Montana State University
Bozeman, MT, USA

Reviews

Montana State University

Margaret from Bozeman, MT

a current student here
24 people found this review useful
CategoriesComments
Am learning a lot
I've learned so much in all of my classes. Most of the classes after first semester are smaller so the teachers have more time to spend with each student and discussions ensue and are really helpful.
Am enjoying being here
I love Bozeman. The campus is great everyone one is super friendly and helpful the same thing can be said about the town. It is surrounded by beautiful mountains and amazing outdoor opportunities.
Bang for the buck
I think that comparitivly to other state schools MSU is priced well. It is a little steep for out of state students but they offer a lot of great scholarships, grants, and loans. The finacial aid office is super friendly and helpful.
Tips for prospective students
Make sure that you can handle cold weather. Winters here get really cold for weeks at a time (we're talking sub-zero here). Be ready to balence school work with all the amazing outdoor activities that you are going to want to do.
Great for these types of students
Outdoorsie people, out-of-state students, people who are laid back, people who don't mind the cold.

Kathleen from Spokane Valley, WA

a current student here
15 people found this review useful
CategoriesComments
Am learning a lot
My classes here are amazing. Most professors are really flexible with office hours and love to have students stop by, which is so great. They are such good resources to take advantage of. They also push you to your limits and make you really think about what you know and what you're learning, which makes it that much better.
Am enjoying being here
I love living in Bozeman. It's a great town and the campus is lovely, and it's really easy to find fun things to do. There's a lot of outdoor activities and fun places to explore and new things to try, and most people are very friendly.
Bang for the buck
MSU is amazing. The classes aren't huge, so it's easier to know a lot or all the people in your class, and it makes the professor and one-on-one time more accessible, which is a big plus. You are also provided with so many resources: the library has a person for pretty much every department who can help you do research or find what you're looking for, there's a Math Learning Center if you need more help in math, there's a Writing Center so you can have someone edit your papers and help you develop ideas and write better. I'm an out-of-state student as well, but I think MSU is definitely worth the money. I do like living on campus, but it's definitely cheaper to live off-campus, and it's definitely preferable to always eating the residence hall food.
Tips for prospective students
Come and visit! And ask questions during your visit.
Also, be aware that it gets quite cold here, so you'll want warm clothes, and if you're not a snow and freezing temperatures person, you might not like it here. It is beautiful in the winter though!
Great for these types of students
Outdoorsy people, adventurous people, skiers, snowboarders, hikers, science students

Alyssa from Bozeman, MT

a current student here
5 people found this review useful
CategoriesComments
In three sentences
the campus is set in a beautifully breathtaking area, surrounded by mountains, blue skies, and golden sun-rays. montana state university offers a wide range of exciting majors and classes, taught by witty and understanding professors, for all types of interests; in fact, many of the classes take place in the outdoors! recreational programs, both outdoors and indoors, burst from the seams, providing activities for everyone to enjoy.
Tips for prospective students
1) get involved! be sure to go to catapalooza at the beginning of fall semester, one of the biggest events on campus. catapalooza takes place right in the center of campus, and has tons of booths with free stuff, info about clubs, sororities, frats, job opportunities and more! it is the perfect time to meet new people and discover everything msu has to offer you for the year! 2) find out what classes require you to be present as part of a grade. not all the professors tell you if your grade is partially determined by particpation or class attendance, so be sure you figure that out before you decide to use your new-found college freedom to hit some fresh powder on the slopes! 3) try not to procrastinate. if you do your homework sooner, the less time you'll spend racking your brain to write your paper at the last minute, and the more time you'll have later for your social life.
Academic Rigor
you don't earn a degree at montana state for nothing! the professors want to see what you can do with the skills you have. they are understanding and will help you out specifically if you just ask, but they really want you to be challenged in college so you're better prepared for what you're going to get after college in the working world. just remember, academic rigor becomes more challenging as you move forward with your major. be ready for it, and learn early how to properly manage your time. also know that your professors want you to succeed just as much as you want to get an 'a'! do the best you can, try not to be stressed, utilize what you learned in high school.
Dorm Life
dorm life at montana state is well-worth the money you pay to live there! your social life is so much more diverse if you live around other people going to msu. you meet so many people, and you can learn a lot from talking to your dorm mates, ra(resident adviser), and you you'll have more chances to develop friendships for the future. if you want a little more peace and quiet, go for the all-girls hannon or hapner dorms, or the all-guys langford. if you want more of a party-like atmosphere, go for either north or south hedges, or roskie. if you want a cool place to be go for anywhere in or around the johnstone center(lots of older students live there). if you're more academic-based, go for the quads (a lot of honors program students live there). whatever you do, choose the one that suits who you are and what you want from dorm life.
Food and Dining
hannon dining hall has the best food! johnstone is second for best food, and third is miller. believe what i say, thank me later. i typically go to hannon, if you're going to eat food, let it be good food.
What to do for fun
go outside and do something! there is so much to do: cross country or downhill skiing, snowboarding, snowmobiling, ice climbing, sledding, hiking, biking, roadies, swimming (float the river, or chico's or bozeman hot springs), hanging out downtown, or camping(tons of places to do all these things). or if you like indoor activities, try shopping at the mall, going to a movie at the cinema, trying some local cuisine, hitting the msu gym (try the rock-climbing wall, racquetball courts, or pool) or checking out the museum of the rockies just a short walk away from campus!
Bang for the buck
be sure to go to the garage soup shack! they have awesome eats for super cheap! don't forget to grab a free coupon book at the msu bookstore at the beginning of each semester! you can save lots with all the coupons in those little books!
Great for these types of students
montana state has things to do for everyone! whether you're looking for fun, an academic challenge, or if you're a ski/snowboarder junkie, montana state university is the place to be.
Clubs and Activities
ask an ra what kind of clubs could be for you. chances, are if you like something, msu has a club for you!
Greek Life
go for it! you meet all kinds of awesome people, and the community service programs look great on a resume!
Campus Safety
they have police escorts for people walking on campus late at night! they are there to help!

