Does MSU lose prospective students because something like..

[Xenomorph]

…the Sanderson Center is so far behind other schools’ student activities centers?

I’ve never worked in recruiting and being 18 years old is in the rearview mirror… so how many high school kids roll in to campus and evaluate something like that?

 

[dawgman42]

The Tin Gym didn't make me seriously question my life back in the day. The Sanderson should be far more than adequate for any incoming student.

 

[stateu1]

so how many high school kids roll in to campus and evaluate something like that?

I'd say none.

 

[woozman]

Based on my past college discussions with my daughter because she’s started looking (11th grade) - not even the slightest consideration that you could imagine….

She’s first in her class and involved as a leader in almost every school activity, super driven, etc. She has her major picked out, a career path IDed, and potential employers IDed. Basically, a student that pretty much any college would want and our mailbox is backing that up daily.

Having said that - her main consideration at this point is where her friends are going. Bugs the hell out of my wife…

 

[johnson86-1]

I doubt many students have the student rec center high on their list, but it's probably just another thing that helps form an overall impression.

Nicer buildings and landscaping in general leave a good overall impression of a school. I suspect in general your bar scene has a bigger impact on the average student provided the buildings don't feel rundown.

 

[8dog]

I doubt many students have the student rec center high on their list, but it's probably just another thing that helps form an overall impression.

Nicer buildings and landscaping in general leave a good overall impression of a school. I suspect in general your bar scene has a bigger impact on the average student provided the buildings don't feel rundown.

Yeah. Probably like a football facility for FB recruits. You don’t have to have the nicest one. Just something that’s not from the 1960s

 

[Bulldog Bruce]

So the Sanderson Center sucks? Boy is this generation spoiled!

 

[Yeti]

I think it’s hard to say. I doubt it but it needs improvement. Seems to me football and making it look cool is a bigger draw. I’ve got a Senior it’s all about where she thinks she fits in. I know thart UT Knoxville got a huge bump from looking good on tv last year

 

[Bulldog45]

…the Sanderson Center is so far behind other schools’ student activities centers?

I’ve never worked in recruiting and being 18 years old is in the rearview mirror… so how many high school kids roll in to campus and evaluate something like that?

As long as they have plenty of weight machines for them to sit on and text shouldn’t be an issue

 

[OG Goat Holder]

Having said that - her main consideration at this point is where her friends are going. Bugs the hell out of my wife…

I’ve got a Senior it’s all about where she thinks she fits in. I know thart UT Knoxville got a huge bump from looking good on tv last year

Do ya'll ever step in as parents and tell them not to care about such shallow things?

 

[johnson86-1]

Do ya'll ever step in as parents and tell them not to care about such shallow things?

I don't know that where your friends are going is a shallow thing, depending on the child. Lots of kids struggle with the transition to college and having some known friends to transition with make it easier. Most aren't going to have any trouble making friends in college, but some will. I would certainly be bothered if that seemed to be my child's only consideration, or if they were letting that have undue influence when they aren't the type of child that is going to struggle to make new friends. But if you're picking between SEC schools not named Vanderbilt, I'm not sure how many of them are so different in general that I would think where you're friends are going isn't a legitimate tie breaker in many situations.

My closest friends didn't go to state and it was something of a shock to the system "starting over" with new friends at State, and I wasn't really starting over. I had plenty of people from other high schools that I knew and then some from my high school that were friends, if not really close ones. That's probably going to be the case for anybody from Mississippi choosing between State or Ole MIss, but I'm assuming there are some schools in or outside of Memphis where going to state instead of Ole Miss would significantly change how many people they knew.

 

[DesotoCountyDawg]

So the Sanderson Center sucks? Boy is this generation spoiled!

Doesn’t suck. Just needs refreshing.

 

[CochiseCowbell]

Doesn’t suck. Just needs refreshing.

 

[MSUDC11-2.0]

I don't know that where your friends are going is a shallow thing, depending on the child. Lots of kids struggle with the transition to college and having some known friends to transition with make it easier. Most aren't going to have any trouble making friends in college, but some will. I would certainly be bothered if that seemed to be my child's only consideration, or if they were letting that have undue influence when they aren't the type of child that is going to struggle to make new friends. But if you're picking between SEC schools not named Vanderbilt, I'm not sure how many of them are so different in general that I would think where you're friends are going isn't a legitimate tie breaker in many situations.

My closest friends didn't go to state and it was something of a shock to the system "starting over" with new friends at State, and I wasn't really starting over. I had plenty of people from other high schools that I knew and then some from my high school that were friends, if not really close ones. That's probably going to be the case for anybody from Mississippi choosing between State or Ole MIss, but I'm assuming there are some schools in or outside of Memphis where going to state instead of Ole Miss would significantly change how many people they knew.

