katpillow

Hi guys!
I wanted to share some information with any interested parties, pending decisions and commitments to the Chicago area. I have been living/working in the Chicago area for the past 5 years or so, and I figured my advice could be useful if you're planning to move here for school, and haven't spent any time here, either. All of this posting comes at the encouragement and sharp thinking courtesy of @fencergirl, so thank her for suggesting I share it. The advice is definitely more oriented for grad students planning on attending school up on the northside/Evanston, however I've added some notes for those thinking of attending UChicago, UIC, or many of the other great schools that are mid-to-south.
A little about myself first: I will be studying biomedical engineering at Northwestern, starting out in the master's program but going to attempt to transfer into the PhD. I actually grew up in the suburbs outside of Chicago, went to Johns Hopkins for undergrad, and came back. I now work in a startup pharmaceutical on the north side in a town called Skokie (borders the west side of Evanston). I commute to work via the L (the public train system) from the West Loop (it's about an hour ride, not the best, but I have a nice apartment!). I do not see myself staying where I am, because I'm not crazy and don't want to pay living expenses of $1000+/month as a grad student. Anyways!
I do have suggestions! It depends on a few of your personal preferences, though, so I'll give you a rundown of how I'm approaching it, knowing what I know about the city and Evanston.
There are three general areas the Northwestern graduate students habitate in: Evanston (duh), Rogers Park/Edgewater, and Lakeview (near the purple line express stops, I'll get to this).
In Evanston the pricing of apartments tends to float between fairly cheap or somewhat pricey. There isn't much of a middle ground. I anticipate shooting toward the cheap end, especially with a roommate (or two!). I've been looking at pricing the past few days, and for two people I've seen stuff in the neighborhood of $600-1000/month (per person). There may even be a few places that dip under $600. Right now the listings aren't super plentiful, but when the quarter ends and graduation comes, a fair number of people will vacate and there will be increased options, possibly even better pricing (a coworker of mine who recently graduated paid $400/month for 2 years!!!) so it's worth waiting a bit to see what becomes available.
Evanston obviously offers convenience for proximity, and is a fairly nice place. The areas around NU are safe and pleasant, with many good food options (try Bat 17 for a mean sandwich) and a few bars to choose from. There is also easy access to the city for the very few weekends that one does get to explore Chicago proper. The main streets of residence tend to be those that line up with campus east-west (Noyes, Davis, Foster, Church) but Chicago Ave also is good, as there is a bus (#205) that runs up to campus along that road, additionally, there is the #201 bus which is Central/Ridge Rd. Both routes are north-south, though the #205 will take you west to Old Orchard Mall. Several of the east-west streets in Evanston have L stops. I know some people will live down near South Boulevard (I think it's a little cheaper down here, too) and do a very short commute to campus.
Rogers Park/Edgewater are two of the neighborhoods on the southern border of Evanston with easy L access to campus. The apartments there tend to be slightly cheaper, and occasionally more spacious. The area used to be pretty rough with crime, but over the past decade or so it has become much nicer. If you are looking for a little more of a city feel or don't want to constantly be in the suburban atmosphere of Evanston, this area will do that job. Additionally, it is slightly closer to the city, but honestly not by a huge margin. Main L stations for these areas would include Granville, Loyola, Morse, Thorndale. These are all Red Line stops, and you would have to transfer over to the Purple Line at Howard (which is nearby). Commute time from this area would probably average 20-30 mins, depending on how smooth the transfer is. Currently, I've seen apartment pricing in the $500-1000 (per student) range here, but for all I know there could be better deals lurking. This is also the general area in which Loyola students live, and an obvious choice for many soon-to-be Loyola students considering their housing situation.
Lakeview is much further south, however during rush hour commuting periods, the Purple Line (which services Evanston) runs express from Belmont (central/south Lakeview) up to Howard. The current average run time is about 15-16 minutes between these stops (I'm super nerdy and started keeping track when I was trying to figure out the best way to get to work). Anyways, it would take about 25-30 minutes to get to the campus Purple Line stops. Another 5-10 minutes walking from there. So conservatively speaking you're looking at something like 35-40 minutes of commute if you live further south. The only reason one would ever live down here is if they wanted more of a Chicago city-feel. It's generally more expensive, and only tends to be competitively priced with the prior-mentioned areas when you have at least 4 people living together or if you're a lucky son of a gun. Not a whole lot of students live this far south, but they DO exist. A lot of Depaul students live throughout this region, so clearly there must be some level of affordability, though they have a bit more flexibility as their campus is based out of the Fullerton L stop (Lincoln Park), and can probably live a bit further away from the L and use buses instead. If I were going to Depaul, I would consider living somewhere further north or possibly on the Brown Line between Lakeview/Lincoln Park and Lincoln Square. If you don't mind a 30+ minute train ride, you can live beyond Lincoln Square, but some of the real estate up there can get kind of dicey as far as personal security goes.
For those planning on attending schools that are further south:
From what I gather, a large majority of UChicago students, particularly in the first year, tend to live in and very near to Hyde Park. The campus is reachable via L, bus, and Metra (local commuter train). My best friend currently attends Booth full time, and lives up near Grant/Millennium Park. He takes the Metra from the Millennium station every day he has class. If you were considering living somewhere in the South Loop or Near South Side, you'd probably have to stick to one of the L lines (Green or Red) to make your commute worthwhile. IIT students also find housing somewhere in this south-side jumble, though obviously not as far as UChicago. I would not be surprised to hear of IIT students living near Hyde Park and commuting north, though. I believe IIT is fairly accessible via Red Line.
For UIC, it's fairly straightforward. Many students live in University Village/Little Italy, as well as across Route 290 in a few pockets on the Near West Side. Additionally many students commute via the L, and live somewhere on the Blue Line or one of the many other lines that connect to it. The UIC-Halsted stop puts you right at the main campus, and the Racine and Illinois Medical District stops will bring you to some of the other components of the University as well. I actually live very near the UIC-Halsted stop right now, and it's super convenient.
Let me know if/what your questions are! Also, anyone else in Chicago please feel free to adjust what I've got with comments and other input!
(Shameless/shameful self-advertisement- I am looking for roommates and am flexible between Evanston and North Side Chicago. I am a male 27-year old who is looking to rock the bologna out of my first year of grad school. My only limitation is that I own approximately 300 books and ~200 National Geographics that, needless to say, will either be located in my bedroom (if it's a tiny apartment) or in the shared living space. Because I am a poor MS student without a stipend, I prefer to live in as cheap (but good!) of a place as possible. I will also have a fairly well stocked set of kitchen appliances, dining room table, and a nice L-shaped couch assuming there is enough living space. I also own a semi-realistic looking cat pillow who will probably live on said couch. See: profile pic.)
Last of all- if any of you would like a comprehensive eating guide to the city of Chicago, I am more than happy to provide one.

