<p>So, I’ve been offered conditional admission to CP SLO (Electrical Engineering), and I’m wondering about the housing options. I understand that transfer students either live in the apartments on-campus or live off-campus. I’m looking for advice. What’s the housing/pricing like? Cerro Vista? Poly Canyon Village? Is living in one of these apartments a good way to get to know people? I’m really looking for any type of info/advice on this.</p>
<p>Actually, I’m still not sure I want to go to Cal Poly. I’m hearing so many mixed reviews about it, although everyone says that the food sucks!</p>
<p>My son is a freshman living in Cerro Vista. he likes it. He can be social, but also have a quiter place to study. He is a picky eater and he does the best he can to use his meal plan and then have some easy foods to cook in his apartment/dorm. he also has a car, so he can go downtown or drive to the closest InNOut burger when he wants to. There are transfer students living in Cerro, but not in the same area as the freshmen. I am not sure what they think of it. I know that they can also live in Poly canyon if there is room after the sophomores sign up. I would think that would be the better choice. Living in Cerro or PCV for an upperclassman would be similar because they don’t have to buy a food plan. They have kitchens to cook in. I think the plus for living on campus is the proximity to classes and the fact that the utilites are part of the cost. The rent is only for the school year and not the summer. You have more freedom in an off-campus place to be sure, but there will be more partying and noise. You may or may not like that. Be sure to visit the campus and the town of SLO. best of luck to you!</p>
<p>Only freshmen living on campus have to buy the meal plan. Living on campus is a great way to meet people. If you live in poly canyon and your entire apartment is over 21 you can have alcohol but they are still strict on partying. Off campus can be nice, but it can also be kind of slummy sometimes. The on campus apartments have a cleaning service that comes once a week to clean all common areas including bathrooms that is include with the price of housing. Last year, transfers were mainly in one building in poly canyon, this year they are mostly in cerro, so I guess it varies from year to year. Both apartment complexes are pretty similar, but cerro is a little closer to campus and poly canyon has the pool, basketball courts, and restaurants (hence the “village”). The cost of on campus is not that different from off campus as far as I know. While on campus is pretty strict about drinking/partying in the apartments, if you want to do these things you can just get to know someone who lives off campus and go to their place whenever you wanna party or whatever. I’d say try on campus and if you hate it then you can move off campus after a quarter.</p>
<p>I’m a transfer and was planning on living on-campus until I talked to several of my friends who have been at Cal Poly since we graduated. They said that both Cerro Vista and Poly Canyon were “hotel-y” which got old really fast and that they hated it. They also said that the on-campus housing is much more expensive than the off-campus housing you can find. It’s a bit easier because all the extra costs like utilities are bundled up with the one fee. However, I have already been living on my own so I decided to go for a studio apartment off-campus. Another factor I considered is that I don’t want to have to move out every winter and summer.</p>
<p>How exactly are they hotel-y? Cause I’ve lived in both and I definitely don’t get that feeling. Also, you don’t have to move out of housing during winter break. The break is only three weeks. You can leave all your stuff in your room. You can also live on campus during winter and summer breaks. I’m not sure if there is an extra charge during winter, but for summer you pay for the quarter. I think you can live on campus in the summer even if you’re not taking classes.</p>
<p>Kristin- That’s interesting, but my problem with living off-campus is that I know nobody there. It seems like living on-campus would be a good way to get to know people. Plus, if living off-campus requires you to have a car, then now you’re paying for gas and car insurance. That would possibly make living off-campus more expensive than living on-campus. It seems to me that living on-campus is the best bet for most transfers, though certainly not all.</p>
<p>Also, the closer you live to campus, the higher your rent is going to be. I also heard that driving to campus in the morning can be VERY congested and it’s not always easy to find a parking space and get to class on time. At least if you lived on campus at PCV your car would already be in the parking garage. I hope when my daughter lives off campus she lives near a bus stop or within biking distance so she can leave her car and not worry about the traffic and finding a place to park. Or at least not take it all the time.</p>
<p>I think it’s about $165/quarter for cerro or poly canyon parking, but it’s slightly cheaper if you buy the pass for all year (fall, winter, and spring quarter) like 300 something</p>
<p>TacomaJoe^ Yes, his car is very close to his apartment in a small lot. His apartment is on the edge of the complex, so the car lot is very close. I know that the parking went up for winter quarter. he started out without his car, but quickly missed it and agreed to pay for the parking pass each quarter. I think the $165 is correct. He uses his car to drive to the store, restaurants, to get haircuts, the beach, home in the Bay Area (only 3 times) and of course to In N Out! He also went to Santa Barbara for a day trip with friends. His roommate drove that time. It is not at all necessary to have a car because there are busses, but it is very nice for him to feel that he can get to where he wants to go quicker. For his major (Materials Engineering) he is in a group and they meet off campus to work on projects. It is so much easier to use his car rather than the bus. I worry more of course, but I also like that he can be more independent with having a car. The food at CP isn’t great and he often goes to Taco Bell or other restaurants and can head to the grocery store when needed. It is not a necessity, but definitely convienient.</p>
<p>It is something like $600 to stay in the housing over winter break. They didn’t explain exactly how it felt hotel-y but both said they couldn’t wait to get out of there. I will be bringing my car as it is because I have to work and chances are whatever job I find will be off-campus unless I’m lucky. I’m used to living alone and prefer it. I also prefer to use my own furniture and have a bed larger than a twin. Obviously on-campus is better for some and off-campus is better for others. Just offering my perspective. I do plan, however, if possible to find an apartment close enough to walk to campus.</p>
<p>I currently live in PCV and enjoy it. It may be SLIGHTLY more expensive than off campus, but it’s definitely nicer than most off campus apartments. A lot of people I know living off campus end up paying more because of utilities and parking permits, and those who pay less usually share rooms. </p>
<p>We have a pool, beach volleyball court, basketball courts, study rooms, and we don’t have to worry about utilities- it’s a flat fee. Super convenient being on campus as well.</p>
<p>I’m also planning on transferring this Fall (major is EE). I plan on living on-campus the first year and see how it goes. Moving from northern California so it will be nice to meet a lot of new people.
So Cerra doesn’t have a pool?</p>