I have a huge list of potential cities and need help narrowing it down! (fit in)

[Blackkitteycat]

Hi, I'm going to be attending grad school next year and I applied to a LOT of colleges not really thinking i'd get in, and now I did and I can't decide which to attend. I've poured over rankings and cost and I think I have my final list. Now i'm mainly looking at the location and if I would fit in with the city. I was hoping you guys could help me make a final decision!


I'm 23. I currently live in Austin, TX. I love the culture of the city, the food, and the nature. I dislike the traffic problems, cost of living, and there's not much that's really my "style" to do. I enjoy going to museums, aquariums, zoos, art galleries, etc. and there's surprisingly not much of those in Austin. I also want a place that has more outdoors-y things to do. I'm very big into hiking, rafting, horseback riding, etc. Either way, i've lived here for around 8 years and i'm looking for a change.

I grew up in Miami, FL, then moved to Austin, TX. I enjoy the big city, but I don't mind a smaller city either.
Here's my list of cities:

1. Boulder, CO
2. Laramie, WY
3. Helena, MT
4. Olympia, WA
5. Seattle, WA
6. Tacoma, WA
7. Portland, OR
8. San Diego, CA
9. Logan, UT
10. Albuquerque, NM
11. Anchorage, AK
12. Vancouver, Canada

I probably won't end up settling down in one of these cities forever, but at least while I finish grad school. They're mainly in the Pacific Northwest save for a few, but that's pretty necessary for my career.

Which of these cities do you like best? Are there any you dislike?

[jaynarie]

One thing I notice is that you dislike the cost of living in Austin, yet most of the cities are more expensive and some are significantly more expensive. Boulder, Seattle, Portland, San Diego, Anchorage, and Vancouver are all going to be much more expensive. The others will be comparable to Austin. None of them will really be noticeably more affordable. Logan is probably the most affordable of the bunch. I work with financials on a national level, so the whole cost of living thing stood out.

I haven't visited the majority of the list, so I will keep things general. But based on the things you dislike (COL, traffic) about Austin as well as your interests, I'd eliminate San Diego. It sounds like you are better suited for the more rural, inland, mountainous areas, not the beach. The cost of living and traffic combo probably means you should take out Seattle, and probably Portland and Vancouver, too.

[Vegabern]

Originally Posted by Blackkitteycat

Here's my list of cities:

1. Boulder, CO
2. Laramie, WY
3. Helena, MT
4. Olympia, WA
5. Seattle, WA
6. Tacoma, WA
7. Portland, OR
8. San Diego, CA
9. Logan, UT
10. Albuquerque, NM
11. Anchorage, AK
12. Vancouver, Canada

Carroll College? This is a very small college. It doesn't bring college amenities to town. There is no "college town" feel to Helena, at all. It's a government town.


Your 'city amenities' will be EXTREMELY limited in Helena. No aquarium, no zoo, a few small museums and art galleries. Outdoor activities are good but not the best in MT. Access to the Missouri River/Lakes is pretty great but you'll need to go an hour+ to hit rafting country. Helena has a great central location between MT's cities. Aside from that, it's very isolated. The closest big city is Calgary, AB at just over 6 hours or Salt Lake City at just under 7 hrs. Unless you consider Spokane, WA a big city (I don't). In that case it's 5 hrs.


Be prepared for winter. Helena is more mild that most of MT but it still gets to -30F in the winter. You don't get large accumulations of snow because the relentless wind blows it into North Dakota. The wind never stops.