Rochester

[Anonymous]

My DD is a recent graduate. She loved it. There was not nearly the amount of snow that she had hoped for over her entire 4 years there. She was ready for it and kind of disappointed. I have no idea per the social scene the one poster is discussing. She was in a sorority and none of that was true for my child. She had regular campus fun first two years and then more off campus fun her last 2 years all around covid. The social life is what you make it as it is at most places. She had the most resources by far of her particular friend group. Most of her friends had a FA package or a scholarship or both. She did not struggle to avoid the money and/or snobbery brigade that can exist at any school. Loved the open curriculum. Double majored and minored. She had a 4.2 GPA weighted and 29 ACT and applied ED because she fell in love after her visit and worried she was at the lower end of their stats. From the midwest and maybe one or two other students from her HS went to Eastman over all the years I had kids in HS. She went back for summer interview which I think they value a great deal. They want to see that you know you are likely getting a cloudy, cold, snowy winter. They like that you are aware you are not in or near NYC. They want to see that you might be aware of the garbage plate. Like any school, they don't just want to be your back up, and they want you to understand the school, its values, and all it offers. I have nothing negative to say. It was a great 4 years.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My DD is a recent graduate. She loved it. There was not nearly the amount of snow that she had hoped for over her entire 4 years there. She was ready for it and kind of disappointed. I have no idea per the social scene the one poster is discussing. She was in a sorority and none of that was true for my child. She had regular campus fun first two years and then more off campus fun her last 2 years all around covid. The social life is what you make it as it is at most places. She had the most resources by far of her particular friend group. Most of her friends had a FA package or a scholarship or both. She did not struggle to avoid the money and/or snobbery brigade that can exist at any school. Loved the open curriculum. Double majored and minored. She had a 4.2 GPA weighted and 29 ACT and applied ED because she fell in love after her visit and worried she was at the lower end of their stats. From the midwest and maybe one or two other students from her HS went to Eastman over all the years I had kids in HS. She went back for summer interview which I think they value a great deal. They want to see that you know you are likely getting a cloudy, cold, snowy winter. They like that you are aware you are not in or near NYC. They want to see that you might be aware of the garbage plate. Like any school, they don't just want to be your back up, and they want you to understand the school, its values, and all it offers. I have nothing negative to say. It was a great 4 years.

Thanks for this. My kid toured and really likes it. The question I had was what are the other seasons like there and what is the city like?

[Anonymous]

Other seasons are nice.. people out and about in spring and summer and fall as much as possible. I would say the city is like any small city - cheaper to live, easy to navigate, very little traffic, get anywhere in 15-20 min maximum. Hometown of Wegmans. The University and medical center are well respected and a big employer in town. Obviously the demise of Kodak and other companies have hurt the area overall. You are not going to get instant gratification walking out the door like in NYC or DC or Chicago, etc, but the Rochester kids seem to find their own local "gems " and head out and about -- coffee shops, bars, clubs, bakeries, restaurants. City is Bills crazy, but you can go to AHL Amerks or Triple A Red Wings games for cheap and competitive teams. She or her friends went to Bristol to ski, Finger Lakes, Letchworth, Lake Ontario and beach, Buffalo, Toronto, NYC, Montreal. There is the Lilac Festival and I think some type of comedy showcase or something. Living there is going to be what you make it and what you pursue. If you want endless opportunities and the biggest names for shows, concerts, etc... not the best city for that. Hopefully this helps.

On another note, airport is easy and not busy, but like any small market airport, flights are more expensive. The University offers buses to NYC and MA and other places over holidays so students can jump on those.

[Anonymous]

My son was admitted last year. We visited and he interviewed. He liked the school and campus.

[Anonymous]

Why is there so much crime in Rochester?

[Anonymous]

The take a lot of their students via ED.

