New York, NY

[onemlielma]

Does anyone have any experience with NYU's Washington Square Village and the grad. housing waitlist? The housing website is pretty vague, so I'm not even sure if it's a more affordable option than living off campus. I know that if I were to live off campus, I would need to live in a relatively more affordable area with roommates. I'm currently living overseas so I won't be able to visit apartments and areas in person (and I don't really know much about the various boroughs and neighborhoods), so I thought on campus housing might be a better fit for me. Any ideas?

[Cici Beanz]

I know it's not as exciting as living in the city or even the nicer parts of Hudson Co., but there are decent areas of Bergen and Essex Co. NJ that are within reasonable commuting distance to the city as well. NJ Transit has decent routes to the PATH. Again, not glamourous and not the quickest commute ever but you might find better prices on housing.

[artsmgr]

Hi. Can anyone shed some thoughts on EHS housing and International House? I am an international student and I won't be able to check them out prior to starting school. Would I be better off looking for an apartment?

[EB456]

Hi.  Can anyone shed some thoughts on EHS housing and International House?  I am an international student and I won't be able to check them out prior to starting school.  Would I be better off looking for an apartment?

People have had mixed experiences with EHS. Some are fine, but others are disappointed with the size, condition, and price of the housing. I don't have any personal experience with them, though.

[prefers_pencils]

Hi. Can anyone shed some thoughts on EHS housing and International House? I am an international student and I won't be able to check them out prior to starting school. Would I be better off looking for an apartment?

If you're trying to move from abroad, International House is a good bet for the first year, especially if you'll be at Columbia. After that, though, you'll likely be ready to leave. North building apartments > South building rooms.

[SooperStudent]

Anyone know anything about living IN NYC, but commuting TO NJ (specifically, into Newark) for school? I would love nothing more than to live in NYC, but I know it's quite expensive. Rent doesn't even seem to be as much of a problem as commuting, but I'm unfamiliar to the area. Suggestions?

[Cici Beanz]

I honestly don't think it's worth paying an arm and a leg to live in the city and commuting in to Newark. Life is so much cheaper (though still not cheap, per se) on this side of the river, and you could go into the city every weekend if you wanted.

[EB456]

Anyone know anything about living IN NYC, but commuting TO NJ (specifically, into Newark) for school? I would love nothing more than to live in NYC, but I know it's quite expensive. Rent doesn't even seem to be as much of a problem as commuting, but I'm unfamiliar to the area. Suggestions?

I honestly don't think it's worth paying an arm and a leg to live in the city and commuting in to Newark. Life is so much cheaper (though still not cheap, per se) on this side of the river, and you could go into the city every weekend if you wanted.

Living in NYC is pretty different than living in NJ, and if that's what you want to do, a reverse commute to Newark is possible. I'd say the best way to do the reverse commute is living near one of the PATH train stops. (A fairly frequent train that costs two dollars a trip.) If you live near the World Trade Center stop, you can take that train directly to Newark. If you live near the stops at Christopher Street at Hudson Street, 9th Street at 6th Avenue, 14th Street at 6th Avenue, 23rd Street at 6th Avenue, or 33rd Street at 6th Avenue, you'll have to change trains. You could also live near Penn Station (8th Ave between 31st and 33rd Streets) or Port Authority, which would allow for a relatively easy commute. Alternatively, you could live a subway ride away from these places.

[Cici Beanz]

Living in NYC is pretty different than living in NJ, and if that's what you want to do, a reverse commute to Newark is possible. I'd say the best way to do the reverse commute is living near one of the PATH train stops. (A fairly frequent train that costs two dollars a trip.) If you live near the World Trade Center stop, you can take that train directly to Newark. If you live near the stops at Christopher Street at Hudson Street, 9th Street at 6th Avenue, 14th Street at 6th Avenue, 23rd Street at 6th Avenue, or 33rd Street at 6th Avenue, you'll have to change trains. You could also live near Penn Station (8th Ave between 31st and 33rd Streets) or Port Authority, which would allow for a relatively easy commute. Alternatively, you could live a subway ride away from these places.

Definitely true. I guess I just can't get over the cost of living there. SooperStudent, sorry if my original reply was completely unhelpful. :/

[juilletmercredi]

I am going to agree with Cici Beanz and say that I do not think it is worth it to live in NYC and commute to Newark. It's certainly doable - a monthly student ticket from Newark to Penn Station is $104, which is the same price as an unlimited monthly Metrocard in NYC. I ride NJ Transit frequently and it's quite pleasant; the crowds at Penn Station are not so bad once you get used to them, and there are plentiful trains going back and forth especially during rush hour. Or you could do PATH.

