Best choice I could have made

Introduction
I can definately say that I wasn't really big into the college search and I don't think I would have chose Miami if I hadn't have visited it. However, once I visited I just knew that this was the school I wanted to go to. The all brick campus and the surrounding town gave it the true college town feel and I loved that. It is known for its academics and they are challenging but the teachers really do try to work with you and help you out. The class sizes are not too large and even in the general classes I was only in class sizes of about 100 - 150. Now that I am into my major classes most of classes do not have more than 25 students in them. My biggest piece of advice for someone who is considering Miami is to come visit it because that is often its selling point.

Campus Life and Social Life
Best: The college town experience, The Greek Life and the interaction between all of the Greek chapters, All of the extra activities such as intramural sports or government, uptown is just a walk away from any part of campus, and the Miami metro bus system which runs until the wee hours of the morning and hits most places on campus.

Worst: after eating dining hall food for so long it loses its appeal, if you want to do anything not in Oxford the closest town is like 30 minutes away Academics
Best: Teachers who are really willing to work with you and will meet with you to talk about anything, the workload is hard but not impossible, the business school has a pretty good reputation, class sizes once you get into your major are relatively small

Worst: Force-adding into classes once they fill up when registering, work load is definately hard, Business School is making acceptance into it harder and harder each year and you can't be accepted now until after your sophomore year

Student Body
Miami may have the nickname J Crew U for a reason but I don't think I'd like any other school. The typical Miami student is often pretty preppy but they embrace their preppiness and are proud of it. If you aren't preppy that's ok too b/c I know my fair share of people who would rather wear the same pair of sweats to class for the whole week. Many of the students come from Ohio areas and also Chicago, but you will always find that random student from places such as Florida or California.

In Closing...
If you are looking for a school that isn't too big but is big enough where you don't continuously run into the same 10 people over and over again then Miami is the place to go. Every night of the week they have something going on. There is Karaoke night on Monday, Country night on Tuesday, and 80s night on Wednesdays, etc. The school also likes to bring in quite a few cultural activities as alternatives for things to do. They have had plays, ballets such as Swan Lake, and speakers such as Bill Cosby. The Greek Life is great and several times throughout the year they try to get the whole community involved in some philanthropy event. One of the biggest events is Greek Week which comprises of several activities and even a dance contest where sororities and fraternities are paired together. The dorm life is not too bad. You get to choose a living learning community and it may turn out that some of those people become your best friends for the next 4 years. The food is pretty good for about the first few months then you gradually get tired of it. But, once you move off campus and run out of food you will be craving some dining hall food! Off campus housing is a great choice b/c it is often cheaper than on campus. You may even get lucky and get a house or apartment which is virtually on campus. But, even if you are further off campus the Miami Metro is bound to have a stop a few blocks from where you are so you never have to walk THAT far! The academics are tough, but that is one of the things that Miami prides itself in. The workload you used to think was rough will now seem easy but it all pays off in the end. Many of the departments have excellent resources to help you prepare for a job once you leave campus. I highly recommend Miami to anyone who is looking for an exciting place to go to school!