<p>Hi everyone, I just recently graduated from Geneseo, and a previous thread wear an alumn summarized their experience at Geneseo, and I wanted to do the same. For me this is a special place, and I am incredibly sad to be leaving it. However, I could not be prouder to have a degree from such an amazing school and I can honestly say these may have been the best four years of my life...I completely mean that. :) The purpose of this post isnt to persuade or dissuade anyone, as each college can be a good or bad fit depending on the person. But, I had such an awesome experience, I felt I had to share how much Geneseo has given me and worthwhile my time was there. </p>
<p>Just a quick background, I majored in Biochemistry at the school, graduated Summa Cum Laude and Phi Beta Kappa. I went in with a pre-med concentration and thanks to my great experience at Geneseo will be attending medical school this Fall. And yes, this rant is very biased toward how awesome Geneseo is, I have a hard time saying anything bad about the school, so keep that in mind haha. This post is just to highlight some of the good things at Geneseo, which I believe make it standout. </p>
<p>So here are the things that made Geneseo stand out for me:</p>
<p>Faculty: I cannot begin to describe how amazing the faculty is here. Most of the professors I have met truly are here to teach and help students. I noticed this right from my freshman year. For example, my gen chem professor went out of his way to hold office hours in our freshman dorm in the evenings so we wouldnt need to walk across campus to the academic buildings. I went on several occasions and got to know him while he helped us learn the material. I have numerous examples like this, where a professor missed dinner at home to stay a little longer in lab with us, or they invited us to their house for dinner, or they offered to listen and talk to us if we had issues going on in life, and Ive even jammed with one of them. Coming out of this school, some of my professors have truly become my friends, I owe them a lot. As a result of this also, you can imagine, I got some great letters because I was able to get close with my professors. This, I think is what makes Geneseo such a special school. The interaction I got with my professors was stellar and I know it is because many of the professors here truly have a desire and love of teaching, getting to know students. </p>
<p>Academics: Its hard! and Im so glad it was. :) There were many moments where I had my doubts, I honestly did not know if I had what it took to do well. My science classes, and my humanities and english classes all challenged me and many of them really forced me to think. Sophomore year, it was not uncommon to spend 12 hours straight doing physics problems before an exam. Many of my professors really pushed me, but they also supported me and helped me deal with these academic challenges. So, the result of all this work? Most of my friends in the biology and biochem majors did reasonably well or stellar on the MCAT and I personally attribute my success on the MCAT to the rigorous biology and chem classes I took my freshman and sophomore year. Also, the pre-medical committee is outstanding, and having talked to pre-med students at other schools, I definitely felt like i was better prepared as a medical school applicant at Geneseo. Outside of science, my writing skills have improved a lot from high school to now because I had one very influential english teacher who helped me in many ways. This was another plus of Geneseos academics. Although I was a biochemistry major, I got to take multiple English and Humanities courses and I got to experience a little bit of art history, music, sociology, and many other things. Being a liberal arts school, I got to experience and enjoy other courses. Although they werent directly related to my pursuit of becoming a doctor, these classes outside of my major helped me become a more aware and educated person about the world around me. Also, I believe Geneseo is the only SUNY school that offers some of its students to graduate Phi Beta Kappa, which is one of the nations oldest and most prestigious honors societies. Only a limited number of college can confer Phi Beta Kappa. </p>
<p>Social Life and Activities: Honestly, I was never bored at Geneseo. Although Geneseo is in a rural area, we always managed to find ways to have fun. There are numerous activities, clubs, and teams on campus so you can pursue almost any interest and find like-minded people to do it with. Its also relatively easy to start a club if there isnt one already for something you like. For me, I loved music and so some friends and I founded a guitar club freshman which is still going on today. I also tried some things out of my comfort zone, like dancing, which I fell in love with and really developed a passion for. There are many opportunities to get involved.
Beyond school activities, if youre into nightlife, theres at least three staple bars on Main St. like Kellys, the Vital and the Idle where almost everyone goes on weekends (Im sure I am missing one or two other bars). Theres also the IB, which also has a bar and a dance floor. And there are numerous little restaurants. Its not a lot, but most everyone on campus goes to these hang out spots when they go out and so it can be a good time. I was never one for going out though, so this was plenty for me haha.
