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So*, I'm currently considering attending two different universities for graduate school next fall: UC Santa Cruz and Georgetown. I'm from the Bay Area, so I know a lot about Santa Cruz, regarding culture/lifestyle, living expenses, economy, etc. However, the furtherest East I've been is Indiana and/or Florida. I'm hoping the Hatrack Hive Mind can inform a bit more about what DC and the East Coast is like.
I'm not looking for information on housing, exactly (although that would certainly be welcome), but more on what it's like to live in DC, what the culture is, and (if anyone knows) what opportunities there are in the IT field - Abhi works in product management.
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Georgetown rocks dude. Housing is through the roof the closer you get to the city, but isn't it like that near any city? Once you get out to where I live though(Manassas) things start to go down a bit, and theres a ton of cheap places to stay at. I dunno anything about culture because East Coast culture is the only thing I know so I can't tell what's important about the culture and what's not.
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Yeah, I'm used to housing & living expenses for Silicon Valley, so the costs I've seen on Craigslist aren't all that shocking. Since you live in the area, do you have any suggestions as to when most leases open up (early summer or right before classes start, I'd assume)?
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Yeah like you said, and if you're into partying a lot of small pads where I live open for rent during spring break It's a little late for that but oh well.
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I don't know a thing about DC housing, but I love Georgetown. It's got a fun & energetic atmosphere. My husband and I like to stay there overnight on little mini-vacations, eat out, go to the Kennedy Center, walk around...
I like Manassas, too. I love McKay books!
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Crowded by Santa Clara standards, but not by Frisco standards. Lots of stuff. The traffic would make me crazy. Eating out is wonderful.
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As a fellow California native, let me put it bluntly: DC kicks the CRAP out of Santa Cruz.
Georgetown's in a very safe area of DC (the "crime emergency" last July notwithstanding). DC is overwhelmingly Democratic, split between a young, liberal population in the northwest and an strong African-American community throughout. There's tons to do: wonderful restaurants everywhere, and some great clubs and small concert venues if you're into nightlife. And of course, if you like museums at all, you'll be set for life- the Mall has a bazillion museums, and anything affiliated with the Smithsonian (i.e. all the big names) is free to the public.
The Metro is, quite simply, the best public transportation system in the country- cheap, fast, clean, and efficient, with trains running literally every other minute during rush hours. You will learn to love the "bing bong bing bong" door chimes. Unfortunately, Georgetown itself is located relatively far from the nearest Metro stop, but there's a pretty good bus system that runs throughout the city as well.
Housing tends to be on the expensive side, although if you're willing to put in some time and energy, good deals can be found. Generally, the further Northwest you go, the pricier/safer/nicer the housing gets. Anywhere northwest of Adams-Morgan is pretty much guaranteed to be safe. You'll want to avoid both Southwest and Southeast, since they're uniformly dangerous places to live. There are areas in Northeast that are safe-ish, such as the Brookland/ Catholic University area where I live, but it can be iffy at times. If you don't mind living in the 'burbs, you can get a pretty cheap apartment around Bethesda or Rockville in Maryland, or (more likely if you're attending Georgetown) in one of the northern Virginia counties. Leases open throughout the year, but most often on June 1 and September 1, for obvious reasons.
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There's definitely a college culture around, since there are lots of schools here. Even people out of school are often in town for only a few years to work for the government or non-profits and then go home. The nightlife is very decent (compared to other major East Coast cities), and I love that I can go to a bar without worrying about driving home. The prices are not obscene when compared to other major cities. Definitely check with a local before you sign a lease, though - the safety of an area can change from block to block. I'm told that DCists and East Coasters in general tend to be a bit more intense and hurried than Californians, but as I've only been to California once I can't vouch for that. I just think we're normal Posts: 23 | Registered: Jul 2001
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I had a post here, but the browsertroll ate it.
So I'll echo:
* The Metro rocks. Walk left, stand right. Enjoy the candy-colored seats and adwrapped cars. * The traffic stinks. See above. * As Mara said: This is a college town moonlighting as the capital of the free world. Lots and lots to do... * Government stuff spills over into Maryland and VA -- a lot of college students like me come home and work as federal employees over the summer. * The local economy is pretty strong. TIME says this is because it forces the rest of the country to send money or go to prison, but it's also due to smart local governance. * Northwest, esp. Georgetown, is a really nice area. * Southeast is, well, not as nice, but the new stadium for the Nationals is being built in that area. It should do a lot of good.
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To answer the question that it doesn't look like anyone has addressed yet, DC has plenty of IT opportunities. Defense engineering contractors like Lockheed Martin and Raytheon ring the city, and AOL, Unisys, and a host of other technology companies have area offices as well.
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All my friends who don't work in the government or non-profits work in IT. And sometimes they work in both.
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Hmm, the one problem is that Abhi is not a U.S. citizen, so I doubt he could get any work in defense-type companies, due to security reasons. Probably not much governmental work, either. But we're looking into IT jobs, and the market doesn't look too bad. Nothing like Silicon Valley, but there's a reason why they call it Silicon Valley.
Thanks for all the replies, everyone! If anyone else has information of any kind, I'd love to hear it.
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For what it's worth I love DC. I've only been there twice, and both on business, but it has a really nice feel.
There's a lot o0f IT in and around DC and Virginia/Maryland, from AOL to all the various integrators who service the government/financial industries.
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quote:Hmm, the one problem is that Abhi is not a U.S. citizen, so I doubt he could get any work in defense-type companies
Not entirely true. Most job postings will explicitly state whether citizenship is required.
Another approach that Abhi could take would be to approach his country's embassy to see if they have any opportunities for a Georgetown student. Depending on which embassy we're talking about, I might be able to pass your name along.
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DC is fantastic. I should have moved here years ago. I enjoy your chance to go to Georgetown - it's a really great school. MattB from this board is a grad student there.
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I live about 25 minutes outside of DC in Maryland. I regret NOT going to college there. I spend as much time enjoying DC as I can though. I second most of everything said above, especially the great METRO.
Which university? Some of us might know people that have gone there.
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Another approach that Abhi could take would be to approach his country's embassy to see if they have any opportunities for a Georgetown student. Depending on which embassy we're talking about, I might be able to pass your name along.
Only Jaclyn would be a Georgetown student. I would be looking to work full time. I'm a citizen of the Republic of India.
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Where are you planning to live? How do you like to spend your time? How do you feel about long walks in the snow?
The answer is complicated, in other words. If you choose to go without a car, you'll be spending a lot of time on public transit. The metro is great, but it is not always convenient, the buses are frequently late, and it's rarely faster than driving outside of rush hour. You'll also be having to carry your shopping home, choose entertainment options that are accessible, limit your trips to the suburbs, and so on.
That being said, several of my friends do not own cars and don't have plans to acquire one. I do own a car, but I don't tend to use it more than once or twice a week. The feasability of going carless really depends on where you live and what your commute is like, though.
Another option to be aware of is car-sharing services such as zipcar and flexcar, where you can pay a monthly membership and rent cars by the hour.
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last July notwithstanding). DC is overwhelmingly Democratic, split between a young, liberal population in the northwest and an strong African-American community throughout. There's tons to do: wonderful restaurants everywhere, and some great clubs and small concert venues if you're into nightlife. And of course, if you like museums at all, you'll be set for life- the Mall has a bazillion museums, and anything affiliated with the Smithsonian (i.e. all the big names) is free to the public.![[Smile]](smile.gif)
