Overview
The University of Rochester Is a World-Class University Where Excellence Is Standard Operating Procedure
The University of Rochester (UR), founded in 1850, is a private, coeducational research university that occupies a 90-acre residential campus (River Campus) in Rochester, New York.
The University of Rochester Medical Center -- the medical campus with both education and research buildings, plus Strong Memorial Hospital -- is adjacent to the River Campus. The Eastman School of Music has its own campus two miles away in downtown Rochester, and the South Campus in neighboring Brighton, NY, comprises several science laboratories.
The university's student body is culturally diverse, drawing students from every U.S. state and some 90 foreign countries. Total student enrollment is around 9,500, with some 56 percent of enrolled students being undergraduates, 39 percent graduate level, and 4 percent seeking first professional graduate degrees.
UR is noted for the prestigious Eastman School of Music, Memorial Art Gallery, schools of medicine and dentistry, Laboratory for Laser Energetics, the Strong Memorial Hospital, and its world-class library collections. The university also maintains the Frederick Douglass Institute for African and African-American Studies and arranges educational internships for its students in the U.S. Congress as well as the British Parliament.
Dedicated Faculty Provides Students with Unique, Tailor-Made Coursework via the "Rochester Curriculum"
Among UR's dedicated faculty are fellows from all four U.S. National Academies, in addition to Guggenheim Fellows and recipients of numerous other awards and accolades. With independent study a main component of the curriculum, and an excellent 9:1 student-teacher ratio, personalized instruction is available to every student.
The "Rochester Curriculum" is the unique, defining characteristic of undergraduate education at UR. Except for a prerequisite writing course, there are no required classes. The curriculum invites undergraduates to explore the three primary areas of human knowledge -- humanities, natural sciences, and social sciences.
Undergraduates must complete a certain number of courses of associated content (known as "clusters") in the areas outside of their majors. Exceptions are made for students with engineering majors, who need but a single cluster in either social sciences or humanities.
Undergraduate Research Plus Special Academic and Study Abroad Programs Show Rochester's Innovation
UR inaugurated its Take Five Scholars Program over 20 years ago, which the "New York Times" called "one of the most innovative liberal arts programs in the country." In the history of the program, more than 900 students have been able to study for an additional semester or year, tuition-free, in fields outside their declared majors.
The Senior Scholars Program allows up to 15 seniors to spend their final year of study on one intellectual project under the aegis of faculty advisers. This yearlong independent study can be a work of art, a scientific investigation, creative or non-fiction writing, a scholarly endeavor, or a filmmaking project -- any endeavor that will display the intellect and imagination that studying at Rochester has developed and refined.
Study abroad programs are an essential component of UR undergraduate education. These opportunities put students in novel, intensified learning environments in other countries, where traditional instruction and research are augmented by home stays, community service, and field study. International internship opportunities can also provide students with hands-on work experience and a unique opportunity for experiential learning.
Any UR student can take part in undergraduate research. A premier research institution with leading scientists and laboratories, UR has made a commitment to its undergraduates to make research resources available. In fact, research characterizes the type of education that the Rochester Curriculum was designed to support -- unique courses of study tailored to students' individual aptitudes and goals.
From Financial Aid to Freshman Support, Rochester Is Always Trying to Serve the Interests of Its Students
Freshmen and sophomores must live on campus, but the fact that two-thirds of juniors and over half of seniors choose to live there confirms it is a great place to be. Specifically, the University of Rochester houses first-year students together to introduce them to the school. Various residential, social, and academic support programs are available to help the freshman class assimilate into the UR community.
The university's Financial Aid Office is a resource to help students and families navigate the financial aid process. UR is committed to providing fair, equitable, and high-quality service in making determinations for financial assistance for its students, and can introduce students to the myriad types of aid -- grants, loans, scholarships, work-study programs, stipends, and so forth -- that are available to offset the cost of a Rochester education.
The Kauffman Entrepreneurial Year (KEY) Program and Portable Research Grants Further Empower Students
Qualified students may participate in the Kauffman Entrepreneurial Year (KEY) Program and devote up to one full academic year to special projects, internships, business plan design, entrepreneurial research, or analyses of the effects of culture and public policy on entrepreneurial activity. Students can apply for the program from the date of acceptance into a major until their senior year's second semester.
Portable research grants provide undergraduate students with research expenses of up to $3,000 when working with a faculty sponsor. The goal is to involve students in experiential and experimental activities that stimulate the mind, expand intellectual and social horizons, and strengthen networks within both the UR community and the research/creative communities around the globe.
Selective Programs Allow Exceptional Undergraduates Guaranteed Admissions to Graduate School
Various combined admissions programs enable exceptional undergraduate applicants to formulate a long-term, advanced degree plan. The REMS (Rochester Early Medical Scholars) program, an eight-year B.A./B.S. and M.D. program for talented undergraduates, is quite competitive. Since its start in 1991, enrollment has been capped at 10 students per year.
REBS (Rochester Early Business Scholars), awarding B.A./B.S. and M.B.A. degrees, lets selected undergraduates enter UR with guaranteed admission to the William E. Simon Graduate School of Business. It is a six-year program.
GRADE (Guaranteed Rochester Accelerated Degree in Education) is a five-year B.A./B.S. and M.S. program for students interested in becoming educators. GRADE students are guaranteed admission to the Margaret Warner Graduate School of Education and Human Development. Students receive the Steven Harrison Scholarship (25 percent of tuition) for all five years.
GEAR (Graduate Engineering at Rochester) allows students to accelerate completion of their master's degree in engineering and applied sciences in a 3-2 B.S./M.S. program. The GEAR program gives selected students the assurance of admission into one of the eight engineering master's programs at UR's Hajim School of Engineering and Applied Sciences.
