University of Iowa Top Questions

Being from Minnesota, I catch a lot of crap from everyone because for some reason Minnesotans inherently make fun of Iowa....I guess I still can't figure it out. I love this school because it has a comfortable small town environment: it's not in an urban area like the University of Minnesota - Twin Cities or the University of Illinois in Champaign. Iowa students have a lot of pride for their school sports too because, unlike many other states, Iowa lacks major professional sports teams. Our football games draw people from all over the state and even neighboring states. Every game is sold out and we all love our Hawkeyes even if we lose.

The University of Iowa is an amazing University. There are literally endless opportunities and many activities to participate in. I think the size of the University of Iowa is perfect. It is the second smallest big 10 university, which gives its students the advantages of attending a big ten university, with 10,000 less students.

I love Iowa. It's a large school, but there are so many organizations and clubs that it's easy to find your niche. If you want to party, it's available, but if you don't, there are so many other oppurtunities -- a lot of them are free! I also love the campus itself. It's beautiful and easy to get around. There are a lot of walking trails that go along the river. I like to take walks along it when it's nice out. People are always running or walking dogs or biking. Plus there is free Cambus service. It's also easy to get around the community. You can catch a bus to the Coralville mall, anywhere in Iowa City, or wherever. The town is great. It's really lively and cultural just like a college town should be. Although there are more bars than anything downtown, it's a fun place to hang out and it's very pedestrian-oriented.

I love Iowa and I hoped to stay here my entire school career, even going to graduate school. The education I've gotten so far makes high school look like a joke and it has shown me what real hard work is in school. The teachers are wonderful and the student I live with in the halls of my learning community are fantastic. The sad fact is, however, it's too expensive for an average, lower class student. By not receiving a super high GPA in high school or being in every possible club, scholarships are next to impossible to receive. Yes, financial aid is good--if you live in state. Out of state tuition is almost to the point of disgusting and is actually rising this year. The University is also not going to guarantee loans anymore. I have already been denied, so it has one less student. At least for its undergrad program.

Everyone is proud to say they are a Hawkeye! Iowa is the perfect size for a school. It is large enough that you have to take care of yourself and seek out help if you need it, but it is small enough that it is easy to find a good group of friends. There are always new people to meet, and new things to get involved in. Iowa was by far the friendliest campus out of those I toured. Most of the classes you'll have in the first year or two are on the east side of the rive, on or near the pentacrest, making it easy to get to and from class. In Iowa City, many of the restaurants downtown turn into bars at night. Because of their day time activity, these places can let anyone in until 10:00 pm. After that time, some bars have a permit to allow 19 and 20 year-olds in to "dance". Others don't. Many say only 21 and older should be allowed in the bars after 10pm. Every couple years a vote comes up in the local legislature to attempt to ban 19 and 20 year-olds in these venues late at night. Everyone on campus and in Iowa City has an opinion on the matter, but it has yet to pass as an ordinance. Iowa City definitely has a large portion of town that is college-oriented. The downtown right across from the University and has many cute little shops, coffee houses, and restuarants. There is also a more residential area of Iowa City that most student never see. At one point I needed a copy of a document to be considered for a scholarship. I had thought I lost my copy of the document, and I knew it was something the University had to have on file for my financial aid. They take a scan of all paperwork they get, and then they shred the documents. They couldn't find the file of the document anywhere in there system and could not find the hard copy. Then they had the brilliance to ask me to send them a copy if I found it because they needed to have it on file to keep giving me my financial aid! Luckiliy I found my copy later, or they would have totally messed up my financial aid package by losing that paper!

I spend most of my time in the hawlkeye, school library, in my dorm, at the mall. In other people's dorm rooms. Everyone that has gone to Iowa and knows Iowa have nothing bad to say about it. Before i came here, and I would tell people, they say that i would have a blast and that the campus was beautiful and they were right. I have nothing bad to say about it. Everyone is nice. Everyone is helpful.

I just love this school in general. I think it is the perfect size-not overwhelmingly big, but big enough that i never get bored. The campus is beautiful, and the quality and variety of classes and programs offered is great. I absolutely love going to the football games-people are very supportive of their football team.

The main campus is a perfect size. It is very easy to get around town because of the cambus serivices as well as the free shuttle routes that go to off campus housing. Iowa city is a safe and friendly place to live and obtain an education. if you are set on going to a big ten school out of state(like i chose to do), iowa is still the lowest out of state tuition! Tailgating for football games is HUGE!!!! We are known for having one of the best tailgates in the nation. The fans are true fans, even if our Hawks aren't doing too well and even if the weather is bad, people will still come out to the newly renovated Kinnick stadium and support the team. There are way too many experiences that i will always remember to name (some of which i don't remember very well, but thats all in the fun of being in college). The most frequent student complaints are usually associated with the Iowa City police...they love to raid the bars (you only have to be 19 to get into the majority of the bars in iowa city) and write underage drinking tickets called PAULAS. Ohh and the meter man is not a nice man!