I've never had to make a school choice before. I only had one app in undergrad, and only got into one MS program last time I was applying. I more or less closed the door on one of my three options (on purpose). Now I'm looking at two, and both represent fairly different directions (engineering vs biological sciences). At this point I'm just going to write out all the pros/cons of each, maybe make some Venn diagrams, do a little dance, and hope that I have clearer vision of what I want.
I really like my two choices, so at least that is a good problem to have.

Too old for a dream? Never in a million years, even. You may be older than me (I have no idea), but if the dream is something you long for, don't let anything stop you. For my programs, I'm on the older end of the applicant pool, and for a while it really bothered me, deep down. I'm not actually old, it just feels like I am because the average age of the incoming class for my programs tends to float around 23-24 at most. I'll be hitting 30 when I (hopefully) start this fall, and though it still has an impact on certain aspects of my adult life (cough cough, income, social pool, etc), I have learned to not give a damn and just roll with it. I currently room with two history PhD students, they're a cool crowd. I hope that it all works out for you!!!
Minneapolis is a pretty cool city, though. 

Too old for a dream? Never in a million years, even. You may be older than me (I have no idea), but if the dream is something you long for, don't let anything stop you. For my programs, I'm on the older end of the applicant pool, and for a while it really bothered me, deep down. I'm not actually old, it just feels like I am because the average age of the incoming class for my programs tends to float around 23-24 at most. I'll be hitting 30 when I (hopefully) start this fall, and though it still has an impact on certain aspects of my adult life (cough cough, income, social pool, etc), I have learned to not give a damn and just roll with it. I currently room with two history PhD students, they're a cool crowd. I hope that it all works out for you!!!
Minneapolis is a pretty cool city, though. 

Legitimately shocked. Just got straight up accepted to georgia Tech (bioengineering with home school at ECE)

Thank you very much for your help!!!! Taking your advice, I'm applying to a couple more schools..! Thanks! @katpillow

I got an interview email from them yesterday. Several of my cohort have not yet gotten responses from them though, so there's a chance they are sending emails out on more than one day. I can ask someone in the office if they know anything about the status of this when I'm there tomorrow. Hopefully there are more to come!

I got an interview email from them yesterday. Several of my cohort have not yet gotten responses from them though, so there's a chance they are sending emails out on more than one day. I can ask someone in the office if they know anything about the status of this when I'm there tomorrow. Hopefully there are more to come!

At least UCSF/Berkeley is up front about the rejections. Drives me nuts when programs just send out interviews and then wait to deal with rejects.

i think many programs do this because they'll admit without interview if you end up getting the nsf or ndseg or other fellowship. i prefer to just hear but i also am hopeful about my fellowship applications so it kind of sucks being counted out even if i get them

At least UCSF/Berkeley is up front about the rejections. Drives me nuts when programs just send out interviews and then wait to deal with rejects.

Hey guys, i've noticed that interviews are coming out now. I've started another thread for people to post interview dates, so that we can stay up-to-date from each other and possibly avoid time conflicts among all the interview weekends! Best of luck everyone!
 
https://forum.thegradcafe.com/topic/100057-fall-2018-bebme-bioengineeringbiomedical-engineering-interview-dates/

I love this attitude. I agree completely. Set a high bar for yourself, be specific in your interests, and pursue the things you're passionate about. I feel like a lot of people who take a shot at a PhD are generally doing it for the love of it, in some way or another. Plenty do it just because they're smart and it just seems like a logical step, too...
I admit that I'm aiming for the degree because of the benefits it'll give me in my research career, but only made the decision to shoot for it after working in the industry for a few years, and determined that I needed it to do the things I'm passionate about. Getting to do research that I think is awesome and neat on the way? That's a bonus.

I love this attitude. I agree completely. Set a high bar for yourself, be specific in your interests, and pursue the things you're passionate about. I feel like a lot of people who take a shot at a PhD are generally doing it for the love of it, in some way or another. Plenty do it just because they're smart and it just seems like a logical step, too...
I admit that I'm aiming for the degree because of the benefits it'll give me in my research career, but only made the decision to shoot for it after working in the industry for a few years, and determined that I needed it to do the things I'm passionate about. Getting to do research that I think is awesome and neat on the way? That's a bonus.

I love this attitude. I agree completely. Set a high bar for yourself, be specific in your interests, and pursue the things you're passionate about. I feel like a lot of people who take a shot at a PhD are generally doing it for the love of it, in some way or another. Plenty do it just because they're smart and it just seems like a logical step, too...
I admit that I'm aiming for the degree because of the benefits it'll give me in my research career, but only made the decision to shoot for it after working in the industry for a few years, and determined that I needed it to do the things I'm passionate about. Getting to do research that I think is awesome and neat on the way? That's a bonus.

