Ball State University
- Local Atmosphere

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Ball State students have some mixed emotions when it comes to Muncie. Although much of the city is rundown, the victim of outsourcing and substantial urban decay, there are some things worth seeing. The city’s downtown district is home to several art galleries featuring work by local and regional artists, a plethora of dining options and a fairly decent bar scene. Students often overlook many of the city’s festivals, which include Munciegras, Yart, and some surprisingly fun seasonal concerts. Instead, students tend to stick to the Village, a commercial district on the campus’ southeast side, which features, among other things, restaurants, a convenience store, a coffeeshop, several bars, and other stores geared toward college students.

In many respects, Muncie has never recovered from the loss of much of its industrial base, but the growth of Ball State has helped to soften some of the economic blow by providing work to many in the Muncie area, and the recent addition of a Sallie Mae office added over 700 jobs to the area. The University’s intimate relationship with the local economy has caused a kind of awkwardly ambivalent town-and-gown relationship to develop. It’s less of a marriage and more of an affair, as many in the community despise the students while recognizing they are the lifeblood of Muncie. As of this writing, the number-one complaint students had about living in Muncie was the fact that its liquor stores have stopped selling kegs.

Ball State Student ReviewsWhat's This?

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Local Atmosphere at Ball State University

eablain

Accounting '15

3.8

B+

Not Bad

There is a mall nearby which is pretty decent and walmart and target close by. Buses are available to take you to most places but they run on a schedule so you have to be on time.

May 23, 2012

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Local Atmosphere at Ball State University

Charbeneau

Business Administration and Management '15

4.6

A

Ball State Life

There are always things to do in Muncie. The Mitz bus runs right through the Ball State campus and will take you all over town. Did I mention students ride FREE?! There are a lot of cultural, safety, entertainment, and educational events hosted in the area, like concerts, movies, and parties. I've been to other campuses, but none have the friendly atmosphere that Ball State has.

Mar 24, 2012

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Local Atmosphere at Ball State University

alyssaham

Radiation Therapy '14

3.5

B

Locals

Muncie is a middle size town with many restaurants, a movie theatre,and shopping. Some shops include and are limited to walmart, target, a very tiny mall, and best buy. About an hour away is Indianapolis which is awesome if you can get there!

Mar 15, 2012

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Photos of Ball State University's Local Atmosphere

Rubber Tree Climbing

Photo by CaviesFan165

Rubber Tree Climbing Ball State offers a variety of good climbing trees on campus, especially outside of North Quad. During the warmer weather, students can be seen climbing trees and acting like a bunch of monkeys in between classes.

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Photo by CaviesFan165

Rob Paravonian and on-campus...

Photo by CaviesFan165

Rob Paravonian and on-campus events Ball State's University Program Board offers various activities to participate in and/or see on campus from time to time. UPB hosted musician/comedian Rob Paravonian (see "Pachelbel's Rant" on Youtube) on campus one evening. It was a FREE event. Sometimes it pays to live on campus and take advantage of the on-campus programs.

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Photo by CaviesFan165

BSU's Bell Tower

Photo by dnditty

BSU's Bell Tower Ball State's first snowfall of the school year!

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Photo by dnditty

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