ^
what makes it the worst? just curious. i have zero knowledge of college campuses save 2 and the one I went to here in my hometown
October 31st, 2019 at 12:06 PM ^
Maybe I didn't see all of Evanston, but from what I saw, I didn't really get a "college town" feel from it. It felt like an upscale suburb, sort of like Birmingham in the Detroit area.
October 31st, 2019 at 1:16 PM ^
I think you just about nailed it. Not that I didn't like the area, but that's about the exact right description of it.
October 31st, 2019 at 2:23 PM ^
It's exactly that, an upscale suburb. Would have been a hell of a place to go to college, though.
October 31st, 2019 at 1:20 PM ^
What makes Purdue the worst? West Lafayette is OK (not great, not bad) but the Purdue campus beats some others (Minnesota) by a mile.
October 31st, 2019 at 1:37 PM ^
I went to our game there in 2012. The campus seemed OK enough, but it seemed like there wasn't too much of a town outside it. I remember they had free parking on football gamedays, which was astonishing.
October 31st, 2019 at 11:30 AM ^
I've heard good things about Arizona State
October 31st, 2019 at 11:34 AM ^
Arizona State?
How many times you been fucked on a houseboat?
Did you write your dissertation on the collective works of Red Bull?
October 31st, 2019 at 11:41 AM ^
17
And yes
October 31st, 2019 at 11:38 AM ^
Worst mistake I've ever made in my life was not going to ASU.
October 31st, 2019 at 12:02 PM ^
ASU is fine. Depends on what you look for in beauty/campus. I’m not a fan of AZ and all the desert and burnt orange color, so ASU is just OK for me.
October 31st, 2019 at 12:16 PM ^
I've heard they have an active drama program. Lots of coeds trying to break into the movies and such.
A friend told me.
October 31st, 2019 at 8:54 PM ^
Trying to break into that Tempe arts scene must be quite the endeavor. About as tough as getting admitted to ASU, some might say . . .
October 31st, 2019 at 11:32 AM ^
I would agree that Ann Arbor and Madison are the top two. Minnesota stands out for me, as it is really the only urban campus in the conference. I've enjoyed Iowa City the times I have been there as well. Northwestern has a beautiful campus and the proximity to the lake and Chicago certainly helps it's cause. I thought Bloomington was fine, nothing spectacular.
October 31st, 2019 at 11:40 AM ^
If this were about college towns I'd agree that Ann Arbor and Madison are the two best but in terms of campuses it's Bloomington then probably Northwestern and then everyone else IMO.
October 31st, 2019 at 12:00 PM ^
On Wisconsin: I'd take their town (but not by too much) and our campus (by much).
October 31st, 2019 at 12:07 PM ^
IU's campus goes overboard with the limestone. I like our variety of architectural styles better.
October 31st, 2019 at 11:33 AM ^
I'm a fan of IU's campus. Bloomington is a very cool town. Don't leave Bloomington, however. It's bleak. I co-sign all positive opinions about Madison and Evanston.
Illinois is one of the worst in the conference.
Columbus was surprisingly nice (people excluded) and exceeded my expectations (granted, my expectations were that it was a literal landfill).
October 31st, 2019 at 11:33 AM ^
I've been to Minnesota's campus and it was nice, at least what I could see of it under the snow (it was December). I've driven by the Horseshoe on the interstate many times but never been to the OSU campus either. I've also been to UCLA and USC, and like everyone else I think UCLA campus is better. I did go to a game at USC and had a really fun experience.
October 31st, 2019 at 1:54 PM ^
I used to teach summer programs at UCLA and am very fond of the campus. Also, Westwood is a nice small town, by Cali standards (lots of bars and good restaurants), and the campus is a short drive to Santa Monica (beach), Hollywood, and Sunset strip.
October 31st, 2019 at 11:34 AM ^
Indiana has the best campus in the B1G and I've been to them all except Nebraska and Rutgers.
October 31st, 2019 at 1:25 PM ^
IU's campus is too big imo. It's so far to walk everywhere
October 31st, 2019 at 10:58 PM ^
Michigan’s campus (if you want to call it that, it’s more a university intertwined into the city) is much bigger than IU’s. So is most of the B1G. IU has one of the smaller campuses actually. I’ve been to them all and walked them all. OSU was the only place I thought was too big.
October 31st, 2019 at 11:35 AM ^
I agree - Madison is pretty fabulous. Was just there for the throttling at the hands of the Badgers and still managed to have a great time. It's got everything Ann Arbor has, except bigger and on lake...actually, two of 'em.
October 31st, 2019 at 11:36 AM ^
Ped St has a really nice campus in the middle of nowhere, although that erector set they call a football stadium sucks the dingleberries off of skunks.
Not B1G, but the UVA campus is decidedly very nice. As is Charlottesville itself.
October 31st, 2019 at 6:28 PM ^
Yes to both observations. PSU has a nice "college town" feel to it: the campus itself is really lovely, esp. the original, central part of it. It sort of slopes downward such that there are 2 main streets the run its length where you can find a number of neat little bars/restaurants and shops.
UVA is just beautiful. Talk about history...damn. And I love C-ville; came very close to moving there a few years ago. Has a quirky feel to it, with a great music scene.
Having gone to OSU, I'm obviously a litle biased, but I can also acknowledge that it's not nearly as pretty as other campuses. The original "core" of the campus is beautiful (e.g., Mirror Lake) but it's sprawled over time. I do like how they've managed to maintain a college feel in the middle of the state capital.
