Are all first years required to live in Geneva?
Current first year here- no!
I'm gunna take this opportunity to describe living in Geneva because this is information I did not have last year and really wish I did.
1. you do not have to live in Geneva. I'd say maybe half of the class lives in Geneva, another 25% lives in Madison/Jefferson towers, and the rest live in various houses or apartments around Syracuse.
2. This year has been completely whack for obvious reasons. No more than 10 people are allowed in the biggest rooms, masks always worn throughout the building, etc. So the biggest draw to living in Geneva (getting to know your classmates) has been super hard. Unless you're willing to risk breaking the school/apartment rules and get kicked out. Who knows what the rules will be like next year, or what COVID will be like, but remember if you're living in on-campus housing, that is one more set of rules to keep track of and follow.
3. For the apartments themselves, I can speak to the 4 person apartments, and have a little advice about the other types. For singles - I don't know how hard exactly, but I think it is a bit difficult to get a single as a first year. The doubles have very small kitchens, decent sized common areas, and small bedrooms. 4 person rooms have the biggest common areas, kitchens, and bedrooms. The stoves are electric, they work fine. It is VERY easy to set the fire alarm off while cooking. If you are someone who likes to sear a good steak on the regular, Geneva might not be for you. There is a ton of storage both in closets and cabinets for all the cooking gear and food you could desire. This is the best part of the room in my opinion (besides the views which are incredible if you get a higher apartment). However, if you are in a 4 person apartment and you all like to cook, definitely get a mini fridge/extra freezer because 4 people for 1 normal sized fridge is brutal. The couches are uncomfortable. The chair is uncomfortable. Bring something comfortable to sit in, I heard someone got a dog bed for their windowsill which actually seems really nice. There is also very little lighting in the common room - bring an extra lamp or 2. There are no printers in the building that work. I have not needed to print much thankfully, but this would have helped once or twice. The mattress are SUPER hard - get a mattress topper or other mattress. The beds are full beds. MOST IMPORTANTLY THE WALLS ARE PAPER THIN. They are better from one level of floor to above or below, but your direct roommates will be able to hear every conversation you have unless you are playing music/running a fan. Seriously, I have normal voice conversations with the one roommate who lives right next to me. If you wind up with a roommate who likes to listen to TV late at night? Better hope they have headphones... Keep this in mind for living with randos - you need to have an agreement on noise levels at certain times if anyone is sensitive to noise. ALSO heating and cooling can be a huge issue. Some rooms have control over their heat it seems, and some don't. Sometimes it is really hot, sometimes it is really cold. The windows do not open so there is sometimes no way to remedy this. At least the air is not extremely dry or stuffy feeling. For those who do have temperature control, you definitely don't have it on an individual level so you will also have to coordinate this with your roommates - better hope they have the same taste as you or are willing to compromise. Finally, one good thing, if you have a southern facing room it is excellent to grow plants!!
4. There are scholarships to live in Geneva that get sent out sometime in May I think. I don't know how many are available (I know of at least 4 people who have one, and possibly more as this isn't something that gets talked about a lot), but they are for $6000 to live in a 2 or 4 bedroom apartment. These make living in Geneva worth it. Without this scholarship, in my opinion, Geneva is absolutely not worth it to live in. Without the scholarship, it would come in as one of the most expensive places to live in Syracuse, without providing a lot of the things you would expect from a high-priced apartment. You can find equally as nice places to live for $200-300 less per month, and if you all band together to live in another complex, you will get the same "Geneva" experience....
5. The gym (a few treadmills, elipticals, and a bike) has not been opened at all this year despite NYS rules saying it is fine to do so. This is clearly not a priority. I have heard it is often closed in normal years as well.
6. There are study rooms on the second floor that are nice.
7. One of the second floor study rooms (thank goodness while under renovation) was shot with a stray bullet. There is a neighborhood adjacent to Geneva that experiences an extremely high level of crime (Several shootings and stabbings this year). This is the first time the building has been shot in recent years that I know of, so it is unlikely that it will happen again, but obviously is possible. One does not have to walk through this neighborhood to get to class, but you are walking next to it often. Unfortunately, Syracuse is not a very safe place to live. There are a ton of shootings, stabbings, and car break-ins are rampant. Living at Geneva might actually be one of the safer places you can be, besides Madison or Jefferson. If you choose to live off campus, your best bet is in a suburb or in the Syracuse University housing area. There are some seriously cheap houses elsewhere in the city, but there is so much crime it is almost definitely not worth it.
8. There have been a lot of year-specific complaints. The Wifi has stopped working intermittently, sometimes for days, once right before an exam. This is hopefully fixed, as it has not happened in 2 months, but has been a difficult addition to a zoom and home learning year. There has been construction going on all year. Everyone has to move once, at a time they do not get to choose. This was really annoying, but hopefully it will be done in time for next year. There were no significant improvements to the rooms after construction. In case it is not finished, the construction is LOUD. It reverberates throughout the building, happened once during an exam.
If I think of more I will add it, that should be enough though. LMK if you have questions.