Hi guys!
I wanted to share some information with any interested parties, pending decisions and commitments to the Chicago area. I have been living/working in the Chicago area for the past 5 years or so, and I figured my advice could be useful if you're planning to move here for school, and haven't spent any time here, either. All of this posting comes at the encouragement and sharp thinking courtesy of @fencergirl, so thank her for suggesting I share it. The advice is definitely more oriented for grad students planning on attending school up on the northside/Evanston, however I've added some notes for those thinking of attending UChicago, UIC, or many of the other great schools that are mid-to-south.
A little about myself first: I will be studying biomedical engineering at Northwestern, starting out in the master's program but going to attempt to transfer into the PhD. I actually grew up in the suburbs outside of Chicago, went to Johns Hopkins for undergrad, and came back. I now work in a startup pharmaceutical on the north side in a town called Skokie (borders the west side of Evanston). I commute to work via the L (the public train system) from the West Loop (it's about an hour ride, not the best, but I have a nice apartment!). I do not see myself staying where I am, because I'm not crazy and don't want to pay living expenses of $1000+/month as a grad student. Anyways!
I do have suggestions! It depends on a few of your personal preferences, though, so I'll give you a rundown of how I'm approaching it, knowing what I know about the city and Evanston.
There are three general areas the Northwestern graduate students habitate in: Evanston (duh), Rogers Park/Edgewater, and Lakeview (near the purple line express stops, I'll get to this).
In Evanston the pricing of apartments tends to float between fairly cheap or somewhat pricey. There isn't much of a middle ground. I anticipate shooting toward the cheap end, especially with a roommate (or two!). I've been looking at pricing the past few days, and for two people I've seen stuff in the neighborhood of $600-1000/month (per person). There may even be a few places that dip under $600. Right now the listings aren't super plentiful, but when the quarter ends and graduation comes, a fair number of people will vacate and there will be increased options, possibly even better pricing (a coworker of mine who recently graduated paid $400/month for 2 years!!!) so it's worth waiting a bit to see what becomes available.
Evanston obviously offers convenience for proximity, and is a fairly nice place. The areas around NU are safe and pleasant, with many good food options (try Bat 17 for a mean sandwich) and a few bars to choose from. There is also easy access to the city for the very few weekends that one does get to explore Chicago proper. The main streets of residence tend to be those that line up with campus east-west (Noyes, Davis, Foster, Church) but Chicago Ave also is good, as there is a bus (#205) that runs up to campus along that road, additionally, there is the #201 bus which is Central/Ridge Rd. Both routes are north-south, though the #205 will take you west to Old Orchard Mall. Several of the east-west streets in Evanston have L stops. I know some people will live down near South Boulevard (I think it's a little cheaper down here, too) and do a very short commute to campus.
Rogers Park/Edgewater are two of the neighborhoods on the southern border of Evanston with easy L access to campus. The apartments there tend to be slightly cheaper, and occasionally more spacious. The area used to be pretty rough with crime, but over the past decade or so it has become much nicer. If you are looking for a little more of a city feel or don't want to constantly be in the suburban atmosphere of Evanston, this area will do that job. Additionally, it is slightly closer to the city, but honestly not by a huge margin. Main L stations for these areas would include Granville, Loyola, Morse, Thorndale. These are all Red Line stops, and you would have to transfer over to the Purple Line at Howard (which is nearby). Commute time from this area would probably average 20-30 mins, depending on how smooth the transfer is. Currently, I've seen apartment pricing in the $500-1000 (per student) range here, but for all I know there could be better deals lurking. This is also the general area in which Loyola students live, and an obvious choice for many soon-to-be Loyola students considering their housing situation.
Lakeview is much further south, however during rush hour commuting periods, the Purple Line (which services Evanston) runs express from Belmont (central/south Lakeview) up to Howard. The current average run time is about 15-16 minutes between these stops (I'm super nerdy and started keeping track when I was trying to figure out the best way to get to work). Anyways, it would take about 25-30 minutes to get to the campus Purple Line stops. Another 5-10 minutes walking from there. So conservatively speaking you're looking at something like 35-40 minutes of commute if you live further south. The only reason one would ever live down here is if they wanted more of a Chicago city-feel. It's generally more expensive, and only tends to be competitively priced with the prior-mentioned areas when you have at least 4 people living together or if you're a lucky son of a gun. Not a whole lot of students live this far south, but they DO exist. A lot of Depaul students live throughout this region, so clearly there must be some level of affordability, though they have a bit more flexibility as their campus is based out of the Fullerton L stop (Lincoln Park), and can probably live a bit further away from the L and use buses instead. If I were going to Depaul, I would consider living somewhere further north or possibly on the Brown Line between Lakeview/Lincoln Park and Lincoln Square. If you don't mind a 30+ minute train ride, you can live beyond Lincoln Square, but some of the real estate up there can get kind of dicey as far as personal security goes.
For those planning on attending schools that are further south:
From what I gather, a large majority of UChicago students, particularly in the first year, tend to live in and very near to Hyde Park. The campus is reachable via L, bus, and Metra (local commuter train). My best friend currently attends Booth full time, and lives up near Grant/Millennium Park. He takes the Metra from the Millennium station every day he has class. If you were considering living somewhere in the South Loop or Near South Side, you'd probably have to stick to one of the L lines (Green or Red) to make your commute worthwhile. IIT students also find housing somewhere in this south-side jumble, though obviously not as far as UChicago. I would not be surprised to hear of IIT students living near Hyde Park and commuting north, though. I believe IIT is fairly accessible via Red Line.
For UIC, it's fairly straightforward. Many students live in University Village/Little Italy, as well as across Route 290 in a few pockets on the Near West Side. Additionally many students commute via the L, and live somewhere on the Blue Line or one of the many other lines that connect to it. The UIC-Halsted stop puts you right at the main campus, and the Racine and Illinois Medical District stops will bring you to some of the other components of the University as well. I actually live very near the UIC-Halsted stop right now, and it's super convenient.
Let me know if/what your questions are! Also, anyone else in Chicago please feel free to adjust what I've got with comments and other input!
(Shameless/shameful self-advertisement- I am looking for roommates and am flexible between Evanston and North Side Chicago. I am a male 27-year old who is looking to rock the bologna out of my first year of grad school. My only limitation is that I own approximately 300 books and ~200 National Geographics that, needless to say, will either be located in my bedroom (if it's a tiny apartment) or in the shared living space. Because I am a poor MS student without a stipend, I prefer to live in as cheap (but good!) of a place as possible. I will also have a fairly well stocked set of kitchen appliances, dining room table, and a nice L-shaped couch assuming there is enough living space. I also own a semi-realistic looking cat pillow who will probably live on said couch. See: profile pic.)
Last of all- if any of you would like a comprehensive eating guide to the city of Chicago, I am more than happy to provide one.

