<p>I recently just spent the weekend at U of Rochester and LOVED the school. I loved the classes, the whole set up of the school, the programs- everything was for me and I even made friends with a bunch of admitted students that were really great so I definately am attending!! HOWEVER, i stayed over a friday night and we literally did nothing. I mean going out and partying shouldnt be a deciding factor for a school but I want to know do students go out and have fun on weekends and not just sit in their dorms.. was the person I stayed with just a rare occurence? HELP! be honest!</p>
<p>from what I hear it’s mainly an academic school and the students really don’t try hard to change that. that’s not to say there aren’t events going on all the time. here’s a quote from WayOutWestMom in another thread:<a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/university-rochester/903766-questions-about-life-u-r.html[/url]”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/university-rochester/903766-questions-about-life-u-r.html</a></p>
<p>
</p>
<p>okay they all sound really fun! i feel like it depends on your personality too like the person I stayed with just sat in their dorm and drank with their other friend… it was just awkward and it made me nervous that next year thats all anyone would be doing- sitting in their dorms… but it seems as if U of R gives students a lot of options so hopefully a lot of people take advantage of them. thanks</p>
<p>Thursday’s overnight for DS coincided with his host’s frat initiation night. The host was gone most if the night but his roomie took them on an after hours tour of campus and hung out with them until the host came back…initiated and drunk. His overall impression of UR was very good, however after the Case open house on Saturday, he says Case is exactly what he’s looking for.</p>
<p>Every Friday and Saurday night the cinema groups screens movies that are out of the theaters but not on DVD yet–I believe they charge only $2–two showings per night. If you work some movie nights as a member of the group you get passes for free movies.</p>
<p>Occasionally they will premiere a movie not out in theaters yet (like Kite Runner, I believe)</p>
<p>Having been on many campuses, I can say that it varies a lot by person and by week. For example, some schools have party reps based on a couple of fling-like weekends while much of the rest of the year is pretty quiet.</p>
<p>I also know big schools where the dorms are quiet because parties are governed on campus and so they happen off campus, in the city, in frats, etc. </p>
<p>I don’t know enough about Rochester the city to say but I’d assume that kids who are older tend to go off campus, that many go to the frats / sororities, that there are some off campus parties and that the dorms generally are fairly quiet. </p>
<p>If you want to experience really quiet, go to a liberal arts college in a small town.</p>
<p>Lergnom’s assessment of the dorm situation sounds right–it’s a breach of policy for anyone (of legal age or not) to possess alcohol in dorms rooms and possession can result in disciplinary action. </p>
<p>Also some freshman and upperclassmen halls have quiet hours-- enforced even on weekends.</p>
<p>So the parties tend to be somewhere other than the dorms.</p>
<p>eighteen–not everybody is a 24/7 studious type, but not everyone is party animal either. You’re going to see both kinds in college. UR certainly has both kinds. </p>
<p>One thing to remember, also, is that the semester is drawing close to an end right now. Less than 3 weeks of classes are left and a lot of people are grinding out major papers, final projects and prepping for the last exam of the semester right now.</p>
<p>if you go on the actual rochester.edu website, there’s a forum on the admissions site that has one amazing post by a student named chris. he transferred out of rochester to cornell and then back in. his post wasn’t about the social life, but the academics, but it still goes to show how the students there arent as crazy with their nerdy study habits as you’d think. </p>
<p>and here’s the link
[University</a> of Rochester : Posts](<a href=“http://enrollment.rochester.edu/admissions/messageboards/DisplayPosts.aspx?ID=1164]University”>http://enrollment.rochester.edu/admissions/messageboards/DisplayPosts.aspx?ID=1164)</p>
<p>that was an amazing post by Chris</p>
<p>My child also was set on the U of R… until spending Friday night there. The host took off to go to a party, and my child was left on her own. U of R has so much to offer. It’s too bad the host weekend was not well organized. The overnight was supposed to solidify my child’s decision. Instead, it just confused matters once more.</p>