I haven't been to Ann Arbor but I've heard from multiple people that it's really beautiful.
October 31st, 2019 at 11:40 AM ^
I've been to Madison dozens of times. Love that place. It's somewhat urban, but the Union and Lake Mendota make it special.
Iowa is surprisingly a nice campus too. To me, it's a mini version of Ann Arbor.
Been touring campuses with my senior year daughter. We both liked the Northwestern campus, right on Lake Michigan, but that was in October, not in winter.
I recall Indiana's campus being very beautiful as well. Penn State is OK, but nothing spectacular.
Went to Minnesota for grad school. Pretty much an urban campus, although it has its nice buildings around Northrop Hall.
Illinois...meh.
As for ASU, going there next month to visit as my kid qualifies for a full tuition scholarship at their honors college which is supposedly very good.
We liked Univ of Washington. When it's sunny, with Lake Wash and Mount Rainier in the background, probably few places are prettier. When is the operative word.
We are in CA, and if you want to see a nice campus, visit UC Santa Barbara. Still likely my kid's first choice, and I can't blame her.
October 31st, 2019 at 11:56 AM ^
Madison and Northwestern are both amazing. Northwestern takes the slight edge with Lake Michigan right there. Madison has way better bar scene though.
October 31st, 2019 at 11:56 AM ^
Been to Ann Arbor (duh), Madison, Evanston, East Lansing, Columbus, Piscataway, West Lafayette, Champaign.
Also been to Kansas State, Wichita State, U Oregon, Princeton, Harvard, MIT, American U (DC), Emory, Georgia Tech, UGA, Vanderbilt, Cornell, Carnegie Mellon, Harvey Mudd, UCLA, Stanford, Amherst, Wellesley. Maybe a few more.
IN the Big of where I've been, I'd rank:
- AA b/c I'm totally biased
- Madison
- Evanston for the lake
- Columbus
- EL
- Champaign
- W Lafayette
Of all the campuses I've visited, I think it's something like:
- Princeton
- Cornell
- Stanford
- AA
- Madison
- UCLA
- Vanderbilt
- Wellesley
- Harvard
- Oregon
October 31st, 2019 at 1:00 PM ^
Curious what you liked in the Oregon campus. We toured it last year and thought it was just OK with a mishmash of older and newer buildings. Eugene didn't strike me as a great college town either.
For pure natural beauty, I would say UC Santa Cruz is up there. Right in the middle of a redwood forest. Stanford has beautiful buildings too, as does Wash U in St. Louis and Duke. CU Boulder has a great location, with nice buildings on the campus.
Love Cal Poly's SLO's location. A really nice town.
October 31st, 2019 at 2:40 PM ^
For Oregon, I'll concur with the stance that Eugene isn't a great college town. UO is a great campus if you're an athlete and never leave that section of campus, because Nike built some posh facilities. The rest of the town is very meh, and honestly a bit too grungy for my tastes. Corvallis is a much better college town, but still pales in comparison to places like Madison or Ann Arbor because it's just a bit too small (~60k) to have a ton of options for food and drinks.
Amongst non-Big Ten places I've been, I don't know that I've seen a prettier location for a school than Pepperdine to be honest, though I'd never want to live in that area (nor could I ever afford to). Washington and Virginia are probably the two best campuses I've walked around, and I like Boise State's campus mostly because Boise is a criminally underrated city. Texas has a nice campus and Austin is great, but it's also disgustingly infested with bugs. UC-Berkeley, Duke, and CU-Boulder are all fairly nice on-campus, though of the three I'd probably only go back to Boulder because it has actual surrounding scenery.
October 31st, 2019 at 2:31 PM ^
I've been to 8-outta-10 "Of all campuses" and I can't disagree. I'd add West Point, or at least parts of it.
October 31st, 2019 at 12:02 PM ^
Northwestern & Indiana are my personal top 2. I've been to 12 of the 14 (not UNL or RU).
Grouping the others into a few clusters:
Better than average: U-M, Wisky, Iowa
Fine enough, kind of look alike: PSU, MSU
Fine, but could interface with their urban surroundings better: OSU, Minnesota, Maryland
Ugh: Illinois, Purdue
October 31st, 2019 at 12:03 PM ^
Since I live in Columbus, I've been near or on OSU's campus several times and always remember to flip off the toilet seat when I bike down the Olentangy Trail. It's.. fine, I guess. The Oval (their version of the Diag, more or less) / Mirror Lake area is quite attractive. The rest of the campus is a sprawling red brick mess. It's not ugly but it's way too busy; perhaps an inevitable byproduct of being the largest single campus in the country. One thing they and the city did that was nice was infill the river with wetlands and grassy areas to make it narrower and therefore faster flowing; previously it was kind of sludgy. The main commercial drag on High and the student neighborhoods on the east border are, as you can imagine, predictably trashy.
Of the B1G campi I haven't seen, Madison and Bloomington are the only ones I'd be interested to check out. Piscataway or Champaign? No thank you.
(Edit - in deference to our friend Nittany Fan, when I was in Pittsburgh for a weekend, I got a cone from some place in Larryville that served Penn State Creamery ice cream and assuming the real Creamery is that good, then I'd happily visit State College as well if I'm ever out that way)
October 31st, 2019 at 12:50 PM ^
The Creamery - people speak about that in such reverent tones, but I never got it. It just tasted like Ice Cream to me! Anyway, just my experience.
OSU has done a good job with the Olentangy River. I agree with you there.