Chicago requires each car to have a city sticker that has to be renewed every year. I think I paid about $86 for mine. When I first moved, I didn't change my license plate to an Illinois one and had my own parking spot in a parking garage so I didn't bother getting one. When I moved to another apartment, got an Illinois license plate, and started parking on the street, I got ticketed around $200 for not having a city sticker. After I paid the ticket and bought a city sticker, I had to pay extra for not having one in the first place.
The city sticker thing is robbery but it's safer just to buy a city sticker than to get ticketed. I also think I read somewhere that they can ticket cars without Illinois license plates for not having a city sticker. I work in Hyde Park and constantly see Chicago city workers walk up and down the streets ready to ticket people's cars!
I suggest buying a shovel to keep in your car for winter. You never know when you have to shovel your car out. Also, invest in a good pair of snow boots and coat. 

Hi guys!
I wanted to share some information with any interested parties, pending decisions and commitments to the Chicago area. I have been living/working in the Chicago area for the past 5 years or so, and I figured my advice could be useful if you're planning to move here for school, and haven't spent any time here, either. All of this posting comes at the encouragement and sharp thinking courtesy of @fencergirl, so thank her for suggesting I share it. The advice is definitely more oriented for grad students planning on attending school up on the northside/Evanston, however I've added some notes for those thinking of attending UChicago, UIC, or many of the other great schools that are mid-to-south.
A little about myself first: I will be studying biomedical engineering at Northwestern, starting out in the master's program but going to attempt to transfer into the PhD. I actually grew up in the suburbs outside of Chicago, went to Johns Hopkins for undergrad, and came back. I now work in a startup pharmaceutical on the north side in a town called Skokie (borders the west side of Evanston). I commute to work via the L (the public train system) from the West Loop (it's about an hour ride, not the best, but I have a nice apartment!). I do not see myself staying where I am, because I'm not crazy and don't want to pay living expenses of $1000+/month as a grad student. Anyways!
I do have suggestions! It depends on a few of your personal preferences, though, so I'll give you a rundown of how I'm approaching it, knowing what I know about the city and Evanston.
There are three general areas the Northwestern graduate students habitate in: Evanston (duh), Rogers Park/Edgewater, and Lakeview (near the purple line express stops, I'll get to this).
In Evanston the pricing of apartments tends to float between fairly cheap or somewhat pricey. There isn't much of a middle ground. I anticipate shooting toward the cheap end, especially with a roommate (or two!). I've been looking at pricing the past few days, and for two people I've seen stuff in the neighborhood of $600-1000/month (per person). There may even be a few places that dip under $600. Right now the listings aren't super plentiful, but when the quarter ends and graduation comes, a fair number of people will vacate and there will be increased options, possibly even better pricing (a coworker of mine who recently graduated paid $400/month for 2 years!!!) so it's worth waiting a bit to see what becomes available.
Evanston obviously offers convenience for proximity, and is a fairly nice place. The areas around NU are safe and pleasant, with many good food options (try Bat 17 for a mean sandwich) and a few bars to choose from. There is also easy access to the city for the very few weekends that one does get to explore Chicago proper. The main streets of residence tend to be those that line up with campus east-west (Noyes, Davis, Foster, Church) but Chicago Ave also is good, as there is a bus (#205) that runs up to campus along that road, additionally, there is the #201 bus which is Central/Ridge Rd. Both routes are north-south, though the #205 will take you west to Old Orchard Mall. Several of the east-west streets in Evanston have L stops. I know some people will live down near South Boulevard (I think it's a little cheaper down here, too) and do a very short commute to campus.
Rogers Park/Edgewater are two of the neighborhoods on the southern border of Evanston with easy L access to campus. The apartments there tend to be slightly cheaper, and occasionally more spacious. The area used to be pretty rough with crime, but over the past decade or so it has become much nicer. If you are looking for a little more of a city feel or don't want to constantly be in the suburban atmosphere of Evanston, this area will do that job. Additionally, it is slightly closer to the city, but honestly not by a huge margin. Main L stations for these areas would include Granville, Loyola, Morse, Thorndale. These are all Red Line stops, and you would have to transfer over to the Purple Line at Howard (which is nearby). Commute time from this area would probably average 20-30 mins, depending on how smooth the transfer is. Currently, I've seen apartment pricing in the $500-1000 (per student) range here, but for all I know there could be better deals lurking. This is also the general area in which Loyola students live, and an obvious choice for many soon-to-be Loyola students considering their housing situation.
Lakeview is much further south, however during rush hour commuting periods, the Purple Line (which services Evanston) runs express from Belmont (central/south Lakeview) up to Howard. The current average run time is about 15-16 minutes between these stops (I'm super nerdy and started keeping track when I was trying to figure out the best way to get to work). Anyways, it would take about 25-30 minutes to get to the campus Purple Line stops. Another 5-10 minutes walking from there. So conservatively speaking you're looking at something like 35-40 minutes of commute if you live further south. The only reason one would ever live down here is if they wanted more of a Chicago city-feel. It's generally more expensive, and only tends to be competitively priced with the prior-mentioned areas when you have at least 4 people living together or if you're a lucky son of a gun. Not a whole lot of students live this far south, but they DO exist. A lot of Depaul students live throughout this region, so clearly there must be some level of affordability, though they have a bit more flexibility as their campus is based out of the Fullerton L stop (Lincoln Park), and can probably live a bit further away from the L and use buses instead. If I were going to Depaul, I would consider living somewhere further north or possibly on the Brown Line between Lakeview/Lincoln Park and Lincoln Square. If you don't mind a 30+ minute train ride, you can live beyond Lincoln Square, but some of the real estate up there can get kind of dicey as far as personal security goes.
For those planning on attending schools that are further south:
From what I gather, a large majority of UChicago students, particularly in the first year, tend to live in and very near to Hyde Park. The campus is reachable via L, bus, and Metra (local commuter train). My best friend currently attends Booth full time, and lives up near Grant/Millennium Park. He takes the Metra from the Millennium station every day he has class. If you were considering living somewhere in the South Loop or Near South Side, you'd probably have to stick to one of the L lines (Green or Red) to make your commute worthwhile. IIT students also find housing somewhere in this south-side jumble, though obviously not as far as UChicago. I would not be surprised to hear of IIT students living near Hyde Park and commuting north, though. I believe IIT is fairly accessible via Red Line.
For UIC, it's fairly straightforward. Many students live in University Village/Little Italy, as well as across Route 290 in a few pockets on the Near West Side. Additionally many students commute via the L, and live somewhere on the Blue Line or one of the many other lines that connect to it. The UIC-Halsted stop puts you right at the main campus, and the Racine and Illinois Medical District stops will bring you to some of the other components of the University as well. I actually live very near the UIC-Halsted stop right now, and it's super convenient.
Let me know if/what your questions are! Also, anyone else in Chicago please feel free to adjust what I've got with comments and other input!
(Shameless/shameful self-advertisement- I am looking for roommates and am flexible between Evanston and North Side Chicago. I am a male 27-year old who is looking to rock the bologna out of my first year of grad school. My only limitation is that I own approximately 300 books and ~200 National Geographics that, needless to say, will either be located in my bedroom (if it's a tiny apartment) or in the shared living space. Because I am a poor MS student without a stipend, I prefer to live in as cheap (but good!) of a place as possible. I will also have a fairly well stocked set of kitchen appliances, dining room table, and a nice L-shaped couch assuming there is enough living space. I also own a semi-realistic looking cat pillow who will probably live on said couch. See: profile pic.)
Last of all- if any of you would like a comprehensive eating guide to the city of Chicago, I am more than happy to provide one.

