University officials are not as elated as most students about Ohio State’s No. 12 ranking in Playboy magazine’s Top 25 Party Schools list. And it is not because they think the rating is too low.
The ranking has raised a few eyebrows around campus, but in many different ways.
“(It’s) the naked truth about Ohio State,” said Todd Schemmel, an undecided sophomore. “Twelve beers in a 12-pack, No. 12 ranking by Playboy. Coincidence – I think not.”
The ranking is not high enough for other students.
“Anyone who would rank OSU only the 12th best party school in the nation has obviously never partied here,” said Cody Endlich, a junior in business.
The criteria used for ranking campuses is being questioned by both students and faculty.
“What all do they take into consideration when rating the schools? Obviously not the right elements,” said Tyler Espenschied, a junior in business. “Anyone we can beat in football should not be ranked above us.”
University spokeswoman Elizabeth Conlisk called the listing “a joke of a survey.”
“No scientific method was used. And this has no effect on the university in any way. It is just an attempt to sell magazines by Playboy,” Conlisk said.
In compiling the list, Playboy did not visit any campuses, said Alison Prato, a spokeswoman for the associate editor of Playboy.
The magazine relied solely on student submissions and testimonials and did little research to confirm some of the claims made in student testimonials, she said.
Playboy received 1,500 submissions from students, both male and female. The schools with the most votes and most interesting testimonials were ranked highest.
A testimonial from an OSU student, included in the Playboy article, recalled the Penn State football weekend in 1998. “One party had 69 kegs,” and police had to get “U-Hauls to carry all of the kegs.”
Sam Clum, a junior in business, thinks the number of venues available for revelry has declined.
“We would party a whole lot more if the cops were more lenient and if Campus Partners didn’t shut all of the good bars,” Clum said.
Playboy named Four Kegs Bar and Grill the best place to hang out on campus. The article also recognizes OSU’s tradition of ‘kegs and eggs’ during Michigan weekend.
The article is cause for consternation to others in the OSU community.
“I’m concerned about the segment of the student body that thinks this is positive, or a good thing,” said Bill Hall, vice president of Student Affairs.
Being rated as a party school implies rampant alcohol abuse, irresponsible sexual behavior and property destruction. These are immature and illegal activities,” Hall said. “Anyone smart enough to get into OSU is smart enough to know that this image does not enhance the value of a diploma from OSU.”
Evette Shinabery, a senior in accounting, enjoys the social scene at OSU but worries about the negative publicity.
“I went to a (job) interview and they asked me where I went to school. Then they asked me about the riots and if I had been out partying in them,” Shinabery said.
The list, published in the November issue of Playboy, ranks Arizona State University in Tempe as the top party school in the country. The rest of the top five includes California State-Chico, Rollins, Louisiana State and West Virginia. This is only the second time the magazine has compiled a party school listing, the other was in 1987.
Other Ohio schools that made the list receiving honorable mentions were Miami University, Ohio University, and the University of Dayton.
