Anonymous
04/28/2023 19:18
Subject: Re:Rochester
Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:a few observations:
- "location" is basically a backdrop to (just) four years of college. No one is expecting any college student to buy property there, live there forever, or write glowing articles about their college town for travel media. Location is an obsession of this website only because so many of the commenters don't actually know much about the colleges involved or even about higher education generally, so in their ignorance they instead obsess over USNWR rankings and climate.
- for many, a mid-sized city of about one million -- like Rochester -- is the perfect location for college. More choices for entertainment and shopping than a small town setting provides, plus the diversity of an urban community and the opportunity for jobs/internships -- but not the crazy congestion, distraction or prices of being in a major metropolis. DCUM families may reasonably prefer to spend their vacation weekends in New York City than in Rochester -- but that's kind of irrelevant to where you want to go to college.
-- Rochester is a uniquely attractive mid-size city. Indeed, many non-natives who have transferred there for work or education -- ie, people who have no particular allegiance to the area -- really like it. It has a prosperous history, and a legacy of good cultural institutions and impressive architecture and charming neighborhoods, and while it's not the corporate headquarters site it once was, it's still one of the best educated metro areas in the northeast (and country). It also hosts, depending on how you count, between 50 and 80 thousand students, so the notion that "there's nothing for students to do there" is not just erroneous but suggests that the market is uniquely dysfunctional in Rochester and that demand from tens of thousands of students goes unmet.
- DCUM commenters don't merely fixate on silly, incorrect or irrelevant issues related to colleges -- but they're also biased and inconsistent in their application. Virtually no place has a perfect climate -- there are drawbacks to the climate everywhere. But for some college locations, opinionated DCUM commenters argue at length that the climate should be disqualifying, whereas for other colleges with only slightly 'better' climates, or with other entirely different climate drawbacks, it's never mentioned as a factor. Why the inconsistency? Similarly, some locations whether urban or rural "develop" a bad rep among some noisy DCUM commenters (often but not exclusively linked to race, so that's not the only possible explantion), while other equally charmless or depressed cities, or equally remote and tiny rural settings, get a pass. Again, why the inconsistency? Bottom line: what's one sees on DCUM isn't authoritative analysis but just noise, mostly by the ignorant.
I have no connection to the U of R (apart from knowing people who went there quite happily), but have been a repeated (non-native) visitor to Rochester. It's a very nice city. It would be a nice place to go to school. If your kid can't tolerate a few cold or cloudy winters while getting a great education, that's your issue -- but then don't pretend you're interested in the best possible education.
I was pleasantly surprised when we visited. Yes, it's not the Rochester of the 80s/90s with Kodak was King.
At first I was worried my kid liked it simply because the college visit prior was RPI, and they really really really did not like Troy NY---it was a visceral reaction of "no we really don't need to tour because there is no way in hell I'm spending 4 years in this tiny town". And I tended to agree. So I was not sure whether my kid really liked rochester or just thought it was 1000x better than Troy. But our next visit demonstrated that yes, it really is a town my kid likes. There is a lot to do for college kids, and in reality, how much do college kids actually go "off campus" each semester. Most of the activities are on campus/near campus (frat parties/off campus parties)---in reality most kids leave campus maybe once on the weekends---otherwise they are busy studying/attending class and socializing with the hundreds of clubs/activities available on campus. But Rochester has some really nice areas. The Park Ave area is a really cute area with tons of restaurants and little local shops. A trip to the Big Wegmans is always an experience and one that college kids love to make a trip out of, and I think the UR busses go there all day on Sunday---on Sat the busses go to Henrietta shopping areas. I'd say my kid goes off campus 2-3x per month and for a college kid there is plenty of fun stuff to do.
So once someone can get over the fact that Rochester is not Boston or anything like it and really look at what it is, you realize it's a great place to spend 4 or 5 years. There is minor league baseball and the games are cheap to attend. You have Eastman and all of it's concerts for anyone into the arts/music scene. Sure, my kid has no desire to remain in Rochester post graduation, but they wouldn't want to remain where they went to college if they attended WashU, Vanderbilt, Emory, RPI, Cornell, or a lot of other Top schools either. Fact is my kid is 10 min Uber ride from the airport, and really a 10-20 min uber ride from any activities they would want in the rochester area.
There’s also Bristol Mountain nearby, which is a nice place to go skiing.
Anonymous
04/28/2023 15:30
Subject: Re:Rochester
Anonymous wrote:Only quibble with above is regarding Nashville - lots of Vanderbilt grads stay. Growing, fun city. Yes an island in a state that has many issues that would make it tough for many to choose - but yet many do.
