have any of you visited new haven? (yale) is it really that bad crime wise?

[LupaCupcake]

I am hoping some of you might have some info on this. I have been reading some disturbing information saying that new haven has a lot of crime. New Haven is the home of Yale. I talked to a doctor I know today who went wide eyed on me when I mentioned Yale. I told him I want a safe neighborhood/family oriented area. As nontrads many of us have to take our families into consideration and I have a young daughter to worry about. He told me to stay away from Yale in his opinion because they have major issues with rape and women being mugged in New Haven then mentioned a high rate of breaking and entering.

It has been years since he visited New Haven. Have any of you been their or heard things like this? I love Yale, it is my #1, but if the neighborhood really is this bad I will not risk my family. I would appreciate any comments or anything you have heard about New Haven. Thanks!

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[theseeker4]

I am hoping some of you might have some info on this. I have been reading some disturbing information saying that new haven has a lot of crime. New Haven is the home of Yale. I talked to a doctor I know today who went wide eyed on me when I mentioned Yale. I told him I want a safe neighborhood/family oriented area. As nontrads many of us have to take our families into consideration and I have a young daughter to worry about. He told me to stay away from Yale in his opinion because they have major issues with rape and women being mugged in New Haven then mentioned a high rate of breaking and entering.

It has been years since he visited New Haven. Have any of you been their or heard things like this? I love Yale, it is my #1, but if the neighborhood really is this bad I will not risk my family. I would appreciate any comments or anything you have heard about New Haven. Thanks!

I am not personally familiar with New Haven, but as a father who will be attending a school in the heart of one of the highest-crime cities in the country, I wouldn't let the surroundings of the school dictate where you go. I am positive there are safe neighborhoods in the vicinity of Yale from which you could commute. If living at/right next to the school is vital to you, however, I would wait for someone with more direct knowledge of the school's area to comment.

Edit to add that the crime rate of the city around the school is a poor indication of the safety of the school itself. Talk to students at Yale about how safe the environment is rather than determining what the city is like, if you are more concerned with the times you are on-campus, and not as worried about where your family will live.

 

[Autarkeia]

Yes, and unfortunately, yes. That said, it's not the crime that bothers me, but the snow. Then again, I'm not a woman. I might feel differently as the school admin seems confused about how to balance their integration into the community against student safety.

 

[LingoLaine]

As a mother, this stuff really concerns me and plays a huge part in selecting medical school options. For my family's sake, I need to attend school in a place that offers:

1. good public education options for my children
2. safe and livable neighborhoods within a reasonable commuting distance of the medical school
3. access to the great outdoors/recreational options

All of these together would make for a place where we could not only survive medical school as a family but also plant some roots and possibly stay permanently.

As you've probably noticed, however, most medical schools, by virtue of being affiliated with large teaching hospitals, are located in major urban areas. That often makes at least #2 and #3 above difficult to fulfill.

I used to live in Connecticut and personally would not want to move my family to New Haven. There are plenty of areas within 20-30 minutes of New Haven though, where I would love to live. I applied to UConn (Farmington), and although I probably have a snowball's chance in hell of being accepted, I selected it primarily because I love Connecticut and the "livability" (see list above) of the area.

 

[MedWonk]

I admittedly speak from limited experience stemming from visiting my cousin who lives in the area, but from what I gather, it's improved, but crime is still on the high side. Property crime in particular seems to remain quite high, as well as the number of sexual assaults.

I admit I have same the reservations as OP, but I'll probably still apply.

 

[Northwesterly]

I spent four years in New Haven, after going to high school in a somewhat dicey part of Philadelphia (Germantown) and grade school in a somewhat ritzy part of the Bay Area. (El Cerrito)
The city as a whole, like most of the Connecticut River Valley, has problems. But the area around Yale (especially the central campus) is pretty darn gentrified, with the same Apple store, Urban Outfitters, and all the rest of the corporate glamour you see near every college campus these days. There are some super swanky parts of town where tenured faculty live, and some really terrible parts of town as well--where pretty much no students or professors live. (There's also a large Italian-American area that has a number of restaurants with the best pizza in the United States.)
Can you get mugged near Yale? Sure, but you can at Penn, or any of the New York schools, or Chicago just as easily. Basically, I wouldn't hesitate to move my family to New Haven.