Hi guys!
I wanted to share some information with any interested parties, pending decisions and commitments to the Chicago area. I have been living/working in the Chicago area for the past 5 years or so, and I figured my advice could be useful if you're planning to move here for school, and haven't spent any time here, either. All of this posting comes at the encouragement and sharp thinking courtesy of @fencergirl, so thank her for suggesting I share it. The advice is definitely more oriented for grad students planning on attending school up on the northside/Evanston, however I've added some notes for those thinking of attending UChicago, UIC, or many of the other great schools that are mid-to-south.
A little about myself first: I will be studying biomedical engineering at Northwestern, starting out in the master's program but going to attempt to transfer into the PhD. I actually grew up in the suburbs outside of Chicago, went to Johns Hopkins for undergrad, and came back. I now work in a startup pharmaceutical on the north side in a town called Skokie (borders the west side of Evanston). I commute to work via the L (the public train system) from the West Loop (it's about an hour ride, not the best, but I have a nice apartment!). I do not see myself staying where I am, because I'm not crazy and don't want to pay living expenses of $1000+/month as a grad student. Anyways!
I do have suggestions! It depends on a few of your personal preferences, though, so I'll give you a rundown of how I'm approaching it, knowing what I know about the city and Evanston.
There are three general areas the Northwestern graduate students habitate in: Evanston (duh), Rogers Park/Edgewater, and Lakeview (near the purple line express stops, I'll get to this).
In Evanston the pricing of apartments tends to float between fairly cheap or somewhat pricey. There isn't much of a middle ground. I anticipate shooting toward the cheap end, especially with a roommate (or two!). I've been looking at pricing the past few days, and for two people I've seen stuff in the neighborhood of $600-1000/month (per person). There may even be a few places that dip under $600. Right now the listings aren't super plentiful, but when the quarter ends and graduation comes, a fair number of people will vacate and there will be increased options, possibly even better pricing (a coworker of mine who recently graduated paid $400/month for 2 years!!!) so it's worth waiting a bit to see what becomes available.
Evanston obviously offers convenience for proximity, and is a fairly nice place. The areas around NU are safe and pleasant, with many good food options (try Bat 17 for a mean sandwich) and a few bars to choose from. There is also easy access to the city for the very few weekends that one does get to explore Chicago proper. The main streets of residence tend to be those that line up with campus east-west (Noyes, Davis, Foster, Church) but Chicago Ave also is good, as there is a bus (#205) that runs up to campus along that road, additionally, there is the #201 bus which is Central/Ridge Rd. Both routes are north-south, though the #205 will take you west to Old Orchard Mall. Several of the east-west streets in Evanston have L stops. I know some people will live down near South Boulevard (I think it's a little cheaper down here, too) and do a very short commute to campus.
Rogers Park/Edgewater are two of the neighborhoods on the southern border of Evanston with easy L access to campus. The apartments there tend to be slightly cheaper, and occasionally more spacious. The area used to be pretty rough with crime, but over the past decade or so it has become much nicer. If you are looking for a little more of a city feel or don't want to constantly be in the suburban atmosphere of Evanston, this area will do that job. Additionally, it is slightly closer to the city, but honestly not by a huge margin. Main L stations for these areas would include Granville, Loyola, Morse, Thorndale. These are all Red Line stops, and you would have to transfer over to the Purple Line at Howard (which is nearby). Commute time from this area would probably average 20-30 mins, depending on how smooth the transfer is. Currently, I've seen apartment pricing in the $500-1000 (per student) range here, but for all I know there could be better deals lurking. This is also the general area in which Loyola students live, and an obvious choice for many soon-to-be Loyola students considering their housing situation.
Lakeview is much further south, however during rush hour commuting periods, the Purple Line (which services Evanston) runs express from Belmont (central/south Lakeview) up to Howard. The current average run time is about 15-16 minutes between these stops (I'm super nerdy and started keeping track when I was trying to figure out the best way to get to work). Anyways, it would take about 25-30 minutes to get to the campus Purple Line stops. Another 5-10 minutes walking from there. So conservatively speaking you're looking at something like 35-40 minutes of commute if you live further south. The only reason one would ever live down here is if they wanted more of a Chicago city-feel. It's generally more expensive, and only tends to be competitively priced with the prior-mentioned areas when you have at least 4 people living together or if you're a lucky son of a gun. Not a whole lot of students live this far south, but they DO exist. A lot of Depaul students live throughout this region, so clearly there must be some level of affordability, though they have a bit more flexibility as their campus is based out of the Fullerton L stop (Lincoln Park), and can probably live a bit further away from the L and use buses instead. If I were going to Depaul, I would consider living somewhere further north or possibly on the Brown Line between Lakeview/Lincoln Park and Lincoln Square. If you don't mind a 30+ minute train ride, you can live beyond Lincoln Square, but some of the real estate up there can get kind of dicey as far as personal security goes.
For those planning on attending schools that are further south:
From what I gather, a large majority of UChicago students, particularly in the first year, tend to live in and very near to Hyde Park. The campus is reachable via L, bus, and Metra (local commuter train). My best friend currently attends Booth full time, and lives up near Grant/Millennium Park. He takes the Metra from the Millennium station every day he has class. If you were considering living somewhere in the South Loop or Near South Side, you'd probably have to stick to one of the L lines (Green or Red) to make your commute worthwhile. IIT students also find housing somewhere in this south-side jumble, though obviously not as far as UChicago. I would not be surprised to hear of IIT students living near Hyde Park and commuting north, though. I believe IIT is fairly accessible via Red Line.
For UIC, it's fairly straightforward. Many students live in University Village/Little Italy, as well as across Route 290 in a few pockets on the Near West Side. Additionally many students commute via the L, and live somewhere on the Blue Line or one of the many other lines that connect to it. The UIC-Halsted stop puts you right at the main campus, and the Racine and Illinois Medical District stops will bring you to some of the other components of the University as well. I actually live very near the UIC-Halsted stop right now, and it's super convenient.
Let me know if/what your questions are! Also, anyone else in Chicago please feel free to adjust what I've got with comments and other input!
(Shameless/shameful self-advertisement- I am looking for roommates and am flexible between Evanston and North Side Chicago. I am a male 27-year old who is looking to rock the bologna out of my first year of grad school. My only limitation is that I own approximately 300 books and ~200 National Geographics that, needless to say, will either be located in my bedroom (if it's a tiny apartment) or in the shared living space. Because I am a poor MS student without a stipend, I prefer to live in as cheap (but good!) of a place as possible. I will also have a fairly well stocked set of kitchen appliances, dining room table, and a nice L-shaped couch assuming there is enough living space. I also own a semi-realistic looking cat pillow who will probably live on said couch. See: profile pic.)
Last of all- if any of you would like a comprehensive eating guide to the city of Chicago, I am more than happy to provide one.