But given the cost of living in New York compared to Newark - not worth it, especially not on a graduate stipend. A lot of people have dreams of living in NYC (including myself) but the reality is often far different from the dream. Popular conceptions of NYC don't take into account that those starving artists/young professionals/starry eyed graduate students really don't make enough to really enjoy the city, especially if your graduate stipend is less than about $25,000 a year. That said, given how easy it is to come into Manhattan from Newark, you can easily enjoy everything the city has to offer on the weekends and on an off day without paying the rent premium for living here.

For example, NJ Transit + the C train will get you to the Met in about 55 minutes (23 minutes on NJ Transit + 28 minutes on C train). From Columbia, it'll take me about 40 minutes - only 15 minutes less. You're closer than some people in Brooklyn and Queens.

As for the person thinking about I-House - I had a friend who lived there for the 3 years you are allowed, and he loved it. For his final years in the PhD program, he's living with 3 friends he met at I-House who have also hit their three year limit - they moved into a 4-bedroom apartment together. I investigated living there my first year, but I think it's ridiculously expensive even for the UWS.

A single dorm room, with a sink and without a view, is anywhere from $950 to $1050. And by the looks of them those dorm rooms are tiny. For just a $100-150 more than the high end of that you can get a small studio by yourself in Harlem, Washington Heights or Inwood and not have to share a kitchen and bathroom with an entire corridor of people. And their apartment rates are a bit ridiculous - nearly $1500 to live in a 3-bedroom apartment? You could find a 1-bedroom by yourself for that much. Hell, you could live in a studio or 1-bedroom in Columbia's graduate school housing and not pay that much. That's the average rent for a furnished 1-bedroom there.

They have amenities, but a lot of those amenities are part of going to a university anyway. If you go to Columbia and pay the university fee, you get access to the gym there, all of the computer labs on campus. There are many dining options on campus and in the neighborhood, there's free wireless in all of the residence halls at Columbia and laundry rooms in all of them, too. And even if you live in off-campus housing nearby, most NYC buildings have laundry rooms or laundromats close by.

[SooperStudent]

Thanks for the input, everyone! It seems to parallel all of my other research, so I'll definitely concentrate my apartment search within the New Jersey area!

[k-tray]

Hello all,

i have been accepted to CUNY for the fall and will prob be living in Brooklyn. I am looking for advice on what areas to live in or what train lines to live near (ones that don't stop early/ have a ton of construction constantly). Also, what kind of travel times am i looking at to get to the upper east side?

Thanks!

Edited April 10, 2012 by k-tray

[Javslavin]

Hello all, i have been accepted to CUNY for the fall and will prob be living in Brooklyn. I am looking for advice on what areas to live in or what train lines to live near (ones that don't stop early/ have a ton of construction constantly). Also, what kind of travel times am i looking at to get to the upper east side? Thanks!

Ditto with K-tray.

I was looking at around prospect heights / crown heights: trying to find a 2-3br at ~$850/mo/br... not easy. Though, the GC is in midtown, unless Bio is at CCNY...

[transcendental]

Just curious if many Fordham people live in NJ and commute? Any recommendations?

[MidEastApp]

I was going through several pages, does anyone have any rec's on where to look for apartments in NYC? I'm going to CUNY and student housing is rather pricey.

[long_time_lurker]

Most definitely, I'd say close to half my department does.

Anywhere along rt. 80 or something that gets you to it (like 17, 208, etc.) will work. Just avoid Paterson, Passaic, and the towns south of the GWB along the Hudson River like Pal Park and North Bergen (these aren't bad, but aren't good either).

[transcendental]

Most definitely, I'd say close to half my department does.

Anywhere along rt. 80 or something that gets you to it (like 17, 208, etc.) will work. Just avoid Paterson, Passaic, and the towns south of the GWB along the Hudson River like Pal Park and North Bergen (these aren't bad, but aren't good either).

Thanks! I'm completely ignorant; are these places near good public transportation? I'm thinking of NJ so I can maybe keep my car but don't want to always rely on it to get to campus.

Edited April 11, 2012 by transcendental

[pomo]

If commuting to the GC for CUNY, maybe think about Queens. It's easy to get to Midtown from Queens. And so cheap! Also, I can't sing the praises of Padmapper more than I already have. It's so much easier to look at apartments with a map right in front of you.

[long_time_lurker]

If you're from out of town and have no particular reason to be in Jersey then you probably want to look in Westchester or Putnam instead since you want to take PT. Metro-North stops steps from campus and will be much cheaper and faster than NJ Transit. Trains from the Harlem and New Haven lines stop at Fordham. Valhalla or Hawthorne might be good fits. You'll get the same suburban quiet feel where you'll get to keep your car.