 

[n3xa]

+1 to what northwesterly said

Visited there for graduate school in 2006.

 

[Blue Cohosh]

.

 

[wavewheel]

+1 to Blue Cohosh and Northwesterly. I was at Yale from 2003-2007 and never really felt in danger. New Haven is a city and has some standard city problems, but Yale goes out of its way to make sure that its students and employees are safe. If I was going to be raising a kid in New Haven, I'd look into living in East Rock, which has a large grad student population and strikes me as family friendly but still affordable. As others have pointed out, some of the nearby suburbs like Hamden would also be a reasonable option.

 

[plauto]

It's just like any urban area. If you are that concerned just get a piece. I don't know what CT laws are like as far as carrying though.

 

[LingoLaine]

If you are that concerned just get a piece.

Hmmm. Somehow this doesn't strike me as a viable solution for keeping one's young children safe in an urban environment with high crime.

 

[blueflower77]

I did research at Yale for 2 summers and here's my 2 cents. (and I'm a girl if that matters)

Just like the post doc above said, Yale does make extensive attempts on providing a secure environment for their students/faculty. There is a Yale-shuttle, a blue striped bus that can pick you up, take you around the campus - med school, grad school, undergrad and take you to your apartment on the campus area (which is super large as on any large univ campus). I didn't have any issues while there, granted, I always was home before dark and didn't wonder around the city when it was dark. My professor lives in Woodbridge - a very nice subdivision/town right outside of New Haven. So you can live close to the campus without living IN New Haven if you are truly concerned.

There are also student groups that organize apartment living, sublets and housing around the area. I would contact them if you're looking for a nice house to rent in a good neighborhood. Yes, crime is high, but it's also possible to find a good place to live. I would highly recommend Yale. I volunteered at the Yale New Haven Hospital (right down the street from the med school library), used the library a lot and worked in the area, too. Don't eliminate it as a school just because of the area (even if you have kids) because it is possible to find a good place to live if you try.

Good luck.

 

[LupaCupcake]

I will take all of that into consideration. I know a lot of schools are unfortunately in not so wonderful areas like chicago aka pimp capital of the world. Prior to my military days I was in Cleveland for a few years...I know what it is like to be in a nice suburban area that is safe, good schools etc. then you drive about 20 min. and it seems like the entire atmosphere changes. Before you know it your in neighborhoods that "gangstas" sing about.

A doctor I know is pushing dartmouth on me now cause it is located in a nice area of new hampshire. I took it as a compliment that he actually thinks I could serve a chance to get into dartmouth ^^ He is really against Yale, says he does not feel it would be safe. I get some people saying NOOO yale is terrible for families and some saying it is owkay, just live in the suburbs.

This would be a lot easier if I could visit right now and see for myself. Something weighing on me about this is that I am deciding what state we move to when we leave the military and that state is going to be whatever I choose as my #1 pick. I know I may not get into my #1 and I will have safety schools, but we couldn't decide where to move so we ended up going with this idea.

#1 pick
safe
good schools for daughter
decent cost of living and unemployment rate

bear in mind we will be leaving the military after 13 years, no guarantees on what type of income we will be transitioning to at this point other than my school loans..it is a big decision. I just don't want to pick a #1 and state then find out the place is terrible to settle down in for awhile.

 

[BeachBlondie]

I spent four years in New Haven, after going to high school in a somewhat dicey part of Philadelphia (Germantown) and grade school in a somewhat ritzy part of the Bay Area. (El Cerrito)
The city as a whole, like most of the Connecticut River Valley, has problems. But the area around Yale (especially the central campus) is pretty darn gentrified, with the same Apple store, Urban Outfitters, and all the rest of the corporate glamour you see near every college campus these days. There are some super swanky parts of town where tenured faculty live, and some really terrible parts of town as well--where pretty much no students or professors live. (There's also a large Italian-American area that has a number of restaurants with the best pizza in the United States.)
Can you get mugged near Yale? Sure, but you can at Penn, or any of the New York schools, or Chicago just as easily. Basically, I wouldn't hesitate to move my family to New Haven.

+1

I'm a ghetto baby, raised in poor conditions in very dicey areas. And, I'll tell you one thing, oftentimes the reputation far outweighs the actual circumstances.

That being said, any large urban area will have its share of good and bad neighborhoods--it's the nature of the beast. At Harvard, we always get notifications of muggings, etc. because we're so close to metro Boston. If you do your research on prospective neighborhoods, you should be fine.