Hi guys!
I wanted to share some information with any interested parties, pending decisions and commitments to the Chicago area. I have been living/working in the Chicago area for the past 5 years or so, and I figured my advice could be useful if you're planning to move here for school, and haven't spent any time here, either. All of this posting comes at the encouragement and sharp thinking courtesy of @fencergirl, so thank her for suggesting I share it. The advice is definitely more oriented for grad students planning on attending school up on the northside/Evanston, however I've added some notes for those thinking of attending UChicago, UIC, or many of the other great schools that are mid-to-south.
A little about myself first: I will be studying biomedical engineering at Northwestern, starting out in the master's program but going to attempt to transfer into the PhD. I actually grew up in the suburbs outside of Chicago, went to Johns Hopkins for undergrad, and came back. I now work in a startup pharmaceutical on the north side in a town called Skokie (borders the west side of Evanston). I commute to work via the L (the public train system) from the West Loop (it's about an hour ride, not the best, but I have a nice apartment!). I do not see myself staying where I am, because I'm not crazy and don't want to pay living expenses of $1000+/month as a grad student. Anyways!
I do have suggestions! It depends on a few of your personal preferences, though, so I'll give you a rundown of how I'm approaching it, knowing what I know about the city and Evanston.
There are three general areas the Northwestern graduate students habitate in: Evanston (duh), Rogers Park/Edgewater, and Lakeview (near the purple line express stops, I'll get to this).
In Evanston the pricing of apartments tends to float between fairly cheap or somewhat pricey. There isn't much of a middle ground. I anticipate shooting toward the cheap end, especially with a roommate (or two!). I've been looking at pricing the past few days, and for two people I've seen stuff in the neighborhood of $600-1000/month (per person). There may even be a few places that dip under $600. Right now the listings aren't super plentiful, but when the quarter ends and graduation comes, a fair number of people will vacate and there will be increased options, possibly even better pricing (a coworker of mine who recently graduated paid $400/month for 2 years!!!) so it's worth waiting a bit to see what becomes available.
Evanston obviously offers convenience for proximity, and is a fairly nice place. The areas around NU are safe and pleasant, with many good food options (try Bat 17 for a mean sandwich) and a few bars to choose from. There is also easy access to the city for the very few weekends that one does get to explore Chicago proper. The main streets of residence tend to be those that line up with campus east-west (Noyes, Davis, Foster, Church) but Chicago Ave also is good, as there is a bus (#205) that runs up to campus along that road, additionally, there is the #201 bus which is Central/Ridge Rd. Both routes are north-south, though the #205 will take you west to Old Orchard Mall. Several of the east-west streets in Evanston have L stops. I know some people will live down near South Boulevard (I think it's a little cheaper down here, too) and do a very short commute to campus.
Rogers Park/Edgewater are two of the neighborhoods on the southern border of Evanston with easy L access to campus. The apartments there tend to be slightly cheaper, and occasionally more spacious. The area used to be pretty rough with crime, but over the past decade or so it has become much nicer. If you are looking for a little more of a city feel or don't want to constantly be in the suburban atmosphere of Evanston, this area will do that job. Additionally, it is slightly closer to the city, but honestly not by a huge margin. Main L stations for these areas would include Granville, Loyola, Morse, Thorndale. These are all Red Line stops, and you would have to transfer over to the Purple Line at Howard (which is nearby). Commute time from this area would probably average 20-30 mins, depending on how smooth the transfer is. Currently, I've seen apartment pricing in the $500-1000 (per student) range here, but for all I know there could be better deals lurking. This is also the general area in which Loyola students live, and an obvious choice for many soon-to-be Loyola students considering their housing situation.
Lakeview is much further south, however during rush hour commuting periods, the Purple Line (which services Evanston) runs express from Belmont (central/south Lakeview) up to Howard. The current average run time is about 15-16 minutes between these stops (I'm super nerdy and started keeping track when I was trying to figure out the best way to get to work). Anyways, it would take about 25-30 minutes to get to the campus Purple Line stops. Another 5-10 minutes walking from there. So conservatively speaking you're looking at something like 35-40 minutes of commute if you live further south. The only reason one would ever live down here is if they wanted more of a Chicago city-feel. It's generally more expensive, and only tends to be competitively priced with the prior-mentioned areas when you have at least 4 people living together or if you're a lucky son of a gun. Not a whole lot of students live this far south, but they DO exist. A lot of Depaul students live throughout this region, so clearly there must be some level of affordability, though they have a bit more flexibility as their campus is based out of the Fullerton L stop (Lincoln Park), and can probably live a bit further away from the L and use buses instead. If I were going to Depaul, I would consider living somewhere further north or possibly on the Brown Line between Lakeview/Lincoln Park and Lincoln Square. If you don't mind a 30+ minute train ride, you can live beyond Lincoln Square, but some of the real estate up there can get kind of dicey as far as personal security goes.
For those planning on attending schools that are further south:
From what I gather, a large majority of UChicago students, particularly in the first year, tend to live in and very near to Hyde Park. The campus is reachable via L, bus, and Metra (local commuter train). My best friend currently attends Booth full time, and lives up near Grant/Millennium Park. He takes the Metra from the Millennium station every day he has class. If you were considering living somewhere in the South Loop or Near South Side, you'd probably have to stick to one of the L lines (Green or Red) to make your commute worthwhile. IIT students also find housing somewhere in this south-side jumble, though obviously not as far as UChicago. I would not be surprised to hear of IIT students living near Hyde Park and commuting north, though. I believe IIT is fairly accessible via Red Line.
For UIC, it's fairly straightforward. Many students live in University Village/Little Italy, as well as across Route 290 in a few pockets on the Near West Side. Additionally many students commute via the L, and live somewhere on the Blue Line or one of the many other lines that connect to it. The UIC-Halsted stop puts you right at the main campus, and the Racine and Illinois Medical District stops will bring you to some of the other components of the University as well. I actually live very near the UIC-Halsted stop right now, and it's super convenient.
Let me know if/what your questions are! Also, anyone else in Chicago please feel free to adjust what I've got with comments and other input!
(Shameless/shameful self-advertisement- I am looking for roommates and am flexible between Evanston and North Side Chicago. I am a male 27-year old who is looking to rock the bologna out of my first year of grad school. My only limitation is that I own approximately 300 books and ~200 National Geographics that, needless to say, will either be located in my bedroom (if it's a tiny apartment) or in the shared living space. Because I am a poor MS student without a stipend, I prefer to live in as cheap (but good!) of a place as possible. I will also have a fairly well stocked set of kitchen appliances, dining room table, and a nice L-shaped couch assuming there is enough living space. I also own a semi-realistic looking cat pillow who will probably live on said couch. See: profile pic.)
Last of all- if any of you would like a comprehensive eating guide to the city of Chicago, I am more than happy to provide one.

