San Diego Universities, etc. (Avalon: apartment complexes, lease, condo)

[smithsl5]

Hi Everyone -

Can anyone offer insight into the main universities in the area? My boyfriend will most likely be taking a job in the SD area and instead of staying in the workforce, I am thinking about going to grad school.

I studied international business and marketing in undergrad, and will most likely pursue an MBA.

Along with that, what areas of SD would you recommend for a couple in early-mid twenties? The less we have to drive to local restaurants/shops, the better. What would be considered a reasonable monthly rent?
Any areas to stay away from? I am looking at posts on CL and it's hard to decipher which neighborhoods are good and which are bad.

We would love to get something walking distance to the beach, if we can find something affordable enough. If not, we are open to other locations. Has anyone had any experience/know of Aqua Terra and Portofino apartment complexes?

Any advice would be greatly appreciated!

[Clevelandgal]

those apartments are no where near the beach and the only walkable places are suburban chains. You might has well be in any bland city USA (well except the weathers better). Best bet is to try and come out and explore. That said, due to a serious time crunch for my spouse starting a job out here, we rented a condo unseen. We love it and plan on renewing the lease. its possible for this to happen, but unlikely.

[smithsl5]

My first post could have been misleading - I dont care too much about the commute between home and school. I'd rather live closer to the beach and deal with the commute. With that being said, in total San Diego areas, which are best for a young couple? Which areas are closer to the beach?

Do you know anything about the reputations of the main universities?

[TristramShandy]

Are you just looking for a one bedroom apartment? If so, you can find ones in Pacific Beach for around $1200 and be a block or so away from the bay which is an easy bike ride to the ocean itself. I'm sure you can find cheaper ones as well . . . a lot will depend on how nice/quiet you want that apartment.

I can't really speak to the graduate schools of each of the local universities, but when it comes to the undergrad reputations, the order would be University of California-San Diego, University of San Diego, San Diego State University. Even so, SDSU has very good reputations in certain fields and is becoming a better received university. USD is a smaller Jesuit university that may not have lots of graduate classes and would be the most expensive more than likely.

[smithsl5]

Thanks for the input! Yes - We would most likely choose a 1 BR just based off COL. That price range is better than I expected!

[TristramShandy]

Originally Posted by smithsl5

Thanks for the input! Yes - We would most likely choose a 1 BR just based off COL. That price range is better than I expected!

I moved away from Pacific Beach 2.5 years ago. My wife and I lived on Jewell Street in P.B. and our apartment was $1085 (It was the Tuscan Apartment Group - - across from Avalon). I had no problem with it - - on certain weekend nights it could be a little noisy from partying, but if you're okay with that, the location was great. As I said in the previous post, we were a block away from Mission Bay. There is a paved walkway for walkers, bikers, roller bladers, etc that attaches to the boardwalk for the ocean. It was a 15 minutes bike ride at most. It was probably a mid-level apartment, maybe a bit higher. You could bike to anything in Pacific Beach and Mission Beach with no problem and be within a 10 minutes drive to USD and 15 minute drive to SDSU & UCSD.

[Deeloveli]

I'm also headed to San Diego. In regards to moving to Aqua Terra or Portofino (or any other large apartment community) I would check http://www.apartmentratings.com

You'll have to filter through disgruntled tenants and people who complain about everything, but there is definitely legitimate information that I found very helpful.

[odannyboi]

smithsl5... I applied to and got into every SD school for MBA programs so I can help you out there:

I wouldn't bother with USD (Uni of San Diego), its too expensive and you really aren't getting a good network of connections (the program is so small). I wasn't willing to invest over 100K in living expenses and tuition. Its close to the beach, however.

UCSD's program is pretty new and the name alone is recognized nationally. However, I didn't like it because I didn't like the "vibe." Its not known for business and it isn't accredited yet (however it will be in a year or two). Its pretty pricey as well.

SDSU (San Diego State). IMO the best option in SD. Very value friendly (even with me being an out of state student, the tuition was very reasonable.) It has a large network especially in SD. Lots of higher ups in SD hold a degree from SDSU. Its also a pretty underrated program and will get better (despite budget cuts). Its not too far from the beach.

Don't worry about where you live in regards to commute. In my experience, navigating SD isn't bad. I could get downtown from SDSU in around 10-15 minutes (USD is even more central.) UCSD is a little farther but still doable.

In the end, I ended up enrolling at U of Arizona.