# What are some of the most beautiful colleges and ... **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [May 26, 2007, 6:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-some-of-the-most-beautiful-colleges-and/405631 "2007-05-26T18:31:03Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![GuyNblueJeans](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e9bcb4/32.png) [@GuyNblueJeans](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GuyNblueJeans)\ **Post date:** [May 26, 2007, 6:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-some-of-the-most-beautiful-colleges-and/405631/1 "2007-05-26T18:31:03Z")
universities? I heard that Indiana University and Michigan State are both very beautiful. I suspect that Cambridge University in England is beautiful, as is, I’m sure, the University of Edinburgh in Scotland. I had a dream last night that I was at Stanford University and couldn’t believe how beautiful the student dorms (on campus) were. Way more beautiful than they ever could be in real life, made of beautiful inlaid stones and gorgeous stained glass and such. Anyway, the dream, it was the dream that got me thinking about this. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![dalej42](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/67e7ee/32.png) [@dalej42](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dalej42)\ **Post date:** [May 26, 2007, 6:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-some-of-the-most-beautiful-colleges-and/405631/2 "2007-05-26T18:42:29Z")
[Florida State University](http://www.fsu.edu/webcam/) is where I went to school. I still think the campus is one of the nicest I’ve ever seen. [The University of California](http://www.berkeley.edu/tour/) also has a nice campus. ---
**Author:** ![hawksgirl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/ed655f/32.png) [@hawksgirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hawksgirl)\ **Post date:** [May 26, 2007, 6:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-some-of-the-most-beautiful-colleges-and/405631/3 "2007-05-26T18:43:32Z")
[QUOTE=dalej42] [The University of California](http://www.berkeley.edu/tour/) also has a nice campus. [/QUOTE] Yeah, but which one? 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![StuffLikeThatThere](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/bc8723/32.png) [@StuffLikeThatThere](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/StuffLikeThatThere)\ **Post date:** [May 26, 2007, 6:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-some-of-the-most-beautiful-colleges-and/405631/4 "2007-05-26T18:47:17Z")
I think [the College of Wooster](http://www.wooster.edu/) is a very pretty small campus. ---
**Author:** ![ultrafilter](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/3d9bf3/32.png) [@ultrafilter](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ultrafilter)\ **Post date:** [May 26, 2007, 6:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-some-of-the-most-beautiful-colleges-and/405631/5 "2007-05-26T18:50:35Z")
The [University of Virginia](http://www.virginia.edu/) is up there. ---
**Author:** ![Darryl\_Lict](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/7cd45c/32.png) [@Darryl\_Lict](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darryl_Lict)\ **Post date:** [May 26, 2007, 6:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-some-of-the-most-beautiful-colleges-and/405631/6 "2007-05-26T18:51:45Z")
[Oxford](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oxford_University) is unbelievably beautiful. I think some of the buildings go back to the 1100’s. Santa Barbara City College has a football stadium with the stands set into the hillside and overlooks the ocean. It’s got to be one of the most beautiful stadiums on the planet. I’ve been told that UCSB is the only American college with it’s own beach. The campus is pretty ugly, but you can’t beat that view. The coeds are pretty hot also, but I suspect that some of the Arizona or Florida schools got us beat. ---
**Author:** ![pinkfreud](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pinkfreud/32/17603_2.png) [@pinkfreud](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pinkfreud)\ **Post date:** [May 26, 2007, 6:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-some-of-the-most-beautiful-colleges-and/405631/7 "2007-05-26T18:56:19Z")
I nominate [Duke](http://www.northcarolinatravels.com/durham/photo-album/durham-duke4.jpg) [University](http://maps.duke.edu/images/7711_1.jpg). ---
