- Mid-sized private urban research university
- Founded in 1850 – a long tradition of ‘breaking boundaries’
- Just over 4500 undergraduates – 12,000+ in total
- Residential campus
- 87% graduation rate
- Retention rate 91%
- Very selective – 30% acceptance rate
- 9:1 students to faculty ratio
- Students from more than 120 countries
- In 2022 – 25% of new students were non-US citizens. Globally enriching environment.
- Rochester is a very values-driven institution
- Mission is to Learn, Discover, Heal, Create – and Make the World Even Better
- They are looking for students who have striven to make themselves better, their communities better, and the world around them better
Location
- In Rochester – the ‘Flower City’ – 4th largest city in NY State
- Western New York State – scenic Finger Lakes region
- Closer to Toronto than NYC – 3 hours to drive to Toronto, 6 hours to NYC
- Just over 1 hour flight to NYC, Boston and Philadelphia
- Gets all four seasons – plenty of snow in the winter!
- Extensive urban trail network – great place for those who love the outdoors
- Riverside campus – adjacent to the medical centre
- The Eastman School of Music is located over the bridge in the downtown area
- The world class Memorial Art Gallery is also owned by the university
Academic
- 136 majors
- Liberal arts education
- Often thought of as a STEM school but makes serious investments in the humanities and social sciences – eg. brand new performing arts centre
- Three undergraduate schools: School of Arts & Sciences, Hajim School of Engineering & Applied Sciences, and the Eastman School of Music
- Admitted to the university – not a faculty/school
- No separate barriers to business or engineering programmes
- No required subjects, but not a fully open curriculum with no rules
- 45% double-major
- Graduation requirements: Writing Requirements, Major Requirements, Cluster Requirements
- R1 research university
- 77% participate in research (growing) – aiming for 100%
- Top 20 among US institutions for Citation Impact
- Combined Degree & Special Programmes: Medicine, Engineering, Education, Public Health and Nursing.
- REMS Medicine programme – students are admitted to undergraduate and graduate degrees in one admission process. No MCAT. Extremely competitive – typically only 12 students per year. Deadline 15th Nov.
- Eastman School of Music is a direct admit programme. World leading for music composition, performance and education
- University of Rochester Medical Centre offers tons of opportunities for pre-med students, but also those from other areas – such as business and art therapy
- Laboratory for Laser Energetics – offers the foremost laser and optics programmes in the world
- Emerging strength in Data Science
- High % of women in engineering and computer science programmes
- Take Five Scholars Program – students can take an additional semester or year tuition free to pursue a project totally separate from their major or degree
- E5 – Entrepreneurial project-based tuition fee 5th year through competitive application.
- 95% of students do an internship
- 40+ study abroad countries
- Gwen Greene Centre for Career Education and Connection – supports students not only with valuable resources for career search, but also ‘Life Design’. Intentional about engaging 1st and 2nd year students.
Application
- Early Decision I – 1st November
- Early Decision II – 5th January
- No Early Action
- Regular Decision – 5th January
- Around 40% admitted through ED I and ED II
- Priority Scholarships deadline = December 1st
- Application fee – $50
- SAT/ACT is considered but certainly not required.
- Holistic review – they really dig into the different aspects of the application and are particularly looking for a student’s character and values: Strength of Mind, Strength of Heart, and Strength of Will.
- Through application explore ways to demonstrate empathy, kindness, generosity, humility, teamwork, creativity, intellectual curiosity, grit, tenacity, resilience – all desirable UR character strengths.
- Looking for students to have taken a rigorous high school curriculum, in the context of what was available
- Interview highly recommended – will dig into character strengths (way to demonstrate interest)
- Applicants should ask themselves: What am I interested in? What makes me interesting?
Finances
- Need aware in admissions
- Meets full demonstrated need of all admitted students – including international
- Merit scholarship programmes are used intentionally to support the middle income families who don’t qualify for need-based aid
- Merit scholarships range from $2,000 to full tuition – all admitted students are automatically considered
- Tuition = $60,550 (2022/23)
- Estimated total cost of attendance = $82,468 + travel costs for international and out-of-state students
Accommodation
- 80% live on campus all four years
- All 1st and 2nd year students must live on campus
- Affinity housing is on offer for first year students focusing on lifestyle themes, such as: quiet-study, substance-free, co-ed by random room, and so on.
- Speciality interest housing and academic living centres are available for upper class men – eg. community service, sustainability, computers, music, drama, anime. These change over time to reflect student interests
- Wide variety of dining options available – unique dietary requirements are catered for
Activities
- 23 NCAA Division III teams
- 300+ student organisations
- Each season has its own festival
- Greek life is present – Greek houses that are somewhat residential, but not a huge part of campus culture
- Annual traditions – Boar’s Head Dinner, Wilson Day, Dandelion Day and Meliora Weekend
Other
- UR will suit students who consider themselves ‘Cool Nerds’ – they are quirky, innovative, and have an academic character that is intellectually curious and filled with genuine enthusiasm for learning – rather than performance based.
- Good fit students either know what they want to do and don’t want to have to do general education requirements OR are undecided/exploratory students with a love of learning
- Very entrepreneurial and innovative culture
- Extensive support for diversity through various centres and offices – and inclusive campus culture
Visit the University of Rochester website