Most people make new friends pretty easily in college, some don’t. I am more introverted by nature (or I was at the time at least) so it took me longer than it probably did for most. I had two friends from high school that came to MSU with me but those friendships didn’t really last, in fact I was on the only one of that group that eventually graduated. I didn’t really start to form good, long term friendships until my junior year, which was about the time I started coming out of my shell a little more. It helped that I was firmly in a long term relationship with my now wife and mother of my child by that point.

I’d say it just depends on the kid. Some can go off wherever and meet new people and thrive, others are really uncomfortable with the idea of not having much familiarity with anyone.

 

[Maroon13]

Of the kids i know at State, Starkville has an Orange Theory and Hot Worx. So we good in that department. Spend the money on other facilities.

 

[woozman]

Do ya'll ever step in as parents and tell them not to care about such shallow things?

So you skip over "She’s first in her class and involved as a leader in almost every school activity, super driven, etc. She has her major picked out, a career path IDed, and potential employers IDed.", and focus on "Her main consideration at this point is where her friends are going." - to imply that she is shallow. Not surprising on this board...

To answer your question - of course. Like everything else we will offer guidance without being overbearing and allow her to live her life. In this case, I have explained to her that she will visit at least five colleges before deciding and that is not negotiable. If one of them blows her away then I imagine she'll go there, if not, then she will probably go with her friends. We're not going to force her college choice on her. Again, her life...

 

[Ranchdawg]

Every time I hear something about the Sanderson Center I get pissed at Templeton again. He had them shorten the pool so it wasn't olympic size so we wouldn't suggest getting a swim team.

 

[mstateglfr]

Do ya'll ever step in as parents and tell them not to care about such shallow things?

 

[OG Goat Holder]

So you skip over "She’s first in her class and involved as a leader in almost every school activity, super driven, etc. She has her major picked out, a career path IDed, and potential employers IDed.", and focus on "Her main consideration at this point is where her friends are going." - to imply that she is shallow. Not surprising on this board...

To answer your question - of course. Like everything else we will offer guidance without being overbearing and allow her to live her life. In this case, I have explained to her that she will visit at least five colleges before deciding and that is not negotiable. If one of them blows her away then I imagine she'll go there, if not, then she will probably go with her friends. We're not going to force her college choice on her. Again, her life...

Nah, I heard your humble bragging, loud and clear. And in her case, I ESPECIALLY hope you don’t allow her to follow her ‘franz’, or whatever people are saying now, unless all other evidence also points toward that school. And honestly I still might go against it.

I don’t know that I’ve ever met a single person who went off and did their own thing at college, and had it backfire.

 

[bravedawg13]

The Sanderson is free for students, plus we have CrossFit gyms, hotworx, the club, etc. in starkville.
a refresh would be nice but it does not influence a students decision to come to Mississippi State at all.

 

[Seinfeld]

For those dismissing the question because they think kids are more concerned with the classroom, I’m afraid I’ve got some BAD NEWS for you

 

[Xenomorph]

So the Sanderson Center sucks? Boy is this generation spoiled!

I’ve been in a bunch of them from Nebraska to LSU to Maryland… and yes if prospective students care then ours is an issue. But again.. I don’t know if they care.

 

[Wesson Bulldog]

My son is a freshman at State. He works out in Sanderson every night. He's never said either way, but I guarantee you, coming from Wesson Attendance Center's facilities, he thinks its awesome. Beyond that it never figured into his decision of a university.

 

[Maroon Eagle]

Yes State will lose students.

“But is that number statistically significant?” is a completely different question.

 

[eckie1]

I was in the Sanderson Center last year and was amazed by how great it looked. Sure, anything newer is gonna be shinier, but for something 25 years old it seems to be holding its own.

 

[Crazy Cotton]

Don't think of it in isolation, it is part of the facilities as a whole. And yes, kids and particularly parents place a high value on facilities when choosing a college. Look at where universities have spent the most money in the last 2 decades - student centers, dorms, restaurants, sports facilities, etc. College tours tend to emphasize the extracurricular features of the campus now as the selling point.

 

[Leeshouldveflanked]

So the Sanderson Center sucks? Boy is this generation spoiled!

They should have experienced the Tin Gym.

 

[Yeti]

Do ya'll ever step in as parents and tell them not to care about such shallow things?

I said where she fits in..that’s not shallow I’m going to guess you probably wouldn’t fit in at SMU but she does she doesn’t fit at MSU You stay where you fit in. Different strokes for different folks.

 

[bsquared24]

Do ya'll ever step in as parents and tell them not to care about such shallow things?

As the father of a teen girl that’s like telling my wife to “calm down”, it is more likely to have the opposite effect.

