My daughter would prefer to live on campus all four years, but I know it will be hard to get on-campus housing after the first year.
For her sophomore through senior+ year (since animation is a 5-year program), I would love to know if there is a good supply of off-campus housing that is either within walking distance of campus or on an easy shuttle/bus route.
Needing a vehicle after her freshman year as well as dealing with parking are factors in her deciding which school to pick.
Hello!
I toured SJSU pre-covid and the campus is right in the middle of downtown San Jose. Like someone else said, it’s a pretty defined campus, unlike other big city schools like NYU which seem to just be buildings scattered in a general area. It still has a nice college vibe (they have a football team and greek life, so a decent amount of school spirit) despite this. The campus is pretty compact because a lot of the buildings are high-rises, so it’s not super spread out unlike other campuses and therefore pretty walkable!
From my knowledge, it seems that non-commuter students tend to rely on the local public transit to get around rather than a school provided shuttle if they choose to go off campus. I didn’t really get a huge look of the surrounding area, but I would assume there’s apartment complexes nearby since it’s a huge city. Though because of that, it may be challenging to find safe and affordable housing.
I think there are many apartments within walking distance of the school, and mass transit is good if needed. I know there is a Facebook groups for students looking for housing, search SJSU Off Campus Housing. I think that would be a great place to get more info.
I wanted to add that homeless people sometimes wander through the campus. When we visited a man bothered a female student sitting in the student union. She got up and moved away, and that was the end of it. If you’re used to living in a large city, this is not that uncommon. It means that female students need to be aware of their surroundings and travel in a group at night. I have a daughter and she did not say anything about feeling unsafe while we were there.
Great program. Best of luck!
anyone know when SJSU releases acceptances? sorry if it’s in the thread already. didn’t read all of it.
Historically, around Mid-February.
Historically, does SJSU release all acceptances in Feb, or is it rolling until March/April?
I’m really hoping it’s this week! 
Historically they start in Mid February but with rolling admissions through March.
SJSU will also post the threshold point values (for frosh; prior college GPA for transfers) somewhere on these pages after the fall 2021 admissions is completed:
For the last two years, the first acceptance posts on College Confidential were around 2/21.
Funny how you compared it to NYU. I was going to make the exact same comparison. My son and I were just up in SJ in January, and I went to NYU, and, of course, make the same observation of that difference of one being a pretty distinct campus feel and the other being part of the city.
So, my son’s application got thrown out because they said he didn’t meet the minimum A-G requirements. We’re appealing because they did not consider any of his homeschool classes as having met the A-G requirements. From my understanding they should kick him out to another pool, essentially, for review, instead of just rejecting him out of hand. Bascially it’s like the “by exception” category that the UC’s have.
Just thought I’d share that those things are goin’ down. LOL
That stinks. Hopefully your appeal will be considered
I appreciate that insight. I have lived in the Austin, TX area for 45 years. I never wanted to go to University of Texas or have my kids go to UT because to me it doesn’t feel like it has a campus. It just blends into downtown. Downtown in a city MUCH smaller than San Jose or NYC.
It has been really hard not being able to visit the campus.
I think because SJSU is the oldest of the CA State colleges it’s really does have a true campus feel. Yes it’s in the heart of the city, but it’s all grouped together and compact compared to other big city colleges I’ve seen. As for housing, from what I’ve seen there are a lot of apartments available in the nearby area of the city, within walking distance of the school. It is expensive however. Ideally we would also like our son to live on campus for the entire time, but not sure how hard that will be to secure that every year. But I think there will be no problem finding him an apartment nearby if we have to do that. If yiu look on the housing page there are a list of off campus apartments they recommend with links to check out.
The SJSU rec center and aquatic center look brand new and amazing, if your daughter is into swimming or working out. Check the website to see some photos of it. We didn’t see the inside, but the design from the outside is very well done. The complexes look huge.
Hey Everyone!!
I just wanted to know if I have to mail any recommendation letters to SJSU for international undergrad admissions? Please advise.
@SQL123: Did you apply for Freshman, Transfer or Graduate admissions?