Submitted by babypink1234 t3_z4lurd in WorcesterMA
Just wants to start a new life and meet new people! I will be starting my ABSN program at MCPHS in January 2023. Any advice for me getting around the neighborhood on campus?
I also won’t be taking my car with me for now. Any advice for me in terms of transportation?
Busses are also still free, and will be through at least 2023.
Free but majorly unreliable
sounds good. people have mentioned the areas surrounding the mcphs campus is “ghetto” is that true?
The worst parts of Worcester are nowhere close to the worst parts of anywhere in a CA city. You’ll laugh when you see what people call “ghetto” here. Worcester is extremely safe
But yeah, transportation does suck and it gets very cold. Uber will probably be your friend
Yeah. I live in Stockton, CA. It's kinda rough where I live (there was one point a few of my HS friends' parents did not want them to come to my bday party because my neighborhood is too ghetto lol) So I just wanna see what they mean by "ghetto" in the city. 🤨
Mass ghetto is waaaay safer than any Cali ghetto and I say that as someone from Richmond who frequented Stockton my whole life. The food and weather are definitely an extreme downgrade but it’s super safe even in the ghetto here and the homelessness is nothing like it is in Cali. Everything is cheaper too! Have a safe move!
All of Worcester is nicer than Stockton! Our run down area are old mills and run down houses. There isn't a huge port or nasty industrial areas 😉. Look at the street view of 1 Walpole, that's about how the rough areas look. MCPHS is on the other side of downtown.
I moved here 10 years ago from Sacramento (Roseville)
I grew up near Stockton and trust me nothing compares to Stockton, you’ll be fine in Worcester lmao
Also MCPHS isn’t that close to the worst parts of Worcester
Hey I loved from east LA to Worcester. Let’s say there are some parts of Worcester that make me feel nostalgic lol. But not immediately next to MCPHS afaik from where the campus is. There are nice parts and there are not nice parts.
I do agree with others that it’s kind of tough without a car here. Transportation system is not amazing and if you want to use Ubers, they are not always reliable. Sometimes there are non early mornings if you need to catch a flight back or something like that.
It’s definitely not the worst part of the city, especially since they’ve been gentrifying downtown over the last few years. The worst I’ve ever had is people coming up to me asking for money or a cigarette.
10 minutes walk to Starbucks, 15 minute walk to Ralph's Diner!
🥳
Yes it is. But really not too bad it’s well lit and there’s good people around too. There’s a store 24 that attracts some undesirables. On the other side of the hospital is a lot of lower income housing. The giant police station is close by, not sure how that matters at all. Where you gonna live that means everything as far a as transportation.
how bad is the snow during the beginning of january?
You’re gonna wanna kill yourself in February, but spring is awesome.
Pretty rough time for snow we usually get at least a foot or 2 in January at the worst and 6-12 inches at the mildest
It seems like every year we get two weeks of super cold in January. Like zero. It sucks.
thats gonna be the huge change for me, as a Californian haha
Buy a good winter coat, keep a snow brush/ice scraper in your car, remember you can't steer if you slam the brakes, and don't be one of those douchebags who leaves snow on your car's roof so that it hits the poor sucker driving behind you. You'll be fine. :D
You will be fine. Because we get a lots of snow, the city digs out pretty quick. It’s not like some places that shut down with 6” of snow.
We don't shut down, but the city does a real shit job of digging out anywhere that's not a main area
So, when I went to school in Worcester ( many years ago ) they would plow the snow until the snow plowing budget was used up, and then they would just stop plowing. Given that I was riding a motorcycle year round, this presented some issues for me.
I take it they're better on that front now? 🤔
Yeah, my wife moved here from Santa Monica. She never really adjusted to the cold ( or to the streets not being on a grid! ). And Worcester has that winter gale of a wind that just cuts right through you. Oh, yeah, and the snow you mentioned.
You're going to love it here!
Invest in some proper New England winter clothes... Parka, snow mobile mittens, warm waterproof boots.
I went to school 5 minutes from there, and it's rough in the winter. And I grew up in New England. And you'll find you won't tolerate the cold as well as the natives. So I'm not kidding about buying some proper warm clothes...
Does this answer your question?
Worcester is the Snowiest City in America (2021)
But as others point out, the city takes good care of the roads. However, it's up to business and property owners to clear sidewalks, so waiting for the bus can be dicey if you're blocked by a snow bank.
New England, particularly Massachusetts has capricious weather in every season. That's day by day week by week and year by year. Snow totals are nothing like they used to be and temps have moderated as well. I think the best description is manageable. We get the rare blizzard, which in my opinion is something to look forward to. Everything shuts down. Having advanced warning, you stock up on your favorite beverage and good things to eat and binge watch movies because you're not going anywhere. It's been a long time since we've had a really bad one. At my house it's another holiday. We've got lots of room and the family comes here to hunker down. Then it's movies, board games and cooking and eating.
Honestly, the rougher areas of Worcester aren’t really that bad. I’ve lived in a lot of major cities across the country and what is considered ghetto in Worcester could be a decent middle class neighborhood anywhere else.
GBV though.
The exception lol
The rougher areas of Worcester are mind-your-own-business zones, not the kind of place where you automatically have a target on your back if you're an outsider.
No, not really. Most of the folks who think that grew up in very sheltered small towns. I lived on Mission Hill in Boston for years and Worcester really isn’t bad at all.
