Threes Above High. Credit: Christian Harsa | Former Asst. Photo Editor
Ohio State is known for its championship-winning sports teams, top-notch academics and campus atmosphere, but on Aug. 31, the university ranked among the top 10 colleges in a different category — top “party schools.”
According to a study released by Niche — an online review and ranking platform for U.S. schools, colleges and neighborhoods — and sourced through its users and U.S. Census data, Ohio State is ranked seventh in its 2027? Top Party Schools in America list. Local bar owners throughout the University District are reflecting on what it means to be a “party school,” and whether the ranking accurately reflects Ohio State’s culture and reputation.
“We’re an academic institution that has some of the best nightlife and the best students that like to go out and party,” Quinn Allen said, owner of The Library Bar, located at 2169 N. High St., and The Thirsty Scholar, located at 2201 Neil Ave. “If you work hard, you’ve got to play hard. There’s got to be balance to life.”
Niche curated the list of the top “party schools” based on various factors, according to the 飞别产蝉颈迟别’蝉 breakdown. The source with the largest contribution, at 70%, was self-reported student surveys from Niche users.
Smaller contributors were students’ access to bars, according to the U.S. Census’ website, colleges’ athletic and greek life grades pulled from Niche’s website and students’ access to restaurants.
Scott Ellsworth is the owner of a series of bars on High Street, including Threes Above High, located at 2203 N. High St., Fours On High, located at 1120 N. High St., and the up-and-coming revival of Twos Under High, located under Dirty Frank’s Hot Dog Palace at 2036 N. High St. In an Instagram direct message, Ellsworth said a “party school” is defined by its students’ ability to multitask.
“[A party school is] a school where students take their education seriously and still manage to have a good time,” Ellsworth said. “Those things can coexist.”
Allen echoed this thought.
“It’s funny, because you could probably pull up in class and see the person who has straight A’s [and] is leader of the study group, and then you’ll go out and they’ve got a pitcher poured up and [they] beat the clock at 2 o’clock in the afternoon,” Allen said. “Then they’re still out at 2 o’clock in the morning, shutting the bar down.”
Partying means more to students than merely staying out all night, Allen said, as it allows them to connect with their peers beyond the classroom.
“When you’re in class, you get introduced to people, and then at night when you’re out and you see those people or you see other people, that’s when you get to know people, because that’s when people have their guard let down,” Allen said. “That’s when you start to realize who people are, and I think that shapes the community.”
Allen said spending quality time with peers allows students to grow as individuals and feel fully immersed in the Ohio State community. According to Allen, High Street bars are one the best places to do so.
“Ohio State is not some small deal,” Allen said. “That is the biggest adventure of any one person’s life, when they’re moving onto campus and when they’re embarking on that journey. If you don’t have a way to release some of that pressure through the nightlife, through the activity [or] through the social aspect of college, then college can eat you alive.”
College is the place where students are enabled to find lifelong friendships, Ellsworth said, and the Ohio State community’s nightlife culture encourages this.
“Nightlife is part of that [college] experience,” Ellsworth said. “Seeing friends, listening to live music, letting loose, watching a game and feeling like you belong somewhere. Years later, people come back wanting to sit in their old booth. That tells you it meant something.”
Ellsworth said Ohio State’s athletics and football-focused culture contributes to its students’ passion for ending game days with a celebration.
“You have students from everywhere, alumni who never really leave and an entire city that plans its emotional well-being around what a bunch of 20-year-olds do with a football,” Ellsworth said. “Buckeyes don’t need much of an excuse to get together, but we’re always happy to provide one.”
Allen said the excitement around game days contributes to students’ desire to have a place to spend time with friends.
“We’re so used to the amount of foot traffic into the bars on the crazy game days,” Allen said. “It just seems likewe’re always trying to find a reason to have a good time … Everybody’s always down to have a good time shaped around that. It doesn’t take too much convincing to get a student at Ohio State out at any hour of the day to go have a party.”
The success of locally-owned bars is a result of their willingness to support one another, Ellsworth said, just as they support students.
“We want to create places where you know the staff, run into your friends and feel comfortable being yourself,” Ellsworth said. “We’re locally owned, we care about this campus and we’re proud to be the bars of the people. We also believe all the campus bars do better when we all work together.”
Allen reflected on the long-lasting nature of Ohio State’s local bars, and said there will always be a need for them as long as they are celebrated by the community.
“There is a divine need for these places to come together, share a drink and create memories,” Allen said. “We see other places come and go, and when you see these real establishments that stand the test of time, it just shows you that they are necessary. That’s why these places are still here, and that’s why they’re still booming with business. No matter how the generations change, there’s always going to be a need for that to fit into the culture that is college life.”
Despite Ohio State’s seventh place ranking as a top-tier “party school,” Ellsworth said a subjective list fails to reflect the true spirit of the Buckeye community.
“I’m requesting a recount,” Ellsworth said.
