I went to Ithaca College for 3 years, before I ended up leaving and moving down here for an assortment of reasons. I LOVED it there. It was so much better than the little podunk town in NH where I'm from. There are a few personal reasons why Ithaca was perfect for me...
My first year was okay, but things really started to roll during my Sophomore year when I became an RA. I had SO much fun with that. Met so many new people, it was such a blast.
Places to live... the dorms are decent, nothing special. I lived in both the Upper and Lower Quads, both of which were very close to classes. Junior year I moved to the West Tower, which was a bit further away, but I loved the view. The Terraces are the furthest away, and a pain to get to, but for some reason, people like them. You have to remember though, the campus is built on a hill, so there are lots of snowy and icy steps to walk up. Emerson is the nicest place to live, but it's also one of the furthest away from everything. Very few freshmen get to live here. When I was there, Boothroyd (aka "The Boot") was the Freshmen only dorm. It was kind of... blah. Plus, it was out of the way.
Food choices.. don't know how things have changed, but the dining halls were very decent. The Terraces was the best, and had a HUGE variety of different things to eat. The Towers was good too, plus, I could walk down in my slippers if I wanted to... There's also lots of late night delivery places. Rogan's Pizza was great... or... God's Gift to College Students -- DP DOUGH. The worlds best calzone place, with over like, 50 different flavors. SO GOOD. That's probably what I miss the most about Ithaca.
Classes... eh, they got in the way of college life, but were decent. Professors were always great to me.
www.ratemyprofessor.com is the best. (by the way, avoid Jane Vogel at *ALL* costs)
I highly recommend having your own car to get around town. There are buses, but a car is so much better. Snow tires are also handy. Ithaca the town is a very... umm... alternative town. The townies are, um, interesting. It's all good though. With Cornell on the opposite hill, Ithaca is a big time college town. LOTS of good things going on at all times. Plus, Syracuse isn't far away at all.
*sigh* I miss IC now...
By the way, it should be noted that Bob Iger is an IC alum.
