UCLA/USC/Other LA-area schools

[lordtiandao]

Hello! Anyone considering or have already decided to attend UCLA, USC, or any of the other LA area schools? I got a really good offer from UCLA for Chinese history and I'm heavily leaning towards attending. Would love to hear from you guys!

[lordtiandao]

Bump. Anyone?

[BigBen_96]

I'm attending USC PIBBS program! Will most likely be living on USC's main campus and taking the shuttle.

[Dviouz]

I'll be in the psych department at UCLA!

[lordtiandao]

8 hours ago, Dviouz said:

I'll be in the psych department at UCLA!

Hello there! I'm in the History department.

[unknow]

Studying Political Science.  75% sure on UCLA, but the admittedly large nominal fellowship I got doesn't go as far in LA.  If I am there, I'll be in the subsidized grad housing!

[gb1326]

Hey! I'll be starting at USC this fall!

[eevee]

Hey! I'll at UCLA in the neuroscience program this fall   @mccp77 I just filled out my application to live in grad student housing, so hopefully we'll be neighbors! 

[lordtiandao]

@eevee @mccp77 Did you guys select the North or the South apartments?

[eevee]

North, I want to be as close to campus as possible!! 

[squirrelene]

I'll be attending USC in the fall! How difficult will I be making my life if I don't have a car? I was just planning on living close(ish) to the health sciences campus next to a bus/train route. I'm not a very social person and figure paying for an occasional uber a few times a month will be less expensive than a car/parking/gas/insurance. 

[lordtiandao]

@eevee I see. I applied for South, since the North apartments are too expensive.

@squirrelene You can survive in LA without a car, I've known Angelenos who commute to UCLA by bus/bike. Getting a car is mainly for the convenience of travelling and doing things around LA.  I strongly advise people to get a car (eventually, you don't need to get it right away), but if you don't see yourself driving that often, there is no need for you to get one. 

[unknow]

@lordtiandaoI'd said that I'd prefer south because they're cheaper, and I can only get so much for selling platelets every month.  However, I wouldn't be surprised to end up in north.  Since I can still rearrange my preferences, I might do that between now and April 15.  If you're looking for a potential roomie after April 15 in South feel free to hit me up here.

Edited April 3, 2018 by mccp77

[lordtiandao]

@mccp77 For sure! My department has blocks of housing available to allocate, but at this point I'm not sure if they can give me my preference. We'll just have to wait and see.

[eevee]

Do you know when UCLA will let us know about our housing assignments? @mccp77 @lordtiandao

[unknow]

@eeveeNo idea.  I was told by an admin that they'd talk to us next in April/May, but she also told me that they wouldn't need me to list apartment preferences until after April 15th.  So grain of salt.

I'm hoping I can still make changes after April 15th because I'm still not 100% on just what my disposable income will be.

[lordtiandao]

@eevee The deadline for the housing application is in May (I think the 19th?), so I would assume sometime after that.

@mccp77 Really? My department had me fill out a housing application (in which I listed my preferences) and then e-mail the administrator to let them know what my preferences were. I guess it varies with departments.

[unknow]

@lordtiandaoNo, I went through that same process.  I was told via email though that when housing contacts you in May/early July please give them your preference on the type of housing that you want.

I don't know why the StarRezPortal also required me to fill out a preference list for types of housing too then?  Very confusing, but I'm just doing as I'm told one step at a time.

[lordtiandao]

10 hours ago, mccp77 said:

@lordtiandaoNo, I went through that same process.  I was told via email though that when housing contacts you in May/early July please give them your preference on the type of housing that you want.

I don't know why the StarRezPortal also required me to fill out a preference list for types of housing too then?  Very confusing, but I'm just doing as I'm told one step at a time.

Yeah, it still says I'm in the graduate lottery on StarRezPortal, but I just checked with my department and they've received my housing application. They said I'll receive more information when the incoming student list is finalized.

[BabyScientist]

On 4/1/2018 at 9:26 AM, squirrelene said:

I'll be attending USC in the fall! How difficult will I be making my life if I don't have a car? I was just planning on living close(ish) to the health sciences campus next to a bus/train route. I'm not a very social person and figure paying for an occasional uber a few times a month will be less expensive than a car/parking/gas/insurance. 

Won't be too bad if you live close enough to campus. There's a lot in that area as far as stores you may need weekly, so uber a few times a month is probably what you're looking at.

[miesvanderrohe]

On 4/1/2018 at 9:26 AM, squirrelene said:

I'll be attending USC in the fall! How difficult will I be making my life if I don't have a car? I was just planning on living close(ish) to the health sciences campus next to a bus/train route. I'm not a very social person and figure paying for an occasional uber a few times a month will be less expensive than a car/parking/gas/insurance. 

You're right, you really don't need a car. When I went to my department's open house several students expressed regret for bringing a car even though "everybody" says you "need" a car in LA. This isn't really true for most USC students who are living nearby.

You're in a very central location with plenty of public transportation options. In addition to public transportation USC offers free shuttles to areas like downtown LA and Marina Del Rey. Also as a cherry on top, USC offers free rideshare (Campus Cruiser) in and around campus... you can take it anywhere within their boundaries including one of the many grocery stores close by.

 

[squirrelene]

1 hour ago, miesvanderrohe said:

You're right, you really don't need a car. When I went to my department's open house several students expressed regret for bringing a car even though "everybody" says you "need" a car in LA. This isn't really true for most USC students who are living nearby.

You're in a very central location with plenty of public transportation options. In addition to public transportation USC offers free shuttles to areas like downtown LA and Marina Del Rey. Also as a cherry on top, USC offers free rideshare (Campus Cruiser) in and around campus... you can take it anywhere within their boundaries including one of the many grocery stores close by.

 

This is the first time i've heard about Campus Cruiser! Thanks so much!!!

[Amrutha Srinivasan]

Hey! I'll be attending UCLA for Computer Science this fall! 

[navix]

Hello! Would be attending UCLA for PhD in ECE this fall. I was wondering what would be a better option: stay near campus and walk or a bit far and travel by car?

[lordtiandao]

4 hours ago, navix said:

Hello! Would be attending UCLA for PhD in ECE this fall. I was wondering what would be a better option: stay near campus and walk or a bit far and travel by car?

Apartments near campus are absurdly expensive. It's much cheaper to find an apartment farther out. You can always try finding apartments where there are buses to UCLA if you don't feel like driving all the time.