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Michigan State University
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Inside Scoop

Quick Stats

School Slang
  • AllMSU: An online interaction site for MSU students to hookup, rate professors, or sell books.
  • Angel: New online MSU system that allows students to check grades and contact their professors.
  • The Aud: MSU Auditorium.
  • Bar crawl: Hopping from one bar to another on the same night.
  • B-Dubs: Buffalo Wild Wings
  • The Brojects: Refers to the Brody Hall Complex (housing for freshmen on the far west side of campus) which is widely known for its ghetto characteristics.
  • Café Nazis: Term for cafeteria workers who won’t allow you to take food out of the cafeteria or who give you small portions of your favorite food.
  • Capa: Online quizzes or tests.
  • The Dirty Dollar: Term synonymous with the Dollar Nightclub, which is known for the less-than-high caliber of patrons who attend.
  • Dornament: Term for a “do not disturb” article of clothing that is hung over a closed door to warn roommates of hooking-up.
  • The Dungeon: Term for the creepy basement areas in the older dormitories.
  • The Field: Huge lawn area in front of West Circle.
  • The Gerbil Lot: A big, multi-colored parking structure on campus that resembles a gerbil’s cage.
  • Gong show: Name reserved for a small group of friends who go out on a routine bar crawl at their favorite nightspots.
  • The Hub: Hubbard Hall.
  • Izzone: A designated cheering section for MSU Basketball Coach Tom Izzo.
  • Jankety: Term used to describe something that is old, slow, or broken.
  • Johnny Spirit: A 30-something man who paints his entire body green before each home football game and runs around campus.
  • Mentors: Resident Assistant.
  • NRs: New residents.
  • Old Hort: Old Horticulture.
  • Ozone: The very top of the Izzone.
  • Parking Nazis: Term of loathing for the University parking enforcement officials who creep around the campus parking lots, ready to dole out tickets for expired meters and other parking infractions.
  • Pilot: MSU mail server.
  • Prof: Professor.
  • The Rape Trail: Term for the dark pathways that run from Brody Complex to Wells Hall.
  • The Rock: A big rock by Cedar River that students and organizations use to paint messages.
  • Rocks for Jocks: ISP 203, Geology; MSU athletes usually sign up for this class because it is one of the easiest University requirements.
  • Sny Phi: Snyder-Phillips Hall
  • Sparty On!: Classic surfer lingo, which has been conveniently modified for MSU.
  • Squirrels: Nickname that refers to University of Michigan students who visit MSU.
  • STD: Sexually Trained Dornamentor; someone who frequently hangs a dornament.
  • Tool: Term most often associated with a professor who gives mind-numbing lectures.
  • Totally Takeout: A fast food option for students with meal plans.
  • The Tundra: Munn Ice Arena.
  • Wife: A female best friend.
  • Wolverines: Nickname given to the plethora of the sometimes pesky squirrels on campus, which alludes to MSU’s rivalry with the University of Michigan and its mascot.
Things I Wish I Knew Before Coming To School
  • Don’t buy the bed sheets and linens from the school catalog.
  • Get on the smallest meal plan possible.
  • Go to the frats during Orientation Week.
  • It’s important to introduce yourself to other students.
  • It’s not as big of a party school as the media makes it out to be.
  • It’s really important to see your advisor regularly.
Tips to Succeed
  • Actually go to class.
  • Always dispute bad grades.
  • Ask the TAs tons of questions.
  • Budget your money.
  • Check your e-mail at least 10 times a day.
  • Choose your major early, but choose it wisely.
  • Do your homework yourself, so you actually understand the material.
  • Don’t ever fall behind—learn to manage your time.
  • Don’t go home every weekend.
  • Don’t party too hard.
  • Eat healthy.
  • Eat out every now and then.
  • Go to athletic events.
  • Join clubs and activities.
  • Live in the dorms for at least one year.
  • Pick classes you actually like.
  • Research your professors before choosing your classes.
  • Take advantage of study sessions and professors’ office hours.
  • Talk to people.
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Michigan State Student ReviewsWhat's This?

