The new forums will be named Coin Return (based on the most recent vote)! You can check on the status and timeline of the transition to the new forums here.
The Guiding Principles and New Rules document is now in effect.
Internship in NYC
LavaKnight
Registered User regular
Registered User regular
Hey everyone,
My girlfriend just got accepted for an internship to The Nation in NYC, and she's really excited. To be getting a decent internship, in journalism, right now, is a pretty big deal to her, and I want to help her out in any way that I can.
It starts in early January and goes until May, so she has to start figuring things out soon. The biggest question marks are money and housing. The internship has a weekly stipend, but it's certainly not enough to live on in the city. She's expecting to get a part time job on the weekend in order to afford things, but the only costs we're going off of right now are those shown on The Webster. This is also the only thing she knows about as far as housing goes. I like the idea of it, but how fair is $1060 per month with meals and such included? My gut tells me that in the city, interns that aren't from the area are at risk of getting gouged pricewise by services like these, but Webster, in particular, seems relatively egalitarian in nature.
So, with all that said, does anyone have any general advice for moving/living in NYC for a few months?
My girlfriend just got accepted for an internship to The Nation in NYC, and she's really excited. To be getting a decent internship, in journalism, right now, is a pretty big deal to her, and I want to help her out in any way that I can.
It starts in early January and goes until May, so she has to start figuring things out soon. The biggest question marks are money and housing. The internship has a weekly stipend, but it's certainly not enough to live on in the city. She's expecting to get a part time job on the weekend in order to afford things, but the only costs we're going off of right now are those shown on The Webster. This is also the only thing she knows about as far as housing goes. I like the idea of it, but how fair is $1060 per month with meals and such included? My gut tells me that in the city, interns that aren't from the area are at risk of getting gouged pricewise by services like these, but Webster, in particular, seems relatively egalitarian in nature.
So, with all that said, does anyone have any general advice for moving/living in NYC for a few months?
LavaKnight on
0
Posts
This. Oh my God this. I'd pull some "bosom buddies" shit to get a deal like that. Apply immediately!
Take it.
Congrats! The Nation is awesome!
I don't know if that's quite a fair comparison, as a place like this is going to be less a "good one person apartment" than four walls and a door with roughly the same amount of space as the interior of a mid-sized sedan.
That being said, it looks like a good deal for Manhattan.
How easy might she find it to find a waitress, or other part time job on the weekends? She works at an Apple Store currently, but I have a feeling requesting a transfer to NYC is more than a pipe-dream.
As for work, it's like any other city. It could take her a couple weeks, she could get one in a couple days or she might not find one if she isn't aggressive about applying to as many places as possible. Definitely have her ask her bosses about a 3 month transfer, it's worth asking about.
For the purpose of comparison, my rent in Manhattan is $4000. She’s not going to find a better deal than $1060 for shelter AND food.
Another option is taking on roomates and a place sight unseen. I imagine rent would be cheaper than these dorm style places if she found two or three more people to share a small place with. Are there any reputable websites that facilitate roomate searching in the city? I'd be leery of using craigslist for this type of thing, and while social networking would be pretty useful, we don't have too many contacts in the city.
I guess the real question would be whether rent with roomates would be less expensive than rent at one of these temporary places in the first place.
Thanks for the continued help!
That is a very bad idea. New York is full of nineteenth century tenement buildings that would be condemned in a heartbeat if the tenants and landlords didn’t make an effort to keep inspectors locked out. And really, you don’t have any idea what bad roomates can be until you have crazy New york roomates. The only way the rent will be less than that deal if one small apartment is illegally sectioned into smaller rooms. Going this route is only advisable if the lady is very tolerant, has a sense of adventure, and a concealed weapons permit.
Just some general things:
Public transportation is the best thing ever.
Put your walking shoes on.
Enjoy it, there's always something to do, and while you can always spend big bucks having fun, if you look around you can have fun cheaply.
And finally,
Public transportation is the best thing ever.
(I live in St. Louis, and I hate having to drive everywhere.)
I'm sure Manhattan isn't for everyone, but for those who like city living, it's amazing.
No it wouldn't and you wouldn't be able to set up a sight-unseen rental for short term with roommates you do not know unless you craigslist onto their needs.
If she can't afford 1000 a month, she cant afford the internship and it would be a swell idea for her to pass on it pronto so that their next choice can make their arrangements.
I understand from all of you that the roomate/renting option is probably out, barring someone we know serendipitously offering her a room in a cheap place somewhere in the city.
Are there any other options worth pursuing, or are one of these dorm style places the best bet for a four month stay?
It's unfortunate that the internship is not fully paid, and only provides a modest weekly stipend, but this is the price you have to pay for these types of things, I imagine. I'm glad I'm in the sciences, I'll say that much!
Uh...it's the best deal you could possibly hope for. While the application may be long, you're essentially saving anywhere between 1000-1500/mo (counting meals). It's a cognitive failure to say the applicaiton is "prohibitively" long - it would only be prohibitively long if you could make more money working elsewhere to pay for an apartment in the number of hours it took to complete the application. Even if it was "prohibitively" long, that probably isn't more than 10-20 hours. Let me know where you found a job paying $200-$400/hr.
I stayed in NYU dorms over the summer. To give you an idea, I believe their plans started at around $1000 per month (around $150/week room + minimum $100/week board, depending on how nice a room you wanted).
This again. You can try craigslist or sublet.com, but you likely aren't going to get anything substantially cheaper that is safe both and legal. I know it seems like $TEXAS for a college student from most anywhere else in the states, but rent in NYC costs $TEXAS.
I understand that this could be a pretty major financial catastrofuck, but what is the shortfall between the stipend and the rent, and can't she maybe just get an honest-to-God loan from the Bank of Dad? I mean, this is an internship with The Nation, the motherfucking Nation. I would pay THEM to do an internship there. If they're giving her only $200 a week, then all she really needs is another $1500 for 5 months.
The money issue definitely complicates things, but she (and I to a slightly lesser extent) agree with you, that it's totally worth getting a little more debt for the motherfucking Nation.
NYU dorms are not a bad idea, but since it's the Spring term I have a feeling they're reserved by students and/or more expensive than other options.
I'll encourage her to focus on getting into The Webster, or one of the similarly priced intern housing places. Thanks Deebaser and everyone else!
I don’t think you realize just how many dorm rooms NYU has and how many people flee Manhattan from June to August. Same for The New School. These schools have buildings all over downtown Manhattan that are empty all summer.
Any general NYC advice left to give? Particularly, how much might a taxi cost to get either to the apartments (west 34th and 9th) or to Bushwick from LaGuardia? Do you tip cab drivers?
She'll be arriving New Year's Eve and isn't sure if she'll check in to the apartments right away, or stay with a cousin for a day or two, hence the differing locations.
Thanks again everyone!
Also, is it a bad idea to try and take a cab into the city on New Year's Eve, and if so, would taking public transportation be a better idea?
About $5 for that fare would be fine.
For super short trips I'll tip $1 or $2. $5 for a longer one. More than that would have to be exceptional for some reason.
Congrats!
If she's getting in NYE Bushwick is probably the better bet. There will be an ungodly amount of Manhattan traffic, streets will be closed, and I don't think LaGuardia has flat cab fare. Also, 34th and 9th will probably be hella loud.
She might be better served hopping the subway from bushwick a day or two later.
Definitely tip the cab drivers, 15- 20% (or $1 which ever is greater) is adequate. 99% accept credit cards now and have the percentages hard coded in.