I get that many do. However, I was stating that for my kid, there is no way in Hell my kid would want to stay. They prefer to stay in a progressive blue state for many many reasons---it is the kid expressing these views (I tend to agree but they are 18+ so it's ultimately their choice not mine). They were searching for colleges that were in more progressive areas as well. Deep South (or any part of the "south really") does not appeal to them, so had they chosen any college in an area like that they would definately not be staying after college.
I suspect they will ultimately end up in the Boston or Chicago region, given that their desire field of choice is based there (Boston especially).
Anonymous
04/28/2023 15:20
Subject: Re:Rochester
Only quibble with above is regarding Nashville - lots of Vanderbilt grads stay. Growing, fun city. Yes an island in a state that has many issues that would make it tough for many to choose - but yet many do.
Anonymous
04/28/2023 14:20
Subject: Re:Rochester
Anonymous wrote:a few observations:
- "location" is basically a backdrop to (just) four years of college. No one is expecting any college student to buy property there, live there forever, or write glowing articles about their college town for travel media. Location is an obsession of this website only because so many of the commenters don't actually know much about the colleges involved or even about higher education generally, so in their ignorance they instead obsess over USNWR rankings and climate.
- for many, a mid-sized city of about one million -- like Rochester -- is the perfect location for college. More choices for entertainment and shopping than a small town setting provides, plus the diversity of an urban community and the opportunity for jobs/internships -- but not the crazy congestion, distraction or prices of being in a major metropolis. DCUM families may reasonably prefer to spend their vacation weekends in New York City than in Rochester -- but that's kind of irrelevant to where you want to go to college.
-- Rochester is a uniquely attractive mid-size city. Indeed, many non-natives who have transferred there for work or education -- ie, people who have no particular allegiance to the area -- really like it. It has a prosperous history, and a legacy of good cultural institutions and impressive architecture and charming neighborhoods, and while it's not the corporate headquarters site it once was, it's still one of the best educated metro areas in the northeast (and country). It also hosts, depending on how you count, between 50 and 80 thousand students, so the notion that "there's nothing for students to do there" is not just erroneous but suggests that the market is uniquely dysfunctional in Rochester and that demand from tens of thousands of students goes unmet.
- DCUM commenters don't merely fixate on silly, incorrect or irrelevant issues related to colleges -- but they're also biased and inconsistent in their application. Virtually no place has a perfect climate -- there are drawbacks to the climate everywhere. But for some college locations, opinionated DCUM commenters argue at length that the climate should be disqualifying, whereas for other colleges with only slightly 'better' climates, or with other entirely different climate drawbacks, it's never mentioned as a factor. Why the inconsistency? Similarly, some locations whether urban or rural "develop" a bad rep among some noisy DCUM commenters (often but not exclusively linked to race, so that's not the only possible explantion), while other equally charmless or depressed cities, or equally remote and tiny rural settings, get a pass. Again, why the inconsistency? Bottom line: what's one sees on DCUM isn't authoritative analysis but just noise, mostly by the ignorant.
I have no connection to the U of R (apart from knowing people who went there quite happily), but have been a repeated (non-native) visitor to Rochester. It's a very nice city. It would be a nice place to go to school. If your kid can't tolerate a few cold or cloudy winters while getting a great education, that's your issue -- but then don't pretend you're interested in the best possible education.
I was pleasantly surprised when we visited. Yes, it's not the Rochester of the 80s/90s with Kodak was King.
At first I was worried my kid liked it simply because the college visit prior was RPI, and they really really really did not like Troy NY---it was a visceral reaction of "no we really don't need to tour because there is no way in hell I'm spending 4 years in this tiny town". And I tended to agree. So I was not sure whether my kid really liked rochester or just thought it was 1000x better than Troy. But our next visit demonstrated that yes, it really is a town my kid likes. There is a lot to do for college kids, and in reality, how much do college kids actually go "off campus" each semester. Most of the activities are on campus/near campus (frat parties/off campus parties)---in reality most kids leave campus maybe once on the weekends---otherwise they are busy studying/attending class and socializing with the hundreds of clubs/activities available on campus. But Rochester has some really nice areas. The Park Ave area is a really cute area with tons of restaurants and little local shops. A trip to the Big Wegmans is always an experience and one that college kids love to make a trip out of, and I think the UR busses go there all day on Sunday---on Sat the busses go to Henrietta shopping areas. I'd say my kid goes off campus 2-3x per month and for a college kid there is plenty of fun stuff to do.