 

[n3xa]

Texas or Florida. Cheap cheap cheap state schools and chances of acceptance are better than Yale.

 

[yusanshui]

I studied at Yale for 2 years for my master. I actually like Yale very much. It is true that New Haven is not very safe, especially for medical school, it is very close to the 'crime zone'. However, it is definitely not like you are having a 'life-threatening situation' everyday. Just keep in mind not to walk out at night alone, not go to certain areas alone and prepare some cash with you in case something happens.

During my stay at Yale, none of my friends or myself got robbed or something else. SO just be careful, everything is fine.

I am hoping some of you might have some info on this. I have been reading some disturbing information saying that new haven has a lot of crime. New Haven is the home of Yale. I talked to a doctor I know today who went wide eyed on me when I mentioned Yale. I told him I want a safe neighborhood/family oriented area. As nontrads many of us have to take our families into consideration and I have a young daughter to worry about. He told me to stay away from Yale in his opinion because they have major issues with rape and women being mugged in New Haven then mentioned a high rate of breaking and entering.

It has been years since he visited New Haven. Have any of you been their or heard things like this? I love Yale, it is my #1, but if the neighborhood really is this bad I will not risk my family. I would appreciate any comments or anything you have heard about New Haven. Thanks!

 

[Northwesterly]

Texas or Florida. Cheap cheap cheap state schools and chances of acceptance are better than Yale.

This is true, but it's worth pointing out that the OP and her kid(s) are probably at much higher risk from traffic accidents living in suburban Florida or Texas and driving all over the damn county than they would be walking up Elm Street in New Haven. Older folks who think of New Haven as an inner-city hellhole aren't quite as ridiculous as people whose idea of Manhattan comes from "Escape from New York" and "The Warriors," but you get the idea.

 

[LupaCupcake]

Texas and florida might be easier to get into...but I am not aiming for easy to get into.

I started thinking about this in Ohio terms (where I am from originally although I live in europe right now). It sounds like Yale is near east 98th (bad area of cleveland, bone thugs sings about it lol) you don't hang out around the eastside of cleveland unless you want to buy drugs, a hooker or your in a gang. Families ilve in parma heights (nice suburbian area that costs a little more but it is worth it) you drive 30 min to get downtown or to work but you don't actually live dead center in the city.

I lived in a shady area of cleveland when I got out of high school and at the time I didn't care because I was young and dumb. I never had any issues personally, but a couple kids were kidnapped near me and one man killed. So yea....I like the suburbs 😀

 

[Bluesun]

Texas and florida might be easier to get into...but I am not aiming for easy to get into.

I started thinking about this in Ohio terms (where I am from originally although I live in europe right now). It sounds like Yale is near east 98th (bad area of cleveland, bone thugs sings about it lol) you don't hang out around the eastside of cleveland unless you want to buy drugs, a hooker or your in a gang. Families ilve in parma heights (nice suburbian area that costs a little more but it is worth it) you drive 30 min to get downtown or to work but you don't actually live dead center in the city.

I lived in a shady area of cleveland when I got out of high school and at the time I didn't care because I was young and dumb. I never had any issues personally, but a couple kids were kidnapped near me and one man killed. So yea....I like the suburbs 😀

C-town REPRESENT!

If you haven't lived here in awhile, the east side is getting worse and spreading. A little while ago, I drove to the Cedar Lee theater, and my friend used her GPS to get us to where we wanted to be next. Well, the GPS didn't take into account how !@#$ing ghetto the east side is, and took us down Superior ALL the way downtown. I drive kind of a nice car that just does not fit in at all. I was half expecting to get car jacked. People blatantly selling drugs on the street...it's like another country.

OP:

A good friend of mine went to Yale for undergrad (football scholarship). He's a large fellow, so I don't think he was ever particularly concerned, but he made mention several times about how awful the area was if you wandered just a few blocks. Having said that, the university I went to for undergrad is surrounded by ghetto as well. It really wasn't that big of a deal for just me, but as a woman or as someone with kids, I may have thought differently.

I do, however, second one of the posts above that said that you should be able to find a decent area within driving distance of school, if you were willing to go that route.

