Tell me about Northwestern U/Evanston

[UGAGal]

Hi all,

I am considering going to grad school next fall and Northwestern is one of the few schools to have the specific program I want. I was wondering if anyone goes there and/or knows about the university and the Evanston area.

-does Evanston have a small college town feel or is it more like a Chicago suburb?
-what is the political climate of the university?
-what is there to do in Evanston?
-what about apartments and rent? is graduate housing at Northwestern decent?
-what is the weather like? is it cold and snowy in the winter?
-will a person who thinks san francisco and seattle are heaven on earth be comfortable there?
-is it necessary to have a car?
-any other juicy insider info?

Thanks!

[Rudey]

There's a Pi Beta Phi on here that goes there who could probably answer your questions better.

I went to school in Hyde Park which was a totally different neighborhood than Evanston. I'm going to assume the weather will be just like everywhere else in Chicago since we're the lake is right there. And it's very suburby to me and not a small college town at all. Evanston actually has other businesses there and could survive without the school if you ask me.

There is public transportation that takes you downtown from there but I think everyone in Chicago wants cars just because it's easier.

-Rudey
--Just stay away from Chicago is what I say but the grad program might be worth it.

[vanda]

Rudey what school did you attend in Hyde Park?

[Rudey]

Originally posted by vanda
Rudey what school did you attend in Hyde Park?

university of chicago...not like kenwood high school or anything if that's what you were thinking

-Rudey

[valkyrie]

Originally posted by UGAGal
Hi all,

I am considering going to grad school next fall and Northwestern is one of the few schools to have the specific program I want. I was wondering if anyone goes there and/or knows about the university and the Evanston area.

-does Evanston have a small college town feel or is it more like a Chicago suburb?
-what is the political climate of the university?
-what is there to do in Evanston?
-what about apartments and rent? is graduate housing at Northwestern decent?
-what is the weather like? is it cold and snowy in the winter?
-will a person who thinks san francisco and seattle are heaven on earth be comfortable there?
-is it necessary to have a car?
-any other juicy insider info?

Thanks!

I can't answer all of your questions, but --

Evanston does not feel like a small college town, at all. It feels like a suburb, although it's a very cool suburb with character and diversity and more of an urban feel than most suburbs. I like the town quite a bit. That said, the typical belief is that the residents don't particularly care for the University.

There are quite a few very good restaurants in Evanston, and one of the best coffee houses of all time (Kafein). You're near Chicago and can easily hop on the el as long as you're on the eastern end of town, which you probably would be. As far as I know, it's a pretty expensive place to live, but there might be cheap studenty housing around.

Summers are awful, hot and sticky and winters go on forever and are very, very cold. I think that Chicago has some of the worst weather in the entire world, because it has a lot of extremes (heat and cold) and not a lot of nice days.

[Rudey]

Originally posted by valkyrie
I can't answer all of your questions, but --

Evanston does not feel like a small college town, at all. It feels like a suburb, although it's a very cool suburb with character and diversity and more of an urban feel than most suburbs. I like the town quite a bit. That said, the typical belief is that the residents don't particularly care for the University.

There are quite a few very good restaurants in Evanston, and one of the best coffee houses of all time (Kafein). You're near Chicago and can easily hop on the el as long as you're on the eastern end of town, which you probably would be. As far as I know, it's a pretty expensive place to live, but there might be cheap studenty housing around.

Summers are awful, hot and sticky and winters go on forever and are very, very cold. I think that Chicago has some of the worst weather in the entire world, because it has a lot of extremes (heat and cold) and not a lot of nice days.

High-five on the last paragraph!

-Rudey