Quality of Life- Best Places to Enjoy Life

[AppleAndOrange]

Stipends are generous these days, and not all hours can be spent doing research. Which graduate schools boast the most fun outside the hallowed halls?

[capital_structure]

Stipends are generous these days, and not all hours can be spent doing research. Which graduate schools boast the most fun outside the hallowed halls?

 

ALL hours SHOULD be spent doing research. :( It's PhD buddy.

 

But regardless... I think University of Wisconsin-Madison would be one of the top schools with the best party campus.

[possible_phd]

As obvious from capital_structure's choice and reasoning, it depends on your age and what positively impacts your "quality of life." If you're young and single and like playing beer pong with undergrads, you're going to have different preferences than a 33 year old married father of 3.

 

Generally, any school in or near a big city would offer plenty to do, but you have to worry about cost of living. Personally -- and I admit I'm a bit biased -- I think it's hard to do much better than Chicago. You've got a huge city with tons to do, but it's nowhere near as expensive as NYC or LA. Of course, our winters can be brutal, but it wasn't too bad this year. If you like college towns, Ann Arbor is great, too.

[yangyang2000]

I liked what I saw in Houston. It's the 4th largest city, lots of cultural/recreational activities, great restaurants, and mild winters. It's humid in the summer and rains quite a bit, but it's much cheaper than any other large metropolis in the US.

[socialpsych]

I'm from California originally so I'm hardly unbiased, but I know the quality of life here is a big draw to many. Expensive but worth it!

[capital_structure]

As obvious from capital_structure's choice and reasoning, it depends on your age and what positively impacts your "quality of life." If you're young and single and like playing beer pong with undergrads, you're going to have different preferences than a 33 year old married father of 3.

 

Generally, any school in or near a big city would offer plenty to do, but you have to worry about cost of living. Personally -- and I admit I'm a bit biased -- I think it's hard to do much better than Chicago. You've got a huge city with tons to do, but it's nowhere near as expensive as NYC or LA. Of course, our winters can be brutal, but it wasn't too bad this year. If you like college towns, Ann Arbor is great, too.

 

Hell yeah Chicago. I am there currently.

 

Gold Coast REPRESENT!! haha Can't beat it!

 

Ann Arbor is great, but Wisconsin is so much better in terms of parties...Ann arbor doesn't even compare. I lived 10 mins from Ann Arbor for 5 years...and went to Wisconsin for a bit to do Phd.

 

Chicago is epic though for the cost of living compared to any city in the world.