<p>D goes to U of R. She is a physics major and like alot of other science majors is serious about her schoolwork and doesn’t have much free time at all. Her roommate on the other hand is not a science major and has alot of free time, goes to movies, shopping, etc. There are parties on campus at frat houses but not in dorms, at least not freshman dorms.</p>
<p>Sorry that she had a negative experience. My D is a freshman. When we visited last year, it was Easter and sleepovers weren’t allowed so D had to make the decision without this experience as we live far enough away that making another visit would have been difficult, but she is very happy with her decision.</p>
<p>redrock–my D’s experience was similar to yours–only her host did some heavy drinking in the room until very late on a Thursday night. Her host’s drunken and rude behavior nearly convinced her NOT to go to UR; fortunately, D wandered around and met a bunch of interesting people. She is now sophomore and she is still hangs out with those same “interesting people” she met on her interview weekend.</p>
<p>I’m not sure how student hosts are chosen–I think hosts are offered some small compensation for hosting. I’m sure some take compensation without ever intending to be an actual “host”.</p>
<p>I’m sorry your’s d’s experience wasn’t a good one.</p>
<p>UR is not a party school for sure~ I am going there and I’m quite serious with study. However, I don’t think UR’s really academically strict with some Chinese applicants (know from their stats, etc) They even have a language program. That’s not good for setting up international prestige (at least in China~).</p>
<p>Everyone knows that U of R is one of the most prestigious research universities in the country. Everyone knows that the U of R is typically ranked in the top 50 best colleges in the United States. Academically, this is one of the best places you can go. With a student to faculty ratio of 9:1, everyone has a chance to meet their professor proving you are not just a number here.</p>
<p>I think Rochester has something else to be proud of - Student Life!!!</p>
<p>I just graduated from the U of R last May, and the best part about being here was certainly the Student Life. Over 230 clubs are available (<a href=“https://sa.rochester.edu/clubs/index.php[/url]”>https://sa.rochester.edu/clubs/index.php</a>) with everything from Student Government, Athletic Club Teams, Dance Groups, A Capella Groups, Improv Comedy, Political Groups, Academic Councils in every subject, Community Service Groups, Fraternity/Sorority groups… the list goes on and on. With only 4,500 undergrads here, it is amazing to have over 230 clubs to join on campus. </p>
<p>Opportunities to be involved in groups outside of your freshman hall are visible everywhere! Many of these opportunities can lead to leadership positions and therefore sweet resume builders!</p>
<p>Sure, there comes a time to study, but U of R students know how to have fun too. Here’s a few things that I did to have fun outside of the classroom…</p>
<p>Music: Concerts at Eastman! It is one of the greatest music schools in the world. U of R has a fall and a spring concert, I always went to them (as well as attending concerts at other nearby schools)! Played guitar / drums / trumpet at open mic nights. Performed at UR Idol (The U of R’s version of American Idol).</p>
<p>Athletics: Played on 5 intramural sports teams! Ultimate Frisbee, Soccer, Basketball, Flag Football, Floor hockey (there is volleyball too, but I never joined a team)! This a great thing to do with your freshman hallmates!!! I played Varsity Tennis / ran XC and Track. WENT TO ALL sporting events at least once! Going with your friends to basketball / soccer games is a must. Supporting the other teams was always fun too b/c all our sports are competitive and usually ranked nationally in Division III. Our Division I squash team is currently 4th in the nation! The Women’s Basketball team just went to the Final 4!</p>
<p>Also, I would typically play sports on Fauver Stadium 2-3 nights a week with friends at night. They have the field lit well enough to play snow soccer / touch football all winter long in the snow!</p>
<p>When I wasn’t on Fauver, I was in the Goergan Athletic center. The gym is awesome, you see so many students working out, everyone from the casual stretcher, the jogger, to the jacked body builder, everyone is welcome and there are SO MANY machines and treadmills!!!</p>
<p>Student Government: Class Council / Senate involvement helped me shape the undergraduate experience for my classmates. Planned events to minor league sporting games in downtown Rochester. Rochester is the most active minor league sports region in the United States - baseball (Twins farm team), basketball (ABA), football, hockey (Florida Panthers farm team), lacrosse, soccer, etc. Planned school spirit events to attend U of R sporting games too. The Buffalo Bills, Buffalo Sabres, and all the opponents they face are only an hour’s drive away too if you like watching live NFL & NHL games.</p>