Amara from Bozeman, MT

a current student here
5 people found this review useful
CategoriesComments
In three sentences
montana state provides great hands-on research opportunity for all of it's students. it also has a very warm and friendly community that surrounds the college and that is also very involved with the school. msu has been a very wonderful experience for me so far!
Tips for prospective students
get involved! getting involved no matter where you go to school is important and will make your college experience that much more remember able and fulfilling.
What to do for fun
there's lots to do for fun around the great community of bozeman, mt in which msu is located. there are 3 ski mountains in the area, as well as lots of outdoor activity access. there's also checking out the historic downtown for shopping and dining. we also have a movie theater and a mall.
Clubs and Activities
there's something for everyone, no matter what your interest might be!
Campus Safety
we have our own campus police and we also have emergency phones stationed throughout the campus. also, msu campus is very well lit and you can always call 24/7 for a police escort if you don't feel safe.

Amanda from Shoshone, ID

a current student here
5 people found this review useful
CategoriesComments
Am learning a lot
No doubt, I am learning a ton! The vacations are longer: Winter break is 17-Jan11 and summer starts May 5. Despite these relatively short semesters, the professors pile on the homework and I think that they truly care about theit students.
Am enjoying being here
I love MSU! It is a beautiful campus, the people are awesome and I wish everyone could find a college match as absolutely specacular as mine.
Bang for the buck
The price is a little steep if you don't qualify for the WUE, but prices are huge everywhere. The point is to go where YOU want to go. Montana State is worth every overcharged penny.
Tips for prospective students
Visit the campus one in the fall or summer and once in the winter. It will give you a chance to see what Montana winters are like. If you decide to come here, take your studies seriously freshman year and don't live over in the Hedges....they are not a good learning environment.
Great for these types of students
MSU is a great school, especially for engineering, architecture, film and agriculture. If any of those fields interest you, appy!

Jas from Montana

a past student here
5 people found this review useful
CategoriesComments
Did learn a lot
Class sizes are generally small which is good! Most professors are great for meeting up on a one-to-one basis for additional help. If not, there are also the T.A.'s and that may be a hit or miss.
Did enjoy being here
The area is great if you are into the outdoors (skiing, snowboarding, hiking, camping, etc). Nightlife is okay. Shopping is not promising. Downtown is good.
Bang for the buck
Tuition for in-state is great for a public university, however other public institutions in Montana have lower tuition rates. Also keep in mind, the tuition is going up each year. With that being said, this tuition is worth it if you are in the Engineering Department or Agricultural Department.
Tips for prospective students
If you are looking for great research or internship opportunities this is the place to be. Montana State is within the Nation's top tier for this! If you are a minority this would be a great place to go if interesting in the hard sciences, math, engineering, etc. But I would also like to add that with the past few years MSU lost about 9 million in funding. This is significant because programs across campus have been cut completely, some altered(budget cuts), some merged into other programs, and some may lose all funding in 2012.
Great for these types of students
Out-doorsy people, people who are used to sub-zero temperatures, people who like to ride bikes(transportation system is not good).