We also have themed dorms like EcoHouse (an environmentally friendly dorm) or writers house and you can get a close knit dorm environment through special dorms like these. I got to live in Dante House my freshman year (for honors, international, and a few regular admitted students), and I made some lifelong friends that first year there. Many of us from that dorm stuck together all four years and it was a great experience. Its a quiet and small dorm, but very close knit. </p>
<p>Location: Geneseo isnt for everyone, it really is the middle of nowhere...but for me that was perfect. The farmland, the valley, Fallbrook (a small but beautiful waterfall a few miles from campus), Letchworth State Park, the arboretum, and of course the amazing sunsets, made this area a small piece of heaven. It is very peaceful, and so I had few distractions from my studies and being around nature helped me relax too. A lot of the students who came to the school liked it for that reason too. If you like urban environments and enjoy the hustle and bustle of city life, Geneseo doesnt have that. But if you like to be in quieter, isolated and natural environments this school might be a good fit. On a nice Spring day it really is a beautiful place.
Geneseo itself is a small town...I think its really a village. Main Street has most of the restaurants and bars and the quirky shops like Buzzos guitar store. The town really has some character. Ive gotten to personally know the owner of one of the restaurants and I liked the small town environment. Its not uncommon to know the staff or the owners at these shops and the folks I have met have been very nice and welcoming for the most part. Of course, if you have a car, just a few miles out from campus there are all the big stores like Wal-Mart or Wegmans, and an Applebees and other bigger restaurants. There are also two hotels, a movie theatre and a bowling alley. So, I felt that I had everything I needed within a few miles of campus. Also, 10 or 15 min. drive away, there is Conesus Lake, and some nice fancier restaurants like Ember. </p>
<p>Dorms: Most are pretty good, a few arent great, but overall I was surprised with how nice the dorms were considering it was a state school. The newer themed dorms like Eco House, and the newly renovated Monroe are beautiful. The more common dorms like Onondaga where most freshman live and my freshman dorm Dante House were still pretty good I thought. They had a decent sized bright room, the bathrooms in my dorm were very well kept and had pretty modern appliances for the most part. I enjoyed living there. I also got to live in the on campus townhouses, which mostly upperclassmen live in and they were really nice. The houses are a bit cheaply built, but it was still nicer than anything I would have imagined. Its like a condo, very well lit, multiple bathrooms. These were built only a couple years ago. Steuben is one of the dorms that isnt quite nice, its definitely one of the older dorms but it doesnt look like they renovated or changed much from it, but having visited friends there, its still not a terrible dorm. Having stayed at dorm at two other schools for summer programs, Geneseo by far had the best that Ive seen. </p>
<p>People: This is what makes Geneseo so special. For the most part, students here are focused, very hard working, but also chill and humble. Many are here to work hard toward their future, but they also know how to have fun and relax. Theres not much of a preppy vibe, were academically driven, but most of us are from middle class families and are very casual and easygoing.
Its also a very caring and supportive environment. My classmates were happy to form study groups or help eachother out in class. Its a difficult program, but people are supportive of each other, there didnt seem to be a hard competitive vibe.
Just as an example of how nice and honest folks are, I lost a very expensive TI-89 calculator and my debit card freshman year, and I ended up getting both back through the lost and found. Thats not to say there arent a couple sour folks around (theres folks like that everywhere haha), but I think there is a greater amount of smart and easy going group of people here than most other places. My high school English teacher who graduated here years ago said she noticed that about the student body as well. </p>
<p>Anywho, there it is, sorry its long, but I hope it helps give a better idea of Geneseo for anyone considering it. Also, I will say, there were people who did not have as great of an experience. So ultimately, college is what you make of it. These were the best four years of my life, but it happened because I was able to take advantage of the many great opportunities Geneseo offered to me. The friendly professors, the clubs, and everything else. I owe a lot to this school. I feel like ive developed, not only as a student but as a person, Geneseo has made me a better person and I hope it can do the same for anyone else who goes there. Wherever you go, I hope your experience is phenomenal. College is an amazing experience and I truly say, make the most of it and enjoy it....it goes by fast! </p>
<p>Take care guys-Zp4</p>
Very happy I went to Geneseo.</p>