<p>Rochester area fun: The night life is pretty amazing. Bar nights for Juniors and Seniors are extremely popular. For freshman, hitting up the Frat Quad is fun for some. I see that some of you who haven’t experienced U of R for 4 years write that “There is no party scene at Rochester.” This is ridiculously untrue. Rochester students have as much fun on the weekends as any other college students. We work hard and we play hard. With over 40 clubs / bars in downtown Rochester, the possibilities are endless. Also, if you are on a Club Team / Varsity Team / Frat / Sorority / Student Group, the possibilities to have a mixer a weekend with another group are endless. If you aren’t involved in any groups, the Frat Quad is always open and fun. There are a lot of themed parties to attend too. The only week that you won’t find parties at the U of R is finals week.</p>
<p>I hope that quelled the rumors! I also hope that the rest of this post proves that if partying isn’t your thing (it wasn’t my thing until junior and senior year) that there are other options to have fun, (unlike some schools, which rely on partying for fun).</p>
<p>There were days in the early fall and late spring when I would go up to Lake Ontario and hang out on the beach! (Yes, Rochester has a lot of beaches!!!) The Genesee Valley Park is a great place to study/unwind. It is adjacent to the campus (due south), and was designed by the same man who created Central Park in Manhattan, NYC.</p>
<p>I also loved going to Park Avenue, a street with tons and tons of restaurants. 2 local malls have everything you could ever need and are just a shuttle bus away.</p>
<p>There are other local parks are fun to hang out in too… I cross country ski in Mendon Ponds Park and Highland Park. Highland park is right next to campus, Mendon is a 20 minute drive away. Highland Park also hosts the Lilac Festival in the spring and is absolutely amazing. Rochester is the city of Festivals, and they occur all year long.</p>
<p>Traditions: The main ones to know and care about…
Yellowjacket weekend (Labor day) - Go to the Soccer games!!! Go to the Activities Fair to sign up for Clubs!!!
Meliora Weekend (Oct) - We had STEPHEN COLBERT and Anderson Cooper my senior year. We’ve also had comedians Lewis Black, B.J. Novak (The Office), and Zach Galifianakis (The Hangover). We even had Kip and Pedro from Napolean Dynamite!</p>
<p>Winterfest Weekend (Jan) - GO TO THE BASKETBALL GAMES!!! Horse-drawn sleigh rides, fire pits on the quad with 'smore making supplies, pretty white lights on campus.</p>
<p>Dandelion Day (April) - The last chance for everyone to unwind before finals… Usually has an outdoor concert associated with it. This is a day you will not forget.</p>
<p>The University of Rochester campus is beautiful. The brick buildings coated with ivy give it the collegiate feel. Campus is safe and getting off campus is very easy.</p>
<p>You will absolutely love your time here!</p>
<p>I have so much more to say but I think I’ve written too much!</p>
<p>D loved her stay on Friday night. And thanks for your observations, grad2009.
But I, too, was surprised by the lack of activity. Are there any on-campus cafes with jazz or folk on weekends? Is there a place for musicians to jam? Is there a student union with TVs, pool tables, cafes and just places to gather? Are there DJs, line-dancing? How often are there Friday or Sat. night sporting events? Do a lot of students attend? Is there a hockey team? A theater series? There also seemed to be only a few public lectures and seminars. Or did I miss them? Can a science student go to a politics department brown bag? Are there decent intercultural or interfaith events? Do students attend each others’ activities. For example, do white students attend African-American student events that are open to all? Is there an art gallery with evening events and talks? Are there funky shops or good, cheap eats anywhere nearby?</p>
<p>JustBob, </p>
<p>Great questions, while my previous post touches on my experiences at the U of R, of course there are plenty of other options to be active on campus!</p>
<p>On-Campus cafes w/ music? Starbucks (in Wilson Commons) and Hillside Cafe (in the Susan B. Anthony dorm) host a multitude of musical performances throughout the year. Whether it be an open mic night or a weekly scheduled concert by “No Jackets Required” (improv jam musical group), there is a lot of variety in the music scene at these on campus cafes. </p>