[transcendental]

Thanks!!

[k-tray]

If commuting to the GC for CUNY, maybe think about Queens. It's easy to get to Midtown from Queens. And so cheap! Also, I can't sing the praises of Padmapper more than I already have. It's so much easier to look at apartments with a map right in front of you.

Thanks for the padmapper suggestion... it's a good site. I have heard Astoria is a good place to commute to the Upper East Side from, but do you know anything about Brooklyn train lines?

[oseirus]

I am going to agree with Cici Beanz and say that I do not think it is worth it to live in NYC and commute to Newark. It's certainly doable - a monthly student ticket from Newark to Penn Station is $104, which is the same price as an unlimited monthly Metrocard in NYC. I ride NJ Transit frequently and it's quite pleasant; the crowds at Penn Station are not so bad once you get used to them, and there are plentiful trains going back and forth especially during rush hour. Or you could do PATH.

But given the cost of living in New York compared to Newark - not worth it, especially not on a graduate stipend. A lot of people have dreams of living in NYC (including myself) but the reality is often far different from the dream. Popular conceptions of NYC don't take into account that those starving artists/young professionals/starry eyed graduate students really don't make enough to really enjoy the city, especially if your graduate stipend is less than about $25,000 a year. That said, given how easy it is to come into Manhattan from Newark, you can easily enjoy everything the city has to offer on the weekends and on an off day without paying the rent premium for living here.

For example, NJ Transit + the C train will get you to the Met in about 55 minutes (23 minutes on NJ Transit + 28 minutes on C train). From Columbia, it'll take me about 40 minutes - only 15 minutes less. You're closer than some people in Brooklyn and Queens.

As for the person thinking about I-House - I had a friend who lived there for the 3 years you are allowed, and he loved it. For his final years in the PhD program, he's living with 3 friends he met at I-House who have also hit their three year limit - they moved into a 4-bedroom apartment together. I investigated living there my first year, but I think it's ridiculously expensive even for the UWS.

A single dorm room, with a sink and without a view, is anywhere from $950 to $1050. And by the looks of them those dorm rooms are tiny. For just a $100-150 more than the high end of that you can get a small studio by yourself in Harlem, Washington Heights or Inwood and not have to share a kitchen and bathroom with an entire corridor of people. And their apartment rates are a bit ridiculous - nearly $1500 to live in a 3-bedroom apartment? You could find a 1-bedroom by yourself for that much. Hell, you could live in a studio or 1-bedroom in Columbia's graduate school housing and not pay that much. That's the average rent for a furnished 1-bedroom there.

They have amenities, but a lot of those amenities are part of going to a university anyway. If you go to Columbia and pay the university fee, you get access to the gym there, all of the computer labs on campus. There are many dining options on campus and in the neighborhood, there's free wireless in all of the residence halls at Columbia and laundry rooms in all of them, too. And even if you live in off-campus housing nearby, most NYC buildings have laundry rooms or laundromats close by.

Do all the graduate schools have their own facilities at Columbia?

[juilletmercredi]

Yes. Most of the graduate schools participate in University Apartment Housing (UAH), which are a collection of mostly apartment-style buildings in the Morningside Heights area. Teachers College also has their own housing system that's also in the same neighborhood; most of it is dormitory-style (some with private bathrooms). The medical center campus has its own housing system that's a mix of studios, shared apartments, and dormitory-style rooms.

I will note, however, that housing is quite limited amongst graduate students and that you should definitely prepare a Plan B and be prepared to do the apartment search. I think it's slightly easier to get it on the main campus, though, as I only know a few grad students on the Morningside campus who don't live in UAH housing and that's mostly by choice. (By contrast, I know a LOT of CUMC students who live off-campus.)

[unforth]

Just a note, the CUNY Grad Center is not on the upper east side, so doing searches related to that will only confuse you; that neighborhood is Midtown East.

Commute times from Brooklyn or Queens will obviously depend on where you live, but it'll likely be around 30 min to an hour and a half if you live way out in Flatbush or Flushing.

(hi everyone - native New Yorker, and moved back after school, have lived here a total of 22 years in various neighborhoods in Manhattan and the Bronx, though I've never been a college student here, thought I'd toss my name in as someone who might be able to help, but not necessarily, it's just too big a city for anyone to know everything. )

[JuanPabloCastel]

(hi everyone - native New Yorker, and moved back after school, have lived here a total of 22 years in various neighborhoods in Manhattan and the Bronx, though I've never been a college student here, thought I'd toss my name in as someone who might be able to help, but not necessarily, it's just too big a city for anyone to know everything. )

http://www.southerncrossreview.org/57/wolfe-brooklyn.htm