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I'm a refugee and I don't have much money. I have to start working to pay my expenses and prepare myself for college (learn English and SAT). Im looking for a cheap and safe city to live and work there and have enough time to learn English. Which cities do you recommend?
Also, my main concern in job-affordability, learning English is not as important.
Also I have no experience of living in cities with more than 10k population!
Thanks a lot!
I'm a refugee and I don't have much money. I have to start working to pay my expenses and prepare myself for college (learn English and SAT). Im looking for a cheap and safe city to live and work there and have enough time to learn English. Which cities do you recommend?
Also, my main concern in job-affordability, learning English is not as important.
Also I have no experience of living in cities with more than 10k population!
Thanks a lot!
Check out Carrboro, North Carolina
It has a population of 21K and is largely a college town given it's location right next to Chapel Hill and the University of North Carolina. Rent is fairly affordable with a good amount in the $600-$650 per month range and plenty of options to share for considerably less. There are plenty of jobs in Carrboro and Chapel Hill that would pay a decent enough wage to live comfortably there and it's pretty safe overall. There's also a free bus service that runs through both towns which is a nice asset for saving money. It's also a very friendly community with people from all over the US (and the world) attending school there so it would be a comfortable experience for you I think.
I'm a refugee and I don't have much money. I have to start working to pay my expenses and prepare myself for college (learn English and SAT). Im looking for a cheap and safe city to live and work there and have enough time to learn English. Which cities do you recommend?
Also, my main concern in job-affordability, learning English is not as important.
Also I have no experience of living in cities with more than 10k population!
Thanks a lot!
Check out Cookeville, Tennessee. It has a popular ESL program at Tennessee Tech University in cooperation with FLS International. Cookeville has a population of 32,000 and is an hour east of Nashville, has a lot of jobs, low cost of living, and as a student with FLS--no matter your age--you can live on campus in inexpensive housing, have access to a free bus network around town, and everything else one can expect from a first-tier national university (library, classes, student organizations, gym, computer labs, etc.).
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its - possession
it's - contraction of it is
your - possession
you're - contraction of you are
their - possession
they're - contraction of they are
there - referring to a place
loose - opposite of tight
lose - opposite of win
who's - contraction of who is
whose - possession
alot - NOT A WORD
Thanks a lot!
Any other suggestions?
Another question, aren't those cities unacceptable of foreigners? I mean, I do have some accent and I've heard that small towns in South are not friendly toward aliens. Is it true?
Thanks a lot!
Any other suggestions?
Another question, aren't those cities unacceptable of foreigners? I mean, I do have some accent and I've heard that small towns in South are not friendly toward aliens. Is it true?
If you stick to towns with universities, you'll be ok. Cookeville, for example, has a masjid and an Islamic student organization and other organizations for international students. https://www.tntech.edu/international/student-clubs/
---
its - possession
it's - contraction of it is
your - possession
you're - contraction of you are
their - possession
they're - contraction of they are
there - referring to a place
loose - opposite of tight
lose - opposite of win
who's - contraction of who is
whose - possession
alot - NOT A WORD
Another question, aren't those cities unacceptable of foreigners? I mean, I do have some accent and I've heard that small towns in South are not friendly toward aliens. Is it true?
Not at all true. Durham-Chapel Hill-Carrboro has a few thousand residents who are Arab-born alone and a very significant Asian population as well, not to mention Hispanic along with pretty much every other ethnic group. The area is home to two prestigious universities (Duke and UNC) as well as a high tech research park (Research Triangle Park) where many international tech/bio-tech/pharm companies maintain headquarters or major facilities. It's also a very well-educated population (Chapel Hill and Carrboro are North Carolina's best-educated cities proportionately, with 77% of adult residents holding an associate degree or higher, and 73% of adults possessing a baccalaureate degree or higher) which pretty much always indicates an environment lacking in the pervasive bigotry/racism you're referring to.
There's also a large Saudi and Kuwaiti student population in TTU in Cookeville, but it is quite "rural south" and maybe not so great for a Muslim who doesn't speak English (my family lives there and my parents are integrated Indian immigrants, for context). I would recommend somewhere in Michigan (specifically Dearborn area) with a large Iraqi population to help you get on your feet, and a decent cost of living.
Thanks for all great answers!
Cookeville seems to be perfect, but I'm not sure I can keep living there for a year, it's too rural and doesn't have much things to do for entertainment.
Do you know how can I live in Cookeville without car? Transportation seems to be difficult.
How do you think about Fayetteville AR? It's more isolated but bigger itself. Not sure about job opportunities.
I also found a good program in Miami but it seems that living there is difficult because people speak Spanish and job opportunities are not much. And it's not safe.
I will study English for maximus of 6 months but I need to work there so having entertainment opportunities/hobby classes/sports is important for me.
Again, thanks for all answers!
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