Unl (Lincoln, Oak: apartment, for rent, crime) - Nebraska (NE) - City-Data Forum

weijingOrz · 04-20-2008, 11:30 PM

Hey all

I'm thinking about transferring to UNL Fall '09. As far as academics, does anyone know how well their computer science program is? I found them ranked #74 on a list from Google, but it didn't say how rank was determined >__<

Some other questions..
Is there a lot to do around the campus? Mainly, within walking distance since I don't plan on getting a car.. Are there city buses/are they reliable?

How expensive/easy is it to find an apartment close to campus? Average now where I'm living is about 400$/month (and that's for rent, heat, water, electricity, and internet).

Assuming that I'm full of common sense, would safety be an issue there?

How's the weather year round? I'm sick of reading stats and would rather hear from a person's point of view

I'm currently in Albany, NY, so if anyone could compare the two, that'd be even better!

Any other info would be awesome

Thanks in advance!

tpabes · 04-21-2008, 08:03 AM

We have a member who teaches at UNL, so I'll let him tell you about the computer science program. UNL is located right north of downtown, so it is an easy walk to the bars and restaurants located there. There is a city bus service, it isn't the greatest system in the world, but it is there. As far as an apartment, I would think you can find one, although for the amount you stated, you would get a really small space or need a roommate. The weather is a little bit of everything. In the summer it can get really hot, in the winter it will get cold and the occasional snowstorm. We have severe storms and tornadoes, but we have our share of nice days too.

SunshineSanity · 04-22-2008, 08:10 AM

You asked if safety was an issue. Are you male? If you are I would assume that it wouldn't be. Near downtown campus, areas south of O street can be iffy. Just watch yourself and you should be ok. If you don't have a car, I doubt you'll stray too far off of campus.
You can find places pretty cheap near downtown campus. A friend that goes to UNL has a pretty nice studio for about $225/month. Just watch the neighborhood.
I've lived in Lincoln my whole life. I raise my eyebrow at the fact that you won't have a car. Lincoln isn't really an easy town to get around in if you don't have a car b/c our public transportation isn't the best.

I wish you luck!

weijingOrz · 04-24-2008, 01:17 PM

aerahrtlu, I'm female, so would it be a lot more dangerous for me??

Some other questions I have,
What things are there to do close to campus? Is there a mall or movie theater nearby? How's the nightlife? Are there any gay clubs around?
Keep in mind that I'm asking more about the immediate areas around campus rather than Lincoln as a whole. Thanks!

tpabes · 04-24-2008, 02:17 PM

If you have common sense, which you have stated, you will be just fine. Lincoln is not a dangerous city by any means, just a couple of sketchy areas that were stated by aerahrtlu. Most of the things to do are going to be downtown, here is the downtown association website:
Downtown Lincoln Association
There are two major malls is Lincoln, and neither is close to campus. One is an outdoor mall on 27th and Pine Lake in south Lincoln and the other is a classic indoor mall Westfield Gateway at about 60th and O in east Lincoln. I believe there is a movie theater still downtown, my memory is escaping me right now. Nightlife consists of alot of bars, especially on O street, if you come you will probably hear about the O street crawl.

mattpoulsen · 04-24-2008, 02:49 PM

WeijingOrz,

I actually used to work at the university (teaching and research). The computer science department is very good. As you mentioned, its ranking in the 70's. That's pretty good when you consider there are hundreds of computer science departments in the U.S. I'm not too familiar with the C.S. department as I used to work in the physics department. They are well funded and have brand new facilities and an interesting program available known as the J.D. Edwards program. The faculty is decently sized with about 20 or so professors. I wouldn't hesitate at all with choosing NU's computer science department. Its very good.

As far as living in Lincoln, you have nothing to worry about. Of course you could find problem areas, but a slight amount of common sense and there is no problem. There are no real "problem areas" when compared to problem areas in bigger cities. Unfortunately, I have not been to Albany, so I can't give you a direct comparison. But overall Lincoln is about 250,000 people with little crime and a pretty run of the mill middle class background.

There are quite a few things in and around campus, as campus is nestled in the downtown area. Most of the nightlife is only a few blocks from campus. Also, there is "gay club" near campus and is probably about a 10 minute walk. Not being gay, I have no idea what its like, so that's about all I can tell you about. It exists and is called "The Q."

As far as $400/mo. I'm sure you can find something near that range. One idea would be to look for a studio apartment down in the "Haymarket" region, although that might be a bit more than $400. But that would be the best place to live if you were going to NU and didn't have a car. Plus, its kind of a cultural center in Lincoln, with lots of old shops and things like that.

As far as not having a car, when I was in the physics department I knew a few people who lived with out them. Lucky for you the bus system kind of centers around the downtown and campus area and really if you live near campus a bicycle is your fastest way to get from point A to point B anyway.

As far as weather, the one thing you should know is Nebraska weather is always changing. We have cold snowy winters and some pretty hot humid summers. The spring and fall are very comfortable. Being from Albany, you shouldn't experience much of a shock really.

If you having any other questions just let me know.

Matt

SunshineSanity · 04-25-2008, 12:19 AM

weijingOrz - Being a female should not have too much of an impact on your safety, no. If you keep your eyes open and are smart, you'll be fine. The more sketchy parts of Lincoln are actually farther from O street. Usually G street and around it starts to get alittle bit iffy.
Looking for a gay bar? There's the Q and the Panic. The Q is located on (I'm thinkin) 9th street? Just a few blocks south of O St. The Panic is located near 19thish and M. Both are within walking distance of UNL. They are both pretty fun places to go. I'm not gay, but I've been to both a couple times.
There's a HUGE new movie theater downtown called 'The Grand'.
As stated above, the "nightlife" in Lincoln pretty much consists of the bars downtown. There's, oh goodness, a ton of them. Sandy's, Duffy's (make sure you get their famous fishbowl!!) and Iggy's are my favorite. My husband is 26 and still hasn't been to all of the bars downtown.
There are local concerts at Knickerbocker's on 9th and O St. A few local bands and some from other cities and states play there almost every weekend. If you like punk, rock.. ect you might want to check that out!
If you have any more questions, feel free to ask!

weijingOrz · 04-26-2008, 10:35 PM

Thanks for the replies

I just have two more questions (at the moment anyways..)
How close are grocery stores and are there any parks nearby?

tpabes · 04-27-2008, 07:27 AM

I believe there is a little park just east of campus called Trago park, and there is a larger park called Oak Lake Park located just west of I-180 and just north of Haymarket Park (baseball stadium). There are some smaller grocery stores and markets in the downtown area, if you want a larger store, the closest I can think of is Super Savor on 27th and Cornhusker, and Russ' Markert on about 17th and A.

star_gazer · 04-27-2008, 07:27 AM

Having taken my son on campus visits to LA, Cleveland, Pittsburgh, St Louis, Nashvile, among others... I find it laughable that there is any serious concern about campus safety in Lincoln.

Use your common sense... as you would ANY WHERE. Lincoln poses no more personal safety threat to students... than any average large college campus in an urban area (truth be known... it's probably far safer than average).

By far, the majority of crime in these types of urban areas is targeted against a very specific demographic (hint: not students). Here's a useful tip to keep you out of trouble... don't get involved with drugs or gangs... and you'll be fine.