Getting around
Campus Area Bus Service (CABS)
Free campus bus routes connecting all areas of campus and nearby off-campus neighborhoods
Ohio State at a glance
45,638
undergrads
61%
of applicants admitted
94%
come back for year 2
83%
graduate
16 : 1
students per teacher
$67,080
typical pay 10 years in
Source: U.S. Department of Education, College Scorecard.
What a year really costs
After grants and scholarships, by family income. Average: $17,269.
Under $30k $6,061
$30k–$48k $5,538
$48k–$75k $9,708
$75k–$110k $18,203
Over $110k $27,873
Tuition, in state
$13,641
Tuition, out of state
$42,423
Typical debt at graduation
$19,500
23% of students get a Pell Grant
Free stuff most students miss
Health & safety
Counseling and Consultation Service (CCS)
Free confidential counseling, crisis intervention, group therapy, and mental health support for students
Eat
Dining halls, quick bites and coffee on campus.
Traditions at Scott
Dining hall All-you-care-to-eat dining hall on north campus with two floors featuring grills, salad bar, and international cuisine
160 W. Woodruff Ave
Traditions at Kennedy
Dining hall All-you-care-to-eat dining hall on south campus with rotating menus and fresh options
251 W. 12th Ave
Traditions at Morrill
Dining hall All-you-care-to-eat dining hall in Morrill Tower on west campus
1645 Neil Ave
Sloopy's Diner
Dining hall Full-service diner in the Ohio Union serving classic American comfort food and milkshakes
1739 N. High St
Ohio Union Dining
Cafe Food court in the Ohio Union with multiple quick-service restaurants and retail dining options
1739 N. High St
Woody's Tavern
Cafe Sports bar and grill in the Ohio Union with burgers, wings, and game-day atmosphere
1739 N. High St
Berry Cafe
Cafe Grab-and-go cafe inside Thompson Library offering sandwiches, yogurt parfaits, salads, and coffee.
1858 Neil Ave Mall
Curl Market
Market Campus convenience store offering grab-and-go meals, snacks, beverages, and essentials
Cafe
Starbucks - Thompson Library
Cafe Starbucks coffee shop located inside Thompson Library
1858 Neil Ave Mall
Marketplace at Neil
Market Full-service campus market with fresh produce, prepared meals, and everyday essentials
1634 Neil Ave Cafe
Oxley's by the Numbers
Cafe Quick-service cafe near the south campus academic buildings
Union Market
Market Food court and convenience store in the Ohio Union with diverse quick-service options
1739 N. High St
Marketplace on Neil
Specialty dining Urban food hall on Neil Avenue serving stir-fry, soups, wraps, pasta, and entrees with an espresso bar.
1578 Neil Avenue
12th Avenue Bread Company
Cafe Bakery-café on south campus with artisan breads, sandwiches, soups, and coffee
240 W. 12th Ave
Courtside Cafe at RPAC
Cafe Cafe inside the Recreation and Physical Activity Center with breakfast, lunch, and dinner options
337 Annie and John Glenn Ave
Berry Café
Cafe Coffee and grab-and-go café near the south residential area with pastries and light meals
Espress-OH
Cafe Specialty coffee shop in the Ohio Union offering handcrafted espresso drinks, seasonal creations, and gelato.
1739 North High Street
Mirror Lake Eatery
Cafe Quick-service dining near Mirror Lake with sandwiches, salads, smoothies, and grab-and-go options
Courtside Cafe
Cafe Asian-inspired fast casual cafe at the RPAC offering rice bowls, ramen, sushi, and bento boxes.
337 Annie and John Glenn Ave
Connecting Grounds
Cafe Cozy coffee shop in the Ohio Union serving espresso, pastries, and light fare
1739 N. High St
Juice at RPAC
Cafe Smoothie and espresso bar inside the RPAC fitness center crafting revitalizing blended drinks with supplements.
337 Annie and John Glenn AveWhere to live
Residence halls, apartments and help finding a place.
North Residential District
Residence hall Modern halls including Drackett Tower with air conditioning, updated lounges, and proximity to academic core
North Campus Residential District
Residence hall Ohio State's newest residence hall complex along Neil Avenue near engineering, business, and science buildings.
2130 Neil Ave.
South Residential District
Residence hall High-rise towers including Park-Stradley and Smith-Steeb with close proximity to south campus classrooms
South Campus Residential District
Residence hall Classic campus area along 11th Avenue near Ohio Union and High Street with traditional-style residence halls.