**Author:** ![zhongguorenmin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/bcef8e/32.png) [@zhongguorenmin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/zhongguorenmin)\ **Post date:** [May 26, 2007, 6:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-some-of-the-most-beautiful-colleges-and/405631/8 "2007-05-26T18:58:54Z")
[QUOTE=pinkfreud] I nominate [Duke](http://www.northcarolinatravels.com/durham/photo-album/durham-duke4.jpg) [University](http://maps.duke.edu/images/7711_1.jpg). [/QUOTE] Another vote for Oxford. Not for the big showy stuff but for all the stunning, hidden away rooms. After 4 years there I’d still come across new, beautiful places, for example in a tute in a random college. zhongguorenmin ---
**Author:** ![GuyNblueJeans](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e9bcb4/32.png) [@GuyNblueJeans](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GuyNblueJeans)\ **Post date:** [May 26, 2007, 7:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-some-of-the-most-beautiful-colleges-and/405631/9 "2007-05-26T19:00:25Z")
I checked out that Berkeley link and must say that it DOES look lovely! Those other links – Wooster, Oxford and UV – didn’t have much in the way of pics as far as I could tell (though no doubt they’re nice, too). ---
**Author:** ![GuyNblueJeans](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e9bcb4/32.png) [@GuyNblueJeans](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GuyNblueJeans)\ **Post date:** [May 26, 2007, 7:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-some-of-the-most-beautiful-colleges-and/405631/10 "2007-05-26T19:02:48Z")
Wow, those pics of Duke are amazing! ---
**Author:** ![Shagnasty](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9dc877/32.png) [@Shagnasty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shagnasty)\ **Post date:** [May 26, 2007, 7:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-some-of-the-most-beautiful-colleges-and/405631/11 "2007-05-26T19:04:03Z")
Dartmouth College (which is actually a small Ivy League university) sits right on the New Hampshire side of the NH/VY border. Everything is perfect and breathtaking and it bleeds old school East Coast style like you see in the movies. The main library looks like a movie set and is all dark hardwood and guilded art. Even the cafeterias look stunning. When I was there, someone asked if I noticed anything odd when we were walking across campus. I said not really and then he pointed our that there weren’t any fat people, sick people, or anyone without style anywhere to be found. I remembered that and it turned out to be true. ---
**Author:** ![HazelNutCoffee](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/ac91a4/32.png) [@HazelNutCoffee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HazelNutCoffee)\ **Post date:** [May 26, 2007, 7:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-some-of-the-most-beautiful-colleges-and/405631/12 "2007-05-26T19:04:17Z")
I loved Cambridge. The University of Edinburgh was also nice but Cambridge was the more beautiful by far. I think [UChicago](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/University_of_chicago#Gallery) has a pretty attractive campus as well. ---
**Author:** ![C\_K\_Dexter\_Haven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/b2d939/32.png) [@C\_K\_Dexter\_Haven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/C_K_Dexter_Haven)\ **Post date:** [May 26, 2007, 7:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-some-of-the-most-beautiful-colleges-and/405631/13 "2007-05-26T19:05:47Z")
I don’t think this is a Cafe Society discussion, so moved to IMHO. ---
**Author:** ![dalej42](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/67e7ee/32.png) [@dalej42](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dalej42)\ **Post date:** [May 26, 2007, 7:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-some-of-the-most-beautiful-colleges-and/405631/14 "2007-05-26T19:12:17Z")
I’ll also suggest [Ohio University](http://www.ohiou.edu/athens/tour/tour.html) especially in the fall. ---