Hi guys!
I wanted to share some information with any interested parties, pending decisions and commitments to the Chicago area. I have been living/working in the Chicago area for the past 5 years or so, and I figured my advice could be useful if you're planning to move here for school, and haven't spent any time here, either. All of this posting comes at the encouragement and sharp thinking courtesy of @fencergirl, so thank her for suggesting I share it. The advice is definitely more oriented for grad students planning on attending school up on the northside/Evanston, however I've added some notes for those thinking of attending UChicago, UIC, or many of the other great schools that are mid-to-south.
A little about myself first: I will be studying biomedical engineering at Northwestern, starting out in the master's program but going to attempt to transfer into the PhD. I actually grew up in the suburbs outside of Chicago, went to Johns Hopkins for undergrad, and came back. I now work in a startup pharmaceutical on the north side in a town called Skokie (borders the west side of Evanston). I commute to work via the L (the public train system) from the West Loop (it's about an hour ride, not the best, but I have a nice apartment!). I do not see myself staying where I am, because I'm not crazy and don't want to pay living expenses of $1000+/month as a grad student. Anyways!
I do have suggestions! It depends on a few of your personal preferences, though, so I'll give you a rundown of how I'm approaching it, knowing what I know about the city and Evanston.
There are three general areas the Northwestern graduate students habitate in: Evanston (duh), Rogers Park/Edgewater, and Lakeview (near the purple line express stops, I'll get to this).
In Evanston the pricing of apartments tends to float between fairly cheap or somewhat pricey. There isn't much of a middle ground. I anticipate shooting toward the cheap end, especially with a roommate (or two!). I've been looking at pricing the past few days, and for two people I've seen stuff in the neighborhood of $600-1000/month (per person). There may even be a few places that dip under $600. Right now the listings aren't super plentiful, but when the quarter ends and graduation comes, a fair number of people will vacate and there will be increased options, possibly even better pricing (a coworker of mine who recently graduated paid $400/month for 2 years!!!) so it's worth waiting a bit to see what becomes available.
Evanston obviously offers convenience for proximity, and is a fairly nice place. The areas around NU are safe and pleasant, with many good food options (try Bat 17 for a mean sandwich) and a few bars to choose from. There is also easy access to the city for the very few weekends that one does get to explore Chicago proper. The main streets of residence tend to be those that line up with campus east-west (Noyes, Davis, Foster, Church) but Chicago Ave also is good, as there is a bus (#205) that runs up to campus along that road, additionally, there is the #201 bus which is Central/Ridge Rd. Both routes are north-south, though the #205 will take you west to Old Orchard Mall. Several of the east-west streets in Evanston have L stops. I know some people will live down near South Boulevard (I think it's a little cheaper down here, too) and do a very short commute to campus.
Rogers Park/Edgewater are two of the neighborhoods on the southern border of Evanston with easy L access to campus. The apartments there tend to be slightly cheaper, and occasionally more spacious. The area used to be pretty rough with crime, but over the past decade or so it has become much nicer. If you are looking for a little more of a city feel or don't want to constantly be in the suburban atmosphere of Evanston, this area will do that job. Additionally, it is slightly closer to the city, but honestly not by a huge margin. Main L stations for these areas would include Granville, Loyola, Morse, Thorndale. These are all Red Line stops, and you would have to transfer over to the Purple Line at Howard (which is nearby). Commute time from this area would probably average 20-30 mins, depending on how smooth the transfer is. Currently, I've seen apartment pricing in the $500-1000 (per student) range here, but for all I know there could be better deals lurking. This is also the general area in which Loyola students live, and an obvious choice for many soon-to-be Loyola students considering their housing situation.
Lakeview is much further south, however during rush hour commuting periods, the Purple Line (which services Evanston) runs express from Belmont (central/south Lakeview) up to Howard. The current average run time is about 15-16 minutes between these stops (I'm super nerdy and started keeping track when I was trying to figure out the best way to get to work). Anyways, it would take about 25-30 minutes to get to the campus Purple Line stops. Another 5-10 minutes walking from there. So conservatively speaking you're looking at something like 35-40 minutes of commute if you live further south. The only reason one would ever live down here is if they wanted more of a Chicago city-feel. It's generally more expensive, and only tends to be competitively priced with the prior-mentioned areas when you have at least 4 people living together or if you're a lucky son of a gun. Not a whole lot of students live this far south, but they DO exist. A lot of Depaul students live throughout this region, so clearly there must be some level of affordability, though they have a bit more flexibility as their campus is based out of the Fullerton L stop (Lincoln Park), and can probably live a bit further away from the L and use buses instead. If I were going to Depaul, I would consider living somewhere further north or possibly on the Brown Line between Lakeview/Lincoln Park and Lincoln Square. If you don't mind a 30+ minute train ride, you can live beyond Lincoln Square, but some of the real estate up there can get kind of dicey as far as personal security goes.
For those planning on attending schools that are further south:
From what I gather, a large majority of UChicago students, particularly in the first year, tend to live in and very near to Hyde Park. The campus is reachable via L, bus, and Metra (local commuter train). My best friend currently attends Booth full time, and lives up near Grant/Millennium Park. He takes the Metra from the Millennium station every day he has class. If you were considering living somewhere in the South Loop or Near South Side, you'd probably have to stick to one of the L lines (Green or Red) to make your commute worthwhile. IIT students also find housing somewhere in this south-side jumble, though obviously not as far as UChicago. I would not be surprised to hear of IIT students living near Hyde Park and commuting north, though. I believe IIT is fairly accessible via Red Line.
For UIC, it's fairly straightforward. Many students live in University Village/Little Italy, as well as across Route 290 in a few pockets on the Near West Side. Additionally many students commute via the L, and live somewhere on the Blue Line or one of the many other lines that connect to it. The UIC-Halsted stop puts you right at the main campus, and the Racine and Illinois Medical District stops will bring you to some of the other components of the University as well. I actually live very near the UIC-Halsted stop right now, and it's super convenient.
Let me know if/what your questions are! Also, anyone else in Chicago please feel free to adjust what I've got with comments and other input!
(Shameless/shameful self-advertisement- I am looking for roommates and am flexible between Evanston and North Side Chicago. I am a male 27-year old who is looking to rock the bologna out of my first year of grad school. My only limitation is that I own approximately 300 books and ~200 National Geographics that, needless to say, will either be located in my bedroom (if it's a tiny apartment) or in the shared living space. Because I am a poor MS student without a stipend, I prefer to live in as cheap (but good!) of a place as possible. I will also have a fairly well stocked set of kitchen appliances, dining room table, and a nice L-shaped couch assuming there is enough living space. I also own a semi-realistic looking cat pillow who will probably live on said couch. See: profile pic.)
Last of all- if any of you would like a comprehensive eating guide to the city of Chicago, I am more than happy to provide one.

