The University of Rochester

Date: May 06 2006
Major: Psychology (This Major's Salary over time)
UR was my dream school, but only because I believed all the propoganda [such as the "blue" river—its the brownest most disgusting smelling river I've ever seen—then again, you'll never want to be close to it cuz all the angry minorities with guns keep crossing it to beat up the frat guys and steal their food (campustimes.org—guy steals a frat's ham and jumps in the river)]. Every spring campus visit day, they put on a nice show though (and the tour guides are completely coached on what to say..not everyone has a "friend did study abroad in Spain", trust me). Overall, I hate the university. HATE! But I love the psychology department and grad school is automatic. There are a lot of opportunities for research and you MUST take advantage of it. The administration does not care for the students or its employees. We have kids commit suicide, be accused of murdering their father with an ax, and commit felony property damage/steal cars, but the univ is so concerned about its reputation (or lack of) that they don't care (they just automatically expel the student and deny they ever attended). UR administration just want the tuition and research money. I liked the cluster/no course requirement system, but it makes transferring out almost impossible. If you don't transfer by the end of first semester, you're stuck here unless you want to spend an extra two years making up the classes you took. The food is abhorrent, but you're required to pay for it (a bowl of cereal, a juice, and a piece of fruit is 1 club, which is equal to $11 on your tuition, complete truth). The school is about making a profit, even if the students suffer. Parking is crazy. They love giving tickets, even if you're legally parked (assuming you can afford $600 a year to park 2 miles away). You'll get calls asking you to donate to the university before you even graduate. VERY VERY greedy, but you will be able to get into a graduate school if you keep a 3.0 GPA or above and do a semester of research. I wish I would have went somewhere else..I've hated the last four years, but I've been offered a great job (probably cuz of my 3.9 GPA), so it's all about how much emphasis you put on happiness over achievement. There really isn't a social life. Most people don't get off campus until senior year (and then its only to drink). I wouldn't recommend the school to anyone, but you don't know until you try. Even though I am disappointed and disgusted, if I never tried to go there, I'd always wonder.