Columbia, MO
Tuition (in-state)
$23,366 ($9,257)
Admission Difficulty
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Reviews 2093 total reviews with an average rating of 3.6

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4 College Senior


5 College Senior

Nightlife: Columbia does not hurt for fun. There are not a ton of bars, but they are mostly huge with great drink specials. House parties are decent, but can get broken up. Fraternity parties are solid as well.

1 person found this useful Report
3 College Senior

Drug Safety: This is a pretty big party school, but there are a good amount of safety precautions in place. Greeks drink a lot. A lot of students will be drinking in the dorms, even if they did not in high school. Mizzou is being proactive with educating young kids about alcohol. Easy enough to buy around town, the bars are average on IDs. STRIPES is a great safe ride service, and all the fraternities utilize sober drivers.

1 person found this useful Report
4 College Senior

Local Atmosphere: It's strange. I never thought I would ever live in Columbia after graduation, but it has grown on me tremendously and I have taken a job in columbia after i graduate in May.

Basically, Columbia is both a booming city and a vibrant college town. The whole town still pretty much revolves around the colleges, so stuff is very affordable. However, the economy of Columbia has taken off, and so has the city overall. It was named Forbes Hardest Working City in America in 2013, mostly because the recession did not affect the town much. Tons of jobs in health car, education, real estate and new media.

It is not a big city, but Columbia is quite a town.

1 person found this useful Report
4 College Senior

Off-Campus Dining: There is a good amount of stuff within walking distance of campus, mainly downtown. However, if you want greater variety, you may need to drive. They have all the big chains and some unique spots (again, mainly downtown though). However, Columbia, MO is not big on healthy food overall.

Lot of late night spots though. Highlight is El Rancho nachos.

4 College Senior

Academics: I do not know why we are not ranked higher on Princeton Review lists. The school is somewhat competitive (much more than the schools around us on lists, like Tennessee, Alabama, Auburn and kansas). Our programs are very well ranked and received, in particular our #1 Journalism School, #11 Accounting School and unique Nursing Program.

Basically a Big 10 School in the SEC. Great Value for the money as well, especially out of state. It is one of only roughly 30 public schools in the AAU.

4 College Senior

Computers: You have access to computers all over campus though most people own their own computers. Wireless is available all over campus, although it goes out sometimes, which is a pain in the butt. It is generally very fast. Almost all teachers are pretty good about using internet technology through blackboard.

1 person found this useful Report
3 College Senior

Weather: The weather is weather. They say in Missouri "If you do not like the weather, wait 30 minutes." It is pretty bipolar here. Its March and it was 70 the last 2 days, and it was 30s this morning. 60s again tomorrow. Weird but whatever. I have lived in Missouri my whole life so it doesn't bother me.

I think Winter is dope. Usually not under 20 too often but we will get a lot of snow, resulting in snow days from time to time. Summer is HOT and muggy. I think it is funny when the Texans come to Missouri, because it may be 10 degrees warmer in Texas but the Missouri humidity is a whole different animal. Literally sweat walking out the door.

It is weather though. Do not pick a school based on weather.

1 person found this useful Report
3 College Senior

Campus Strictness: Pretty average. The campus police do crack down on underage drinking, but most RAs don't car too much. Mid Missouri is not crazy about marijuana use. Most teachers are not too crazy about attending class versus not. If you do not pay for a parking spot or a meter, you will probably get ticketed, but all places are free after 5 PM, which is pretty clutch.

1 person found this useful Report
4 College Senior

Campus Housing: Mizzou FIGS and Learning Communities get tons of national love. It is really nice taking classes with people on your floor with similar interests. Also, all the Residence halls have been renovated since 2001 and campus is extremely walkable. The rooms are not huge but that is the biggest draw back.

4 College Senior

Diversity: I think it just depends on how you look at the diversity. For a large state school, I would say Mizzou has come a long way with diversity. The school used to have major image problems with african americans in Kansas CIty and St. Louis. Now, there a lot of urban blacks from KC, St. Louis and Chicago. The school is still largely white, but it is improving. Some isolated hate crimes skew the perception from the largely peaceful reality.

Missouri itself is a pretty diverse state culturally. You have Kansas City folks, St. Louis people (KC and St. Louis are very different), the smaller towns and then southern Missouri overall has a southern feel. Lots of out of state kids come for the journalism school.

The LGBQT community is very successful if small. Gays and genderqueer people take up major leadership roles on campus and appear on Homecoming Court. The school is not a melting pot but it is good for a state school in the middle of the state.

3 College Senior

Transportation: The transportation seems fine. I know people utilize the airport service all the time. However, students forget about the city bus that loops through Greek Town, Campus and East Campus. Overall, the services are there but not always utilized.

4 College Senior

Off-Campus Housing: There are a lot of options but it may not be incredibly affordable. The New York Times published an article about the boom in columbia student housing in the summer of 2013. There are lots of options, but it is mostly on the luxury side. Most housing complexes either have a bus or partner with the city to get kids to campus cuz parking is kinda a hassle.

Living closer to campus you are going to pay more. The trade off is you can walk to class, never mess with parking, and can walk home from the bars.