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Inside Scoop at Michigan State University

tylergrepke

'17

Computer Science

4.6
A

Residential Programs

Even though Michigan State University is huge - campus and student body - having Residential Academic Programs is really nice.

Jan 29, 2012

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Inside Scoop at Michigan State University

nerdgirl6

'15

Computer Engineering

5.0
A+

MSU Rocks!

Michigan State University has every opportunity - from study abroad programs, to student groups, and greek life. Everyone is SO friendly and willing to help.

Jan 03, 2012

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Inside Scoop at Michigan State University

deannamoore08

'12

Public Health Studies

4.6
A

Social Life on Campus

Michigan State is a very fun and exciting campus to be a part of. There are a lot of activities and events that allow you to meet a ton of new people. The student organizations are very popular on campus and are a great way to get involved. It's also a great way to network and prepare for life after graduation.

Dec 29, 2011

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Page 1 of 10

Facts

Traditions
  • Beaumont Tower: Just follow your ears to one of MSU’s most famous attractions. If you head to the center of campus and look up, you’re bound to catch a glance of Beaumont Tower grazing the sky and keeping time. Beaumont Tower was designed by architect John Davidson and was completed in 1929 after a gift from John and Alice Beaumont funded its construction. John Beaumont was an 1882 graduate of what was then Michigan Agricultural College. The clock stands tall on what was formerly the site of the first building of the original school, Old College Hall. What makes the tower especially unique is the carillon that lies inside. According to the Beaumont Tower Web site, it’s an old MSU tradition that one does not become a true coed until they have been kissed in the tower’s shadow, or if two people kiss when the bells are ringing. Only then will they be in love forever.
  • Midnight Screams: Midnight Screams are a release, a chance to be a bit crazy for a few fleeting moments before heading back to the books for another long study session.
  • Painting the Rock: Pause to stare at the Rock—no, not the wrestler/actor, but rather the nice centralized place on campus. The Rock has tradition: anybody may paint it after sundown as long as they “control” it. As soon as you leave it, you lose “control.” After sunrise, you are not allowed to paint it until the next sundown. Many student organizations, fraternities, and clubs set up tag teams to watch over the rock on the nights they paint it.
  • The Spartan Statue: The Spartan statue’s athletic physique, chiseled features, and stoic pose should be enough to impress any college student. However, because the title “World’s largest free-standing ceramic statue” is attached to Sparty, sometimes size does matter. Standing at 9 feet 7 inches, the 58-year-old Sparty statue was sculpted by Leonard D. Jungwirth and has yet to earn an official title as the world’s tallest ceramic statue. There are plans for Sparty, which is considered the largest freestanding ceramic statue in the world, to head indoors for permanent hibernation and a new bronze statue to be constructed in its place.
  • Tennis Court Tailgates: The tennis courts are the place to be at 10 a.m. Saturday mornings of home football games. The tents are set, the fight song is playing, and beer cans are popping. Just after 9 p.m. the night before a football game, MSU football fans are beginning to line up along Chestnut and down Trowbridge to claim a part of tailgating turf.
  • Wonder Dog: Every halftime show during football season, Zeke “The Wonder Dog” puts on a show for fans by performing amazing Frisbee-catching feats.
Urban Legends
  • A complete network of steam tunnels provides an underground way to get around the whole campus.
  • East Lansing is the cloudiest city in Michigan. The National Climatic Data Center’s Web site lists Lansing as a city with a mere 51 percent chance of sunshine.
  • Former MSU president John Hannah had such a love for black squirrels that he hired a professor to trap them from Battle Creek and relocate them on campus.
  • The world’s biggest hairball was gutted from a butchered cow and then put on display in Anthony Hall. (This is false of course; MSU has the world’s second-biggest bovine hairball—it’s slightly larger than a basketball.)
  • The world’s fastest cow lives at MSU. Taffy—the once-crowned world’s fastest cow—recently passed away. Even though Taffy is gone and a subsequent cow contender has since trumped her race time, she is still making the “moos” papers. As recently as this summer, her story of victory graced the pages of an Australian tabloid and was ironically one of the most credible stories in the magazine.

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