SUNY ESF

[tiredwaiting]

Hey Guys,

I will mostly be heading to Syracuse this fall to SUNY ESF for my masters. Any one else heading that side? I'm an international student so wont be visiting the campus before, but if any one else is going to the campus, please share your views.

See you in August

[Zach Green]

Hello again tiredwaiting! I will be joining you as you may already know. I had a great discussion with my major professor this week and I am pumped for next fall. I visited the campus last fall and was very impressed and I will surely return this spring/summer to do some apartment shopping.

[tiredwaiting]

Heya Zach! Glad to know we'll be headed to the same place Who's your major professor? Oh and when you go for the apartment hunting, will you please let me me know more about the housing scene ? I won't be reaching there before the 2nd week of August...

Thanks a ton

[Zach Green]

My major professor is Philippe Vidon. Who is yours? Most people have directed me to orangehousing.com

There is a conference I may attend on campus in June. Also they list thesis defenses on their calendar of events...I might head up to listen to a few of those as well if it is really allowed...Although I hope there is no audience for mine!

[tiredwaiting]

Mine is Dr. Richard Smardon. And yea most people have told me about orangehousing too. But it's a scary prospect choosing your house and roommate without actually meeting them first.

And hey i always thought only professors and invited externals are allowed to sit! I hope no other people are allowed to sit in mine. So agree with you there.

by the way do you have any pre requisite subjects you have to do..? I have 2 , but i've decided to them on the campus itself.

[xlostlove777]

I just went up and visited last week, and was left very impressed with the school & my Major Professor, Dr. Luzadis. It sort of easy the sting of the Yale rejection, at least I am still able to go to a great program.

Tiredwaiting, our Major Professor's are in the same department, so we should be actually working in the same grad office space! I am going apartment hunting this upcoming weekend, and will share my opinion of the places with you. I know coming from so far away has to be extra difficult. I have the advantage of being somewhat close and knowing someone that lives in Syracuse, so whatever questions you have about the area let me know and I'll try to answer or find out for you. When I was up I got a chance to randomly speak with Smardon, he was just there and willing to talk. He seems like a nice guy, really knowledgable, albeit a little long-winded.

Zach are you located in the city right now, just guessing from the pictures. I am going to be working there temporarily over the next few months, figure we can get a drink or something one night. Or if I need to go back up we can at least plan a road trip together and save some gas money. Private message me if your interested.

Edited April 1, 2012 by xlostlove777

[tiredwaiting]

I just went up and visited last week, and was left very impressed with the school & my Major Professor, Dr. Luzadis. It sort of easy the sting of the Yale rejection, at least I am still able to go to a great program.

Tiredwaiting, our Major Professor's are in the same department, so we should be actually working in the same grad office space! I am going apartment hunting this upcoming weekend, and will share my opinion of the places with you. I know coming from so far away has to be extra difficult. I have the advantage of being somewhat close and knowing someone that lives in Syracuse, so whatever questions you have about the area let me know and I'll try to answer or find out for you. When I was up I got a chance to randomly speak with Smardon, he was just there and willing to talk. He seems like a nice guy, really knowledgable, albeit a little long-winded.

Zach are you located in the city right now, just guessing from the pictures. I am going to be working there temporarily over the next few months, figure we can get a drink or something one night. Or if I need to go back up we can at least plan a road trip together and save some gas money. Private message me if your interested.

Hey xlostlove777,

Thanks so much for the post . It's great to know we'll be sharing an office And yea Smardon did seem pretty enthusiastic and helpful in the email conversations I had with him. As far as the housing goes I went through the orangehousing website but did not really come up with anything, so I'd really appreciate any help or advice you can give me after you check out the place

Hey by the way have they given either of you any info on RA or TA positions..? I asked the admission committee, but din't really get any reply.

[xlostlove777]

So, I think a big part of it it is going to depend on how far away from campus do you want to be. I have a car, so I'm able to be a little bit further away, but want to stay within Syracuse. Generally everything on Orangehousing is somewhat close and in a decent neighborhood.

As far as the actual housing, I think my perception of things is a little off because I am used to how expensive things are in NYC/Long Island/Connecticut. Everything in Syracuse seems incredibly affordable. From my first look, I really like University Hill Apartments. Some of their stuff is a bit pricier, but I like the high-end appliances, floors etc. They also seem to come with some basic furnishings, which makes the move a little bit easier. I'll see how they are when I visit.

