Arizona State? (Tempe: transplants, apartments, houses)

[jxu66]

My cousin just get accepted Arizona State for her master program for education. She also get accepted by Penn State. Unfortunately, I never have been either place so I can not give her advice.

1) If you have choices, which school you choose?

2) Since Arizona State is within Tempe, where in the campus should she avoid?

3) Do most students stay on campus? if not, what's reasonable price for apartment near the campus? What are some good apartments you can recommend?

4) Do most Arizona State graduates stay in the city or move away?

Thanks in advance.

[Andre5140]

Originally Posted by jxu66

My cousin just get accepted Arizona State for her master program for education. She also get accepted by Penn State. Unfortunately, I never have been either place so I can not give her advice.

1) If you have choices, which school you choose?

2) Since Arizona State is within Tempe, where in the campus should she avoid?

3) Do most students stay on campus? if not, what's reasonable price for apartment near the campus? What are some good apartments you can recommend?

4) Do most Arizona State graduates stay in the city or move away?

Thanks in advance.

Hello! I, too, had to choose between a Big Ten school and ASU for my graduate program (Architecture and Urban Planning). Now that I'm about to graduate, I must say that I am glad I chose Univ of Michigan (Big Ten).

ASU is a great school in a very trendy and beautiful town--Tempe. It has lots to do; some would say too much to do with regards to entertainment. As a school for undergraduates, ASU has a partying reputation that takes precedence over academics. Further, the student body is much larger than at Penn State or Univ of Michigan. ASU has some great graduate programs but a Big Ten school will surely add more caché to the resume based on their focus on academics.

Like Ann Arbor, Michigan, the city of University Park, PA is an older yet vibrant town. Tempe is newer and has some unique restaurants and chain restaurants. Other than the weather and the pretty girls, Penn State would be the clear choice.

As to places to avoid in Tempe, I cannot think of any off hand. It has a nice downtown (Mill Street) but the rest is suburban sprawl (strip malls) with older housing that can be run down in places. Sure, this is true in all college towns but the students housing in Ann Arbor (which dates to late 1800s) is still kept nicer than some houses I saw in Tempe.

I do not know enough about Tempe student housing. Check out ApartmentRatings.com to read reviews about Tempe apartments. You can get a good idea of their location and if they are predominantly student occupied.

ASU graduates are a very transient group. Like most metro Phonecians, they are transplants from elsewhere. After partying for a few years with some academics thrown in, they seek higher wages out of state.

Hope this helps. In sum, I remained at Univ of Michigan for both undergrad and grad degrees and did not regret it. I loved Arizona and promised I'd go back if I could. That was in Summer 2005. Now, two years later, I recently accepted a great job near Tempe. During the interview, they were impressed with my academic background.

Best,
Andre5140

[sablebaby]

Penn State!

[Cj81]

I have never been to Penn State but I am an ASU graduate. ASU has a party rep but the reality is that most of the party crowd are just rich kids that have nothing better to do than spend daddy's money. They are all communications and sociology majors, its those majors that require very little effort and really have no concentration. The other schools such as the School of Design, where I attended, do not reflect the same "party rep" , most programs have a very competitive upper division application process to which the slackers and boozers are weeded out. Unfortunatly the "party rep" gets more hype than the academic rep. ASU also has very good graduate schools, usually they rank higher than the undergraduate schools.

I personally would base my decisions on where I wanted to end up after I graduated. If you want to work back East, then Penn State would probably be the better choice. If you are looking to live in out here in the West then ASU might give you better networking opportunities. You might also want to think about things like the weather, do you like hot or cold places?
And just so you know, Tempe is not the little college town it used to be, its actually becoming pretty dense and the downtown area is going vertical. There are about 10 highrise buildings planned for the Mill Ave. area and some are already under construction. Should be a very active area in a few years. I am a Sun Devil all the way, my vote is for ASU!!