Ohio State Mansfield campus.

Let’s face it: Ohio State is big. It’s the largest university in the United States, ranks high on the list of prime research institutions, and is located in one of the country’s fastest-growing cities.

But students who prefer a smaller, more intimate environment — and still want the benefits and prestige of an Ohio State education — can get just that by attending any of the university’s five regional campuses spread across central and northern Ohio.

And there’s one added bonus: it costs much less than going to the Columbus campus.

Ohio State has campuses in Newark and Marion, just east and north of Columbus, respectively; in Mansfield in north-central Ohio; in Lima in northwestern Ohio; and also the Agricultural Technical Institute (ATI) in the northeastern Ohio city of Wooster.

The regional campuses were created to bring Ohio State’s world-class education and resources closer to different parts of the state and to serve students living in those communities. But anyone from anywhere in Ohio or the United States can take advantage of the personal attention and friendly, peaceful environments these campuses offer.

“For students who come from small towns or are very close to their families, a regional campus is an excellent option,” said Temple Patton, minority affairs coordinator and admissions counselor at Ohio State Lima. “They will find smaller classroom sizes, very similar to what they were used to at their high schools, and will receive more individualized attention.”


Size, cost and quality matter

Campus size and class size are indeed a big difference between the regional campuses and the main campus. Ohio State Mansfield has 1,464 students compared to more than 50,000 in Columbus. This difference in number of students is reflected in the average class size. The regional campuses offer smaller classes than the Columbus campus.

But size and proximity to home are not the only factors to consider when thinking about attending a regional campus. When it comes to deciding between the big campus and the small campus, money also talks.

“Affordability is something else to consider,” Patton pointed out. “Fulltime tuition at Lima for a year is $5,664 — about $3,000 less than in Columbus. Room and board is also cheaper here. And there’s free parking.”

What’s not cheap on the regional campuses is the quality of the education they provide. Students take the same courses they would on the Columbus campus, guided by highly capable faculty — 95 percent of professors at Ohio State Mansfield have Ph.D.s — who excel at both teaching and research. Let’s cite just a couple of examples: Hispanic professors Franklin Proaño (Marion) and Dionisio Viscarri (Newark) have won Ohio State’s Alumni Award for Distinguished Teaching in 2007 and 2006, respectively.


Career options

At the regional campuses, students can complete associate’s degrees as well as bachelor’s degrees in selected majors. Some of the campuses also offer master’s degrees in education and social work. Ohio State ATI — ranked No. 1 in the nation in the awarding of associate degrees in agriculture — offers two-year programs in areas such as horticulture and construction with over 90 percent job-placement success rates.

Attending a regional campus is also a way to get used to college life before making the move to Columbus. Students can start any of Ohio State’s more 170 programs on any of the regional campuses and then request a transfer to Columbus, while saving a good chunk of cash in their overall Ohio State journey.

Finally, another advantage of picking a regional campus is open enrollment — meaning all Ohio residents with a high school diploma or GED will be accepted regardless of their ACT or SAT scores.

For more information about Ohio State’s regional campuses, go to http://www.osu.edu/academics/a-z.php#regional.