A lot of Orangehousing where shared apartments in multifamily homes. If you want a more traditional apartment feel for just yourself, I recommend 600 James Street. It's just a bit outside of the University Hill area, but I have a friend who lives there and it is a really nice affordable place.

I actually received a Diversity Fellowship which covers everything, so I doubt that I would be offered an RA/TA position in addition to that. From talking to graduate students they are great in securing funding for their PhD students, but that means that chances are nearly 0% for Master's students to receive TA/RA positions. While you should have found out about those details already, the full financial aid(including approved loans for exampe) should be coming within the next week or two from what they told me.

[tiredwaiting]

Hey,

I don't think i'm gonna get a car any time soon out there, so i'm pretty much gonna depend on walking or the public transport. So i guess i'll keep close by to the university area. I mailed a couple of people on the orangehousing, hoping to get some positive reply.

I liked the houses on University Hill apartments too, but they kinda get expensive for me if I don't have any one to share with. I checked the James street area, but that's too far for me. It says 30 mins of walking on google maps If you do come across something nice, close by and cheap under 500$ please let me know

The funding scene sounds pretty grim, though I really hope that they give some sort of info soon.

Thanks again for your help

[victrolala]

hello!

I've also been accepted into the masters program at suny for fall.

Have you all emailed your major advisors yet? I am unsure if I should touch base with them now, or wait until after April 15th (this is when a decision needs to be made, correct?).

[tiredwaiting]

hello!

I've also been accepted into the masters program at suny for fall.

Have you all emailed your major advisors yet? I am unsure if I should touch base with them now, or wait until after April 15th (this is when a decision needs to be made, correct?).

Heya Victrolala

Glad to know you'll be joining us this Fall. I've contacted my major professor cause i was pretty sure about attending the school. If you still haven't made your decision, maybe you should wait till then. And yeah, 15th is the date the ad com guys had given me. Though i confirmed more than a week back

[victrolala]

Thanks triedwaiting for answering my question .

One more...the major professor I am paired with is not in my specific area of study. Do you all know how the grad school at SUNY-esf works...if we all just come in as a cohort and can eventually be paired with an advisor who is within our program or if I will be with the same one throughout my masters program? I just find that it might be difficult for both of us to complete a project if our interests are varying..thanks!

[tiredwaiting]

Sorry Victrolala, I'm really no help here. I'm an international student, so the entire major professor thingy is quiet new to me. I suggest you get in touch with a couple of students already studying there, they'll be the best people to answer this question

[EcoJem17]

Hi all,

I'm heading to ESF in the fall as well! I'm really excited. I'm majoring in Ecology, and my advisor is Dr. Leopold. I'm really into restoration ecology. I've been up to visit the school and do some apartment hunting without much luck. Does anyone have any suggestions?

[tiredwaiting]

Hi all,

I'm heading to ESF in the fall as well! I'm really excited. I'm majoring in Ecology, and my advisor is Dr. Leopold. I'm really into restoration ecology. I've been up to visit the school and do some apartment hunting without much luck. Does anyone have any suggestions?

Heya nice to know more people coming there

And well I'm an international student so I've just basically been using oranghousing.com , but honestly I've not had much luck too..... most of the people i spoke to are more interested in getting 2 rents upfront along with a security deposit, which is a big gamble for me since I won't be going there before August to actually check it out.

If you living close by , you can go and visit. I'm sure you'll be able to make a better decision then

[xlostlove777]

@Victrolala: I would suggest reaching out to your MP before rather than after you make your decision. I was on the fence between going to graduate school and taking a new job, and I was able to speak with my MP about my options, concerns about the program etc. It's going to vary from Prof to Prof, but mine was more than happy to try and answer my questions/concerns.

@EcoJem: So the apt hunting seemed really daunting to me at first, but I found something on my first visit looking for places. All the grad students told me just to look at orange housing, because other places will be more hesitant to rent to college students(credit checks, income verification etc). I found that most of the cheap places rented by individuals(not companies) on orange housing, tend to be just that cheap. They places are not in good shape. I also found the more rooms the messier the place is going to be, some people are really just filthy. I found that the listings under Ravi where the best in terms of conditions and price, I got a room in a 2br for $500, all utilities. They are all a bit further away from ESF, but close to the bus lines.