Education
Eighteen colleges and universities fuel our future talent pipeline.
Photo by Rochester Institute of Technology
Rochester, NY Education Information
The Greater Rochester, NY region is home to 18 exceptional colleges and universities with more than 72,000 students and nearly 17,000 graduates per year. Colleges in Rochester, NY attract some of the best minds in the country. Each of these institutions provides unsurpassed learning opportunities.
U.S. News and World Report consistently ranks many of Rochester’s public high schools among the best in the nation. With our brains and impressive assets, you’re sure to succeed.
Build Strong Foundations Through Quality Education
| EDUCATIONAL ATTAINMENT |
| Population 25 years and older | Rochester, NY MSA | National Average |
|---|---|---|
| Some college, no degree | 16.2% | 19.1% |
| Associate’s degree | 12.3% | 8.8% |
| Bachelor’s degree | 21.2% | 21.6% |
| Graduate or professional degree | 17.0% | 14.1% |
| % High school graduate or higher | 91.9% | 89.6% |
| % Bachelor’s degree or higher | 37.8% | 35.0% |
In addition to the high quality of education, our local workforce is highly-skilled and productive. More than 89% have a high school degree or equivalent, and 66% have some college education. Employers also give the local workforce high marks for work ethic, productivity compared to other company locations, and punctuality.
Greater Rochester, NY Education By the Numbers
8 Public High Schools Rated Among Top 10% in the Nation
– U.S. News and World Report 2025
89% of Residents Have a High School Degree or Equivalent
66% of Residents Have Some College Education
Paving the Way in Education
| 4 Year Grad/Institutions |
| COLLEGE/UNIVERSITY | TOTAL ENROLLMENT FALL 2024 | DEGREES GRANTED 2023-2024 ACADEMIC YEAR |
|---|---|---|
| Rochester Institute of Technology | 17,098 | 3,925 |
| University of Rochester | 11,946 | 4,928 |
| State University of New York at Brockport | 7,482 | 1,774 |
| State University of New York at Geneseo | 3,945 | 978 |
| St. John Fisher University | 3,693 | 1,023 |
| Nazareth University | 2,401 | 734 |
| Roberts Wesleyan University | 1,960 | 535 |
| Hobart and William Smith Colleges | 1,841 | 397 |
| Keuka College | 1,366 | 412 |
| Northeast College of Health Sciences | 564 | 152 |
| SUNY Empire State University – Genesee Valley Campus* | 578 | N/A |
| St. Bernard’s School of Theology and Ministry | 144 | 45 |
| Colgate Rochester Crozer Divinity School | 78 | 15 |
| Subtotal 4-Year/Grad Institutions | 53,096 | 13,918 |
| 2 Year Grad/Institutions |
| COLLEGE/UNIVERSITY | TOTAL ENROLLMENT FALL 2024 | DEGREES GRANTED 2023-2024 ACADEMIC YEAR |
|---|---|---|
| Monroe Community College | 8,641 | 1,463 |
| Finger Lakes Community College | 6,004 | 621 |
| Genesee Community College | 4,240 | 481 |
| Bryant & Stratton College | 367 | 112 |
| Golisano Institute for Business & Entrepreneurship | 50 | N/A |
| Subtotal 2-Year Institutions | 19,302 | 2,677 |
| Total 4-Year and 2-Year Institutions | 72,398 | 16,595 |
Rochester, NY Attracts Talent
Several highly respected colleges and universities can be found in the Rochester area. Graduates from colleges in Rochester often accept jobs in the region, resulting in a highly skilled talent pool.
In close proximity to the Rochester area are other highly respected colleges and universities, from which graduates often accept jobs in the Rochester region. They include:
Alfred University, Canisius University, Cornell University, D’Youville University, Syracuse University, NYS College of Ceramics at Alfred University, State University of Technology at Alfred, State University of New York at Buffalo, and Buffalo State University.
K-12 STEM Education Partnerships
Project Lead the Way(PLTW) is the nation’s single largest provider of K-12 STEM curricula. Rochester Institute of Technology was the first university to partner with PLTW, in 1996.
Pathways in Technology (PTECH) Early College High School is a collaboration between the Rochester City School District and Monroe Community College. The program preps students for careers in IT and allows them to earn an associate degree at no cost, along with their high school diploma.
RIT K-12 Academy provides cutting-edge summer STEM programs for students such as Robocamp, Bioscience camp, Women in Computing, 3D Digital Graphics Modelling for Games, and coding workshops.
The Rochester region is home to more than 115 FIRST teams. FIRST (For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology) is universally recognized as the leading, not-for-profit STEM engagement program for kids at all grade levels worldwide.
iCanCode is an after-school coding club for students in grades 2-10 at the Jewish Community Center of Greater Rochester and St. Joseph School. ICanCode also offers year-round academic enrichment programs in computer programming.
Finger Lakes Youth Apprenticeship Program
Finger Lakes Youth Apprenticeship Program helps high school students learn about different advanced manufacturing trade skills and associated career opportunities available in the Greater Rochester, NY region. Finger Lakes Youth Apprenticeship Program matches students with employers that have job openings in specific trades.
