areas where grad students live. (Madison, Franklin: apartments, condos, co-op)

[Tex?Il?]

I might be moving to Madison just under a year from now. If I get accepted and get funding for my program I'm trying to get into.

Where are some of the areas in town in Madison where grad students live?

I would ideally be interested in being kind of where the "action" is. Someplace that is relatively "walkable." When I move I will most likely look for a roommate or someone who is looking for one. That will allow me to possibly make new friends quicker and be able to live in a nicer area and not pay as much.

I've heard that the capitol building area (within a half mile) is kind of a hot area for young professionals.

What are some of your opinions.

[gallon]

Tex, start studying the Craigslist. Tons of young people looking to arrange roommates, sharing apartments, that sort of thing.

[ComfortablyNumb]

Gallon, that isn't what he was asking. As for where grad students live, I'm not really all that sure. I would imagine in apartments further down park street, as well as maybe in the Monroe Area?

[Megan1967]

Further down Park Street is a rough area. It is not know for it's grad student population, although I'm sure you can find some there because of the low rents. You can do better.

There was another thread very similar to this recently and MidwesternBookWorm listed some good areas. She mentions the name of one street in particular seems to keep slipping my mind, but it is thick with grad students (in a good way).

Try looking over the recent posts or using the forum search tool using the words "madison" "grad student"

[RemiJP]

I'm a grad student just moved to the Willy Street neighborhood. The area is mostly populated by grad students, professionals, and people with families. It's quiet at night, but there are lots of things to do on Willy St. The co-op is fantastic, tons of restaurants and coffee shops - I like it a lot so far! There's an artsy, community feel here. I share a two bedroom with my boyfriend in a well-maintained 2 family home for $965. I have a friend starting vet school who lives in the Atwood neighborhood, which has a similar vibe, but is a little farther away from campus.

[Tex?Il?]

Thanks everyone for your help.

I actually visited this past Friday on my day off. Drove two hours from the NW Chi burbs with my bike and spent the day exploring the town, (not actual interviews with faculty yet, that will come in October).

I loved it!! I really hope I get in the program and am packing up next August!

I also checked out all the other threads, I tried searching before but for some reason I only just found all these other threads.

Based on these threads and my visit, I've come up with areas I will start looking for apartments after I (hopefully) get accepted into the program.

Like I said I will be a PhD student. I do take my studies seriously but I'm also 28 and still an active social life in a vibrant area is important to me. Among many other reasons I love Madison because I have the best of both worlds. The whole idea that I can go from vibrant neighborhood with great restaurants and young ladies to the beautiful midwest countryside in 20 minutes is great.

There are a lot of things I like Chicago and its burbs but basically an enormous, overwhelming, skyscraper obsessed city with artificial parks and artificial shoreline surrounded my endless sprawl where its mostly families and it takes 30-45 minutes to get anywhere is just not my scene.

So:

University/Midvale St./ Carolina apartments a little too far from the action for me. Sounds a little too quiet. The last place I went to do my masters had student apartments that were kind of isolated from the rest of campus with not much to do except go to chain places. Maybe these places aren't quite like that, but I want to be closer to the action.

I very much want to be CLOSE to state st. and the heart of campus but still just far enough where I can get my work and research done in the middle of the day without people having parties immediately outside my window. I wouldn't mind some undergrads its just that I don't want the area to be all undergrads, more because social-life wise I might have less in common with them, not too get away from them. Again social life is important.

Having said that these are the places I will look when (and if) it comes time:

University Hts. area (1/4 mile west of Randall stadium) University/Kendall/Walnut St. looks and sounds like a great area.

Monroe St. Neighborhood. West of Grant (Theres a Traders Joes there awesome!) And close to free zoo and Arboretum for hiking and biking!

East of Wisconsin and north of Capitol (Washington), but west of Blount St. Again close to the action. But when I need quiet for studying I usually have it.

West end of Willy St. (I ate at the Indonesian restuarant there). Again close to the action. Not more than a couple blocks east of Jenifer. A little hippy vibe is great. Why I like Madison. but I relate more to the "clean-cut" moderately liberal hippie I guess.

So we'll see. Again, can't count my chickens before they hatch.

[ComfortablyNumb]

If you want to be near state street and the "life", you'll have to deal with the loud and obnoxious undergrads at least some. Honestly, I'm not sure how much you'd like the night life where the undergrads hang out. I'm not really sure where the grad students hang out in UW, but I'm sure there are specific areas, such as the bars around the Capitol. Obviously, if you are looking for a place to live, stay away from the high rise towers along University Avenue or the housing neighborhoods around them.

Areas I might recommend are in one of the houses closer to James Madison Park on one of the streets that bisects Johnson/Gorham, such as Blair or Franklin Street. Some undergrads live here too, but it is a quiet area that is also very accessible to State Street and the Capitol Square. You won't have crazy drunks blasting music until 3 am like you will around University Avenue, and you can also go and relax by the lake.

Monroe is another good area, but it is not that close to State Street. If you are getting your Ph.D in an engineering/science field, it may be a good area. Otherwise, you'll be walking a very long way to classes and during the winter it can feel like some tortuous death march.

Lastly, I'm not sure of the exact streets, but you can check out stuff around the Lake Monona Side of West Washington Ave. There are quite a few expensive condos around here and the age group is definitely late 20's/30's. It's really close to State Street, too, only about 4 blocks. If you want to bike a little, the Williamson Area is also only a short ride away.

[Tex?Il?]

Thanks Comfortably numb, your suggestions were really helpful!

The James Madison Park area, Monroe St. are great options for me. The south side of Washington St. on the Lake Monona side also seem great, but yeah, I would definitely need a roommate with those prices.

I guess what I meant by "being close to the action of State St."

There are some special places along that st.

A) it seems the greatest diversity in ethnic restaurants are along State St. (although Willy was great too)

B) other cool places like the museum of contemporary art as well as the Orpheum theater is there. I guess being within a mile of St. is fine for me.

I just wouldn't want to live say in the Atwood neighborhood on the other side of that canal, or near University and Midvale. Those places seemed "too far from the action"

Thanks again for the advice!