Great post! I've been living/working in Chicago for a few years now but will be moving out of the city this summer to attend grad school. I have lived at the Edgewater/RP border and currently live in Andersonville, a bit south of Edgewater. My current neighborhood is more family-oriented and there are few students, but it's easy to get to the red line and Ravenswood Metra station (the Union Pacific line stops in Evanston). It's slightly nicer but more expensive than Edgewater/Rogers Park but more affordable than Lakeview (For now. Rent is rapidly increasing). If anyone has any questions about Edgewater/RP/Andersonville/Uptown, I can try to answer them for you! 

Official admittance to Northwestern's MS BME program rolled in this morning. A good way to wake up after taking a red eye back home from Vegas, if I had to say. Plus turning $200 into $440 on blackjack doesn't hurt, either. Thank all of you for the really positive words of support and encouragement. It certainly feels much more like a victory than settling! I only hope that other applicants who are still waiting on responses or have had a rough go of it this cycle stay strong. Even if you don't make it in somewhere, odds are you probably have a lot going for you, and even if you have to put in some extra time to demonstrate your prowess, you'll definitely find a way. Look at me (everything in chronological order):
Original UG class of '11 (graduated in '13, last in my major's class of 15 people) (Materials Science, for those interested) 2.40 GPA 1.5 years working as 'the wine guy' in a fancy grocery store while I tried to get my shit together and finish the last few credits on my degree ~2.5 years (ongoing) working my butt off in a small R&D pharmaceutical startup (started as a tech, now Associate III, this probably saved my life) GRE: 161Q, 159V, 4.0W Now: turning 28 in September, probably going to Northwestern, and in position to finally hit the goals I had set for myself when I was about 20 I took the long way, and not everyone has the same cookie-cutter route to get where they're going. I had to claw my way back from the lowest place I'd ever been, but to be honest, 'the bottom' was something I had never glimpsed before, but man did I need it if I was ever going to have a chance to really pursue this path. Heck, even what I've got in front of me isn't what I expected, but I can still see a pathway, and that's what's important. Always keep your eyes on the prize, and be ready to be flexible and persevere when unexpected things come up in the road. Your life is what you'll make of it. No guarantees except for what you create for yourself.

I will just keep working in the job I've been at, probably up until 2 weeks before starting. I want to build as much of a emergency cash cache as possible. Benefits of being in the industry before going back to school, I guess?

You guys certainly know how to make a guy feel good about things he should already be feeling good about. Thanks again for all of the supportive words you've all thrown at me!