<p>After college I went straight to grad school to get an MS in sustainable engineering. I now work at a multi-disciplinary engineering firm as a sustainability consultant. Because of my background in mechanical engineering, a lot of my work focuses on building efficiency and energy. </p>
<p>If you don’t like the cold, then you probably won’t like Rochester all that much. I’m from the northeast, so I was used to it. The tunnel system definitely helps during those bitter cold days. The winters are relatively long in Rochester (and really anywhere in the northeast), but I think it made the students more grateful and appreciative of “nice” weather. The quads always seemed to be packed with people during springtime when the sun started coming out and the temperature started to rise. </p>
<p>The city of Rochester actually has a lot to offer for its size and is very inexpensive compared to other cities. Rochester doesn’t really have a bustling central business district that most people associate with cities, but there are a lot of neighborhoods and attractions worth visiting. While I was at UR I wish I had explored the city more and taken better advantage of what it has to offer. UR has a free shuttle bus to the Eastman School of Music that runs regularly and can get you to many of the city’s hot spots. That being said, having a car makes it a lot easier to get off-campus and explore the city (the public transit system in Rochester is rather limited). There are Zipcars on campus, which you can rent by the hour to get around. One of the nice things about the city is that most things are only a 15 minute drive away. The neighborhood the campus is located in doesn’t have much going on at the moment, but the university is starting to build a new college town next to the medical center and within walking distance of the river campus ([Rochester</a> College Town construction to begin, bringing shopping, entertainment in Fall 2014<em>|</em>The Hive](<a href=“http://sa.rochester.edu/sa/2013/03/20/college-town-coming-to-rochester-bringing-shopping-entertainment-and-much-more/]Rochester”>http://sa.rochester.edu/sa/2013/03/20/college-town-coming-to-rochester-bringing-shopping-entertainment-and-much-more/)). I’m sure this new development will provide students with more “off-campus” opportunities that are within walking distance.</p>