Tooma Posted April 16, 2011 Posted April 16, 2011 Anyone going to GWU this fall? I received an offer from ECE for a PhD. I'm tending to accept it. I'll be relocating from Egypt.
CalSeeker Posted April 19, 2011 Posted April 19, 2011 I will be going to the Elliott School of International Affairs at GWU in the fall. I am relocating from California.
dali99 Posted April 21, 2011 Posted April 21, 2011 Hi there, I'll also be going to Elliott. My program is International Development Studies. Did you start looking for housing? Any tips?
DCHopeful Posted April 23, 2011 Posted April 23, 2011 MA Media and Public Affairs Moving from Los Angeles to DC. So excited!
Tooma Posted April 23, 2011 Author Posted April 23, 2011 Cool! No one going for PhD .. Hmmm I haven't started looking for housing yet. Just exploring the area and asking about safe and young-spirited neighborhoods. Anyone of you guys started looking for housing?
Soapcase Posted April 23, 2011 Posted April 23, 2011 Cool! No one going for PhD .. Hmmm I haven't started looking for housing yet. Just exploring the area and asking about safe and young-spirited neighborhoods. Anyone of you guys started looking for housing? PhD student coming up. Economics it is. On the topic of housing: how much savings can one really make if one decides to live off campus than take an on campus accomodation?
Tooma Posted April 23, 2011 Author Posted April 23, 2011 You MUST look for off-campus housing. Shared places can be around 600~800$ if far about 6~9 miles of campus.
Soapcase Posted April 24, 2011 Posted April 24, 2011 You MUST look for off-campus housing. Shared places can be around 600~800$ if far about 6~9 miles of campus. I am an international student, so the search is going to be difficult. Has anyone on this board found a place and is looking for roommates?
Tooma Posted April 24, 2011 Author Posted April 24, 2011 I am an international student, so the search is going to be difficult. Has anyone on this board found a place and is looking for roommates? I am international too and yes it is going to be difficult but it's inevitable. I have been searching GWU off-campus housing ( http://gradlife.gwu.edu/OffCampusHousing/ ). You should also check the student associations (depending on your nationality, ethnic group, ... ). I found a very helpful association with housing listings and roommates requests.
Sofa55 Posted April 24, 2011 Posted April 24, 2011 Starting this fall for MA in International Affairs. Moving from California too, so excited! Need to find housing.
afprop Posted April 27, 2011 Posted April 27, 2011 I moved to DC after undergrad in Ohio into a share apartment I found on Craigslist. I've moved twice in the past three years both into Craigslist shared living situations around $600 - $700 range on the Orange Line. By far the greatest resource for housing in the area. No problems thus far.
afprop Posted April 27, 2011 Posted April 27, 2011 MA Media and Public Affairs Moving from Los Angeles to DC. So excited! When did you hear? I'm still sitting around with fingers crossed.
bblucy Posted April 29, 2011 Posted April 29, 2011 I'll be there for the MA in Asian Studies (Elliott School)!
Mal83 Posted May 30, 2011 Posted May 30, 2011 Will be there for International Development as well! I'm next on the waiting list for an apartment that advertises on the GW off campus housing site, it's in Alexandria, VA on the yellow line and they offer a $50 student discount on the rent every month. I've found quite a few options in Alexandria. I'm avoiding the roommate thing and I am willing to commute in order to get a little more apartment for my money. I don't want to live in a crummy little shoebox if I don't have to. Living by yourself in the area anywhere is quite an expense but DC is just way too costly, as in just not doable for me so I'm happy with a basically decent place to call my own even if it means a commute. The on campus housing for grad students at GW is also very expensive. But despite the scariness of the expense, I really can't wait to get out there and get started! Everyone register for classes? I have required reading over the summer...actually looking forward to it though!
dali99 Posted May 31, 2011 Posted May 31, 2011 Hi Mal83, we'll be in the same program! Have you decided on which concentration? I already registered for classes: 2 required for first-year IDS and one anthro class. I'm also looking into Northern Virginia, but Clarendon/Courthouse and the surrounding neighborhood. Look forward to meeting you in fall! Will be there for International Development as well! I'm next on the waiting list for an apartment that advertises on the GW off campus housing site, it's in Alexandria, VA on the yellow line and they offer a $50 student discount on the rent every month. I've found quite a few options in Alexandria. I'm avoiding the roommate thing and I am willing to commute in order to get a little more apartment for my money. I don't want to live in a crummy little shoebox if I don't have to. Living by yourself in the area anywhere is quite an expense but DC is just way too costly, as in just not doable for me so I'm happy with a basically decent place to call my own even if it means a commute. The on campus housing for grad students at GW is also very expensive. But despite the scariness of the expense, I really can't wait to get out there and get started! Everyone register for classes? I have required reading over the summer...actually looking forward to it though!
CalSeeker Posted May 31, 2011 Posted May 31, 2011 I'm also looking into Northern Virginia, but Clarendon/Courthouse and the surrounding neighborhood. Look forward to meeting you in fall! I have also been looking in the Rosslyn/Clarendon/Courthouse areas. Really anywhere on the Orange line. Have you had any luck yet? I am in the ITIP program, but I have also started registering for classes. Two are required, but I also signed up for one of the one-unit seminars (that will be all for me as I will also be working). I will also be going out early to do some summer review courses that the program is offering. I can't wait!
