Florida State University?
 

FSU is one of the school's I'm looking into for graduate school. Can anyone tell me a little more about the area/school? I've looked all over their site, but I want a little more specific (and realistic) information.

Thanks!

What exactly do you need to know? What graduate school program?

Grad school for what?

The city is also the state capital, and has another university, Florida A&M, an HBCU. There is also a community college that is far bigger than the area needs because students come from all over the state to attend there in the hopes of eventually getting into FSU.

So, the city's economy is focused on higher education and government. There are lots of lobbyists and law firms.

It is very humid. Very, very humid. The city has a hilly terrain, and there are lots of trees. There is a law that requires real estate developers to replace trees that are removed. If you go to a tall building in Tallahassee and look at the city, you will see almost nothing but trees and the main roads. Also, in case i didn't mention it, Tallahassee is very humid.

Mass transit exists, but sucks, so you'll need a car.

That's about all that I can think of now. Oh yeah, the place is very humid.

I can answer these although Russ may have better answers.

a) It depends on what beach. Tallahassee is approximately an hour away from the Gulf of Mexico. As for the Atlantic Ocen, it's about 3 hours away. Panama City is approximately 1.5 hours (or less) from Tallahassee and it's a really nice beach.

b) I think the law school is either 2nd or 3rd tier. I'm not sure how easy it is to get in. If you're looking for a 1st tier law school in Florida, I would suggest the University of Florida.

c) It's not too expensive to live in Tallahassee but I think it's above average. Friends of mine at FSU pay about $800-900 for a 2 bedroom apartment. This is about the same for any bigger city in Florida.

d) It is humid. Think 90+ degrees with 60% humidity. If you are walking over a mile to class during the summer months (March-October in Florida), may I suggest bringing some deoderant and a body splash of sorts to freshen up before sitting down next to a classmate? ;)

I don't know that much about those programs, but they should be decent. When I was an undergrad, UCF had a great reputation for computer science. I have no idea where FSU stands on this today.

That's right, but there are small beaches in Wakulla County that are less than an hour from Tally. Also, the surfing sucks on the Gulf. I don't surf, but a fraternity brother did (and still does.) He was from Jupiter, and actually cried during his first month as an FSU freshman, and this is a guy who cries over nothing. He missed the surfing by Jupiter, and really missed being a reasonable distance from Sebastian Inlet, which supposedly has the best surfing in Florida.

a). It depends on how good you want the beach to be. I grew up an hour west of Panama City Beach, and I wouldn't go there if you paid me. It's disgusting and is what some of us call the "Redneck Riviera." Wakulla and Gulf counties are a bit closer to Tally, and not as commercialized as PCB.

b). Like someone said earlier, UF is the law powerhouse in the state. I was talking to someone at UF Law yesterday, and he said it's a great place if you want to work specifically in Florida. I can't think of a single successful attorney who went to FSU Law--and I grew up in Florida. If you chose UF, you would be closer to the Atlantic beaches.

c). Downright inexpensive compared to Cali, NYC, or Boston.

d). Like Hell on Earth. AC is a necessity. I knew I couldn't go to UF because G-ville was too humid. I grew up right on the Gulf, so sea breezes were a way of life for me!

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Computer science at FSU--still probably better at UF. The same goes for history. If you'd be paying out-of-state tuition anyway, there are better programs in the south for the same things. One of the few excellent programs that comes to mind, for me, regarding FSU is the music and film programs.

I'm a Floridian, too, and I agree whole-heartedly with everything Munchkin said in her post.

St. George Island is a GORGEOUS beach that is not PC cheesey and is only about an hour away. PC is more like 2 hours away. Cost of living is not any cheaper than any other major city (my 2 bedroom shithole was $600 per month and utilities and phone etc. were just as expensive as Atlanta) but you get paid almost nothing no matter where you work. If you wait tables, nobody tips, if you get a department store or manual labor job you will be getting less than $10 per hour.It is hard to get a job there and they all suck and they pay crappy. Teachers with a MASTERS degree only make like 24k. It's sad. Ummmmm...the Law school is goo so says US News and World report. It is not easy to get ito. It ain't Harvard, but it's not easy at all. You have to think about the popularity factor, they can afford to be very picky b/c lots of people want to go to a party school. Good Luck!

