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And he says that that's his first choice. (Unless USC gives him a MAJOR scholarship, which USC does for only a few people). He's determined to go for a bachelor's or Master's in Computer Game Design, and RIT is very highly rated in that field. He's VERY happy to be accepted there.
What's Rochester like? Cold with snow in the winter, warm in the summer, obviously. Being downwind from nearly all the big freshwater Great Lakes, does it get a lot of precipitation, year round? Many mosquitos in summer/fall? Good for hiking, biking, sports?
We could use some advice from knowledgeable people who live there or near there.
Hopefully I'm proven wrong, but good luck getting info. on here.
I will say that it is a 4 season climate, with the winters being milder than they were in the past. He would have quick access to Lake Ontario, Letchworth State Park, the Finger Lakes, the Erie Canal, as well as plenty of trails and other outdoor amenities.
The campus is actually in Henrietta, which is a suburb south of the city, that has plenty of big box shopping. It is a pretty modern campus and was considered by a niece of mine from MD before she selected another college.
The program he is interested is very good. So, I can see why he is very interested in the school.
Rochester is a metro area of 1.1 million people and the city proper has about 205-210,000 people. So, it is big enough in terms of having other activities, festivals, events, etc.
There is a pretty strong college presence in the area between RIT, U of R, Nazareth, St. John Fisher, Roberts Wesleyan, SUNY-Brockport, SUNY-Geneseo and Monroe Community College, among a few others(Hobart in Geneva, Keuka College in Yates County, Finger Lakes Community College in Canandaigua).
I'll stop there, but hopefully some others will chime in.
Temps average in the middle 30's in winter. We get snow, but usually only a couple of inches, and it usually melts in a couple days. Summer, usually quite comfortable in the 70's. There can be times that the temps are in the high 80's. With the humidity, that is considered hot.
There are bugs, as anywhere else, but I think I've only had 1 mosquito bite in the last 2 years.
There is also student housing downtown, where you can intermingle with students from other local universities, as well as hundreds of tech companies. One example is Innovation Square. https://www.innovationsquareroc.com/...m=bing_profile
Another really cool thing Rochester has is the Strong Museum of Play. They even have a Video Game Hall of Fame. https://www.museumofplay.org/
In the fall, the whole region turns a beautiful mixture of yellows, reds and oranges. The Finger Lakes region is especially beautiful and there are over 100 wineries.
Additionally, there are approximately 80,000 college students in the region.
And he says that that's his first choice. (Unless USC gives him a MAJOR scholarship, which USC does for only a few people). He's determined to go for a bachelor's or Master's in Computer Game Design, and RIT is very highly rated in that field. He's VERY happy to be accepted there.
What's Rochester like? Cold with snow in the winter, warm in the summer, obviously. Being downwind from nearly all the big freshwater Great Lakes, does it get a lot of precipitation, year round? Many mosquitos in summer/fall? Good for hiking, biking, sports?
We could use some advice from knowledgeable people who live there or near there.
What's he getting himself into?
Thanx all!
I grew up in the Rochester area but no longer live there. Rochester seems to get a lot of lake-effect snow but not as much as when I was a kid; it shouldn't be an issue. Insects never seemed to be an issue. It is a GREAT area for hiking/biking. You have the Erie Canal for biking on the towpath and plenty of hiking opportunities in the Fingerlakes area.
RIT is away from the city center and he should be safe there. I hate to have to mention this but he should stay away from the canal towpath that is in the city of Rochester proper. My parents knew someone who was assaulted riding her bike in the area around the University of Rochester. He will be safe on campus but there are some area's in the city like any other city that he should avoid. Places to avoid? Anything within the city of Rochester west of downtown, Southwest of Downtown and north/northeast of downtown.
Congrats to your son! RIT students are a wonderful part of the Rochester community.
I live in Henrietta (town in which RIT is located) and really enjoy the convenience - the city is super close to the north, yet just south of me it's rural. The airport is a quick drive and there's abundant retail, restaurants, medical facilities, etc.
