Tallahassee, FL

[vanityfair]

Hi, I'm intending to move to FSU as a grad student this fall. The high crime rates in Tallahassee are quite concerning to me as an immigrant PoC. Could anyone tell me what the ground situation is like? Which neighbourhoods would be within reasonable walking distance of the campus (specifically the Physics department) that are also safe/calm?

[solonsreforms]

On 3/30/2018 at 3:23 PM, CulturalCriminal said:

Same question, but specifically: is Tallahassee Trans friendly? Butch girl friendly? PoC friendly?

boosting this thread. anyone willing to share experiences with tallahassee for queer people, trans people, non white people? dm's also open if it feels too private to share to a thread

Edited February 22, 2021 by solonsreforms

[beefboy]

On 2/22/2021 at 11:02 AM, solonsreforms said:

boosting this thread. anyone willing to share experiences with tallahassee for queer people, trans people, non white people? dm's also open if it feels too private to share to a thread

hey! i've been in tally for the past 4 years and i'm also queer. honestly, i think i've gotten pretty lucky with how quick i fell into a great group of queer people who were able to show me where to look in tally for safe spaces etc. (they do exist!) i'd definitely recommend 926 (a gay club, the only one in town! lmao) obviously this was much different pre-pandemic... but they had drag shows every friday night at midnight and a bunch of other super great opportunities to get involved with the queer community. The Bark is also a really cool spot, a lot of poetry readings/ zine/ art shows and such. i'll try and think of some more... i've just seen this post sitting here for so many days i made an account just to answer it because i didn't want anyone to cross tally off their list for fear of not finding community. it is out there  

[Plannerlady]

Hey, I'm a new perspective graduate student at FSU and was wondering if anyone has current/up-to-date insights on the city. Is it best to live on-campus vs off-campus? What's the general Cost of living there? Will I need roommates or can I find studios or one-bedroom apartments that are affordable? Is the city safe? I would appreciate any insights on the city and Uni

[The Penguin and Podiatrist]

17 hours ago, Plannerlady said:

Hey, I'm a new perspective graduate student at FSU and was wondering if anyone has current/up-to-date insights on the city. Is it best to live on-campus vs off-campus? What's the general Cost of living there? Will I need roommates or can I find studios or one-bedroom apartments that are affordable? Is the city safe? I would appreciate any insights on the city and Uni

Hey so I was a grad student at FSU until 2019 (so a few years back), but I lived off-campus (only very technically, it was basically on campus since the campus is integrated into downtown Tallahassee) by myself in a studio apartment just fine with my stipend. If you want to save a lot of money, then living with roommates will help you do that, but I hate living with roommates, so I was willing to pay more for a studio. I lived in a complex called Jefferson Arms and paid about $675 (utilities/wifi included) for my studio within walking distance of campus (but it was near some frat houses which was occasionally very annoying). There are some similarly priced studios nearby. The graduate student union at FSU is very strong (I highly recommend joining it) and they always get us good raises, so I know that stipends have increased since I've been there too and will likely continue to go up (assuming DeSantis doesn't do something evil like destroying the unions). Tallahassee as a whole is very affordable.

Tallahassee is not very walkable, but the FSU bus system is good and free with your student ID, so as long as you choose an apartment on one of the bus lines (there are many apartments on the bus line) or you live close enough to walk, then you won't need a car. All your essentials are accessible by bus or on foot. HOWEVER I, a notoriously car-hating person and biking fiend, caved and ended up buying a moped to get around (a popular option amongst students) because I didn't feel safe biking outside of campus, but I do have several friends who biked everywhere and I did for a few months, so it is possible. If you want to go anywhere outside of the general campus-area then not having a car would make that more difficult. 

I found Tallahassee very safe overall except for the cars/traffic (it's a very car-centric city). I, a small woman, walked alone at night a lot and did not feel unsafe. Tallahassee has a huge divide between the wealthy and the poor and when people say that there's "a high crime rate" in a city, they usually mean that there's over-policing of lower income and predominantly black neighborhoods. I saw that happen in Tallahassee where the police would harass houseless people for just existing. This is not unique to Tallahassee at all, but it happens there. I felt more unsafe around the police than anyone else in Tallahassee.

The university itself is very pretty and has a lot of great facilities and there was always something going on.

I am happy to answer any specific questions you might have. I felt very at home in Tallahassee and loved the community as a whole.

[Plannerlady]

On 3/16/2023 at 5:43 AM, The Penguin and Podiatrist said:

Hey so I was a grad student at FSU until 2019 (so a few years back), but I lived off-campus (only very technically, it was basically on campus since the campus is integrated into downtown Tallahassee) by myself in a studio apartment just fine with my stipend. If you want to save a lot of money, then living with roommates will help you do that, but I hate living with roommates, so I was willing to pay more for a studio. I lived in a complex called Jefferson Arms and paid about $675 (utilities/wifi included) for my studio within walking distance of campus (but it was near some frat houses which was occasionally very annoying). There are some similarly priced studios nearby. The graduate student union at FSU is very strong (I highly recommend joining it) and they always get us good raises, so I know that stipends have increased since I've been there too and will likely continue to go up (assuming DeSantis doesn't do something evil like destroying the unions). Tallahassee as a whole is very affordable.