 

[LupaCupcake]

Yea, I heard Cleveland is getting worse. I don't mind driving 20-30 min to school. I am just curious how much those suburbs cost to live in. I will look that up tomorrow, I am exhausted right now and don't feel like researching anything. 😛

I am a military vet...let someone with bad intentions approach me while I am on campus , I am not the type to act sweet and say "ohh mr bad guy, please be nice". Come on now, I lived in C-town lol, we got bone thugs .

If the suburbs are nice, good schools, reasonably priced...then it is a consideration I take highly. Although we can afford suburbs right now, we don't know what type of employment he is going to get when we leave the military and once I am in med school that is a full time job. He is an IT guy.

anyways...I am so tired😴 I had multiple preschoolers and toddlers in my daycare today, school work, trick or treating bla bla bla.....night night

 

[mjscal]

This question makes no sense to me. There is a lot of competition to get into medical school. It is especially hard to get into the top medical schools. YSM is also a research oriented school and few of the students are 30 + on admission.
To get into YSM or any other top medical school requires the right numbers from the right places and luck. The only way this question is logical is if you have already been accepted into YSM and some other schools and want to know which place is best for you.
New Haven is not a particularly warm and safe urban environment but the area around the University and hospital is alright as long as you take the usual urban precautions. Although I no longer live in the area I have visited friends recently. Many medical schools on the east coast such as Hopkins and Penn are in similar areas.
You could easily live in Branford which is a pleasant town just north across the Q bridge if you want a suburban setting that would be about a 15 minute + drive to the medical school without traffic. I would guess that most faculty live in either Branford or Madison.
Establishing residency in Conn for medical school is also probably not the best choice for medical school admission as only U Conn will give you preference. Consider Texas as better choice. Much easier to get into medical school as a Texas resident than as a Conn resident. Baylor and Southwest are excellent medical schools and you also have at least 6 other schools to pick from. Cost is also much lower than Yale and most other medical schools in the country.
I know you say you do not care whether it is difficult to gain admission into medical school. Unfortunately it may be more difficult than you think and if becoming a physician is your goal you should consider a path that is most likely to lead to success.

 

[LupaCupcake]

I am not fooling myself into thinking that getting into any medical school is easy or I "have it in the bag". I am realistic in that they may say no immediately and I never even get an interview, honestly I will be happy if I even get to the interview stage at Yale. I understand completely that it is difficult and my chances are not exceptional.

That being said, I will still try to get into a top school. The thing is my situation is a slightly different. In 2012 we are leaving the military and moving back to the U.S. We did not know where we were going to move to so eventually we decided whatever is my #1, we will move to that location. It is not like we have extensive family anywhere so any city was up for grabs in terms of where we move.

Normally people do not move to a school location prior to acceptance, but we didn't know what area we were moving to so this is how we are deciding.

BTW, with your comment that very few over 30 get in. That is an excuse in my eyes for someone not to try. I don't give excuses, I don't care how rational they are. If I get rejected that is fine, but at least I tried. I don't care that I will be 28 when we get out, I have a lot of good things going in my favor and I will give it my all to get into a top school. What is the worst that happens, I end up at one of my safety schools. Owkay, great. I won't have any "what if" questions in my head. So you can shush that "few over 30" nonsense. Success and excuses don't walk the same path.

 

[LingoLaine]

What is the worst that happens, I end up at one of my safety schools.

I don't really understand this concept of safety schools. Sure, I get it in theory, but in practice (at least for me), there's no such thing. I would love to have "safety schools" but the reality is that I would go to any school that would take me. My issue is making it work with a husband, his career, and two kids in tow, which necessarily limits us geographically.

Do people who have "safety schools" have much much better stats than I?

 

[LupaCupcake]

I would not think of any school as a sure thing so how safe is it really? I get that, I totally get that. Some schools have lower average stats for their accepted students and accept larger numbers. They are safer although not exactly safe. It sounds bad to say "lower stats", but that does not mean bad stats. You know what I mean.

I figure go for a few top choices, go for a few that are less than your stat range.

 

[LingoLaine]

I figure go for a few top choices, go for a few that are less than your stat range.

I get that in theory, but in practice I don't think there are any that are less than my stat range. (FYI, my stats aren't THAT low -- 3.59cum/3.79sci/31Q). For example, the average stats for my state school (Colorado) are quite a bit higher than mine, and I will be out of state (a definite disadvantage) for any schools that might have a lower stat range.