<p>i'm very excited to hear from stanford for an interview for one of their phd programs, as it is my current top choice school, and i was wondering how much those of you who live off-campus pay monthly for rent? i understand how astronomical housing costs are in the bay area, and a brief search on craigslist gave me a range of 975 for a studio to 1250 for a single... is it possible to find a studio for 800-900 easily?</p>
<p>i know it's too early for me to think about such matters when i'm not technically accepted yet, but i would just like to get a grasp on such financial matters so that i can start preparing early on if i do get accepted. </p>
<p>Check the housing page of neighboring colleges (Foothill College is the clossest to Stanford). Or if you are of the adventurous type, check some of the rommate service websites.
Also, it would be alot cheaper if you commute from one of the surrounding cities using your car or public transportation, but this would segregate you a little from the school/class culture.</p>
<p>sorry for the annoying question, but why would you want to live in a studio?</p>
<p>There is a lot of housing for graduate students. About 50% of graduate students live on campus. I imagine that's less expensive than living off campus. I think many graduate students who live off campus live closer to the city and commute to campus each day. Perhaps you could ask around when you visit campus? Someone in the department might even be looking for a roommate for next year or be moving out of their appartment that would be open for you to rent.</p>
<p>oh, i forgot to mention that i really want to live by myself for once after rooming with friends and strangers for the past 4 years. i know this will increase the cost for me, but it's something i'm willing to pay for using the stipend money, of course (thankfully i'm going into one of the biosciences programs in which stipends are very generous). therefore, i see a studio apt as the cheapest option for me, and i don't really see the need for a separate living room. </p>
<p>if commuting from surrounding cities is cheaper, i guess that could work. but you're right, marlgirl, i really should ask grad students there and others about both on and off-campus housing. </p>
<p>The graduate housing is quite nice and usually cheaper than off-campus apts. I don't know if they have one-bd for singles though. I think there's also an off-campus apt building managed by Stanford. You should check these options first. Palo Alto is an expensive (and unfortunately boring) town. You may also budget for costs assocated with owning a car. I didn't have a car and it was okay at the beginning but after the first quarter, the limited mobility started to bother me (my friends were all up in SF). That's also when the raining season started. It can be difficult when it's raining outside but you can only walk or bike to restaurants which are all at least half mile away (Stanford's campus is huge). I only lived there for one year thankfully.</p>
<p>i loved stanford when i made a visit last summer. i'm just more comfortable with the boring, suburban environment than the current bustling, urban environment. it's more conducive for studying :)</p>
<p>i did a little more research and found out that surrounding neighborhoods have cheaper housing. and since i'm planning on getting a car anyway, i might as well commute a little and save housing costs while meeting my own needs. </p>
<p>jw, what do you guys think of redwood city and mountain view? they sound like nice places, and they seemed to have cheaper housing on craigslist.</p>
<p>Fair enough. I wasn't doing PhD and I wouldn't say I studied very hard. :) If you have a car and like suburban setting, I think you will enjoy Stanford. The whole South Bay is a beautiful area and have great places for outdoor stuff if you are into that.</p>
<p>I like mountain view better because they somehow have a street with bunch of Asian restaurants. I am a foreign-born Chinese so that was important to me. LOL! I also used the 24 hr fitness gym in MV. I don't know anything about RWC but I got the impression that MV is probably a little more happening (more stores/restaurants..etc).</p>