Mal83 Posted June 1, 2011 Posted June 1, 2011 Hi Mal83, we'll be in the same program! Have you decided on which concentration? I already registered for classes: 2 required for first-year IDS and one anthro class. I'm also looking into Northern Virginia, but Clarendon/Courthouse and the surrounding neighborhood. Look forward to meeting you in fall! Hi dali99! I've chosen the democracy and governance concentration. I registered for the 2 reqs also, economics and IDS, plus a political science class. But that's definitely it for this semester because I will be working. Good luck with apartment hunting and I look forward to meeting you too!
Tooma Posted June 4, 2011 Author Posted June 4, 2011 Did anyone manage to find an apartment/room yet? I find it greatly overwhelming. So many resources and it's hard to decide especially that I won't be able to check the apartment. I'm moving-in mid August. If you know of anyone requesting roommate(s) please let me know!
Mal83 Posted June 6, 2011 Posted June 6, 2011 Did anyone manage to find an apartment/room yet? I find it greatly overwhelming. So many resources and it's hard to decide especially that I won't be able to check the apartment. I'm moving-in mid August. If you know of anyone requesting roommate(s) please let me know! It definitely is quite overwhelming and I really don't want to do it anymore. I too am moving out in mid-August and won't be able to look at anything before I get there. But I figure that I'm just going to have to put up with whatever I end up with for the 12 month lease because I'm so limited financially. But my 2 main priorities have been a rent price of around $1000 and as close to a metro stop as possible in Northern VA. That helps cut down on what I'm looking at by quite a bit. I find it helpful to call the places I'm really interested in because you get a better feel for by talking to someone that's over there rather than relying on what the website or these apartment sites say.
indiegirl Posted June 7, 2011 Posted June 7, 2011 Hi, I've been admitted into GWU for IDS as well. If anybody here is looking for a roommate do let me know. I'm at my wits end after having searched all the available resources!
dali99 Posted June 8, 2011 Posted June 8, 2011 I have also been looking in the Rosslyn/Clarendon/Courthouse areas. Really anywhere on the Orange line. Have you had any luck yet? I am in the ITIP program, but I have also started registering for classes. Two are required, but I also signed up for one of the one-unit seminars (that will be all for me as I will also be working). I will also be going out early to do some summer review courses that the program is offering. I can't wait! I at first looked at craigslist and found some nice places that fit my criteria. But I am quite hesitant to sign a lease without inspecting the room in advance. (I won't be in the US until mid August.) So now I'm using GW's message board on offcampus housing to find a group of roommates and look for housing. If this fails, I'll just look for housing when I arrive DC in late August.
bblucy Posted June 14, 2011 Posted June 14, 2011 Does anyone know anything/have opinions about HOVA grad student housing? I submitted the interest form on a whim a while back not thinking I would be offered a space (as their site mentioned several times that they didn't expect to have much space available this fall), and was surprised this morning to receive a message offering me a spot there. I've tried to do some research on it, and it is giving me very undergrad dorm-y vibes. Also, it used to be a Howard Johnson, so I guess it may be strange living in a space reminiscent of a hotel room (although it has a great history). Apparently there are two shared kitchens (nothing beyond a microwave allowed in your room). It would be nice to be so close to campus, and it would instantly erase the stress of finding an apartment, but it's been four years since I lived in a dorm (all four years of undergrad) and I am leaning towards declining the offer. Anyway, just curious if anyone has heard anything really great about HOVA or has any horror stories that could really sway me one way or the other. I guess anyone really interested in living there could still submit an interest form as those who were offered a spot have until this Friday to accept, so maybe they will still be able to send out some offers.
CalSeeker Posted July 3, 2011 Posted July 3, 2011 Has anyone already found an apartment? I am planning to arrive in DC in the last week of July and am hoping to find a place within a couple days. Any suggestions?
flotsam Posted July 3, 2011 Posted July 3, 2011 Has anyone already found an apartment? I am planning to arrive in DC in the last week of July and am hoping to find a place within a couple days. Any suggestions? I went out there a few weeks ago with my son to check out the housing situation. We spent 5 days walking the city and taking the metro everywhere, trying to get a good feel for the different neighborhoods. We were both amazed at the diversity from one neighborhood to the next and while he will have to wait until he goes out again at the end of this month to secure a place, he was able to get a good idea of what neighborhoods to gravitate toward and which ones to avoid. If you are willing to commute to the nearby areas in Maryland or Virginia, you get a lot more for your money. But DC has wonderful public transportation (bus and metro) and there are pockets of students everywhere since there are so many colleges all around. If you want to stay close to the campus, get a map of the area. AutoClub has a good map of the area and it includes a metro map on the bottom so you can see how close the stations are to a particular neighborhood. We shopped around on Craigslist and looked at some of the roommate ads on the GWU off-campus website. Things are coming up all the time. My advice to you is to find a place to plant yourself for a week or so and make yourself totally available for the Open Houses that are offered for vacant rooms in established houses/apartments. Craiglist also has some ads for students who are looking for both a place and someone to live with but it might be easier to find something already established that needs a roommate.
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