<p>Is the school nice?
Is the town/area nice?
Are the girls hot?
How is school spirit?
etc....</p>
<p>thank you</p>
<p>I had Syracuse on my list for awhile, but I ultimately took it off because of the snow and the city of Syracuse. From theu.com videos, supposedly, the city of Syracuse is an industrial ghetto. There is also a large lake close to campus, but people aren't allowed in it due to toxic waste. Pretty much the city sucks. And the food places are open on campus until 3AM, so I'm thinking they really don't want students to even step off of the campus. But supposedly there is downtown area called Armory Square that is really nice.</p>
<p>Also Syracuse gets the most snow of any large city in the country. So even if the girls are hot, they are going to be bundled up for about 7/9 months you are there.</p>
<p>On a positive note, the school's academics are very good. They have an amazing communications school, and a strong business school as well. The campus is rather nice, and Syracuse basketball is insane. Their football team always sucks, but they still have strong support from the students. And they have a great greek/party scene.</p>
<p>Overall if you don't mind freezing temperatures, and if you don't mind staying around campus, then Syracuse could be a good fit.</p>
<p>^^I'm glad to see someone who is so informed on the city of Syracuse giving you insight.</p>
<p>Now from someone who knows what they are talking about: I live about an hour from Syracuse, and both my parents attended the university, along with a few other relatives and some of my friends. The weather is cold and snowy in the winter (November to March), but the same can be said of anywhere North of Pennsylvania that isn't right on the coast (Since when is Syracuse a "large city", anyway?). If you don't come from a cold-weather environment, the snow and temperatures are just part of the culture here. After awhile you'll find you've grown accustomed to it (besides, snow can actually add to the aesthetics of a place).</p>
<p>The town is not anything like what SoCal described. Seriously, Syracuse is at least in the top 3 nicest "cities" in New York State (not counting NYC, which is, of course, it's own state), after Rochester and arguably Albany. There are a few parts that are has-been industrial facilities, but for the most part, it's a fun town and the "downtown" section is pretty nice. There are also two malls, one of which is huge. The suburbs of Syracuse (which really have no impact on SU) are extremely nice, with lots of rich people and good school systems. If you are referring to Lake Oneida, then I don't know where you got that you aren't allowed to go in it. People boat there all the time. It's probably not that popular for swimming because it's small, usually cold, and because Lake Ontario is only half an hour away and is better for swimming.</p>
<p>The school does not "discourage" from leaving campus; on the contrary, I'm fairly certain they offer regular shuttles into various parts of the city, including the mall and probably downtown, too. Also, like with other universities I've visited, they areas directly around campus, though not officially part of the university, include some commercial districts that are clearly meant to cater to the students. The serveries on campus are probably open until 3AM because SU is a large school; any school of that size that does not serve meals at varying times is doing a bad job of serving the students!</p>
<p>The campus is nice-looking; not the most beautiful I've ever seen, but definitely a pleasant campus. It's about the right level of "urbaness", since there is greenspace, but also enough people and not so much empty room that you can find people roaming around all of the time. The football team does not "always suck". They have sucked for the past 3 years since they got a new coach, who sucks. Before that, Syracuse was actually a very good school for football, and it may soon return to that glory (I have a feeling this coach is not going to be staying around for long). The basketball team is typically very strong and the lacrosse team is one of the absolute best in the nation. The girls are good-looking (same as with any non-techy-nerd school, in my opinion), and there is happy party scene. School spirit is pretty strong, which comes with having decent sports programs.</p>
<p>Overall, yes the school is "nice" and contrary to what this person says (go rant about a town you've actually been to!), the city is very "nice" too.</p>
<p>what do you guys think.....</p>
<p>I am trying to decide on my 10th college to apply to and i am torn between Northeastern or Syracuse.. I am leaning toward Northeastern bc i am a legacy and the city of Boston seems more appealing... anyone have any insight between the two?</p>
<p>thanks</p>
<p>What do you plan on studying? Syracuse has some strong schools within it like as Newhouse School of Public Communication (journalism, advertising, etc.)</p>
<p>I was talking about Lake Onondaga.</p>
<p>This is according to wikipedia..</p>
<p>"Today, Onondaga Lake is a severely polluted lake, one of the most polluted bodies of water in the world,[1] primarily due to industrial dumping. It's advised not to fish or swim in the lake. The lake has high levels of mercury, salt, phosphorus, and ammonia. The EPA has declared it a hazardous waste site."</p>