Tallahassee is not very walkable, but the FSU bus system is good and free with your student ID, so as long as you choose an apartment on one of the bus lines (there are many apartments on the bus line) or you live close enough to walk, then you won't need a car. All your essentials are accessible by bus or on foot. HOWEVER I, a notoriously car-hating person and biking fiend, caved and ended up buying a moped to get around (a popular option amongst students) because I didn't feel safe biking outside of campus, but I do have several friends who biked everywhere and I did for a few months, so it is possible. If you want to go anywhere outside of the general campus-area then not having a car would make that more difficult. 

I found Tallahassee very safe overall except for the cars/traffic (it's a very car-centric city). I, a small woman, walked alone at night a lot and did not feel unsafe. Tallahassee has a huge divide between the wealthy and the poor and when people say that there's "a high crime rate" in a city, they usually mean that there's over-policing of lower income and predominantly black neighborhoods. I saw that happen in Tallahassee where the police would harass houseless people for just existing. This is not unique to Tallahassee at all, but it happens there. I felt more unsafe around the police than anyone else in Tallahassee.

The university itself is very pretty and has a lot of great facilities and there was always something going on.

I am happy to answer any specific questions you might have. I felt very at home in Tallahassee and loved the community as a whole.

Thank you so much ! This was a really thorough response that eased a lot of my worries!
Can you share any experience you had with summer funding? I didn't get guaranteed funding in the summer and don't know how easily funding is accessible during the summer (through assistantships). If not, do you know if internship interviews were avaliable?

[The Penguin and Podiatrist]

On 3/19/2023 at 8:03 PM, Plannerlady said:

Thank you so much ! This was a really thorough response that eased a lot of my worries!
Can you share any experience you had with summer funding? I didn't get guaranteed funding in the summer and don't know how easily funding is accessible during the summer (through assistantships). If not, do you know if internship interviews were avaliable?

I think summer funding will depend on your department. I was in the philosophy department and usually it was pretty easy to get summer funding, but I remember that one year there was a lot of competition for it, so they gave it to newer students and people who really needed it. I am not sure how other departments handle it, but I found that if I needed it I could usually get it. 

I am sorry, I am not sure what you mean by internship interviews! Do you mean will they help you find an internship? They might be able to help you find an internship or employment elsewhere on campus or something, but that would be something to ask your specific department.

[Plannerlady]

2 hours ago, The Penguin and Podiatrist said:

I think summer funding will depend on your department. I was in the philosophy department and usually it was pretty easy to get summer funding, but I remember that one year there was a lot of competition for it, so they gave it to newer students and people who really needed it. I am not sure how other departments handle it, but I found that if I needed it I could usually get it. 

I am sorry, I am not sure what you mean by internship interviews! Do you mean will they help you find an internship? They might be able to help you find an internship or employment elsewhere on campus or something, but that would be something to ask your specific department.

Thank you so much for your reply! It seems to be a similar case for summer funding in my department as well so it's quite the relief. (The rent has shot up to crazy amounts)

Oh gosh XD sorry my phone decided to autofill it. I just meant internships in general. Thank you.

[The Penguin and Podiatrist]

14 hours ago, Plannerlady said:

Thank you so much for your reply! It seems to be a similar case for summer funding in my department as well so it's quite the relief. (The rent has shot up to crazy amounts)

Oh gosh XD sorry my phone decided to autofill it. I just meant internships in general. Thank you.

Oh haha, that makes sense! Philosophy doesn't really do internships (but they help us with conferences and stuff like that), but I knew someone in Social Work who got work/an internship through their department, so I think if that's common in your field then they'll probably help you.

I found my own internship at the center for the advancement of human rights. I saw the center and walked in and asked them if I could help. It didn't really have anything to do with my degree, but I just wanted to do it because I believed in what they were doing (helping immigrants and refugees). 

That sucks that the rent has gone up so much! I felt like the affordable rent was one of the selling points of Tallahassee/FSU. That's actually one of the big reasons I chose it over a school in Colorado-- I didn't want to have to live with other people haha
 

[Plannerlady]

6 hours ago, The Penguin and Podiatrist said:

Oh haha, that makes sense! Philosophy doesn't really do internships (but they help us with conferences and stuff like that), but I knew someone in Social Work who got work/an internship through their department, so I think if that's common in your field then they'll probably help you.

I found my own internship at the center for the advancement of human rights. I saw the center and walked in and asked them if I could help. It didn't really have anything to do with my degree, but I just wanted to do it because I believed in what they were doing (helping immigrants and refugees). 

That sucks that the rent has gone up so much! I felt like the affordable rent was one of the selling points of Tallahassee/FSU. That's actually one of the big reasons I chose it over a school in Colorado-- I didn't want to have to live with other people haha
 

I hate the idea of living with other people tbh XD that comes with a hefty price right now! (one I'm strangely willing to pay so long as I can make money during the summer too).

Funny you should mention that, immigrants and refugees are the area of my research interest so thank you for giving me an idea of where I could potentially get an internship or even volunteer when I have the time. I'm excited for FSU though, thank you again for easing a lot of my worries.