Relevant Documents
LIVING HERE
Explore the Greater Rochester, NY Region
Photo credit for Quality of Life is J. Adam Fenster / University of Rochester. Photo credit for Things to Do is Joe Cubiotti. Photo credit for Real Estate is Major Diehl.
High tech companies know Rochester as the optics mecca in the United States.
Matt Sydor
President, Sydor Optics
Rochester is the right place for a manufacturer like Pfisterer. We found an affordable, suitable manufacturing site, a skilled and motivated workforce, excellent infrastructure and a city with an excellent standard of living.
Marcus Horn
President, North America, Pfisterer
At Toyota Material Handling North America, which is comprised of two main group companies – Toyota Material Handling and The Raymond Corporation – we are committed to leading the way in energy innovation. We believe that the Greater Rochester, NY region shares that commitment, and is the ideal location to establish our cutting-edge energy storage and fuel cell development center.
Jennifer Lupo
Vice President of Energy Solutions, Supply Chain, and Leasing, The Raymond Corporation
Rochester has a great work base. They’re loyal. They’re smart. They’re well educated and they want to succeed.
Jim Continenza
Executive Chairman and CEO, Eastman Kodak
The presence of excellent educational institutions in the area provides a valuable talent pool and opportunities for collaboration.
Jeff Mickel
Project Manager – Genesee, Edwards, Part of the Atlas Copco Group
Rochester has the manufacturing capability, testing capability, and intellectual horsepower.
Matt Fronk
Past Chairman, NY BEST
Rochester has a deep talent pool around all of the things that we need to do to commercialize advanced materials for the energy economy.
Ben Britton
Co-Founder and Chief Strategy Officer, Ionomr
The decision to expand locally was a relatively easy one for CooperVision. The Rochester area has provided so many of the elements necessary for a successful operation.
Jerry Warner
President, CooperVision
The proximity to top colleges and industry-leading companies, in addition to the quality of life in Western New York, made the decision to open our second office in Rochester an easy one.
Mike Pinch
Director, Security Risk Advisors
Rochester is world famous for precision optics manufacturing and photonics.
Jennifer Cable
President, Thorlabs
We have a long history of people skilled in aerospace technology and precision optical assembly. We take advantage of the industrial base in the Rochester area. We also take advantage of the skill sets developed by our local technical institutions like MCC, RIT, or the University of Rochester.”
Tony Whitman
Cryogenic Optical Test Director for James Webb Space Telescope, L3 Harris
Rochester loves Rochester…people support local small businesses.
Paul Guglielmo
Owner & CEO of Craft Cannery
Rochester has provided ID Signsystems with the ability to grow and develop by tapping into the region’s large pool of design-focused talent, technicians, engineers and sign makers.
Paul Dudley
President, ID Signsystems
Our network of local universities, colleges, and optics companies has created a workforce pipeline that is unmatched anywhere in the United States.
Joseph Spilman
CEO, Optimax
GRE’s direction and guidance proved to be well worth our investment. Their passion to make the business environment in the Rochester area greater is very apparent.
Scott MacCaull
Workplace Interiors
There is unlimited, untapped technical talent in the area and I hope we start a wave of other companies moving to Rochester.
Austin McChord
Founder, Datto
Rochester has a long history of being a hub for telecommunications. There is a rich ecosystem of talent and services to support business growth.
Jai Ramachandran
Founder and CEO, Wire3
Rochester is the perfect size city to get business done. I’m always one connection away from anything I’m looking for.
Zack Phillips
President, Kink BMX
We have access to talent graduating from our businesses and technical institutions capable of perpetuating our success for years to come.
Marc Iacona
President & CEO, Simcona Electronics
The Rochester region provided convenient access to both railroads and major highways, as well as proximity to Barilla’s customer base in the Northeast.
Fabio Pettenati
Vice President of Supply Chain, Barilla America
We’re excited about this area. There’s high-quality milk in the region. There’s a lot of top talent. The industry, the innovation, the technical experience , the work ethic is all attractive to us.
Phil LaMothe
Senior Vice President of Manufacturing and Engineering, fairlife
The country is starting to recognize Rochester as a technical city outside of just software. We have optics and manufacturing that’s exceeding most of the baselines around the country.
Craig Lamb
Co-owner, Envative
Rochester has the resources optics companies need to transform their concepts into reality.
Dr. Duncan T. Moore
Rudolf and Hilda Kingslake Emeritus Professor of Optical Engineering at The Institute of Optics,
University of Rochester
Rochester has a great base of intellectual capital in the science and technology fields at local businesses and universities.
Daniel J. Burns
Area Executive for Upstate NY, Western NY, and Pennsylvania, M&T Bank Corporation
Rochester is the optics center of the world. There are really talented people here. Everything about Rochester just fits really well with what Vuzix does.
Paul Travers
Founder and CEO, Vuzix
Among many great options, none could match Rochester in terms of talent, local supplier networks, and opportunities to partner with top-tier research institutions.
Andy Marsh
CEO, Plug Power
There is an incredible hotbed of talent in Rochester.
Jeff Mucha
CEO and Managing Partner, EEP Quality Group
Collaboration in Rochester is the deepest and most comprehensive among the 10 domestic and 38 international clusters SPIE engages.
Kent Rochford
CEO, SPIE – The International Society for Optics and Photonics
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