5 College Senior

Athletics: Best Rec Center in the country. Nationally ranked Club Soccer Team. SEC Football in a renovated football stadium. Basketball arena is very new as well. It really does not get better at most schools.

1 person found this useful Report
5 College Senior

Greek Life: Greeks make up roughly 25% of the student body, with more girls than guys. While Greek Life does have its pitfalls, I think it is overall excellent. The Greeks may seem a bit snobby and definitely drink more than is healthy, but they work just as hard. I think the difference between the reality of the average greek and what the independents think is HUGE.

IE, most Greeks are not incredibly affluent. The average Greek house costs just as much to live in (including all food and social fees) as the average dorm. That is pretty much across the board. There are A TON of Greeks who pay their way for college and work 20-40 hour weeks, are on financial aide, etc. They are just hard to spot. What may cost extra is the lifestyle, IE Greeks go out 3-4 nights a week and go on spring break where non greeks go out 1-2 nights a week.

Overall, the houses are very nice and constantly improving to be competitive. The sororities are all gorgeous, and the fraternities are a mixed bag.

Biggest advantage is in grades, attachment and networking. The all greek GPA is MUCH higher than the non greek GPA (though the only thing published is greek GPA vs Overall GPA, the fallacy being that the Greeks bring up the Overall GPA). Grades are aided by having good groups to study with, access to test files and having older guys tell you what classes to take. Attachment to campus is aided by living closer to campus than non greeks after freshman year. Also, Greeks make up a high percentage of the best clubs on campus, including Student Government (but certainly do not control it).

Networking speaks for itself. You join a house with over 100+ members. The alumni are very helpful with finding jobs and internships. Nationals also provide scholarships for good grades.

3 College Senior

Scholarships: It really depends on the school. The state of Missouri does not do a great job of supporting our school, so scholarships are often what suffers. If you are out of state, it is incredibly easy to receive in state tuition. Scholarships are increasing, but mostly for out of state students, which is frustrating for us in state students. The Bright Flight Scholarship, for Missouri students with a 31 ACT or higher, should be a lot more.

However, it really depends on the school and how much you check your email. There are SO MANY random scholarships available. You just have to be ready to respond and write a random essay and you can get some decent monies. They make abroad decently affordable. Also, some schools just have more money. For some reason, CAFNR (made up mostly of Hospitality and the Ag majors) has the largest scholarship endowment by far.

1 person found this useful Report
5 College Senior

Majors: We have about everything here and are pretty strong at a ton of subjects. The only "major" missing is a true Architecture School. Otherwise, Mizzou has an incredible Journalism School, a business school that only keeps rising in the rankings, the oldest Engineering school west of the Mississippi River and unique opportunities/ high rankings in Nursing and Education programs.

The great things about most of these programs is the Missouri Method, which is this learning by doing philosophy. Basically, you have more of an emphasis on real work rather than lecture hall for a large state school.

4 College Senior

Majors: Through a University of Missouri Journalism Abroad exchange program, I interned and took classes in New York City in the Summer of 2013. Using the Mizzou Alumni Association New York page, I was able to talk to a decent amount of contacts in New York. I worked at a Search Engine Optimization firm, got paid and received class credit.

All capstones in the journalism school have real clients but no pay. It is cool but sometimes you feel like you do a ton of work.

3 College Senior

Health & Safety: The Student health center is pretty good, but it is not terribly convenient. I do not feel like most students really turn there when they are truly in trouble, more often they will go to Urgent Care. It quality care, you just don't know when you can get in. They have free condoms and a ton of sexual and alcohol education which is nice. STRIPES safe ride service is great.

I am a guy, so I have never really felt unsafe, but I can see why girl may feel unsafe. Like a lot of state schools with a big party atmosphere, date rape is a concern, but I feel like positive strides are being made there.

3 College Freshman

Local Atmosphere: It's a college town. Can't really complain. It's just Columbia.

3 College Freshman

Scholarships: The financial aid process was very trying and a hassle. You need to apply early and continue to check to make sure everything is all together.

1 person found this useful Report
4 College Freshman

Academics: I love being a business major. The school of business is close to my dorm, and they had a lot of different resources within.

4 College Freshman

Overall Experience: I really love going to Mizzou. The school spirit and fun activities make it so much fun going here. I love the support from my advisors and all of the resources and opportunities here.

4 College Freshman

Majors: I love the Trulaske School of Business. I feel like I am given many opportunities that I wouldn't have at another school. If I had to do it again, I wouldn't change anything.

4 College Freshman

Majors: I love my major and the school I've chosen. It was simple to apply and also be accepted. Good grades, and leadership qualities will allow for you to earn scholarships through the school of business upon admission.


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Overall ExperienceWhat's This?

Alex Kojadinovic
Saint Louis, Missouri
View all previous student authors

Mizzou offers so much to its students that it is hard not to fall in love with the school. The school provides many internships through your major and different work-study opportunities dealing with specific career paths. The difficulty of the classes and the toughness of professors prepare students for work outside of school. MU is unique because it gives students so many opportunities; whether you would like to be a football star or a vet, it offers both and everything in between. 

If students had to go back and redo their college application process all over again, Mizzou would still end up being many students' choice. MU offers students a lot of opportunities to advance their career paths, minds, and friendship circles. The school has provided students with everlasting experiences and knowledge.


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