Georgetown CNL Fall 2018

Aapage87 · Mar 22, 2018

I've pinpointed the Arlington, VA area. More pet friendly, easy access to the airport for my husband, still close to school with everything I need (gym, grocery store, Target, Petsmart) all very close. I'm not sure your budget but I've pretty much picked out my apartment and the management company is Equity Apartments. They have properties all over DC and surrounding areas.
Also, I had a mini meltdown.. who am I kidding a full blown meltdown when my prerequisite evaluation came through about an hour ago. Triple check it because mine only showed one course to have been completed when all but one (due to the five year limit) were complete. I called and they went over my transcripts with me over the phone and are making the corrections and re-sending to me.

Yes, I am looking in the Arlington VA area but I am trying to stay within budget. Lets see if this works considering I am living solely off of loans. I just received mine as well and there is one course on there that I states it is not completed, the Human Development Over a Lifespan. The science courses are the ones that must be complete within 5 years. So I sent it back stating when I took the course along with my unofficial transcript for viewing purposes. Hopefully that works cause I do not want to take another course before these primer classes start.

SK13 · Mar 26, 2018

Yes, I am looking in the Arlington VA area but I am trying to stay within budget. Lets see if this works considering I am living solely off of loans. I just received mine as well and there is one course on there that I states it is not completed, the Human Development Over a Lifespan. The science courses are the ones that must be complete within 5 years. So I sent it back stating when I took the course along with my unofficial transcript for viewing purposes. Hopefully that works cause I do not want to take another course before these primer classes start.

I'm right there with you. I'm not sure, but did I understand it correctly that the primer class was online obviously but it came across that it was a sporadic type class. I didn't ask for clarification but is anyone sure how it works exactly?

Aapage87 · Mar 26, 2018

@SK13 Yes, I was under that impression as well. But I am not sure when the classes will be held. I am working full time so I was hoping for some clarity so I may give my job a heads up. Anyone else working? When will you guys give your two weeks?

peanutfish · Mar 27, 2018

Hello future classmates. I actually live "in the District" which is one reason that Georgetown is my first choice above UMD (still waiting to hear about financial aid before making a commitment). I know the city pretty well, so if you have questions about housing I can try to help.

I saw that someone mentioned Arlington. My husband lived in the Ballston neighborhood back when we were dating, it's probably more expensive now. The truth is that as long as you are metro accesible (bus lines as well as metro trains) it's very easy to get around here. Convenience to a point on the Circulator buses will save you precious time over metro to Foggy Bottom and then walking into Georgetown (there is no metro stop in Georgetown).

I'm planning to attend the reception on the 6th, I hope to meet some of you.

Aapage87 · Mar 27, 2018

Hello All,

I just received an email from the Office of Student Financial Services and she essentially said that generally speaking we should receive a financial aid package about a month prior to the beginning of the course. They will meet full need with loans which includes tuition and fees, living/housing costs, personal expenses etc

SK13 · Mar 27, 2018

Hello future classmates. I actually live "in the District" which is one reason that Georgetown is my first choice above UMD (still waiting to hear about financial aid before making a commitment). I know the city pretty well, so if you have questions about housing I can try to help.
I saw that someone mentioned Arlington. My husband lived in the Ballston neighborhood back when we were dating, it's probably more expensive now. The truth is that as long as you are metro accesible (bus lines as well as metro trains) it's very easy to get around here. Convenience to a point on the Circulator buses will save you precious time over metro to Foggy Bottom and then walking into Georgetown (there is no metro stop in Georgetown).
I'm planning to attend the reception on the 6th, I hope to meet some of you.

Coming from Texas and being relatively unfamiliar with DC and a lack of efficient public transit here at home, how far is Foggy Bottom from Georgetown? I know Chicago's bus/L system like the back of my hand so I enjoy public transportation and don't mind a walk. My car is moving with me and my husbands truck is staying in Texas as he will be back and forth weekly. What is the parking like in DC? I lived in downtown Dallas for years so garages / street parking aren't new but just curious!

peanutfish · Mar 28, 2018

Hi SK13!

I lived in Austin for a few years in the 90s and it's still one of my favorite places in the world. Coming from Texas, the summers in DC will not shock you (they will shock some people, you just won't be among them) and will even seem surprisingly brief.

Most of Foggy Botton is consumed by the Kennedy Center and various institutions (OAS, Peace, GWU, etc.). If you have your heart set on the neighborhood, then you'll be glad to know there's a Trader Joe's. My dentist is there. I like the place well enough, but if you want neighbors to nod hello (not to mention be able to borrow a cup of sugar) it's not that.

If you want to walk to Georgetown Hospital (St. Mary's at 3700 Reservoir Rd. NW), I would suggest the Burleith area (aka "North Georgetown" but only in realtor-speak). If you want easy access, pick any neighborhood in DC that's either south of Florida Ave. or west of Rock Creek Park and have a wealth of bus lines. Neighborhoods that do not fall into that category, but are very livable and popular, and are a relative bargain which might come up on a search include: Capitol Hill, H St. NE, Bloomingdale, Shaw, 14th St., U St.). (Georgetown is one of several universities that calls DC its home, and so you can find pockets of collegiate life around the campuses of GW, AU, Catholic, and Howard.)