<p>And I called it a large city, because it is called a large city on wikipedia...</p>
<p>"Syracuse is known for its snowfall. Boasting 115.6 inches (293.6 cm) on average,[3] the Syracuse metro area receives more snow on average than any other LARGE city in the United States"</p>
<p>And here is quote from a student on theu.com</p>
<p>"Syracuse is a really old town. Lot of brick buildings. The city is bad. It’s pretty ghetto. You always here about people getting shot and mugged. I pretty much don’t leave campus."</p>
<p>This is what I know and have heard....so Syracuse doesn't seem like paradise to me. And I have relatives that live in Buffalo...and they said Syracuse is a horrible city, as well.</p>
<p>Syracuse is not horrible, and the kids I know who go there are very happy -- happier in general than U of R or Cornell for instance.</p>
<p>That aside, Northeastern and Syracuse have two completely different "feels." For one thing, don't bother with Northeastern unless you are anxious to do the rigorous co-op program they have. I happen to think it's a great program, but it's not for everyone, and it DOES change the feel of the campus with kids coming and going.</p>
<p>Syracuse you'll find has more of the traditional school spirit thing going on.</p>
<p>My friend who goes to syracuse told me that the universityis great but the city sucks</p>
<p>i want to go into business for sure....</p>
<p>I've been to Syracuse (the city) and it's not that great, but the campus is a not a reflection of that. A couple of people from my school who graduated went to Syracuse and they like LOVE it there. They boast about it when they've visited teachers in the school. </p>
<p>Upstate New York isn't really all that great in general. In my opinion, it's really boring. At least there's a mall in Syracuse, but otherwise I don't know what else is up there. Their business program is pretty good (I'm applying to it haha) Uhh...snow is always gonna be a problem there but if you don't mind snow, why not?</p>
<p>My cousins live up in Syracuse so I go there every once in awhile. The city is no NYC but if you look around you can find some pretty cool shops and areas. The mall is pretty amazing too. It's no where near as bad as some upstate cities (like Binghamton =).</p>
<p>socal: wikipedia saying it doesn't make it true. anybody can say whatever they want on that site, so don't believe everything you read.</p>
<p>I agree that upstate NY in general isn't that great, and I'm not trying to say Syracuse is the next Princeton, NJ, but a lot of that stuff you have is crap. It is extremely rare to hear about people getting shot in Syracuse; the crime rate is certainly no higher than average. And I find it laughable that people from BUFFALO are saying that Syracuse is bad. Buffalo is much more "ghetto" than Syracuse. And Lake Onondaga is very small and hardly counts as a "lake" compared to Oneida, and I don't think either one is "dangerous" (though I still wouldn't want to swim in either just because Lake Ontario is so much better for swimming).</p>
<p>Syracuse is a better choice for academics</p>
<p>Northeastern is a better choice for location</p>
<p>A friend once told me that, for every important decision, there are 3 questions to considerations. Once you prioritize those 3 points, the answer becomes clear:</p>
<ul>
<li>who you need to be with</li>
<li>where you need to be </li>
<li>what you need to be doing</li>
</ul>
<p>As we go thru life, at any given point in time, one of these 3 will be the compelling force, forcing the other 2 issues to fall into place.</p>
<p>HTH</p>
<p>a timely report: I arrived home less than 8 hours ago after spending the weekend in Syracuse with our D, who is a senior in Newhouse (we can't go parent's weekend, so we went this weekend), so I know.</p>
<p>Areas around the campus are varied - there's a major hospital/clinics area abutting campus that is usually always busy; it has a major trauma center, so you're going to hear about the gunshots, car wrecks, etc. </p>
<p>Regarding Marshall Street - I like it because the students can walk to the bars/restaurants and needn't drive after partying. We spent time down on Armory Square this weekend, and it is absolutely charming (I was the DD) - but pricier than Marshall Street. </p>
<p>Regarding the weather - fact: it is a crap shoot. For my daughter's first two winters there, it was incredibly mild with minimal amounts of snow by their standards. I remember driving her back in January her sophomore year, and there wasn't a flake of snow on the ground, and it was in the 50s. This last winter, she studied abroad so she was there for the fall (it snowed once before she left in December),but in the spring, it snowed so much they had their first snow day in like 20 years. </p>
<p>The Greek system is big and active on campus, but if you're not part of it there's still plenty to do. I agree the football team has sucked the last three years (we were at the horrible Rutgers game on Saturday), but tailgating is still done with style - there's definitely school spirit. But yet, basketball dominates all sports there (and gives you something fun to do in the coldest, darkest months). </p>
<p>They have a decent concert scene considering the size of the town. Saturday night, Tori Amos was in town. My D has been to a couple of other concerts there.</p>