It was my DC’s first choice but she couldn’t apply ED because she needed merit aid to attend, so she applied EA. 1580 SAT, 4.8 weighted GPA from MCPS magnet. 10 APs, all 5s, good ECs including a musical instrument at a national level.

She got in but they gave her only $9k in merit aid, nowhere near enough for us to make it work. She was so disappointed.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My DD is a recent graduate. She loved it. There was not nearly the amount of snow that she had hoped for over her entire 4 years there. She was ready for it and kind of disappointed. I have no idea per the social scene the one poster is discussing. She was in a sorority and none of that was true for my child. She had regular campus fun first two years and then more off campus fun her last 2 years all around covid. The social life is what you make it as it is at most places. She had the most resources by far of her particular friend group. Most of her friends had a FA package or a scholarship or both. She did not struggle to avoid the money and/or snobbery brigade that can exist at any school. Loved the open curriculum. Double majored and minored. She had a 4.2 GPA weighted and 29 ACT and applied ED because she fell in love after her visit and worried she was at the lower end of their stats. From the midwest and maybe one or two other students from her HS went to Eastman over all the years I had kids in HS. She went back for summer interview which I think they value a great deal. They want to see that you know you are likely getting a cloudy, cold, snowy winter. They like that you are aware you are not in or near NYC. They want to see that you might be aware of the garbage plate. Like any school, they don't just want to be your back up, and they want you to understand the school, its values, and all it offers. I have nothing negative to say. It was a great 4 years.

Thanks for this. My kid toured and really likes it. The question I had was what are the other seasons like there and what is the city like?

NP, here. We visited UR. We drove through the city at different times of day and observed that it's pretty empty. At each school we visited, I took DC to walk around the town and eat in one or two places. We parked on a dark, lonely street to visit a coffee shop (which was just robbed actually) near the Eastman School of Music. While we enjoyed our drinks, a man approached us to ask for money. I loved the coffee shop and the man approaching wasn't a buzzkill for me, but it might be for some. BUT, right next door, was the concert hall, and one would be hard pressed to find a location with such a wealth of talented musicians and that could mean concerts.

We enjoyed touring the George Eastman house and museum and a photography exhibit in the adjacent gallery. If you have a car and drive 30ish minutes north, you reach a gorgeous lake. In spring, this was mostly empty. In warmer months, I could see taking picnics here and having a great time with friends.

We walked from our hotel to UR and witnessed several police cars stopped near the Rochester hospital to arrest someone for something or other. The hotel near campus was nice (Hilton) and the B&N next to it was tiny yet had a good collection of books.

The campus is right on the river and a bit hemmed in by the river and some large roads. What I think is a public road goes right through campus. The closeness of the river means kayaking is possible (fun!) and the bike trail makes for a convenient place to rollerblade, hike, bike.

The campus is VERY walkable and compact in a good way.

If snow scares anyone, they have underground tunnels.

You are allowed to eat anywhere on campus--even in class--as dictated by George Eastman when he gave money to the school.

The mental health clinic, if it matters, is located close to freshman dorms. Every school mentioned mental health, so that's why I mention it, too.

If ghosts bother you, too bad. There is apparently a ghost in the library.

The dorms are as ugly as most first-year dorms. On the plus side, I didn't see a more gorgeous library. You feel like you're on the Harry Potter set. In the more modern section, students can gather, talk, eat and study in comfortable chairs and sofas. This space was designed with a lot of student input and they wanted a space without librarians, apparently.

I tried to give you the good and the bad. Every school will have its downsides, and crime is everywhere. My DC didn't apply because they don't give much merit (it tops out at about $12K) and we don't think it's worth $83,000. That said, my friend's husband attended and liked it very much.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:UR grad here. Agree with the comments about the library and the course cluster system, plus the freshman writing classes. I had no complaints about the academics, which were strong.

