Fullerton as a student? (Irvine, Orange: budget, apartments, travel)

[giraffemiteis]

Hi there,


I am planning to study in Fullerton. I was wondering if you have some valuable information for me...Is it a safe place?How long does it take me to get to L.A?Is this place all right for students?And most importantly...is it expensive?which are should I move to?

looking forward to reading from you...

[1234]

Hello!

I read your questions about Fullerton. I will try to answer some of them. Fullerton is a nice place to live in general. It's always growing and trying to improve. It is a good place for college students because it is safe and not very expensive....if you budget yourself and know where to shop. But places to live can be very, very expensive.

As for where to live, I suggest places North of Fullerton College. The areas South of the college tend to be run down and very noisey. In general Fullerton is a safe place to live. I suggest you look up Fullerton's website for more information. It's about a 30-45 minute drive from LAX.

There are plenty of fast-food places and grocery stores there, but you must plan ahead as to what you want to buy with the money you have. Good luck with your new life!

1234

smmoceri@hotmail.com

[OCCASparky]

Originally Posted by giraffemiteis

Hi there,


I am planning to study in Fullerton. I was wondering if you have some valuable information for me...Is it a safe place?How long does it take me to get to L.A?Is this place all right for students?And most importantly...is it expensive?which are should I move to?

looking forward to reading from you...

Another question, are you, as the previous poster hinted, going to Fullerton College, or CSU Fullerton? If you can't find anything to share in Fullerton (stay away from the area south of downtown), think about Orange or Tustin. Even La Habra has some decent areas as does Buena Park. Villa Park is gonna be too expensive for you.

[Amavel]

You might consider living near the "Orange Circle" in old towne Orange. Its a walkable area with a ton of shopping and is a popular spot among the young and old alike. If I'm not mistaken, its not too far from Chapman University.

Also, the annual Orange Street Fair takes place nearby.

[Saphyre]

Hi there - I live in Fullerton. The above posters gave you some pretty good infor about travel time. Any more questions just ask away! I'm not in college (i'm assuming from your post that you are?) but I live really close to both the community college and the University.

[mdmagana]

Check out the Fullerton Observer for rentals and people looking for roomates. I always had good luck when looking in the Observer cause it is such a small newspapaer.

[ach1978]

Is LaHabra ok? I am thinking about moving to LaHabra in a couple of months. Ideas???

[dennismpat]

Originally Posted by ach1978

Is LaHabra ok? I am thinking about moving to LaHabra in a couple of months. Ideas???

La Habra south of Imperial Hwy. is a decent area. Everywhere else in the city is kind of sketchy. You might also want to consider nearby communities of La Mirada, Fullerton and Brea. Those cities for the most part are nice areas.

[zenjenn]

I attended CSUF for my second 2 years of college, and lived in La Habra (specifically Sand Castle Apartments). This was about 10 years ago. I was satisfied with this arrangement. It was further but cheaper and the area was nice enough for me. I grew up in Fullerton and it's a nice city, and well-run. You can get to L.A. in about an hour if there isn't much traffic.

I know you didn't ask, but I'll just drop it in here in case anyone is interested. You will find you can get a solid, basic college education at CSUF. Lots of adults and commuter students attending, so you do not really get the true "college experience" there. (I attended UCLA my first 2 years, and CSUF my second 2, so I have some basis for comparisson.) CSUF is less edgy and active by a long shot, but the flipside of that is you get a much more practical education. If you are a pragmatic, employment-minded student with a more limited budget for school CSUF will provide you with the education you need, but don't expect an amazing college experience.

For example, I studied art; UCLA was for the art student who wanted to do the gallery thing and live in the "art world" doing edgy, shock art. CSUF was for the student who wanted to be a graphic designer or an illustrator. Which is why I transferred, and I'm happy with the choice. My 2nd two years of college at CSUF definitely did way more to prepare me to make a living as an artist, but I sure missed all the neat events, clubs, activites, and connections at UCLA.

[YLresident]

I had friends who lived in the noisy Nutwood apts across the street from CSUF, but they were friendly girls and were satisfied enough to live there for 3 years. Nutwood West, even. They aren't luxurious apts, but they're clean and right across from the school--I used to frequent their apt often.

There's a smart and final right down from the school one way, and a target, and grocery store the other (though, you'll probably want a bike for the latter two).

I'm a CSUF grad who lived at home not far from the school, but I was there for 6 years taking forever to get my BA in Business (big surprise) and I was never bored on campus. It's not as lively as UCLA--but no other public university in SoCal is as lively, beautiful (incl. the surrounding area), or historical as UCLA (they have a fabulous campus community). They are UCLA, after all. ^_^

If you need more life at CSUF--find a student organization (academic, cultural, religious, recreational, etc.) or a sorority/fraternity that fits your interest. I'm serious about the student org involvement, though--I made SO many friends through the clubs I was involved in. Get into student government, stop in at the Volunteer Service Center, use the Student Recreation Center (which should be completed soon, if not already, i think).

The Brea Mall isn't too far (though it's not stellar, it's not bad); South Coast Plaza and Irvine Spectrum also have a wide variety of stores both cheap and expensive (from H&M and Target to Nordstrom's and Tiffany & Co)...

By car: if you're into the beach--20 to 30 min, or snowboarding--about 60 to 90 min away. If you like Vietnamese food--Little Saigon is 20 min away in Westminster, Chinese food--Rowland Heights is 20 min away, Indian/Thai/Korean/Taiwanese--Cerritos is 30 min away. LA's an hour away if you want great restaurants, nightlife, museums, cultural exhibits...

I've lived 5 miles from CSUF in Yorba Linda for 20 years now and I've never felt unsafe and I was really only bored when I was a teenager--you'll probably either want a car or a make friends who students who have cars, though (which won't be hard if you join a student organization... HINT!!! ^_^)