FAQs for Parents and Families
We know you have lots of questions, so let us answer them and put your mind at ease!
Academics at Fisher
At Fisher, the road to knowledge is one of experience and discovery. When students select a major, they embark on a curriculum designed to progress them toward mastery in their field.
Fisher was founded in 1948 by the Basilian Fathers. Their motto, "Teach me goodness, discipline, and knowledge," continues to capture our traditions and values. In recognition of our commitment to service, Fisher has been named to the President's Higher Education Community Service Honor Roll numerous times for exemplary service efforts and service to disadvantaged youth.
Both. Preparing graduates who are competent in their chosen academic discipline and who know how to negotiate their way in the world is Fisher's commitment to you.
Approximately 20% of our applicants are undecided, and many more change their major over time. Each student will have a first-year advisor and a peer advisor to work with them. Once they declare a major, they will have an advisor in their field of study.
Our Center for Career and Academic Planning is also a great place for students to explore majors and outside opportunities.
Life at Fisher
If you were to ask Fisher students about life on campus, they would likely use one word: busy. It sounds a bit cliché, but truly, there is never a dull moment on the Fisher campus.
First-year students enroll in the Learning Community Program—groups of students who take two of their first-year courses together. This makes it possible for new students to become acclimated to college life by studying with and getting to know a core of professors and fellow students extremely well. The Learning Community Program is the foundation of the First-Year Program at Fisher.
Fisher is a very safe campus. The Office of Safety and Security is responsible for campus safety and operates 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Security officers conduct regular foot, bicycle, and auto patrols of all campus buildings, grounds, and parking areas.
Access to the residence halls is controlled either by locked entrance doors or the card access system. Residence halls are patrolled and monitored 24 hours a day by security officers or resident advisors. All other campus facilities are locked and unlocked daily according to established schedules.
The Office of Safety and Security offers a campus escort service for on-campus use by all students, faculty, staff, and visitors. The service operates 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
Learn more about safety on campus.
One of several colleges in Rochester, Fisher is a small world of activity in itself. There are many things to do on campus. Each resident assistant in the residence halls has a variety of activities planned throughout the year. In addition, there are over 70 clubs and organizations. There is an involvement fair every fall, and clubs also keep students up to date with emails and posters about upcoming events. We have 24 NCAA varsity sports, so athletic events are common!
In addition, there are nice facilities on campus; students often gather at the campus center and fitness centers to spend time with friends. The Student Activities Board and Student Government Association have many sponsored events, both on-campus and off-campus. Past off-campus trips have included Cedar Point Park; Washington, DC; and Boston.
Fisher students also benefit from being close to downtown Rochester where they can take advantage of all the exciting cultural, entertainment, and recreational resources the city has to offer.
The Health and Wellness Center is staffed by a registered nurse, family nurse practitioner (in consultation with a physician daily), and mental health counselors. Students are able to make appointments, confidentially, with our Health and Wellness Center which looks just like your regular doctor's office.
We also have an agreement with the Wegmans Pharmacy in Fairport to have prescriptions delivered to our campus. Students can drop their prescription off or have their doctor send the prescription to our Health and Wellness Center who then has the prescription filled at Wegmans and shipped to Fisher the same day.
More information can be found on the Health and Wellness Center website.
Admissions Process
Fisher seeks students who have shown strong academic performance in a rigorous curriculum while also demonstrating involvement outside of the classroom.
Fisher operates on a rolling admission plan and begins to review applications in mid-November. This means that we review applications in the order that they are received and continue to make decisions within 3–4 weeks of an application being considered complete.
There is no application deadline although we do encourage our students to apply before January 15 in order to be considered for our merit scholarships (which do not require an additional application).
The middle 50% of accepted students to Fisher have a cumulative high school GPA ranging from an 87 to a 94; SAT scores ranging from 1070 to 1220; and/or ACT scores ranging from 21 to 26. This means that 50% of our accepted students fall within these ranges, 25% of our accepted students are above these ranges, and 25% of our accepted students fall below these ranges. Because we have a holistic review process, there is not one specific set of scores that defines an accepted Fisher student.
Note: Fisher is test-optional
In addition to strong academic performance, we are also seeking students who have a strong, rigorous curriculum and also students who are involved outside of the classroom. Students who not only maintain a challenging academic schedule but do so while working a part-time job, playing a sport, playing in the band or singing in the chorus, running student organizations, etc. are the most successful in college.
First-year students are assigned to one of four residence halls (Murphy, Murray, Ward, or Haffey) based on their First-Year Seminar class. This class is a one-credit course that serves as an orientation to college life and fosters academic success, personal growth, and career exploration. First-Year Seminar classes are grouped together in specific halls to facilitate out-of-class interaction.
Once your student has registered for classes, the residential life staff determines how many students are in each seminar group, and assigns them to a building based on these numbers. Generally, five to eight seminar groups will be assigned to each hall. Within the hall, students are matched with their roommate(s) based on the information they provide in their housing application.
For more information, refer to the ResLife FAQs for New Students page.
We take pride in ensuring that you and your child will always have a specific admissions counselor to work with throughout the admissions process at Fisher. If you have not already met your admissions counselor, you can find their contact information on our Who Is My Counselor page.