UCSD Away rotation

[Adelaida]

I just accepted an away at UCSD, I have absolutely no idea which medical center I'll be at and I need to look for housing. All it says is "you'll rotating through UC medical center or the VA" Is this right next to the school of medicine, or is this Hillcrest/scripps area?? where should I look for housing I wont have a car

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[EBAMom]

I'm not a med student (yet) but I do live in San Diego. The VA is basically on the La Jolla campus, and UCSD Thorton is right nearby. The main medical center is in Hillcrest. There are shuttles between the two. Hillcrest is somewhat cheaper and there are more things like grocery stores and coffee shops within walking/biking distance, so its much more accessible without a car. La Jolla w/o a car would be a lot more difficult. So, I would say, live in Hillcrest and use the shuttles to get back and forth to La Jolla. But, if you can at all afford a cheap car or a longer term rental, it will make things a lot easier. San Diego is a car city and public transportation is poor.

 

[dasudaman]

I just accepted an away at UCSD, I have absolutely no idea which medical center I'll be at and I need to look for housing. All it says is "you'll rotating through UC medical center or the VA" Is this right next to the school of medicine, or is this Hillcrest/scripps area?? where should I look for housing I wont have a car

It really depends what rotation/department you are rotating through. Some departments are heavy at one location or another, and some have didactics or grand rounds at one location or another. The clerkship coordinator (for the department) at UCSD should be able to help you with this info if you don't have it already.

 

[silverlining1]

Holy cow dasudaman, you still post here??? I have made a total of like 3 posts since MS1

OP, once you talk to the clerkship director and find out exactly where you'll be rotating, I'll be happy to give some public transportation/walking advice. The short answer is that public transportation is not so good around Hillcrest, to my knowledge - but the good thing is that there's a lot of housing in the immediate area, so you can likely find a place that's walkable. For Thornton/VA, it's harder to find a place that's walkable, but the public transportation options are better - check ucsdbus.com or sdmts.com.

Also, I can post on the med student forum to ask if anyone's looking for a subletter; there are posts about this all the time.

 

[Adelaida]

Hey silverlining1,
I emailed and asked and found that I'll be at the VA. I'm finding it super hard to find a place near there as most of the places are near hillcrest. I dont mind taking the shuttle but apparently it runs from 6am and i'm afraid I'll need to be in earlier than that.
I'd REALLY appreciate it if you can post for me, do you mind PMing me your email address and I can shoot you an email with the info?
thanks!

 

[yellowumbrella]

If you're at the VA there are lots of shuttles/buses in the UTC area, and it won't be a problem at all without a car. I had a car, but took public transportation to campus the first two years. You can craigslist UTC, La Jolla, UCSD. And look at the transportation websites silverlining posted. good luck!

 

[silverlining1]

Hey silverlining1,
I emailed and asked and found that I'll be at the VA. I'm finding it super hard to find a place near there as most of the places are near hillcrest. I dont mind taking the shuttle but apparently it runs from 6am and i'm afraid I'll need to be in earlier than that.
I'd REALLY appreciate it if you can post for me, do you mind PMing me your email address and I can shoot you an email with the info?
thanks!

Sure, I'll PM you. A few notes so the public can see-

I agree that Craigslist can help you find something in the area. Also, I hear rotatingroom.com is a good resource for finding temporary housing while on away rotations.

Hmm, so it sounds like you're going to have to walk to the VA, and perhaps be able to take a shuttle home. There's one apartment complex across the street from the VA (I can't find its name...), and One Miramar (grad housing) is very close too. And depending on when you're coming, a new housing building is opening up just across the way from the VA and might have a temp spot open.
..