The Rochester area, particularly in Monroe County, has a large number of colleges and universities. In 2010, the metropolitan area was ranked the eighth-best (among "mid-sized" metros between 1 million and 2.5 million in population) in the United States by the
American Institute for Economic Research. Education is one of Rochester's primary economic areas. The six-county region is home to a number of
colleges and universities: • Livingston County •
SUNY Geneseo • Monroe County •
Bryant & Stratton College in Greece and Henrietta •
Colgate Rochester Crozer Divinity School •
Empire State College's Genesee Valley Learning Center •
Monroe Community College •
Nazareth University •
Roberts Wesleyan College in Chili •
Rochester Institute of Technology •
St. Bernard's School of Theology and Ministry •
St. John Fisher University •
SUNY Brockport •
University of Rochester • Ontario County •
Finger Lakes Community College •
Hobart and William Smith Colleges Together with
Alfred State College,
Alfred University,
Corning Community College,
Genesee Community College,
Houghton College,
Keuka College, and
Wells College and
New York Chiropractic College, all within 90 miles of Rochester, these institutions comprise the
Rochester Area Colleges consortium.
University of Rochester The
University of Rochester (U of R), ranked as the 29th best university in the nation by
U.S. News & World Report and was deemed "one of the new Ivies." The nursing school has received many awards and honors and the
Simon School of Business is also ranked in the top 30 in many categories. The University of Rochester's
Laboratory for Laser Energetics (LLE) is home to the highest power
laser in the world, the OMEGA EP laser. The university is also home to the
Eastman School of Music, which in 2004 was ranked the number one music school in America.
Rochester Institute of Technology The
Rochester Institute of Technology (RIT) was founded in 1829 and is the tenth largest private university in the country in terms of full-time students. It is internationally known for its science, computer, engineering, and art programs, as well as for the
National Technical Institute for the Deaf, a leading deaf-education institution. RIT is among the top colleges and universities in the nation for programs in the fine arts, placing in the top 10 for many of the college's programs, including Photography (3rd), Glass art (2nd), Industrial design (8th), and others. RIT's undergraduate programs have been featured as one of nation's best in the
Princeton Review, and its undergraduate engineering programs have been ranked in the top 70 in the country by the
U.S. News & World Report.
Monroe Community College Monroe Community College, the largest community college in
Upstate New York, has had the top ranking community college athletic program two years in a row and was rated as the tenth best
associates degree producing two year college by
Community College Week. MCC has four campuses: the
Downtown Campus, the main
Brighton Campus which houses the
Mercer Gallery, the
Applied Technologies Center, and the
Public Safety Training Facility.
Roberts Wesleyan College Roberts Wesleyan was ranked the third-best value private college in the U.S. by the
Princeton Review in 2007—the only school in New York State ranked in the top 10. It is also Rochester's only college affiliated with the
Council for Christian Colleges and Universities. ==See also==