<p>Place to jam? No Jackets Required is an open student group which practices in Spurrier next to Sue B. The Spurrier Gym also has a lot of practice rooms on the ground floor to play your piano / guitar / brass instrument / etc. for hours. There are also a lot of pianos around campus that are first come, first serve.</p>
<p>Student Union w/ tv/pool? Yes, it’s called Wilson Commons in the center of campus. The ground floor has all of that, adjacent to “The Pit”, which is one of the 3 large dining halls on campus. There are always a ton of students down there. “The Pit” is being renovated this summer, and with henceforth be known as “The Commons”. This will be exciting!</p>
<p>DJ’s / Line-dancing? Not exactly sure what this means, but there are a lot of dance groups on campus, from D’Motions, to Radiance, to UR Hip Hop, to the Step Team, to BPG (Ballet Performance Group), there are a ton of options for such a small university! </p>
<p>The occasional DJ will set up outside Wilson Common during big events / college celebrations. The Wilson Quad also hosts huge events and concerts. (Recently including Eve 6, The Spin Doctors, Reel Big Fish, and more!)</p>
<p>There are home sporting events every weekend. Student support has increased tremendously over the past 4 years. There is a program called “Fill Fauver” (named after the football stadium) which encourages the students to attend & fill the venue for at least 1 home game for EVERY varsity team. For a Div III school, U of R’s school spirit is pretty high. In fact, the Fill Fauver promotion run by the Students’ Association and VSAAC (varsity athletic group) helped the men’s soccer team finished 10th in Division III (out of 382 schools) in total attendance with 5,180 fans. UR also finished 14th in average attendance per game.</p>
<p>Let me just say, that before “Fill Fauver”, these numbers would have been A LOT smaller. I hope the school spirit continues!</p>
<p>Hockey? There is a Women’s & Men’s club hockey team. They play in Genesee Valley Park, just across the Elmwood Bridge over the Genesee River. It takes less than 15 minutes to walk there from the freshman dorms. Students can skate for $2 during the winter.</p>
<p>Public lectures/seminars by faculty? They are offered frequently throughout the year at various lecture halls on campus in all departments.</p>
<p>Intercultural / Interfaith events? I can’t even begin to get into this question. For a university of our size, we have a lot of diversity on campus. Anyone who goes here will say that diversity at the U of R is prominent. There are student groups devoted to almost any religion / culture you can think of. Check out this link for proof: <a href=“https://sa.rochester.edu/clubs/index.php[/url]”>https://sa.rochester.edu/clubs/index.php</a> </p>
<p>Attendance / diversity of attendance is strong. </p>
<p>Art Gallery? Yes, the Memorial Art Gallery is a part of the University of Rochester. [Memorial</a> Art Gallery](<a href=“http://mag.rochester.edu/]Memorial”>http://mag.rochester.edu/) </p>
<p>Food in Rochester is amazing. Rochester has a multitude of restaurants featuring dishes from all over the world. Thai, Indian, Chinese, Italian, Mediterranean, to good old fashion Dinosaur BBQ!!! Park Avenue is a 5 minute drive from campus (or a free shuttle bus trip) and has a very “College Town” feel. Restaurants, diners, and coffee shops are numerous and delicious. The variety is unparalleled for a city of it’s size. The Eastman School of Music, and corporations such as Xerox and Bausch & Lomb bring a very artsy and sophisticated crowd to Rochester, which has helped to draw such great restaurants. Also, Rochester is home to the greatest supermarket chain in the United States - WEGMANS. If you can’t find what you’re looking for on campus or at an off-campus dining site, you will certainly find it at Wegmans. There are 3 Wegmans super stores within a 15 minute drive (or free shuttle bus) from campus. The food options off-campus are tremendous and accessible.</p>
<p>I think if you had more than 2 days at Rochester to experience the Student Life here that you would be utterly amazed. The students admitted really add something special to campus life, that’s why with such a small student body we have such a strong commitment to the “Student Life” experience.</p>
<p>Thanks for the information. It sounds pretty good.</p>
<p>Have to say, URgrad, that your posts are among the finest I’ve seen on the many boards I’ve been on here at CC. Thank you.</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>The type of people that typically host other students
are not the type of people that typically go out to a
party on a Friday night. I mean, more power the hosts,
but I have never hosted nor ever will for precisely this
reason. I’m not there on Friday and Saturday nights to
babysit people.</p>
<p>I am afraid you got a one sided impression.</p>