Depending where you live, parking is either easy or a nightmare. One of the flats I rented when I lived in the Adams Morgan neighborhood used to include a parking space. After I got rid of my car, I was able to sub-let my parking space for $150 per month. That was 15 years ago. Be prepared for approx. $1800 monthly rent, not including parking (as low as $1500 for a 1 or 2BR in some up-and-coming hipster neighborhoods, and $2500 for 2BR high-end spaces and ugly corporate rentals in Crystal City). Public transportation here is amazing: between metro and the buses you can get anywhere (and if you're in a hurry, an Uber ride is maybe $6 or $7). If you need to have a car, then I would recommend choosing a neighborhood where you can park easily and not have a headache about it. Actually getting to and from Georgetown is pretty straitforward.

Hope this helps, I will refine the answer if necessary.

SK13 · Mar 28, 2018

Hi SK13!
I lived in Austin for a few years in the 90s and it's still one of my favorite places in the world. Coming from Texas, the summers in DC will not shock you (they will shock some people, you just won't be among them) and will even seem surprisingly brief.
Most of Foggy Botton is consumed by the Kennedy Center and various institutions (OAS, Peace, GWU, etc.). If you have your heart set on the neighborhood, then you'll be glad to know there's a Trader Joe's. My dentist is there. I like the place well enough, but if you want neighbors to nod hello (not to mention be able to borrow a cup of sugar) it's not that.
If you want to walk to Georgetown Hospital (St. Mary's at 3700 Reservoir Rd. NW), I would suggest the Burleith area (aka "North Georgetown" but only in realtor-speak). If you want easy access, pick any neighborhood in DC that's either south of Florida Ave. or west of Rock Creek Park and have a wealth of bus lines. Neighborhoods that do not fall into that category, but are very livable and popular, and are a relative bargain which might come up on a search include: Capitol Hill, H St. NE, Bloomingdale, Shaw, 14th St., U St.). (Georgetown is one of several universities that calls DC its home, and so you can find pockets of collegiate life around the campuses of GW, AU, Catholic, and Howard.)
Depending where you live, parking is either easy or a nightmare. One of the flats I rented when I lived in the Adams Morgan neighborhood used to include a parking space. After I got rid of my car, I was able to sub-let my parking space for $150 per month. That was 15 years ago. Be prepared for approx. $1800 monthly rent, not including parking (as low as $1500 for a 1 or 2BR in some up-and-coming hipster neighborhoods, and $2500 for 2BR high-end spaces and ugly corporate rentals in Crystal City). Public transportation here is amazing: between metro and the buses you can get anywhere (and if you're in a hurry, an Uber ride is maybe $6 or $7). If you need to have a car, then I would recommend choosing a neighborhood where you can park easily and not have a headache about it. Actually getting to and from Georgetown is pretty straitforward.
Hope this helps, I will refine the answer if necessary.

Thank you so much peanutfish! There's only so much information you can gather from Google Maps and different websites.

We love Austin too. Living in the Dallas burbs its only a 3.5 hour drive for us (on a good construction day. You'd be surprised at the traffic/widening of 35 south). We try to get down there as much as possible especially during the summers to float the Guadalupe and Comal rivers.

I have some places lined up to go look at. My biggest hurdle is my Great Dane. Seeing as we will be renting, many people look at Great Danes as aliens but quite honestly he's a lap dog couch potato. Before anyone jumps down my throat about having a Great Dane in an apartment, he was raised in a loft in downtown Dallas before we bought our house in the burbs. Dane's make wonderful apartment dogs and my husband will be working from home when he's in DC. Most of the properties I have lined up to go see are in Arlington (Pentagon City I believe?) as this property management company allow has no breed restrictions and are about 4 or so miles from campus. I don't plan on driving too terribly often but I know the husband and I would like to load the dogs up on the weekends and go explore and take some road trips as the East coast is fairly new to us.

Arlington peaked our interest as it was close to the airport as well. My husband's company is here in Dallas and he will be back and forth quite a bit and there are quite a few direct flights from Reagan to Dallas.

All we know is we are very excited to meet everyone, live in a new city for a bit (Texas will always be home) and get this new chapter started. The 24 months will fly by.

peanutfish · Mar 28, 2018

This is a great place for dogs and their people. What Pentagon City lacks in charm, it makes up for in convenience. I'm biased towards to the DC side of the river (and with Reagan Ntl being on the blue and yellow lines, it's really easy to get to) but you probably can't go too far wrong in Northern VA. Back when we were dating, my husband lived in the Ballston neighborhood. If NoVa is where you settle in, you'll love the access to walks on the Potomac and Roosevelt Island.

JMO060913 · Mar 29, 2018

I currently live just off route one in the best community ever - Del Ray. Happy to answer any questions you have about the area. I'd agree that Foggy Bottom is "meh" in terms of city living, but it's not too far from Georgetown and there is a whole foods which is nice. Pentagon City has been built up a ton recently - constantly doing renovations at the mall, just put in a whole foods, etc. It's a busy area, but you are on top of the metro and shopping - so it just depends what you are looking for.

Lots of awesome neighborhoods in DC, but you should expect to pay a ton for parking and rent in general depending on where you live. We've really enjoyed the old town/del ray area and have never felt like we are missing out on anything because the city is literally a stone's throw. We have our car and while we really only use it on the weekend, it's nice to have. Granted, we are walking distance to tons of restaurants and shops, so when the weather is nice, it's more fun to do that anyway!

Good luck - you are getting into renting season with the summer, so you should have tons of options.

Aapage87 · Mar 29, 2018

Does anyone know when we will register for classes and when the we have to complete background test drug test immunizations and such by?

SK13 · Mar 29, 2018

Thanks everyone for the neighborhood advice! I will be in town a few days early and while my husband is at his conference I plan to just walk and explore (weather permitting).