COLUMBUS, Ohio (WOWO) — Ohio State University has been ranked the second-most beautiful college campus in the United States in a new study that evaluated 150 colleges and universities on factors ranging from historic architecture and green space to walking paths and campus popularity. The ranking was released by SIXT, an international mobility services company that said it conducted the study after seeing a sharp increase in searches for short road trips and quick getaways. Indiana University Bloomington took the top spot, while Ohio State came in second according to WCMH. According to SIXT, searches for “quick road trip” increased 408%, prompting the company to examine college campuses that could serve as destinations for day trips or short getaways. “Ohio State University is a great example of a destination where a short road trip can still offer plenty to see and do,” SIXT experts said. “The campus combines historic architecture, lush green lawns, and scenic walking paths, making it easy to explore on foot once you arrive.” The ranking used a weighted scoring system based on several characteristics of each campus. The largest portions of the score came from historic buildings and named quads or green spaces, with each category accounting for 25% of the final ranking. Ohio State did not have any buildings listed on the National Register of Historic Places in the data used for the study. The university did, however, rank particularly well for its green spaces. Ohio State had 27 named quads and green spaces, second only to Indiana University Bloomington, which had 31. Walking paths were another major strength for Ohio State. The Buckeyes’ campus ranked second overall for total pedestrian path distance, with 78 miles of walking paths. The University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign ranked first with 81 miles. The length of pedestrian paths per 1,000 students accounted for another 15% of the overall score. Google reviews contributed 20% of the ranking. Ohio State received an average Google rating of 4.5 stars, tying the University of Arkansas. Indiana University Bloomington and the University of Mississippi had lower ratings among the schools included in the study, at 4.4 stars. Campus acreage accounted for 10% of the overall score. Ohio State was near the bottom of the rankings in that category, with 29 acres per 1,000 students. Stanford University, which ranked fifth overall, led that portion of the study by a wide margin with 449 acres per 1,000 students. Online interest in campus tours made up another 3% of the ranking. Ohio State was also near the bottom in that category, recording 4,790 searches for campus tours. The University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign led with approximately 498,300 searches. The final 2% of the ranking was based on appearances in films and television shows. Ohio State was among 16 universities identified as having appeared in movies or television productions, based on information supplied by university press offices. The study’s data came from several sources, including National Historic Landmarks listings, OpenStreetMap, Google and university websites. SIXT said the information used for the ranking was current as of July 28, 2026. Despite relatively low scores for campus acreage and online campus-tour searches, Ohio State’s combination of green spaces, pedestrian paths, campus reputation and other factors was enough to place it second among the 150 schools evaluated. The ranking puts Ohio State behind only Indiana University Bloomington, giving the Buckeyes another distinction in a study aimed at identifying college campuses that can double as attractive destinations for visitors looking for a short getaway. For visitors, the study highlights some of the features that make Ohio State’s Columbus campus particularly walkable, including dozens of named green spaces and nearly 80 miles of pedestrian paths. The post Ohio State Ranks No. 2 Among America’s Most Beautiful College Campuses appeared first on WOWO News/Talk 92.3 FM and 1190 AM. ...read more read less