On the other hand, socially... well, your mileage may vary. I was disgusted with the rampant binge drinking, drug abuse, Greek-dominated culture, and general snottiness of the student body. I was surrounded by bratty rich kids from the DC and NYC suburbs whose parents couldn't buy their way into an Ivy and weren't serious about anything other than the next party. And most of the party scene was on campus, because crime in the surrounding Rochester neighborhoods (especially across the bridge) was really bad.

Maybe things have changed for the better since I graduated. I sure hope so.

I don't think this has changed. I had planned to get a hotel "across the bridge," because I thought it'd be cool to be on the water. My friends who live there hinted that it would be rough in that area.

Yeah, I can see why bratty kids would fill the place. It's expensive and obviously Rochester is attempting to attract families who can pay $83K. For that price, I would expect better security on the campus.

[Anonymous]

Frankly, crime is pretty bad throughout many major cities across the US whether Chicago, NYC, LA, Philadelphia, Cleveland or DC.

[Anonymous]

Good to know about the merit aid situation! Does anyone else have any experiences with merit aid and stats? The website cryptically hints at full tuition scholarships, but most of the kids we know who applied barely got 15K, of that, despite high stats.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Good to know about the merit aid situation! Does anyone else have any experiences with merit aid and stats? The website cryptically hints at full tuition scholarships, but most of the kids we know who applied barely got 15K, of that, despite high stats.

Two of my friends (don't know their stats) got full scholarship.

[Anonymous]

Security on campus is fine. The neighborhood across the river is one I never would spend time in growing up in Roc. It's been that way forever. The coffee shop referenced about is not a dark area. It's right next to Eastman's concert hall and lively.

For the other seasons, fall is lovely in WNY. Winter is cold and dreary, but we used to get a lot of snow and it was beautiful back then. The tunnels and FAR superior plowing makes snow much more manageable than here. Spring starts later but the lilac festival and area around Highland park are really lovely. College kids are home in the summer, but it's not too hot at all.

There are definitely parks of downtown that are rough, but a lot of people stay near Park Ave, East Ave, etc. Every college kid gets a garbage plate and has wings at Distillery. They can hang out on Lake Ontario, take a day trip to Niagara Falls and never have to shop at a Harris Teeter again.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Good to know about the merit aid situation! Does anyone else have any experiences with merit aid and stats? The website cryptically hints at full tuition scholarships, but most of the kids we know who applied barely got 15K, of that, despite high stats.

Your post lays out the situation accurately. The common data set reveals that they tend to give few merit awards of about 13k.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Security on campus is fine. The neighborhood across the river is one I never would spend time in growing up in Roc. It's been that way forever. The coffee shop referenced about is not a dark area. It's right next to Eastman's concert hall and lively.

For the other seasons, fall is lovely in WNY. Winter is cold and dreary, but we used to get a lot of snow and it was beautiful back then. The tunnels and FAR superior plowing makes snow much more manageable than here. Spring starts later but the lilac festival and area around Highland park are really lovely. College kids are home in the summer, but it's not too hot at all.

There are definitely parks of downtown that are rough, but a lot of people stay near Park Ave, East Ave, etc. Every college kid gets a garbage plate and has wings at Distillery. They can hang out on Lake Ontario, take a day trip to Niagara Falls and never have to shop at a Harris Teeter again.

Why would you say the area is not dark when you were not there? The five spaces in front of the cafe are fine but one has to park around the corner most of the time. It’s a dark and empty city.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Good to know about the merit aid situation! Does anyone else have any experiences with merit aid and stats? The website cryptically hints at full tuition scholarships, but most of the kids we know who applied barely got 15K, of that, despite high stats.

My kid was High stats (~85% in SAT and GPA), female in engineering and did not get any merit---despite the fact the CDS indicates over 90% of engineering majors who don't get FA get merit. Oh well, luckily we can afford the $80K+, as it was my daughters top choice that she was admitted to (her 2nd choice overall). UR is known to be stingy with merit...even for those that get it, it's typically low (~$8-12 K at most)

However, it's an excellent school, my kid loves it there