CITY has realized a few things about higher education over the years: college isn't confusing just for incoming freshmen; learning isn't confined to just a university's campus; and everyone could use a guide to surviving the student life. So we're rolling out CITY U, a guide to Rochester for the freshman, the senior, the nontraditional student, and anyone who just thought college was lame and not for them.

We're sure this guide will evolve over the years to come, but the idea will be the same: there's a lot to learn in Rochester, and CITY is here to point you in the right direction.

We start out this year's CITY U with a story by Gracie Peters, half of CITY's summer intern team, who explored Rochester to find picture-worthy public art. Take the time to see and learn the city while taking photos worth posting on Instagram. Tori Martinez, the other half of CITY's summer intern team, posed questions to college "experts" that we wish we knew before starting college. How often should you call home? How can you make a long-distance relationship work?

Tori and Gracie report on Rochester's international student community. Immigration has been an important and contentious topic the last year, and the policies the US government sets will impact thousands of students in the Rochester area.

Maybe college isn't for you. CITY's calendar editor, Kurt Indovina, put a lot of pressure on himself to go to college straight after high school; it didn't work for him. Kurt passes on his tips to those debating taking time off from school.

As always, we want to hear from our readers. Join the conversation in the comments below, or find us on Facebook (facebook.com/citynewspaper) and on Twitter and Instagram (@roccitynews).