The Rochester area has lots of great parks and places to hike or bike. When the weather is nice everybody's out enjoying it. Summers are pretty darn perfect, mosquitoes not a problem in my experience. Winters are not nearly as harsh as people seem to think but they are long and gloomy which bothers people who have Seasonal Affective Disorder or vitamin D deficiency. I don't think Rochester area is particularly rainy, seems kind of average for the U.S. Enough rain that people comment how green it is here in the summers.
Rochester's vibe is brainy, creative, and down-to-earth. The culture is a middle-ground between Northeast and Midwest.
Best of luck to your son in his academic endeavors and if he does choose RIT I hope he'll enjoy both the school and the Rochester area.
Just to add, in terms of areas of the city he may like besides Downtown, the Southeast Quadrant with neighborhoods such as Park Avenue(my 2nd oldest sister lived there decades ago), South Wedge, Neighborhood of the Arts(NOTA), Monroe Village and Upper Monroe are some walkable areas with some activity.
You also have outer neighborhoods in the other Quadrants that are solid to even very nice like Charlotte and parts of Maplewood in the NW Quadrant; the outer portions of the 19th Ward in the SW Quadrant and though they are thrown into the SE Quadrant, Northland-Lyceum/Homestead Heights/North Winton Village are really directly east/NE of downtown.
Coming from San Diego, where the Hispanic population is largely Mexican; in Rochester it is largely Puerto Rican at about 20% of the city's population. This is a business district with a good concentration of Hispanic based businesses in the NE Quadrant: https://rocwiki.org/La_Avenida
While SD is about 7-9% black, Rochester is about 40-45%, with much of that population in the NE, NW and SW Quadrants, with a good middle class presence/concentration in the outer 19th Ward(as well as in the Sibley Tract area of the neighborhood) and the Homestead Heights neighborhood. Some in Maplewood and North Winton Village as well in quite substantial numbers.
There is a strong Italian presence(like all NY cities/areas), with that population historically being concentrated in the Western portion of the city.
In terms of suburbs, Henrietta is one of the more culturally diverse suburbs in the area, which includes as quite substantial Asian population.
If you look at the area, the more diverse suburbs will make a C shape around the city. That means towns such as Irondequoit, Greece, Gates, Chili, Henrietta and even much of Brighton. Those first 5 towns will have a good amount of black, Hispanic, some Asian; Italian and German American residents, with Brighton having a strong Asian and Jewish presence(along with a visible black and Hispanic resident population). With those latter two groups many can be found in the relatively more affluent eastern suburbs, particularly Pittsford, which I believe is the most affluent town in the state outside of the NYC metro area.
While not the ocean, you also have some lakeside beaches like Durand Eastman and Ontario(aka Charlotte) Beaches, among others on Lake Ontario in the area.
In terms of sports, RIT is a Division 3 NCAA program in all sports, except for being Division 1 in Men’s and Women’s Hockey. The latter is pretty big in terms of interest and has had some good teams in recent years(particularly the Men’s team). No Football program and for that, colleges such as SUNY-Brockport and St. John Fisher have Division 3 programs.
You also have minor league Baseball with the Red Wings, which play at Innovative Field in Downtown. They are the AAA affiliates of the Washington Nationals: https://www.milb.com/rochester
RIT is very innovative. I took several courses in image processing there after my masters just for the fun of the courses. RIT is more unique, U Rochester more traditional, and they are not far from each other. I can guarantee if they go to RIT they will be busy and study/work all the time or at least a real lot. It is a fine campus for that, but it isn't like in a major walking area so students often really do study a lot. There is plenty in nearby area, but all basic, I go by RIT all the time. Wegmans is a grocery here to buy groceries as it is great, not far from RIT are Wegmans, Walmart and Target and so on. Best to have a car and every kind of car dealer is very nearby so they can get it serviced quite locally. There are plenty of medical services in Rochester so that is a real plus, some of the best in medical services.
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