Where to go to College and have work for a couple in MN? (Minneapolis: apartments, for rent)

[Melissa82]

My husband and I will be relocating after he is out of the army in 2 years. I'm from Ottawa, Ontario and he is from Western Montana. I've been doing some research and keep seeing good things about jobs, school and MN as a whole. I'm trying to convince my husband it would be a good idea to move there instead of Missoula, Montana where there is only a population of 68k and next to no jobs. He is convinced that MN is flat, you can't hike or hunt, etc. We will both be attending college when we move. He wants to take biology and I'm considering something in the health field, maybe RN. He also wants to make sure his BAH ($1450 a month) from the army covers most of our cost of living (rent, utilities) while he is in school for the 4 years. We also need to make sure we are in an area that we can find part time jobs while going to school. Can you guys please help with suggestions and recommendations to where we should look to go to school and live in MN?

[ozzie679]

People hunt, fish, and hike in every corner of Minnesota. Do you want hills? The bluff country around Winona is beautiful and Winona State U or St Mary's U both have great RN programs. @$1450/mth, you can rent the Tajmahal of Winona. Their cost of living is cheap. Also look at St Cloud State. They have the best RN program in the state. But it's very difficult to get into. But I doubt your husband would like the terrain. It's fairly flat up here.

[Melissa82]

Thanks for the rec's! I made a mistake though, $1450 is for rent in Minneapolis/St. Paul.
Duluth is $1185
St Cloud $1000
Rochester $1029

[ozzie679]

Originally Posted by Melissa82

Thanks for the rec's! I made a mistake though, $1450 is for rent in Minneapolis/St. Paul.
Duluth is $1185
St Cloud $1000
Rochester $1029

$1000 shouldn't be a problem in any of the towns listed. I guess it depends how big and how high end the apartment needs to be.

[Melissa82]

Originally Posted by ozzie679

$1000 shouldn't be a problem in any of the towns listed. I guess it depends how big and how high end the apartment needs to be.

Nothing fancy. A one bedroom would do.

I just want to make sure that we are in a place that we can get away from the hussle bussle of every day life and also be somewhere we can enjoy going to school and find a job since I'll be having to pay for a loan for college.

My other concern is getting into a university. He'll be 26 and I'll be 30 by the time we get there and haven't been in school since high school (I do have a 2 year diploma in business management from Canada but have no idea if I'll be able to use it for admissions). We will both have to do college prep courses while living here in Savannah, GA and just need to make sure we have what it takes to get into college.

[golfgal]

I would look in the St. Cloud area. You have St. Cloud State, St. Ben's and St. John's all right there. There is married housing for the schools so that will keep your costs down. St. Ben's has an even better nursing program then St. Cloud State and will probably end up costing less then St. Cloud State because you are married and will both be in school. CSB/SJU has fantastic science programs and a huge feeders into the various medical schools, scientific companies like 3M, Medtronics, etc.

There is a large lake right on the St. John's campus for fishing and all the hunting you want just off campus.

There will be plenty of on campus jobs (you could even sign up to be Staff Residents in the dorms/apartments for free housing) or jobs in St. Cloud.

It isn't "hilly" but it is very pretty with the forests, etc. there. Plus, you can't beat SJU football for a great fall venue to watch football.

Another option might be Bemidji State. The town is smaller but still has good options for part time jobs. The campus is on the lake for fishing and near plenty of hunting spots. They even have game rooms to clean/store your game/fish.

[Melissa82]

Correct me if I'm wrong, but I'm reading that tuition for those two schools is over 30k for one year? My husband only has 40k from the army for 4 years and well, I'm not going to get a loan for 120k! Any other rec's or am I wrong about the tuition?

[Melissa82]

Originally Posted by Melissa82

Correct me if I'm wrong, but I'm reading that tuition for those two schools is over 30k for one year? My husband only has 40k from the army for 4 years and well, I'm not going to get a loan for 120k! Any other rec's or am I wrong about the tuition?

I just saw here the reason for the high cost is because it's a private college. Unfortunately, we can only afford public colleges around 5k per 13+ credits.

Information for Students: Minnesota State Colleges and Universities (http://www.mnscu.edu/students/tuition/collegecostcomparison.html - broken link)

[10,000Lakes]

Hi there.
A few things. Is his GI bill the post 9-11 one? Did he serve at least 3 years active duty after 9-11. The new GI bill as well as the old one is for 36 months so it usually will not pay for 4 years of college since you usually get paid in the summer months even when school is not in session. The post 9-11 GI bill can be confusing but just do a little more research on that.
Also, if your looking into nursing do you have your prereqs done yet? They usually take 1.5 years just to complete them and all the nursing schools in the Minneapolis area either have a competitive point system or a waiting list. So just don't expect to move here and be working as an RN in 2 years, it will take more like 3 or 4 depending on your prereqs and if you get accepted the first time you apply. Good luck!

[Melissa82]

Originally Posted by 10,000Lakes

Hi there.
A few things. Is his GI bill the post 9-11 one? Did he serve at least 3 years active duty after 9-11. The new GI bill as well as the old one is for 36 months so it usually will not pay for 4 years of college since you usually get paid in the summer months even when school is not in session. The post 9-11 GI bill can be confusing but just do a little more research on that.
Also, if your looking into nursing do you have your prereqs done yet? They usually take 1.5 years just to complete them and all the nursing schools in the Minneapolis area either have a competitive point system or a waiting list. So just don't expect to move here and be working as an RN in 2 years, it will take more like 3 or 4 depending on your prereqs and if you get accepted the first time you apply. Good luck!

I don't really know much about his GI Bill. It's something I keep bugging him to look into. I just know he would have served 6 years and he entered the army after 9-11.

And no, I have no pre-req's and I'm going to try for a bachelor's in nursing. I'm going to try and get as many done here as possible but I'm having to go through the hoops of them translating my Canadian schooling documents into US ones. It's a huge pain and I'm trying to get it started but of course I can't reach anyone at the schools yet. =/