The school is a perfect size and the thing I like the best is how the town and the college intermix. You can walk everywhere on campus and after being here for a few months the big campus just seems like your own playground. All the people are extremely helpful and friendly and you could not ask for more out of a college. Iowa provides the best college experience out of any major university.

I come from a small town so adjusting to Iowa was different. There is a bigger city atmosphere but it is not that big of a city. Most of the teachers are easy to get ahold of and will help in any way possible. Football games are probably one of the best environments to feel the school's pride. The biggest complaint I have heard deals with the poor plowing of the roads during winter.

Students most frequent complaint is there is nothing to do except to go downtown and drink. Most first year students don't recognize that there is a bigger city surrounding the University campus. Iowa City and Coralville are both filled with things to do, ranging from movie theaters to bowling alley's. Iowa City as a town offers more than just what the campus has to offer.

The best thing about Iowa is probably the diversity. I would shrink some class sizes, and in the philosophy department could be structured better, or even at all...On campus I spend most of my time at the Old Cap and library. I have little school pride as far as athletics go. I don't believing in unfairly categorizing people but the amount of illegal and unprofessional activity that the atheletes tend to be involved in is disheartening. I believe if you are lucky enough to attend any school through a scholorship you should act like it, on and off the field. The art department always deserves more money, no matter how much you give them, that building is amazing, and we shouldn't lose our Pollock... I believe everyone should have the right to smoke, but when are they actually going to start enforcing the smoke free campus. The littering that is a direct result of smokers (butts) is appalling. They should fine them, heavily, and without prior warnings. California fines first offense litterers $1000 no ifs ands or buts, so should we.

I think that the size of Iowa is great. It's pretty good sized but it's really easy to connect with a group of people and I always see familiar faces on campus. Football season here is AWESOME! Everyone is so into and the games are so much fun. When I tell people that I go to Iowa, that are shocked and ask why on earth would I chose to go to Iowa? I just laugh at them because they just don't know Iowa like I do. I spend a lot of my time in the dorms or working out or just anywhere that tickles my fancy at the particular time. The Pentacrest is great on nice days and when it snows, it makes a great sledding hill. There is only one thing that I'd change about Iowa: since it is a large university there is a lot of beaurocracy. It is manageable but not the easiest thing to navigate.

One thing that I really like about Iowa is that it is a Big Ten campus, and you can get that feeling at times (especially on football Saturdays) but it isn't too big. The campus seems to be just the right size. You are able to walk from one side of the river to the other where you may have classes in 15 minutes (and that isnt even walking really fast). I would also think that there is a lot of school pride. There are always people wearing all sorts of Hawkeye gear wherever you look.

Iowa is the perfect size. Big enough that you are always meeting new people and small enough that you run into your friends all the time.

Iowa campus is a little spread out, and I wish we had more parking opportunities. It is a great college town that the community really supports. One thing I'll always remember is the early tailgating for football games.

The best thing about Iowa is that since it is a state university it has so much to offer! Students shouldn't be scared that it's "too big." There are a lot of ways to get connected.... student orgs, meeting people in the dorms, going to sporting events, etc. The school is just the right size! It's also important to let people know that Iowa is part of the entire community. There is no clear division of what is and what isn't part of the campus. There is a TON of school pride here and not just in the atheletics. It has many amazing academic programs as well.

I couldn't leave Iowa City, I only ever applied to the University of Iowa because since I have moved here; I have bled black and gold. The Iowa City community is so kind and interested in everything that University does. I would say that Iowa has probably the most pride of a lot of Big Ten schools. I would say anyone who doesn't know if Iowa is the right choice, should come to a football game because you truly don't know what Iowa is about until you see Kinnick filled and see the pride all Iowans feel for the Hawkeyes.

The best thing about Iowa is the small community feel. We have over 30,000 students but even with a large campus, if you apply yourself and get involved with some of our 400+ student organizations, it has to chance to feel like home. This is such a great feature because it allows you to personalize your experience here in college. It is what you make it. You can choose to be involved in a ton of different activities or just a couple. Iowa gives you the opportunity to make your experience of college your own. The school pride here is unmeasurable. The best way I can explain the overwhelming pride is on game days. Football season is way more than just football. When you step into the student section in the stadium, you are engulfed in a sea of black and gold. Everyone is there to support the football team and to show what the University of Iowa is made of. My first game was unforgettable. Being a part of that event was the first time that I truly felt like a Hawkeye.

I love our campus because I think it is absolutely beautiful (especially in the spring). If I could change one thing it would be the parking situation on campus because it is not the best. Our school is a fairly large school, but once you've been on campus for a couple weeks it starts to feel a lot smaller because you get to know so many people. Iowa City is a college town. When I am on campus, I am either in the Pappajohn Business Building, the Admission's Visitors Center, or the Iowa Memorial Union (IMU-our student union). There is a ridiculous amount of school pride and on any given day about half of the students are wearing something that says Iowa on it or is black and gold. I will always remember rushing the field after we beat Iowa State last year.