Ithaca is one of my three favorite schools. I loved the campus and thought it had a lot of opportunities for me. I want to do Psychology but I’m also interested in doing a Pre-Med track and becoming a psychiatrist. I just want to know what made those of you with similar majors and minors, choose this school over others (my other two favorites are Suny Binghamton and James Madison University). What sets this school out ahead of others?
Close to Cornell?
What does that do for Ithaca though? Just because its close doesn’t seem to do anything. Its not like you’re attending Cornell. What about Ithaca as a school sets it above the rest.
Well the fact that you are close to Cornell means you are in Ithaca and that is a very big deal. Many people (and many rating systems) view Ithaca as one of the best towns in the country, best college town, most beautiful town…And I don’t know anyone who does not think Ithaca is a great town. It is a quintessential college town. I can’t imagine a list of great college towns that does not include it. Because the culinary institute and finger lakes are right there, the restaurants and cafes are wonderful. It would be hard to find a bad meal in Ithaca. Because of the lakes and surrounding state parks, there is just about every outdoor activity available that you can imagine. Because Ithaca College and Cornell are both private schools, a good proportion of the students have disposable income. Their money supports the prosperity of the the town and surrounding area. Because the town is prosperous, it can afford to be keep well maintained. The shops stay busy so they can stay stocked great merchandise. The shops, cafes and restaurants in Ithaca commons are pretty wonderful. It is a very health conscious (and “green”) community. Local residents seem healthy and actively involved in their community. And the town is surrounded by remarkable natural beauty including the gorges. It is also a vacation destination for people from all over the country and the world. Because tourists bring money, there are all kinds of wonderful things to see and do in Ithaca all year around. It attracts great music too. Ithaca is usually rated as 1,2 or 3 for Best College Towns in the country.
So although you would be spending most of your time on campus, the town offers a great escape for weekends or evenings. There are great places to sit and study, for example. You can also escape to watch comedy or see theater. Cornell also attracts all kinds of great speakers, artists-so you can attend things there if you’re wanting a change of pace. The weather is cold and snowy. Ithaca is simply gorgeous around the holidays. Every thing it festive but it is cold.
Of the colleges and universities you are considering, Ithaca is by far the nicest location. It would be hard to find a nicer one within 1000 miles. And while the weather may be miserable, the people aren’t. The local community is educated, prosperous and energetic. This contrasts markedly with both Syracuse and Binghamton. Syracuse is only about an hour away. Although the university is private, the city is large enough that the university does not compensate for the intractable poverty of central NY. Syracuse is not a particularly nice city. But the area immediately surrounding the university is dedicated primarily to students. There are beautiful streets with large estates that are now living groups, frats or sororities. The university has expanded and built or taken over many new buildings. The area behind the school is gorgeous. There is also a section that is very “college town” with nice cafes and student oriented shops and restaurants. As you know, sports are huge at SU. The schools is brimming with school spirit. Games are well attended and students are fiercely loyal fans to the school. On game days you can’t be in the city without seeing all kinds of signs for the game. The town is decked out in Orange. People from the city with no affiliation at all with the school attend games and root for the team. It is a big deal. My impression is that most SU students love their school. There is a very extensive alum networks. On game days, sports bars from California to Maine are decked out in Orange with alum supporting their school. I’ve never seen anything like it. Here too the weather is cold and nasty. But students have easy access to skiing (great deals for students) and to games-that seems to get people though winter. So the weather is miserable but the students are not.
Binghamton is smaller than Syracuse and it is characterized by intractable poverty. The school is in a town called Vestal, about 3 miles from Binghamton. And it is surrounded by a large parkway filled with every kind of Big Box Store imaginable. Unfortunately, unlike Syracuse, it is not really a walkable area. You’d really need to drive if you wanted to access the Big Box stores or chain restaurants. The university has expanded to include some buildings in the city of Binghamton about 3 miles from the main campus. It is not a student dominated city and it is not nice. There are bars and some restaurants but it does not seem very “college town”. It is a very sketchy area with little more than bars. Binghamton does not have much school spirit. In contrast to the healthy vibe of Ithaca, Binghamton is much more typical of depressed areas in central NY. The residents are most often not health conscious and the local community suffers from high rates of obesity and other health ailments that are more common among people living in poverty. Like many places in the country, especially those that are poor, the towns around Binghamton (Vestal, Hillcrest, Endicott) have problems with toxic waste, cancer clusters and toxic plumes. If you live off campus, you should avoid places where they have to vent homes to rid them of cancer causing chemicals left from old industry that are now working their way back up from the soil into the air. The thing that Binghamton offers that the other two schools don’t is that it is amazingly cheap. You’d be hard put to find a cheaper 4 year university. That could mean far less debt in the long run. The weather is miserable as are the residents of the city but the school is very cheap. Some people love Binghamton and feel that there is great school spirit. But this is my opinion. Hopefully you will get other opinions too.
Yes You could attend Cornell. See Cornell University - Ithaca College exchange program https://www.sce.cornell.edu/exmu/register/ic_cu.php or http://www.ithaca.edu/ic-cu/ithacatocornell/
4kidsdad, it is so good in theory but the the schedule differences make that difficult.
^No more difficult than Rochester area consortium See http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/university-rochester/494212-rochester-area-consortium.html. Some schools are physically apart by at least a hour of driving!
Thanks! That was really helpful:)
There are students at IC who take classes at Cornell and there are Cornell students who take classes at IC.
Don’t attend a school because you can cross-register to another school!
My daughter is an Ithaca College graduate, and I think the school attracts what I will call for a lack of a better term, a nice group of people.
Not as many competitive, Type A sorts as there are at Cornell…
I think you will find the faculty to be supportive of their students and their goals, as well as more likely to take a personal interest in working with students than the larger institutions mentioned here.
My daughter transferred to Ithaca as a sophomore. Her advisor helped her meet all of the requirements for her program, and also sent out an email with a job opening to all recent grads that landed my daughter her first job.
Agree with that @fendrock. My S will not take classes anywhere other than at Ithaca. He is getting a superb education there.
Ithaca College offers a lot than what you see on the outside. They care very much about their students and offer lots of programs to help you with getting a job, resumes, and etc. Alumni connections are very strong at Ithaca, opening many doors for recent graduates and current students to get internships and jobs. Also the people at Ithaca College and Ithaca are some of the nicest open minded people you will ever meet.