Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute Campus Free Roam Tour

From 1907 when it was built following the Great Fire that destroyed Rensselaer’s original Main Building, The Approach (located directly south of the Winslow Building on Eighth Street) has represented a symbolic link between the City of Tr... Read more

The Howard N. Blitman, P.E. ’50 Residence Commons expanded housing options for Rensselaer undergraduates — specifically sophomores, juniors, and seniors — while bringing approximately 300 students downtown to engage in the vibrant com... Read more

West Hall is home to Rensselaer’s Arts Department, the Office of Research Administration and Finance, Real Estate Management, and the Rensselaer Credit Union. The Rensselaer Music Association (the governing body of all musical groups at R... Read more

Originally constructed in 1905, this building was renovated to incorporate 21st century innovations in the teaching of chemistry. Housing state-of-the-art wet labs along with the most advanced computer and people friendly studio classrooms,... Read more

A 1998 renovation transformed one of Rensselaer’s oldest buildings into a technology-intensive center for teaching and research. The facility features four large classrooms with facilities for distance learning and a virtual trading floor... Read more

Russell Sage Laboratory houses a writing center, multimedia computer labs, and video production and sound editing equipment. The VAST (Visualization, Animation, Simulation Technology) Studio is an advanced digital imaging and animation lab,... Read more

Folsom Library, the main campus library, was dedicated in 1976 by former Rensselaer President Richard G. Folsom. With state-of-the-art electronic retrieval services and study space for over 900 students, the Folsom Library serves as Renssel... Read more

The new Curtis R. Priem Experimental Media and Performing Arts Center (EMPAC), which opened in October of 2008, provides students, artists, researchers, and audiences with opportunities to link the arts with leading-edge research and perfor... Read more

The Computational Center for Innovations (CCI), based on the Rensselaer campus and at the Rensselaer Technology Park in Troy, N.Y., provides a platform for researchers to perform a broad range of computational simulations, from the interact... Read more

The Voorhees Computing Center (VCC) houses the staff offices of the Division of the Chief Information Officer (DotCIO), Help Desk, IBM-compatible PCs and UNIX workstations. Originally built as the St. Joseph’s Seminary chapel in 1933, the... Read more

Empire State Hall houses the New York State Center for Polymer Synthesis at Rensselaer. It also connects the Materials Research Center and Cogswell Laboratory.

The Materials Research Center (MRC) was constructed under the first facilities grant awarded by NASA on September 25, 1962. According to James E. Webb, NASA administrator, the purpose of the grant program was “to house interdisciplinary a... Read more

Home of the School of Architecture, this building has its own library and new computers for exclusive use by the architecture students. There is also a gallery for showing students’ work. In the third-floor Studio 305, students are employ... Read more

The Jonsson Engineering Center (JEC), home to the School of Engineering, was named for J. Erik Jonsson ’22, co-founder of Texas Instruments. Each floor of the building is dedicated to a different discipline of engineering and contains man... Read more

The Darrin Communications Center (DCC) contains a series of technologically sophisticated classrooms/lecture halls that are commonly used for visiting speakers, campus ceremonies, showing movies for students, and for some larger lecture cla... Read more

The Low Center for Industrial Innovation (CII), designed as an industrial-oriented research facility for both Rensselaer and New York state, houses three general computing labs available for student use, a manufacturing center, and clean ro... Read more

The Jonsson-Rowland Science Center & Hirsch Observatory is home to the School of Science, holding classes and laboratories for the Departments of Biology and Physics and related disciplines. The Hirsch Observatory, on top of the buildin... Read more

Ranked among the world’s most advanced research facilities, Rensselaer’s 218,000-square-foot Center for Biotechnology and Interdisciplinary Studies provides the university with a state-of-the-art location to conduct interdisciplinary re... Read more

This 32,000-square-foot fitness center houses more than 40 pieces of aerobic exercise equipment, including eight treadmills, 11 elliptical cross-training machines as well as rowers, stationary bikes, steppers, and treadmills. The facility w... Read more

The Alumni Sports & Recreation Center (AS&RC) houses the Robison Gymnasium, which has an indoor track; a physiotherapy room; basketball, volleyball, and tennis courts on a resilient surface and locker facilities. This building also ... Read more

Barton Hall houses 200 freshmen and was built to meet the needs of the next generation of Rensselaer students. Designed as an extension of the Institute’s renowned collaborative studio learning environments, Barton Hall is fully loaded fo... Read more

The C+CC is the home of the University Parish of Christ Sun of Justice, and provides a centrally-located focal point for cultural, spiritual and educational activities to the benefit of our home community and campus. Related Links: Universi... Read more

Commons Dining & Residence Halls Rensselaer’s Commons Dining Hall, located at the center of the first-year residence halls, offers several dining options. These include the popular Asian Pacifica, the Firehouse Grill, Pasta Allegro, S... Read more

Rensselaer’s Union is one of the few student unions that is truly run by students. Student officials are elected each spring by the student body. The building, located on the corner of 15th Street and Sage Avenue, features a campus-wide t... Read more

Located at the top of Peoples Avenue, the Houston Field House hosts the Rensselaer Hockey home games as well as figure skating, concerts, and other major events. The main feature of the Field House is its 185-by-85 foot ice hockey rink that... Read more

On October 3, 2009, the Institute officially unveiled the new East Campus Athletic Village — the most extensive athletic construction project in Rensselaer history, offering athletic and recreation facilities that will change the student ... Read more

Theater at Rensselaer has a long history — the best record we have is dated November 25, 1929 and states: “The first regular meeting of the R.P.I. Dramatic Club was held Tuesday, Nov. 25, 1929 in the Proudfit Building.” And thus a clu... Read more

Located at the corners of 15th Street and College Avenues, Academy Hall offers health and wellness, student financial services, academic counseling, and the Dean of Students Office under one roof. It is home to the F.E. Gallagher Memorial S... Read more

Moe’s Southwest Grill will open in time for the start of the Fall 2011 semester. Students will be able to buy food at Moe’s using their campus meal plan card. The restaurant will also be open to the public. Located on the corner of 15th... Read more

Russell Sage Dining Hall’s central campus location makes it the Quad’s unofficial dining hall. This small intimate dining hall brings back the feeling of home. With a seating capacity of 315, the dining hall features natural lighting, a... Read more

The Quadrangle Residence Hall Complex (the Quad) is situated on the main campus and is Rensselaer’s largest and oldest residence area. Built in 1919, it was completely renovated and reopened in 1988. The Quad houses 450 of the university�... Read more

The ’86 Field (gift of the class of 1886) previously hosted Rensselaer’s Division III football games and other campus events. The ’87 Gymnasium (gift of the class of 1887) has a swimming pool, two small gymnasia, an indoor track, and ... Read more

The Troy Building was constructed in 1924 for use by the Civil Engineering Department and was paid for by the city of Troy in honor of Rensselaer’s 100th anniversary. Over the years the building has housed several other functions includin... Read more

This award-winning building opened its doors in 1989 and is named after Chairman of the Board of Trustees Samuel F. Heffner ’56. The Heffner Alumni House is a spacious and comfortable facility that houses meeting rooms, dining facilities,... Read more

The Admissions Office is conveniently located across the street from the Student Union. Here you can attend one of the regular admissions information sessions and take a student-led campus tour. Contact Admissions to schedule a visit or to ... Read more