So once someone can get over the fact that Rochester is not Boston or anything like it and really look at what it is, you realize it's a great place to spend 4 or 5 years. There is minor league baseball and the games are cheap to attend. You have Eastman and all of it's concerts for anyone into the arts/music scene. Sure, my kid has no desire to remain in Rochester post graduation, but they wouldn't want to remain where they went to college if they attended WashU, Vanderbilt, Emory, RPI, Cornell, or a lot of other Top schools either. Fact is my kid is 10 min Uber ride from the airport, and really a 10-20 min uber ride from any activities they would want in the rochester area.
Anonymous
04/28/2023 10:10
Subject: Re:Rochester
a few observations:
- "location" is basically a backdrop to (just) four years of college. No one is expecting any college student to buy property there, live there forever, or write glowing articles about their college town for travel media. Location is an obsession of this website only because so many of the commenters don't actually know much about the colleges involved or even about higher education generally, so in their ignorance they instead obsess over USNWR rankings and climate.
- for many, a mid-sized city of about one million -- like Rochester -- is the perfect location for college. More choices for entertainment and shopping than a small town setting provides, plus the diversity of an urban community and the opportunity for jobs/internships -- but not the crazy congestion, distraction or prices of being in a major metropolis. DCUM families may reasonably prefer to spend their vacation weekends in New York City than in Rochester -- but that's kind of irrelevant to where you want to go to college.
-- Rochester is a uniquely attractive mid-size city. Indeed, many non-natives who have transferred there for work or education -- ie, people who have no particular allegiance to the area -- really like it. It has a prosperous history, and a legacy of good cultural institutions and impressive architecture and charming neighborhoods, and while it's not the corporate headquarters site it once was, it's still one of the best educated metro areas in the northeast (and country). It also hosts, depending on how you count, between 50 and 80 thousand students, so the notion that "there's nothing for students to do there" is not just erroneous but suggests that the market is uniquely dysfunctional in Rochester and that demand from tens of thousands of students goes unmet.
- DCUM commenters don't merely fixate on silly, incorrect or irrelevant issues related to colleges -- but they're also biased and inconsistent in their application. Virtually no place has a perfect climate -- there are drawbacks to the climate everywhere. But for some college locations, opinionated DCUM commenters argue at length that the climate should be disqualifying, whereas for other colleges with only slightly 'better' climates, or with other entirely different climate drawbacks, it's never mentioned as a factor. Why the inconsistency? Similarly, some locations whether urban or rural "develop" a bad rep among some noisy DCUM commenters (often but not exclusively linked to race, so that's not the only possible explantion), while other equally charmless or depressed cities, or equally remote and tiny rural settings, get a pass. Again, why the inconsistency? Bottom line: what's one sees on DCUM isn't authoritative analysis but just noise, mostly by the ignorant.
I have no connection to the U of R (apart from knowing people who went there quite happily), but have been a repeated (non-native) visitor to Rochester. It's a very nice city. It would be a nice place to go to school. If your kid can't tolerate a few cold or cloudy winters while getting a great education, that's your issue -- but then don't pretend you're interested in the best possible education.
- "location" is basically a backdrop to (just) four years of college. No one is expecting any college student to buy property there, live there forever, or write glowing articles about their college town for travel media. Location is an obsession of this website only because so many of the commenters don't actually know much about the colleges involved or even about higher education generally, so in their ignorance they instead obsess over USNWR rankings and climate.
- for many, a mid-sized city of about one million -- like Rochester -- is the perfect location for college. More choices for entertainment and shopping than a small town setting provides, plus the diversity of an urban community and the opportunity for jobs/internships -- but not the crazy congestion, distraction or prices of being in a major metropolis. DCUM families may reasonably prefer to spend their vacation weekends in New York City than in Rochester -- but that's kind of irrelevant to where you want to go to college.
-- Rochester is a uniquely attractive mid-size city. Indeed, many non-natives who have transferred there for work or education -- ie, people who have no particular allegiance to the area -- really like it. It has a prosperous history, and a legacy of good cultural institutions and impressive architecture and charming neighborhoods, and while it's not the corporate headquarters site it once was, it's still one of the best educated metro areas in the northeast (and country). It also hosts, depending on how you count, between 50 and 80 thousand students, so the notion that "there's nothing for students to do there" is not just erroneous but suggests that the market is uniquely dysfunctional in Rochester and that demand from tens of thousands of students goes unmet.