 

[ZombieKissinger]

My dad was hyping Sanderson when I was a senior in high school. But it was pretty new then. I cared more about what the girls inside looked like than the place itself. Will be interesting to see how colleges compete as the applicant pool shifts

 

[theoriginalSALTYdog]

…the Sanderson Center is so far behind other schools’ student activities centers?

I’ve never worked in recruiting and being 18 years old is in the rearview mirror… so how many high school kids roll in to campus and evaluate something like that?

Does it have Wi-Fi? If so that's all you need.

 

[Pookieray]

So you skip over "She’s first in her class and involved as a leader in almost every school activity, super driven, etc. She has her major picked out, a career path IDed, and potential employers IDed.", and focus on "Her main consideration at this point is where her friends are going." - to imply that she is shallow. Not surprising on this board...

To answer your question - of course. Like everything else we will offer guidance without being overbearing and allow her to live her life. In this case, I have explained to her that she will visit at least five colleges before deciding and that is not negotiable. If one of them blows her away then I imagine she'll go there, if not, then she will probably go with her friends. We're not going to force her college choice on her. Again, her life...

I went through, kind of, this same scenario in 2014. It was more about recruiting specifically. My son was top of his class and had his heart set on a Christian school in Arkansas and was majoring in Bio-Med and trying to explain to many on this board anything other than your child will be attending "State" because, it's apparently the greatest place on earth, is futile. We wanted State because he could attend for free but we could also make the other school work financially and his heart wasn't in it for State. Your daughter sounds like my son and has a clear vision of what she wants. She can get what she needs to help her accomplish those goals no matter what school she attends. My son, who I was told was making a mistake by not attending State, just received his PhD in Bio-Med from the Univ of Va and had offers from every place he was interested in for his Post Doc. Enjoy watching her grow into the profession she has selected and just give her all the support she asks for and needs and she will be better off for it.

 

[HumpDawgy]

My main draw was Mr. Cooks and some warm beer that needed spinning.

 

[thekimmer]

Colleges over the past decade or two have spent money like drunken sailors on stuff they don't need financed by jacking tuition up many times greater than inflation resulting in so many former students with a six figure debt at the end of it.

When I was a student at state the weight room for students was in the basement of Suttle and you went to the Tin Gym or McCarthy for everything else. The racquetball courts were open air bare cinder block cubicles on an unpainted slab with chicken wire on the top. But tuition was $720 a semester. I was able to work my way through and graduate without any debt. I will take that any day over having a climbing wall with a coffee bar.

 

[dog12]

I don’t know that I’ve ever met a single person who went off and did their own thing at college, and had it backfire.

I'm not asserting that you've met her, but . . .

 

[dog12]

…the Sanderson Center is so far behind other schools’ student activities centers?

I’ve never worked in recruiting and being 18 years old is in the rearview mirror… so how many high school kids roll in to campus and evaluate something like that?

My daughter is currently a senior in high school and is in the process of applying to several different universities. I haven't heard her mention anything about rec/activity centers, so I don't think that is a factor in her choice of schools . . . certainly not a major factor, at least.

Different topic: two of her friends at her high school here in Northern Virginia have already submitted applications for admission to Mississippi State. Apparently, a rep from Mississippi State visited their high school and made a positive impression on these two girls, whom were already planning on going to college somewhere in "the South."

 

[Dawgg]

Psssht... For me, once they got rid of the bowling alley, I knew I was headed to Southern Miss***

Seriously though, when I was in high school and would frequent Mississippi State for various FFA and 4-H trips, hanging out in the Student Union's arcade and bowling alley was sometimes one of the highlights of the trip (and a great place to meet girls). I was actually a little sad when I learned it was gone.

 

[squintdawg]

Every time I hear something about the Sanderson Center I get pissed at Templeton again. He had them shorten the pool so it wasn't olympic size so we wouldn't suggest getting a swim team.

So - I think LT sucks worse than anyone, but that is an Urban Legend. It wasn’t LT, but the committee who designed it and didn’t want every your swim team in the area begging to use it. Adding swimming was never going to be an option at MSU - even if the pool was regulation.

 

[Ranchdawg]

So - I think LT sucks worse than anyone, but that is an Urban Legend. It wasn’t LT, but the committee who designed it and didn’t want every your swim team in the area begging to use it. Adding swimming was never going to be an option at MSU - even if the pool was regulation.

I had always heard it was LT. Do you know where I can read the documentation that supports your claim?

 

[thekimmer]

They should have experienced the Tin Gym.

It's all a matter of perspective. As a wide eyed country boy who's usual recreational sports facilities consisted of a hard-packed dirt basketball court, a backyard football field, cow pasture BB diamond, and creekside aquatic center, I was fairly impressed with what MSU had to offer, tin gym included.