Another FSU question--Rogers/Ragans/Alumni (Tallahassee, Pensacola: apartments, crime rate, motel)

[macoraje]

I just got accepted into graduate school @ FSU this week and I am considering my housing options. I live in Virginia so I don't have immediate access to the Tallahassee area.

I plan to live in graduate housing, because that would be the most cost-effective option for me. However, I wanted to know if anyone could give me an overview of the three housing options: Rogers Hall, Ragans Hall and Alumni Village.

My gut says that it would be better for me to live in Ragans or Rogers Hall as they are closer to campus and I am unfamiliar with the area. I also heard that Ragans is newer.

Does anybody have any advice about how to evaluate my options?

Thanks

[Strel]

Originally Posted by macoraje

I just got accepted into graduate school @ FSU this week and I am considering my housing options. I live in Virginia so I don't have immediate access to the Tallahassee area.

I plan to live in graduate housing, because that would be the most cost-effective option for me. However, I wanted to know if anyone could give me an overview of the three housing options: Rogers Hall, Ragans Hall and Alumni Village.

My gut says that it would be better for me to live in Ragans or Rogers Hall as they are closer to campus and I am unfamiliar with the area. I also heard that Ragans is newer.

Does anybody have any advice about how to evaluate my options?

Thanks

Rogers Hall - I was a overnight security guard there back in the 1980's. At that time, it was pretty much a hole. I wouldn't recommend it, though it is possible that it has been remodeled. It is, however, not in the nicest part of campus. You are situated right next to THREE freshman dorms (Smith, Kellum and Salley). I'd pass.

Alumni Village is OFF campus and in south Tallahassee. Roach motel in a bad neighborhood. Don't go there.

Ragans* Hall I know nothing about, because it is NEW. That's a good thing. It is also smack dab in the middle of campus and probably safer. I have been in the building complex (but not the rooms) and it is very nice. If you really want to stay on campus, this is probably your very best choice - and it would be very convenient indeed.

If I were you I would consider some off campus options too. There is some affordable housing in Tallahassee, but if you go off-campus be warned that the area immediately around campus is not the nicest. You would be better off, if you don't mind driving and the hassles of parking, living in the NE quadrant of the city - and not too near campus itself.

*I knew Sherrill Ragans personally, and worked for her a couple of times when I was a student there. Very nice lady.

I am a 23 year veteran of Tallahassee and attended FSU three times, so if you have any other questions, please don't hesitate to ask.

[flyers29]

Ragans is nice, you'll be with undergrads as well but it's quiet. I lived there from 06-07 (last year it was still called "New Hall"). Definitely pick that between the two.

[trueicon]

I'd definitely agree with the others about Alumni Village. I've had a few grad student friends share their horror stories of Alumni Village. In addition to the crime rate of the surrounding part of town, you'll only get a window air conditioning unit-- which in the high humidity, no wind Tallahassee summers is sort of like draining the Niagara with a bucket.

I personally lived in Ragans my first year as a grad student. I really didn't like co-habitating with undergrads. Despite what they say, there are hardly any graduate students living in any of the buildings on campus (although Alumni Village is predominantly grad student) and the immediate area surrounding campus (that includes anything on Ocala Rd, Pensacola St., and West Tennessee St.). Therefore, you don't tend to see people your own age/maturity level (that is perhaps a bit of a generalization). There are four students in each apartment, and you share two bathrooms and a kitchen. The room was extremely small. Yes, it was quiet at times, but expect to be woken up each morning at 2 or 3am by drunk students banging on the walls while they're walking down the hall. The walls were pretty thin! It will soon force you into adopting their schedule of sleeping till noon and going to sleep at 4am. About the only positive aspect of living at Ragans is that you don't need to deal with parking-- which is probably the most negative aspect of FSU.

You are MUCH better off looking for something off craigs list -- and preferably on the northeast side of town where it feels like living in any other civilized town. I moved off campus after my first semester and have had absolutely no regrets. There's a very competitive housing market with new apartments opening up all the time so there was no cost savings living on campus relative to living off campus. Hope this helps!