<p>hi,
i am interested in applying to pitt except i was just wondering how close Pitt is to downtown Pittsburgh, i do not want to go to a city's city school (ie depaul, university of illinois at chicago, or an nyu type where the school is in the middle of the city) I heard pitt is 40 minutes outside the city like northwestern is to the city of chicago? is this true?? if not how close is it to downtown or is it in downtown</p>
<p>Thats actually very wrong. Pitt is close to downtown but its not in the middle of downtown like Duquesne is. Its like a 5-10 minute drive to downtown (depending on traffic though). I’ve lived in Pittsburgh my whole life so I’ve been to both Oakland and Downtown many times. I would say though that most people consider Pitt basically in the city. (You can always google map it to see for yourself)</p>
<p>Museums and shopping are within walking distance, but Pitt is not in the middle of the downtown business district. Campus buildings are not clustered on one large piece of property as are many campuses. Pitt students can use public transportation to go anywhere in the city.</p>
<p>Pitt is in a great area for students, with lots of restaurants, etc. Also, it’s right next to Carnegie Mellon, so it’s like college central over there.</p>
<p>KP33: To me, Pitt is an urban feel but not in the middle of a city, like NYU where there is not a huge sense of intimacy. I have been to NYU but not to the other schools you mentioned so I can’t comment on them. There is a definite sense of campus community at Pitt, with buildings that have beautiful, old architecture as well as modern buildings. There is a 450 acre park (Schenley Park) adjacent to the school and in walking distance. Town is off campus and walkable for sure. There are other neighborhoods to hang out in but you’d need to take a quick bus to get there (ie, Shadyside). We had dinner in Shadyside during our last visit and I would call it an upscale area with mall named stores (Apple, Gap, etc.) and charming boutiques.</p>
<p>psualum…where is this shadyside? i’d liek to check that out next time i go to pitt</p>
<p>It is 5 minutes from campus, about 1 1/2 miles away. You could google it and read about it. I found this in a Pitt campus visit brochure: <a href=“http://www.shadysideshops.com%5B/url%5D”>www.shadysideshops.com</a></p>
<p>True, it is about a 5 minute drive, but it is clearly separate. The distance consists of either the Blvd of the Allies or Fifth Avenue, and nobody would ever walk from one to the other. Craft Avenue (cross street to Forbes and Fifth) is really the “end” of Oakland. I look at the proximity as a plus: very close to culture, food, shopping and sports.</p>
<p>During the weekend, there’s not that much going on “downtown” anyway, other than the strip district. You’ll be fine finding other thing to do in other areas of town.</p>
<p>Um, most recently, the Stanley Cup finals? GO PENS! (Just had to get that in!)</p>
<p>Ok, other than sports?</p>
<p>There is a lot to do if you look. Is this a huge city? No, but I think there are plenty of things to entertain a student other than studying and drinking.</p>
<p>Sports: Steeler football, Pirate baseball, Penguins hockey, Riverhounds soccer, college sports - also you can participate in many sports such as biking, hiking, boating, skating, spelunking, white-water rafting, horseback riding, skiing, amusement park, water park, etc.</p>
<p>Culture: Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra, Pittsburgh Ballet Theater, CLO (broadway), Pittsburgh Opera, River City Brass, many art galleries, etc.</p>
<p>Museums: Carnegie Museum of Natural History, Scaife Art Gallery, Carnegie Science Center, Heinz History Museum, Phipps Conservatory and Botanical Gardens, Pittsburgh Zoo, Pittsburgh Aviary, etc.</p>
<p>Festivals: Too numerous to mention, but some include the Three Rivers Art Festival, Shadyside Art Festival, Regatta, Blues Festival, Vintage Grand Prix, many county fairs and ethnic food festivals, etc.</p>
<p>Restaurants: Lots</p>
<p>Shopping: Several large malls (Waterfront, Robinson, etc) and many boutique shopping areas (Shadyside, downtown, Station Square, etc)</p>
<p>Colleges: Many formal events and informal gatherings hosted by the various colleges in the area (Pitt, CMU, Duquesne, Carlow, CCAC, Robert Morris, Chatham…and those are all within 15 minutes of each other)</p>
<p>I guess how much fun you have depends upon how hard you look for it!</p>
<p>IKF,
I agree with you, that wasn’t the question posted.</p>
<p>Oh, I guess I misunderstood. I thought you were saying that there is not that much to do in town. Sorry!</p>
<p>In fact, only the performing arts, Penguin hockey, the Heinz History Museum, the Three Rivers Art Festival, the Regatta, shopping and restaurants are technically located in the “downtown” area. All of the other stuff is close-by but not in the actual downtown area. For example, I think of the professional sports and the Science Center as being in town (as opposed to the suburbs, I guess), but they are technically on the North Side. The museums and conservatory are technically in Oakland, as so forth.</p>
<p>Sorry to confuse the issue.</p>
<p>KP33: Oakland is more of a neighborhood with blocks and buildings rather than a city, per se. </p>
<p>I live right outside of DC and I would never compare Pitts campus to GW or American, say, but it isn’t completed secluded either, the way other schools may be (UVA or Georgia Tech for example). Yes there are blocks and lights that you have to use to walk to your classes but you’re not in the middle of downtown where walking alone at night is a bad thing and all you hear is honking cars from your dorm window (now construction work in the middle of the night during finals week…)…anyways to answer your question, downtown via bus during a not so busy time is about 10-15 minutes id say, with traffic its about 25-30. not too far, but definitely not really far away either.</p>
<p>from what i’ve seen, Pitt is pretty much what Case Western is to Cleveland, if you’ve been there. Pitt might be slightly more urban, but they’re both very artsy districts, and places people love to travel to but usually don’t choose to live in, unless they’re teachers or students. Still, great, safe neighborhoods with lots to do.</p>