**Author:** ![Subterraneanus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a183cd/32.png) [@Subterraneanus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Subterraneanus)\ **Post date:** [May 26, 2007, 7:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-some-of-the-most-beautiful-colleges-and/405631/15 "2007-05-26T19:20:07Z")
I’ll take this opportunity to plug my undergrad alma mater, Reed College: [1](http://www.mathcamp.org/photos/images/reed2.jpg) [2](http://www.reedmaniac.com/images/snow2/reed_canyon.jpg) [3](http://web.reed.edu/news_center/for_journalists/images/campus/hi_res/Reed_amphitheater.jpg) [4](http://web.reed.edu/news_center/for_journalists/images/campus/hi_res/reed_dorm_block.jpg) [5](http://web.reed.edu/news_center/for_journalists/images/campus/hi_res/reed_library.jpg) [6](http://web.reed.edu/wallpaper/Reed_Canyon_Morning.jpg) [7](http://web.reed.edu/wallpaper/annamann.jpg) [8](http://web.reed.edu/wallpaper/odb.jpg) [9](http://www.mathcamp.org/photos/images/reed1.jpg) [10](http://www.reedmaniac.com/images/snow2/reed_canyon_east.jpg) [11](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/5a/Eliot-hall-in-snow.jpg) [12](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/e/e3/Reedcollege.jpg) [13](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/7/70/Reed-College-Front-Lawn-ODB-crop.JPG) [14](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/c0/OldDormBlockReedCollege.jpg) [15](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/4f/BlueBridgeReedCollege.jpg) ---
**Author:** ![Finagle](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/b19c9b/32.png) [@Finagle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Finagle)\ **Post date:** [May 26, 2007, 7:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-some-of-the-most-beautiful-colleges-and/405631/16 "2007-05-26T19:28:27Z")
I’ve only been there once 20 something years ago, but Princeton had a very striking campus. Until you get to the engineering buildings which were the same non-descript office buildings you get on every other campus I’ve been to. ---
**Author:** ![Capatalist\_Lion\_Tamer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/71c47a/32.png) [@Capatalist\_Lion\_Tamer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Capatalist_Lion_Tamer)\ **Post date:** [May 26, 2007, 7:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-some-of-the-most-beautiful-colleges-and/405631/17 "2007-05-26T19:32:50Z")
[QUOTE=ultrafilter] The [University of Virginia](http://www.virginia.edu/) is up there. [/QUOTE] I don;t know if I’ve seen a better looking school. The original “Grounds” at UVA were designed all at once (rather than over many years)… by Thomas Jefferson. Amazing place. UGA, UNC, William & Mary, and Ole Miss are all stunning as well. ---
**Author:** ![Capatalist\_Lion\_Tamer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/71c47a/32.png) [@Capatalist\_Lion\_Tamer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Capatalist_Lion_Tamer)\ **Post date:** [May 26, 2007, 7:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-some-of-the-most-beautiful-colleges-and/405631/18 "2007-05-26T19:33:54Z")
[QUOTE=Finagle] I’ve only been there once 20 something years ago, but Princeton had a very striking campus. Until you get to the engineering buildings which were the same non-descript office buildings you get on every other campus I’ve been to. [/QUOTE] Is there an ugly Ivy League school? I know Yale & Harvard both impressed me. ---
**Author:** ![ultrafilter](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/3d9bf3/32.png) [@ultrafilter](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ultrafilter)\ **Post date:** [May 26, 2007, 7:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-some-of-the-most-beautiful-colleges-and/405631/19 "2007-05-26T19:37:15Z")
[QUOTE=Capatalist Lion Tamer] Is there an ugly Ivy League school? I know Yale & Harvard both impressed me. [/QUOTE] Penn’s not all that great, IMO. ---
**Author:** ![Capatalist\_Lion\_Tamer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/71c47a/32.png) [@Capatalist\_Lion\_Tamer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Capatalist_Lion_Tamer)\ **Post date:** [May 26, 2007, 7:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-some-of-the-most-beautiful-colleges-and/405631/20 "2007-05-26T19:43:55Z")
[QUOTE=ultrafilter] Penn’s not all that great, IMO. [/QUOTE] I was wondering about Penn & Columbia specifically. Not because I’ve heard they’re ugly, but because both are in large cities. Though, I guess that’s true for Harvard and a few other attractive places, as well. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-some-of-the-most-beautiful-colleges-and/405631.md?page=2)