Last week, I got the opportunity to visit a school I was accepted into, Syracuse University. Syracuse is a private institution in upstate New York, founded in 1870.

When I was accepted to the school, I was excited for the opportunity to tour a school that is a top five journalism school and known for its consistently strong basketball program.

My first impression of the campus was strong, as the campus is very pretty. However, as my tour went on, I discovered this university was not for me.

First off, it is extremely cold. The temperatures were in the 40s for my April visit, and it was considered a good weather day. The town averages 116.9 inches of snow per winter, which is 116.9 more inches than Austin this year. With me living in warm climates my entire life, I decided it would be tough to live in these conditions.

Also, the town of Syracuse, which surrounds the campus, is outdated. The buildings were out of style and students I interacted with on campus gave the impression that downtown is not very safe at night. All of the other campuses I visited had small, college town feels, but this felt like an oversized industrial site with a campus in the middle.

The campus, with the exception of a few cool buildings, was old as well. The classrooms, dining halls and residential halls were all disappointing.

As a conservative student, another deal-breaker I saw was the very liberal, political atmosphere. Almost every student I talked to somehow incorporated their political beliefs into every conversation. They assumed I cared and agreed with their opinions, but I did not. I didn’t feel my differing opinions would be accepted at Syracuse.

Syracuse is a great school, as it is often ranked in the top 50 nationwide, but it is not for me.