<p>Carousel Mall is in transition, becoming the first 'green' mall in the country. D was telling me about it since the internship she has is working for a PR firm that specializes in the green market makes her more aware of those issues. I can't think of anything that you'd need that you can't find at one of the stores at Carousel. It's a huge mall for the size of city it's in.</p>
<p>School spirit is very strong, and there are pretty girls everywhere. I think the girls outnumber the guys. I think the campus is pretty, and we just toured the brand new Newhouse III building just dedicated a couple of weeks ago, which is very contemporary and cool looking. There is talk of razing the Dome for more residential housing, so they'd have to build another sports arena.</p>
<p>As far as the lakes go, I do know that the one is considered very polluted, but frankly, when you're there between September and May, even if the lake were the cleanest in the world, it would be too cold to swim in (my opinion) for most of the year. There are whitewater rafting options not too far away, as well as downhill skiing in the winter.</p>
<p>The two things that bother me the most about Syracuse - the area around campus, it sure seems, has the worst timed traffic lights of any place I've ever been. If there's a traffic light, it's sure to be red when it's your turn at that intersection. Second - we've not had great luck flying in and out of Syracuse, not because of the airport itself, but because of the limited airlines that use it. Unless you're from the northeast, it's much more difficult to fly directly in and out of their airport which sucks for us since we're from the Midwest. </p>
<p>I agree with the other posters, though; Boston and Syracuse are very different, and how strong your intended major is, should play a part in your decision. My daugher has absolutely loved Syracuse and will miss it terribly when she graduates. I can also say that having just been there for Homecoming Weekend, alumni are EVERYWHERE... I could tell it's the kind of place that alumni defintely like to come back to for homecoming - it was a BIG weekend, so they must have liked something about being there.</p>
<p>If you have any questions that are more specific in nature, please ask, but until a Syracuse alum comes on here and addresses your concerns, I'd say I have been the most recent poster to have visited there and give you a current report.</p>
<p>Syracuse is not a very nice city. The Univ. of Syracuse, however, is a great school in many respects and the campus is very nice. Lots of beautiful lakes nearby, but one may not be safe for swimming due to pollution. Northeastern is a totally different school due to co-op programs. N'eastern is in a great city. Syracuse is a depressed and depressing city that really should not influence your college choice because the Univ. of Syracuse is wonderful and large enough to compensate for any shortcomings of the city.</p>
<p>I'm a current SU student, so I'll try to help you out as much as I can.</p>
<p>Honestly downtown doesn't really matter. I went once (when the school basically forced us to go) and it was nice-good atmosphere, some interesting restaurants and shops. Unfortunately I spend the money my parents give me pretty quickly on other things, and I'm not really the shopping type anyways, so there's been really no reason for me to head downtown. Very few of my friends go downtown as well, mainly because there is plenty to do on campus.</p>
<p>That said, the university WANTS us to go dowtown. SU pumped lots of money into promoting downtown for the students, but I'm not sure how well it has paid off yet. </p>
<p>Like I said, there are plenty of things to do on campus and if you ever do need to buy anything, the mall is where people usually go. Its huge. </p>
<p>Syracuse IS the snowiest city of 100,000 or more people in the US, but after living nearby for 4 years the weather is something that you can get used to. Just bundle up.</p>
<p>Our football team sucks, but we haven't always been bad. Remember that both Donovan McNabb and Marvin Harrison played here in the 1990s, so we were pretty good back then. Also, a major movie is coming out next October about Ernie Davis, an SU player from the 1950s, so that should give the program a little boost. </p>
<p>Anyways, those are the basics. Anything else you wanna know don't hesitate to ask.</p>
<p>Syracuse has a very nice campus, lots of school spirit, excellent education. It reminds me of a "Public Ivy" because of its size and sports but it is private. Syracuse is a nice city. Every city has its bad neighborhoods. Syracuse has a nice pedestrian mall Armory Square, a great science museum, Dino Barbeque, good restaurants on that major boulevard at the bottom of the hill can't recall the name, fantastic Irish Pub and Restaurant Coleman's where the traffic light is upside down so the green light is on top. There are lots of cool places in Syracuse to discover. Somebody should compile a list for students so it doesn't take 4 years to discover them. Snow is beautiful. Remember that.</p>
<p>I'm planning to major in biology and i was wondering, does SU have a strong science program or something?</p>
<p>
[quote]
Dino Barbeque
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</p>
<p>I have to make it to Dinosaur Bar-B-Que before D graduates next May! I've only got one more shot.</p>