120 W. 11th Ave.
West Residential District
Residence hall Morrill and Lincoln Towers with tight-knit communities near athletic facilities and green spaces
West Campus - The Towers
Residence hall Two iconic 23-story towers on Cannon Drive with stadium views, RPAC proximity, and honors housing.
1800 Cannon Drive
Buckeye Village
Residence hall On-campus apartments for graduate students, students with families, and upperclassmen
Get around
Shuttles, parking and accessible rides.
Campus Area Bus Service (CABS)
Transit Free campus bus routes connecting all areas of campus and nearby off-campus neighborhoods
Transit
CABS - Campus Area Bus Service
Transit Free campus bus system operating multiple routes connecting north, south, west campus, and medical center areas.
Transit
COTA Bus Service
Transit City bus routes connecting campus to downtown Columbus and surrounding areas with BuckID discounts
Parking
CampusParc - OSU Parking
Parking Manages all campus parking including student permits, visitor parking, garages, and surface lots.
1560 N. High Street Parking
OSU Parking Services
Parking Campus parking permits, garages, and visitor parking information for students and commuters
Biking
CoGo Bike Share
Biking Public bike-share system with 600+ bikes at 70+ stations around campus and Columbus, available 24/7
Transit
COTA - Central Ohio Transit Authority
Transit Columbus public transit system offering bus routes connecting campus to downtown and greater Columbus area.
33 N. High StreetMajors that pay most at Ohio State
Typical pay 4 years after graduating. Top 6 of 96 bachelor's majors with published pay.
Computer Engineering $123,731
Applied Mathematics $120,495
Computer Science $118,833
Management Sciences and Quantitative Methods $111,500
Management Information Systems and Services $110,192
Industrial Engineering $106,932
Source: College Scorecard, field-of-study data.
Your Ohio State checklist
5 things worth doing early
When you need help
5 things Ohio State freshmen figure out too late
Watch the video1 A bad grade can come off your GPA
Grade forgiveness lets you retake a course so the second grade replaces the first in your Ohio State GPA. You can use it once per course, on up to three courses. The original grade does NOT disappear — it stays on your transcript, it just stops counting toward the GPA and earned hours. There is a deadline and it is strictly enforced: the petition has to be in before the last day to drop that course without petitioning, which for a full-semester class is usually the 10th Friday of the term (shorter sessions are earlier). Worth knowing before you rely on it: graduate and professional school admissions often recalculate your GPA with the original grade put back in.
2 You already have a lawyer
Student Legal Services is a nonprofit law office that contracts with Ohio State, and eligible students are enrolled automatically — the fee is $40 if your first term is autumn. It covers the things that actually happen to students: landlord and tenant disputes, traffic citations, criminal misdemeanours, consumer protection, immigration, notary. The trap is the opt-out. If you waive the fee to save $40, you cannot reverse it later when something goes wrong — their page says so with "no exceptions".
3 Your meal swipes reset Saturday at 3 a.m.
Per-week visits to the Traditions dining halls reset every week on Saturday at 3 a.m. and do not roll into the next week — so a swipe you have not used by Friday night is gone. Dining Dollars are a separate balance with a separate trap: an account with no activity for six months is treated as inactive and the remaining balance is forfeited. One transaction every six months is enough to keep it alive.
4 Every COTA bus in Columbus is already paid for
COTA is included in your annual student fees, which buys unlimited access to the entire COTA bus system — you scan a digital pass in the Ohio State app. You need to be a Columbus campus student enrolled in at least one in-person class with the COTA fee on your statement of account. Separately, CABS — the campus buses — is free to anyone, and their own page points out you do not even have to show a BuckID.
5 Record the lecture. Gus writes it down.
This is the part students actually use most: hit record at the start of class and Gus gives you back a timestamped transcript, a summary, and the key topics the lecture covered — so "what did he say about that" stops being a guess. The transcript is where it starts, not where it ends: from that same lecture you can generate flashcards, a practice quiz, or a podcast to listen to on the bus. It works on a phone in your pocket, and it keeps working if the lecture runs long.
One more thing
The one we cut: the RPAC is already yours
Take four or more in-person credit hours on main campus and you are a Rec Sports member — five indoor facilities, more than 70 acres of outdoor space, intramurals, group fitness and personal training, with nothing extra to pay. People buy off-campus gym memberships without checking this.
Rec Sports — the student feeSomething you will hear that is out of date
The Mirror Lake jump is not a thing any more — the university ended it after 2017. Advice from older videos still tells freshmen it is a rite of passage.
Mirror Lake todayGus is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or sponsored by The Ohio State University. Tips checked against Ohio State's own pages in September 2026. Campus info last updated April 2026. Stats from the U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard. Something out of date? hello@meetgus.app · All campus guides