BU housing

[doraemon]

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I was wondering if any of you familiar with apartments around BU can give me some suggestions. I just received a letter from BU housing saying that I can either live in Harrison Court or apartments at the Charles River campus. I did not get the chance to visit Harrison Court during my interview, so was wondering if any BU students can tell me about these apartments. Right now I would prefer to live in there because of its convenience, but gosh it's expensive! What are my other options? Thanks

 

[Doctora Foxy]

I think everything convenient will be expensive. If I get into BU, I would live in Harrison Court. I like to be able to roll out of bed and get to class in 5 minutes if I need to. Why don't you call the admissions office and ask for a number of a student you can chat with? Or maybe if you post this on the allo foum you might get some BU students to respond. 🙂

By the way, when did you interview and when were you accepted? I'm anxiously awaiting a letter from them.

 

[doraemon]

Thanks Doctora for your advice. I will definitely call the housing office next week to obtain more info. I applied for the MD/PhD program, was interviewed late Nov, and got the acceptance right before x'mas. I am not sure when the MD-only acceptances will go out, but hopefully soon so we can all figure out who are classmates will be next yr. Hope to see you at BU!

 

[Capitan]

hey dora-, I'm probably going to be at BU this next year. I'm married, and my wife is going to law school at either Boston College or Harvard, so we'll live somewhere in between. The thing about Boston, as far as I could tell, is that it's really easy to get around out there whether by the T or walking. So, we'll either live around Newton or near the BU main campus.
I'm going to visit Boston this week, so I'll let you know if I learn anything more. Congrats on your acceptance!

 

[Elysium]

I went to BU undergrad, and I gotta tell you, most of the apartment/dorms on campus (main campus on Comm Ave) are a bunch of crap. The slight exception to this rule are the brownstones on Bay State ROad.

Here's a list of decent places:

1) Brownstones on Bay State Road (student apartments, but beautiful, quiet location)
2) Maybe, possibly, the student apartments in South campus. But maybe not. Lots of loud undergrads.
3) THe SOuth end (where the hospitals are located) is a beautiful part of town. It's expensive though.
4) The Back Bay, Beacon Hill, and Brookline are wonderful parts of the city, but you'll pay an arm and a leg.

Basically, everything in Boston is expensive. No doubt. But the good thing is that if you live in Boston proper, you'll be able to get around wherever you need to go without too much trouble. Boston is a really small towm (in surface area), so it doesn't take long to get from the North End to the South End (you could walk it). That said, I would really stay away from Allston, Brighton, or Kenmore Square. Those are all student slums and will depress you.

If you want to explore options outside the dorm, go to <a href="http://www.boston.com" target="_blank">www.boston.com</a> (I think that's the address) and find The Boston Globe. They'll have a listing of apartments and parts of the city, to give you an idea. Also might want to check out a map of Boston to see what's around.

Good Luck.

PM me with more questions.

 

[Doctora Foxy]

Actually, my boyfriend lives in Allston and it's a fun place to live. His condo is gorgeous (but way too overpriced) and there are a lot of fun things to do in walking distance (bars, restaurants, movies). But I think it is where a lot of BC undergrads live, so it can get crazy at times.

If you want cheaper housing, you could get a room in a house. I have a friend that lives in Jamaica Plain for $350 a month. It all depends on how nice you want your living space to be. My boyfriend pays an outrageous amount ($1200), and he lives with 3 people! <img border="0" title="" alt="[Eek!]" src="eek.gif" /> So shop around when you go to visit. 🙂

 

[m2006]

I live in Boston and have been in the area for about a decade (including college and grad school). Since the public transportation is quite reliable, you can live in Brookline or JP (Jamaica Plain) and get to BMC quite easily. It takes about 25 minutes by bus. Harrison Court looks nice enough, but the rent is extraordinarily high and for me, it wouldn't be worth the incredible expense. Rents in JP and Brookline run closer to $550 or $600 right now (for 1-2 roommates)which is a considerable savings. The cross town buses, the 39, and the shuttle from Kenmore (BU Main campus) make commuting much easier. Brighton wouldn't be too bad either, but you could get stuck in traffic if you live on a T line that is outdoors (Green Line B or C most notably).

I'd recommend checking craig's list (boston.craigslist.org) and bostonapartments.com. In addition, there are quite a few roommate postings at BUSM right now. Hopefully, they'll have the 2006 listserve up and running in early summer so people can discuss living arrangements.

Fear not, there are cheaper places to live than Harrison Court. You may not be 5 minutes away, but I would venture that it might be a good thing to get away from school a bit and even live in a place with some trees!