- DCUM commenters don't merely fixate on silly, incorrect or irrelevant issues related to colleges -- but they're also biased and inconsistent in their application. Virtually no place has a perfect climate -- there are drawbacks to the climate everywhere. But for some college locations, opinionated DCUM commenters argue at length that the climate should be disqualifying, whereas for other colleges with only slightly 'better' climates, or with other entirely different climate drawbacks, it's never mentioned as a factor. Why the inconsistency? Similarly, some locations whether urban or rural "develop" a bad rep among some noisy DCUM commenters (often but not exclusively linked to race, so that's not the only possible explantion), while other equally charmless or depressed cities, or equally remote and tiny rural settings, get a pass. Again, why the inconsistency? Bottom line: what's one sees on DCUM isn't authoritative analysis but just noise, mostly by the ignorant.
I have no connection to the U of R (apart from knowing people who went there quite happily), but have been a repeated (non-native) visitor to Rochester. It's a very nice city. It would be a nice place to go to school. If your kid can't tolerate a few cold or cloudy winters while getting a great education, that's your issue -- but then don't pretend you're interested in the best possible education.
Anonymous
04/28/2023 05:53
Subject: Re:Rochester
U of R Grad here. I loved my time at the school. Freshman year I live in the Susan B Anthony dorm. Sophomore and junior year I lived on the far end of campus in a suite in a building that was a mix of grad in undergrad students. Senior year I live off campus in the 19th ward about a mile from the airport. I never felt unsafe. I was active in Hillel, so a big part of my social life was through them. I had friends at neighboring schools who are regularly got together with. I used to shop in Greece. I was introduced to Wegman’s (the one in Canandaigua had the largest indoor restaurant in a grocery store at the time).
On campus I enjoyed midnight movies. I was not into Greek life and that did not hinder my social life. My roommate all 4 years was a dual major at Eastman so I had friends there as well and enjoyed great concerts. I have to also mention that yes, I did enjoy the occasional garbage plate at Nick Tahoes.
The weather was COLD. You get used to it. It snowed a lot and we even had an ice storm that shut down the school (something that rarely used to happen). If you have a car there you quickly learn how to drive in snow (roads that are not plowed down to bare pavement). Loved the fact that when I was a freshman, grades were only pass/fail. They did not count for your GPA at all. I also enjoyed the work I had to do as part of my financial aid package. One year I worked in the dining hall, serving tacos at the taco bar. the other years I work in the psychology department as an administrative assistant. I did a fair amount off campus as I had family in Brighton and friends at nearby schools (I am not from upstate NY though).
Overall I never felt unsafe. Caveat: I was there in the 90’s, so mileage on my statements may vary.
On campus I enjoyed midnight movies. I was not into Greek life and that did not hinder my social life. My roommate all 4 years was a dual major at Eastman so I had friends there as well and enjoyed great concerts. I have to also mention that yes, I did enjoy the occasional garbage plate at Nick Tahoes.
The weather was COLD. You get used to it. It snowed a lot and we even had an ice storm that shut down the school (something that rarely used to happen). If you have a car there you quickly learn how to drive in snow (roads that are not plowed down to bare pavement). Loved the fact that when I was a freshman, grades were only pass/fail. They did not count for your GPA at all. I also enjoyed the work I had to do as part of my financial aid package. One year I worked in the dining hall, serving tacos at the taco bar. the other years I work in the psychology department as an administrative assistant. I did a fair amount off campus as I had family in Brighton and friends at nearby schools (I am not from upstate NY though).
Overall I never felt unsafe. Caveat: I was there in the 90’s, so mileage on my statements may vary.
Anonymous
04/28/2023 00:55
Subject: Re:Rochester
Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Rochester is a very good school. Its location puts it at a disadvantage but it offers an excellent education. I also think they have produced one of the coolest admissions videos of any school!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NiCbfSXoftI
Unfortunately it is hard to separate the school from its location
Not really. Smart kids are willing to overlook that and recognize the value of the education they are getting. My kid knew from the first time they stepped foot on campus that it was their 2nd choice (after a highly unlikely T10 first choice). The curriculum (or lack there of) was a strong selling point for my engineer who also loves to dance. STEM programs are strong and the opportunity to do research early on and in depth is a huge selling point. Rochester is actually improving as a town and my kid loves snow, so weather is not an issue.
Anonymous
04/10/2023 18:57
Subject: Re:Rochester
Anonymous wrote:Rochester is a very good school. Its location puts it at a disadvantage but it offers an excellent education. I also think they have produced one of the coolest admissions videos of any school!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NiCbfSXoftI
Unfortunately it is hard to separate the school from its location
Anonymous
04/10/2023 18:45
Subject: Re:Rochester
Rochester is a very good school. Its location puts it at a disadvantage but it offers an excellent education. I also think they have produced one of the coolest admissions videos of any school!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NiCbfSXoftI
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NiCbfSXoftI
Anonymous
04/10/2023 18:28
Subject: Rochester
We did a tour there and talked to some kids. I found the students very impressive. Super smart but I like that they were more collaborative than the competitive feel I got at some other schools.