Thought this post was going in a total different direction.

What was that grade school thing? boys go to jupiter to get more stupider

Well, I'm going to have to agree w/ pretty much everyone who posted in this thread. I grew up being a Florida State girl, but I am planning on applying to *gasp* UF for law school...because academically, they're a much better school. FSU for some reason can't keep their accreditation. Every few years something happens and they lose it for a year or so. Another good law school to look into is Stetson.

As far as humidity, well, ALL of Florida is just hot and humid as hell. Especially if you're moving there from out of state. When we were down for my friend's wedding last June, it was the first time I had been home that the heat actually bothered me - it was so freakin' hot! I guess I had forgotten what it was like. When I was in high school, my P.O.S. car didn't have air conditioning, but it didn't really bother me then - I just rolled down the windows and opened the sun roof and I was fine. Now, whenever I'm in FL, I have to have my a/c on full blast!

As far as beaches go, the panhandle is just not a very pretty part of the state. The beaches get better the further south you go. Actually, the only reason to be in the panhandle is if you're going to school in Tally.

If you're looking for decent history and computer science programs, I would look into USF, and possibly UCF. They're both good schools, and locationally they're much better than Tally. Lots more things to do (if that's a factor in your search).

Oh, and be prepared for the thunderstorms. There is nothing like them anywhere else. Although the ones in Alabama and Louisiana come close, but not quite. It will be sunny out, gorgeous day, then whoosh! Flash flood on your car. The streets can't drain fast enough, so you're practically floating down the road. And it rains HARD and LOUD. Then, all of a sudden, bright and sunny again like nothing ever happened. During the summer that happens every day around 4 pm. You can set your watch to it. Sometimes you can watch it rain in your front yard but it will be bone dry in your back yard. And the lightning! It scares the bejesus out of me.

I was going to mention Stetson in my earlier ditto, but it slipped my mind for some reason. Thanks for bringing this up! :)

As someone who grew up in the Panhandle...

the eastern half (PCB east) sucks. The western part--including the beaches of South Walton--were included among Southern Living's Best Beaches in the South. If you want a low-key family-style vacation, Seaside and the ilk are your place. If you want a rowdy party school atmosphere, yeah, the Atlantic coast beaches are your place.

I'm in the Panhandle, and going to school in Tally--or anywhere in Florida at all--wasn't an option for me at all. Whatever was I doing growing up here? :eek:

But, back to the topic at hand--the intellectual center of the state is in Gainesville. As a fifth-generation Floridian, that (along with A&M for the architecture and family connections) was the only place I would have considered going. Seriously, if you're going to spend a grip on out-of-state tuition and you want to go to school in the South--go to UF, or UTexas, or UGa, or UVa. That is all.

I wanted to mention that the University of Miami also has a pretty good law program. I think they're 1st or 2nd tier and if you're looking for a huge metropolitan area, Miami is your best bet. Gainesville and DeLand (Stetson) are very small towns. Gainesville is basically a college town. If you want a law school in Florida where you can stay in the city during the summer and do your internships there, FSU and UM are probably best. I think most of the UF or Stetson law students travel to Orlando or South Florida for summer internships (if they stay in the state). Just keep in mind with both Stetson and Miami that they are private schools so get ready to shell out a lot of money.

pixell- If you're looking for a good Florida computer science program, UCF is top rated in the state. I'm not so sure about history but I would imagine FSU or UF are probably the best.

UM does have a good law school, it's harder to get into than FSU.

We should clarify here though to prevent confusion: Stetson's law school is located in Gulfport, which is in St. Pete, which is near Tampa. So Stetson law students don't have to travel to Orlando for internships - they can stay in Tampa. Stetson University is in DeLand, so that's where the other graduate school programs are located.

That's interesting. I had no idea that their law school was in a different city. Thanks for clearing that up. I guess it's kind of like Barry University which is located in Miami but their law school is located in Orlando.