Last week a friend asked me to provide details about my building (where about 150 Booth students live) to an incoming first-year student. I did, and then received the following email.
Hi Jessica,
Thank you for providing me (through Daniel) the cost/month of your
convertible at CP. May I ask how much you pay for utilities per
month? Also, what floor are you on and what direction are you facing?
Thanks so much,
Incoming Boothie
This made me think back to all of my own angst about where to live. Of course, as I was admitted at the end of July, I really didn't have much time to spend on the topic. I had exactly four weeks to make a decision, give notice at work, wrap up my job, pack up my apartment in LA, find a place to live and move across the country before starting pre-MBA accounting and LOE. (Note to incoming students: if you're not a CPA and plan on taking accounting in the first quarter, take pre-MBA accounting. It covers everything you'll need for the midterm, which will make your first five weeks of class very easy and free up precious time for other things.) But the four hours I spent worrying about where to live were intense. And I hear from other people that more time just led to more angst. So rather than work on my final for Dhar I thought I'd reflect on what incoming students should consider when deciding where to live.
It's All About the Network
First and foremost, remember why you're coming to business school. There's a neon sign at Harper Center that asks "Why are you here and not someplace else"? I love that sign. Why are you coming to business school and not doing something else? (We could all be doing other things.) I bet building a network had at least something to do with your decision. If you don't care about networks - if it's just something you wrote on your application - you might reconsider. I've never been a "network" type of gal but the friendships I'm making at Booth are amazing.
Know Yourself
So we've established that you want to get to know your fellow classmates. If you're weighing the pros and cons of the Loop versus Hyde Park (or other neighborhoods), stop. Take a step back and consider what type of person you are. If you're an extrovert who naturally pulls people together and spends a lot of time going out then it doesn't really matter where you live because you'll build a network regardless. If you tend to be more introverted then it might be a good idea to just plant yourself in the Loop, at least for your first year. That's what I did, and I haven't regretted it.
Ignore Costs
I'm a frugal individual and personally find living in the Loop while subsiding on student loans beyond ridiculous. I wasn't willing to spend this much on rent while I was working full time, and I could have easily afforded it. So it's a definite shift for me to write the words "ignore costs."
But you really should. Ignore them, that is.
Business school is expensive. Other than a home, this is the largest investment I'll probably ever make. Do I want to find ways to minimize costs? Absolutely. When possible I lean toward cooking rather than eating out or ordering in; the Metra rather than cabs; Dominicks rather than Whole Foods. (During the height of recruiting some of this just isn't possible but that's another topic.) As important as it is to watch costs, in business school time is a much scarcer asset than money. Make a budget and bracket how much you want to spend a month on rent and utilities. But make your brackets big and don't spend time worrying about differences in the realm of $50-$200/month. Focus on why you're here and what you want out of the experience, then find a place to live that will help you get there. And if you can't decide just live in MPP or CP.
The Bottom Line
It doesn't matter where you live. Someone will surely make a class spreadsheet of neighborhoods/apartment buildings, people will make neighborhood google groups, and you'll hang out with the people who live around you. You'll also hang out with the people who don't live around you. The first half of the school year you'll be so busy that you'll hardly ever see your apartment anyhow. And by the time on-campus recruiting wraps up at the end of second quarter, you'll have enough friends that it won't matter where you live.
Rather than thinking about utilities and windows, now that you're admitted you'd be much better off spending your time clarifying what you want out of your time at Booth, personally and professionally. Having clear personal goals and objectives will do more to help you get through those first few weeks than anything else.
Oh, one last thing - congratulations!
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