Ashley from Sioux Falls, SD

a current student here
4 people found this review useful
CategoriesComments
Am learning a lot
The Class sizes at MSU are awesome, if you want one on one teacher to student time, MSU has it. Your professors really care about the students and are more then willing to do what it takes to make sure you succeed. Don't ever be afraid to ask these professors anything.
Am enjoying being here
In Bozeman you can be sure you will never be bored, this college campus has something going on all the time. You can be as involved as you want there is something for everyone. From the 130 different clubs and organizations your sure to find your nitch at this College.
Bang for the buck
MSU is worth every penny, and I'm an out of state student. This college is defently worth its weight in gold.
Tips for prospective students
Check us out you will not be disappointed.
Great for these types of students
Any and all don't be afraid to be yourself Bozeman welcomes all types of students.

Hannah from Bozeman, MT

a current student here
3 people found this review useful
CategoriesComments
In three sentences
Not too big, not too small, MSU has virtually all of the advantages of a major university without many of the disadvantages. It is extremely affordable, both the cost of living in Bozeman and because of generous scholarship opportunities. Bozeman is also by far the most gorgeous place I've ever seen.
Tips for prospective students
Explore your potential major(s) before attending college. You have to declare a major at orientation, and it's a bit frustrating to change. MSU, like pretty much every school out there, has a fairly regimented course schedule for majors. They're all supposed to take 4 years.

Also, MSU takes pretty much all AP credit, so take as many as you can to get all of your core classes out of the way. One of the most common complaints for underclassmen is having to repeat certain courses. If you need it though, make sure you take it. It's a bad idea to skip something unless you're comfortable with it. College isn't like high school where you can learn it and then forget it. Everything you learn builds on the knowledge before it, so make sure you get it down and right the first time.
Academic Rigor
One of MSU's great traits is that it's a big school with small class sizes, which is always a plus. Mostly only first and second year classes are bigger, but I don't think there are any bigger than 300. All of mine in the engineering department are less than 50 (most less than 30), excluding core classes.

Mostly, it's as difficult as you make it. The classes are relatively easy or difficult depending on what you're good at, but the professors are awesome. They're always around to help out with difficult material, or if you're really good at the subject, they're a great source for advanced work.
Dorm Life
The dorms were awesome. They are well-kept and up to date, there's always opportunities to meet people, and MSU does a great job of facilitating fun activities. The downside that I didn't like was that they don't have air conditioning and some of them don't have carpeting. They also have a new dorm called the Freshmen Apartments. I stayed in them but I don't think I'd recommend it. I didn't know any of my neighbors, I was a 10 min walk from campus and dining halls, and we had to buy a dining pass even though we had a kitchen. On the plus side though, I had 4 other roommates that I loved and got really close to, and we had an apartment all to ourselves.

Beware of the internet though. They have a lot of bugs to figure out with the wifi. It's best in classrooms.
Food and Dining
The food, for the most part, was pretty decent. It's still dorm food, so you can't really have that high of expectations, but I was pleasantly surprised. There's 3 dining halls on campus: Hannon, which has the best quality food (especially at mealtimes, other times it's not so great and there's virtually nothing to choose from), Langford, with decent food but is open late, and Miller, which has pretty good food and by far the widest selection throughout the day. They keep the dining halls really neat, and they look relatively modern, especially Miller, which they recently renovated. Miller also has a circular sphere, so it has the best views. I'd say it's my favorite of the three.
What to do for fun
Outdoorsy stuff, of course. There are some really great trails that lead right into the mountains about a half mile from campus. They're literally some of the most beautiful sites I've ever seen. I love taking a nice bike ride around town, or through the parks past the hospital. Fly fishing, skiing/snowboarding, rafting, horseback riding, and lots of other activities are also really popular.

Downtown is almost always buzzing with activity too. It's not busy, but there's pretty much always something going on, whether it's a festival, or the farmer's market, or local music in a cafe, there's lots of inexpensive things to do.

If you're more into the party scene, the local fraternities and sororities usually have something fun, like black light parties, foam parties, etc.

And, naturally, there's a TON of campus activities going on all the time! Football/sports games, the fitness center is awesome (the whole thing is practically brand new), the rec center in the Strand Union Building is really cool, they have video games, bowling, movies, and an arcade.
Bang for the buck
MSU has great programs in all of their offered majors along with significant research opportunities and tuition is really relatively cheap. There's so much MSU has to offer. It's really hard not to find something that you'd like to take part in.
Share any unusual traditions or locations on campus
One of my favorite places on campus is the Leigh Lounge, which is basically just a big room with a fireplace, filled with comfy couches and chairs that people go take a nap in.

