As I reflect on my life as a student of the main campus of Miami University in Oxford, Ohio, from 2001-2005, I have a strong desire to find Dr. Emmett Brown and time travel back to freshman year so I can relive many of these days! Here are five things I wish I knew about the college before I chose to attend.
1.) Consider the food situation of on/off campus.
One of the things I doubt prospective students think about when looking at colleges, is how they’ll eat. While colleges are not known to serve the best food, Miami is an exception to the rule. Their dining halls have fantastic food, and I still think about many of the meals I had to this day! My favorite spot is called Bell Tower Place, which is a food court attached to Ogden hall on East High Street, the main road on the way to the main town center which locals/students call Uptown.
Bell Tower has a bakery, coffee (Starbucks) and espresso station, a steak/burger station, a made to order sushi station, made to order pasta specialties, Mexican station, stir-fry, and pizza. You want to talk about healthy options? At the pasta station, for example, you can substitute brown rice or quinoa.
What I didn’t think about at the time. I probably could have saved money by cooking my own food or maybe eating more off campus but in my opinion, the food was so great on campus I would have done the exact same thing eat on campus as much as you can!
Don’t get me wrong, from time to time I would eat at the many off campus places two that were particularly popular in my circle of friends were a Mexican place right in the middle of Uptown called Fiesta Charra, and a local coffee shop that opened during my senior year called Kofenya.
My favorite place uptown, and a nice place to take a date, is called Kona Bistro. They have a smashed salmon spinach salad that is absolutely divine.
2.) Consider the study-abroad situation
Early on as a student, I learned about a program where students would travel to Luxembourg for a semester and take classes in an actual Miami campus located in a castle! This is one thing I wish I had done during my time as a student. Visit another country, learn, and soak up the culture.
3.) Consider the look of the campus
I, of course, knew that the campus was beautiful before I attended but I didn’t think much about it. Anyone looking at pictures on the website can see the distinctive Georgian architecture that is something one might only expect from small liberal arts schools or maybe an Ivy League.
As I look back, I think more about how special that look was, especially since I have lived in California where most of the schools look quite industrial or even government-ish.
4.) Consider the concerts and speakers
I wish I had gone to more speaker series events. I remember I snuck into the theater when Ben Stein was doing a lecture (because it was sold out, I think) and I thought to myself, “I should attend more of these.” I saw Dave Berry(the famous author and humor writer) do a lecture, but likely missed many others that were illuminating and cheap or free of charge.
The campus did a great job of bringing in great artists, comedians, and bands. For parents’ weekend, my mom and I saw Jay Leno one year, which was fantastic.
5.) Consider the difficulty of the school
It wasn’t until I went to graduate school at a different college that I realized how great (and challenging) the academics were at Miami. The undergrad program prepares students well to succeed in further studies, and that is one of those things you subconsciously realize after-the-fact when you are in the next stages of life, whether it being a different school or even in the real world.
Michael Bromberg is a 2005 graduate of Miami with a BA degree in psychology.