Either way my kid isn’t applying, they don’t have the major he is now looking at. Campus was nice, city is fine, weather sucks…I grew up there and people talk about the snow but the number of grey cloudy days are much worse. You can go weeks with almost no sun in the winter.
Either way my kid isn’t applying, they don’t have the major he is now looking at. Campus was nice, city is fine, weather sucks…I grew up there and people talk about the snow but the number of grey cloudy days are much worse. You can go weeks with almost no sun in the winter.
Anonymous
04/10/2023 18:23
Subject: Re:Rochester
Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:
My dc got into two of these Boston schools and was WL at Rochester.
Anonymous wrote:URochester and Case Western are good options if you can't get into the colleges in the Boston area, BU, BC, NU, Tufts
That's not a common occurrence based on acceptance rate, student stats, and yield rate combined.
Those Boston schools are more competitive and selective
Not really
ACT and SAT Ranges:
BU:
31/34 and 1360/1520
U Rochester
31/35 and 1370/1520
Northeastern
33/35 and 1430/1550
Tufts
33/35 and 1440/1550
Yes really, because again student stats is one part of the equation.
We would look acceptance rate and yield rate together with student stats.
The Boston schools have significantly lower acceptance rate and better yield rate.
Student stats alone, Tufts and Northeastern are close to T20.
Acceptance rate has nothing to do with the quality of the education. UR's acceptance rate and yield rate both seem related to its location, not to the quality of accepted applicants.
The stats of incoming students in terms of academic performance are virtually identical.
We were talking about competitiveness/selectivity which is a function of acceptance rate, yield, and student stats.
Quality of the education is a little different story and much more subjective.
Anonymous
04/10/2023 18:19
Subject: Re:Rochester
Anonymous wrote:Rochester is boring and depressing as hell. Why would you go there?
And the weather sucks.
It's college, not a new job. Students are there for 16 weeks at a time (less if they go abroad) over four years. Rochester is a perfectly nice mid-size city.
Anonymous
04/10/2023 16:48
Subject: Re:Rochester
Rochester is boring and depressing as hell. Why would you go there?
And the weather sucks.
And the weather sucks.
Anonymous
04/10/2023 16:28
Subject: Re:Rochester
Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:
My dc got into two of these Boston schools and was WL at Rochester.
Anonymous wrote:URochester and Case Western are good options if you can't get into the colleges in the Boston area, BU, BC, NU, Tufts
That's not a common occurrence based on acceptance rate, student stats, and yield rate combined.
Those Boston schools are more competitive and selective
Not really
ACT and SAT Ranges:
BU:
31/34 and 1360/1520
U Rochester
31/35 and 1370/1520
Northeastern
33/35 and 1430/1550
Tufts
33/35 and 1440/1550
Yes really, because again student stats is one part of the equation.
We would look acceptance rate and yield rate together with student stats.
The Boston schools have significantly lower acceptance rate and better yield rate.
Student stats alone, Tufts and Northeastern are close to T20.
Acceptance rate has nothing to do with the quality of the education. UR's acceptance rate and yield rate both seem related to its location, not to the quality of accepted applicants.
The stats of incoming students in terms of academic performance are virtually identical.
Bingo! Put UR in Boston and it wouldn't have a yield problem.
Anonymous
04/10/2023 15:40
Subject: Re:Rochester
Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:
My dc got into two of these Boston schools and was WL at Rochester.
Anonymous wrote:URochester and Case Western are good options if you can't get into the colleges in the Boston area, BU, BC, NU, Tufts
That's not a common occurrence based on acceptance rate, student stats, and yield rate combined.
Those Boston schools are more competitive and selective
Not really
ACT and SAT Ranges:
BU:
31/34 and 1360/1520
U Rochester
31/35 and 1370/1520
Northeastern
33/35 and 1430/1550
Tufts
33/35 and 1440/1550
Yes really, because again student stats is one part of the equation.
We would look acceptance rate and yield rate together with student stats.
The Boston schools have significantly lower acceptance rate and better yield rate.
Student stats alone, Tufts and Northeastern are close to T20.
Acceptance rate has nothing to do with the quality of the education. UR's acceptance rate and yield rate both seem related to its location, not to the quality of accepted applicants.
The stats of incoming students in terms of academic performance are virtually identical.