The best place to go during hot months is the EPS building, or the engineering building with the rotating noodle. It's the best air conditioned place, and it has an awesome huge touch screen that you can use for the internet, to view student projects, or use google earth.
Clubs and Activities
There's always something fun going on! And there's bound to be a club for everyone. They also have a really easy way to form a new club if you don't find the one you're looking for. The clubs tend to be pretty small though, which I don't like as much.
Campus Safety
There are police around campus pretty much all the time, and stationed at intervals are emergency call boxes. You can also call and ask to be escorted if you have a late class. I read the crime reports every weekend, and I never really hear about anything bad. Just stupid college stuff for the most part. I feel really safe here.

Erika from Polson, MT

a current student here
3 people found this review useful
CategoriesComments
In three sentences
Montana State University has a very inspiring feel to it. Not only am I surrounded by motivated learners on a daily basis, I am also surrounded by intriguing landscapes that constantly reward my efforts. I've found my niche in the Earth Sciences program, and am enthusiastic to learn all I can.
Tips for prospective students
The biggest challenge new students will find, in my opinion, is the balance between play time and study time. In Bozeman, the options for play time has an exhausting list and it can be easy to blow off school work. Be aware of this, and try develop some kind of schedule that can maximize your fun-time without sacrificing your grades.
Academic Rigor
School is what you make of it, and Montana State University can certainly offer you rigorous courses, especially in the sciences. One of the great things the university offers is help centers for many of the courses. So, if you find yourself in a particularly hard math class, for example, you can go to the math help center and get as much support as you need!
Dorm Life
Dorm life if fun and very social! There's dorms and floors with themes so if you'd like to be surrounded by other outdoor enthusiasts, architectural students, or whatever it is you're looking for, you can find your place!
Food and Dining
Montana State University's food options may not be the best-of-the-best, but options are certainly available and if you need anything in particular, they will make it available to you.
What to do for fun
Bozeman has endless possibilities for fun, especially for those who like a little adventure. There's hiking, biking, skiing, running, fishing, hunting, shopping, and just about anything else you can think of. And one of the best parts about all these activities is you can almost always find another motivated person or persons to go enjoy it with you!
Share any unusual traditions or locations on campus
Bozeman certainly has a unique personality, with some funky traditions. For example, one exciting tradition is the undie-run. Hundreds of students will strip down to there underwear or swimsuits and race in a one-mile fun run. Brrr!

Alisa from Gresham, OR

a current student here
2 people found this review useful
CategoriesComments
In three sentences
The area is absolutely gorgeous and there is a very welcoming atmosphere here. I've only been here for a semester, but I've had to stop myself from calling Bozeman home to my family, since it feels like home. The people here are extremely friendly and there is always something to do.
Tips for prospective students
Learn to manage your time wisely! It takes a bit to figure this out, and it's pretty hard the first few weeks, but once you figure it out, then your life will be much easier. Also, get involved! You will have a lot more fun if you join a club or a sports team.
Academic Rigor
This depends on the classes you take and your major, but overall it is still challenging. Professors work to make sure the students succeed, but will not just give you all the information all the time. If you need help, you have to seek them out to get it.
Dorm Life
I'm really enjoying the dorm life. There are floor meetings and floor events that happen on a regular basis. The people on my floor are all very close and friendly. It has made it really easy to make friends and make myself at home.
Food and Dining
The food is actually really good. Sometimes there are things that I don't really like, of course, and it sometimes gets repetitive, but overall it is pretty good. There is almost always food available and you are usually very close to a dining hall.
What to do for fun
There is a lot to do here for fun! There are a bunch of clubs and activities on campus and there are plenty of hiking trails close by. All anyone has to really do is go explore the town and they will easily find something fun to do.
Bang for the buck
I love everything about going to school here, and it is definitely worth it so far.
Great for these types of students
This school is fantastic for anyone who loves hunting, hiking, fishing, camping, or really anything outdoorsy.
Clubs and Activities
There are plenty of clubs and activities to join. Some even are major specific, and people outside these majors can still join.
Campus Safety
I've had no problems with safety so far, and any threat is dealt with quickly and efficiently. Sometimes bears will wander onto campus, but as long as one is cautious, they shouldn't get hurt.