Rochester Institute of Technology | Student Reviews | Best College

Student Profile

David

Class: Senior
Major: Engineering
Gender: M

High School: Springville Griffith Institute
Transfer Student: N

Big Picture

RIT's name carries a lot of weight because people see it as a "great school" or one that is "hard to get into". It impresses people when I say I go here, but I'm not sure that I like the quarter system that much. RIT's not too big where you might get confused as to where you are, but it's not tiny either. You typically run into a lot of the same students everyday depending on your major and where your classes usually are, but there are a lot of people on campus that I've never seen before or have never talked to before. I don't spend much of my time on the academic side of campus, the majority of it is spent either in class or back at my on-campus apartment either doing work or trying to get away from the never-ending pile of bricks that is "campus". There really isn't much of a "college town" yet. MacGreggor's is right around the corner and we like to refer to it as Building 0 because it's the most common place for students to go relax and have a few drinks. There is some construction going on now that is supposed to change that whole aspect of RIT by adding some new places to go that are on campus, yet pretty far away from the dorms and the academic side. The biggest recent controversy on campus is that for graduation this year we get the pleasure of hearing our own provost speak, instead of a more famous person, like a senator, or, like last year, a former president (Bill Clinton). There are rumors going around that this is because we were supposed to have Elliot Spitzer speak... but due to the recent allegations, we decided to cancel that.

Academic Life

The classes here are fairly small for the most part. Most professors make an effort to know their students, especially if you ask questions and let them know that you are there. Most students study mainly for exams, but not much in between them. Even as an engineering major, I didn't study much for the majority of my classes. RIT students try to leave school out of their social lives as much as possible. As far as intellectual conversations outside of class, they happen, but only in typical discourse, it's not usually a point to make conversation of projects that are going on. There are a very select number of professors that hang out with students outside of class, typically at a bar at the end of the day for a beer or two, but that's about it. The education at RIT isn't geared for getting a job or learning for its own sake, it's just there. It's up to the students to decide what to do with it. The co-op program is there to make students get into the industry and see if they like what they are studying. I think most students use what they learn at RIT just to get a job, but some of them really enjoy what they are learning and thrive on discovering new knowledge.

Student Body

I tend not to interact with different groups on campus. I find that not much happens here and typically I drive the 1.5 hours home every weekend because I have a lot of friends there and am usually guaranteed a good time. I think that RIT is a very diverse campus and that very few, if any, people feel out of place at RIT. There are people here from all different backgrounds - rich, poor, etc., as well as different ethnicities and religions.