No it’s the heart of downtown. The area they are referring to is several blocks south of there.
By heart of downtown, do you mean MCPHS?
Yes
No advice, but nursing students tend to be a pretty tight group, based around lots and lots of hard work and group study. I'm sure through that you will find carpool friends and people you can take ubers with!
yes agree! thats why im trying it out being carless for the first few months.
Have you locked down a place. You could get something close over bear green street there’s some cool places there
yes im living on campus!
Oh I’m not sure if that means super close but if it dies you are gonna be good. Highland street is right college kids everywhere check out the boynton and the sole proprietor gear bars
Sorry my stupid phone does that. Dies=does and right =close and gear=great. Sorry. Youll be fine
thanks for the advice! ill try not to stick my face too much to books and make new friends!
what do u mean “when it dies” ?
I think its a typo for “does”
As a current MCPHS student, and as someone who lives on campus, I think you may want to reconsider having your car if possible. I know my program (DPT) encourages us to have a car for clinicals, and not much is within walking distance
Yes, I read the comments here getting the car. I plan on shipping my car during the second semester since nursing students start their clinicals around that time. I would also like to try out ubersharing/zipcar for the mean time.
How do you like living on campus? Do you live with people? I plan on living in Foster!
I love living on campus, I got lucky and got placed with someone I get along with very well. I’ve heard good things about Foster, its similar to classic college dorm style except you will have your own bedroom. I live in the apartment style dorms which I have heard is a different experience.
I work at a dialysis clinic close to the campus. I mean you cant really walk to a grocery store but if you’re cooking for 1 you can at least instacart or something cheaper than many. I live in Holden but I don’t drive at all. My husband brings me into Worcester and I get around w walking and Uber just fine. I’m from New Orleans and Worcester has an insane amount of snow. But the city does a good job with it.
Also if you want to work in dialysis during school hit me up. We actually do a program that pays for nursing school. Just thought of that. I’m their social worker!
ill pm you!
thanks for the advice! instacart should be a good option for me :-)
From another CA native, buy a good coat and waterproof boots, like LL Bean hikers, when you get here. Gloves, too. Baby, it is cold outside.
im excited!
By the middle of February you will be contemplating ways to kill yourself.
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This should be the top post lol. Seriously, get the biggest, puffiest coat you can find. You don't need to spend hundreds of dollars, but definitely don't cheap out. Uniqlo sells a big puffer for around $180 that goes down to your knees and it's the only thing that's kept my GF alive since we moved here from the west coast.
Needs a good hood and good pockets.
Buy a shovel. Any kind of shovel, you can use it to move snow, or beat people asking for a loosie. And if nursing doesn't work for you, you can move dirt with it. Good luck!
The WRTA sucks, but is free. You can get by depending on neighborhood. Downtown has much more these days, so you should be ok.
As someone who grew up in Central Massachusetts and works in Worcester. Not far from your campus, you will Definitely want your car. Without it, your world will be too small. You will want to get out and explore different places in your down time. Without a car, your very limited to where and what you can do. Relying on the train or bus to go to Boston is ok, but on their schedule. Worcester is not big enough to just staying there. New England as a whole, is a beautiful area and every bit of it should be explored. But, you need your car to do so. What is great about the Worcester area is if you look at a map and draw a circle 90 miles (say, within 90 minutes)out, you can explore so many areas. From Boston to part of the Cape. Providence or Newport, RI. Mystic, CT to Foxwoods. Springfield to Shelburne Falls, MA. Brattleboro, Vt to Portsmouth, Nh . Portland, ME to Newburyport, MA. Each area I mentioned are driveable from Worcester and each should be visited while you are out this way.
>Vote
Great advice, you're very right! thanks!
Also moved here from CA several years ago and getting a car here is WORTH IT. I did Uber and Zipcar and got rides from people. The latter was a nice way to bond with people, but Uber and Zipcar added up. I tried the bus system, but it drove me crazy how the bus drivers left before they were supposed to (they would arrive and leave before the scheduled bus stop).
how long did you use zipcar and ubers? how much does it cost, approximately?
I used it for the first few years, splitting the cost with friends as much as possible.
At the time, I think Zipcar was $9 Annual fee then something like $9/hr (it’s been a while I don’t fully remember).
A lot of places in the city were probably $18 round trip for Uber.
Up to this point, I had one job off campus and the rest were on campus. By my fourth year, I had picked up jobs outside of my school and a car was needed. I’m so glad to have the car, especially to go to places outside Worcester.
[deleted]
i pm'ed you :)
Public transit is practically non-existent in Worcester. As others have said, buses are free, but you’ll never know if they’ll show up when they’re supposed to, so they’re not something you can rely on. If possible, you should reconsider bringing your car, especially if you’re coming from a city in California (because you’ll be in for a culture shock in terms of walkability and public transit).
First thing that came to my mind would b the difference in culture. Have you been to Boston? Everyone is grinding and on the go. Which results in a bit of an attitude (understatement) there’s a sense of stress in the air round here.
My wife went to MCP. I wouldn’t necessarily call it a ghetto but, there is a difference when you cross the street. You should b well equipped considering your Stockton roots.
My condolences, in a way… I’m born and raised in Worcester and live in nearby MA and Massachusetts November - April is a frozen hellscape, dark, grey, and dreary. I spent quite a bit of time in CA in my 20’s and it’s just… nicer. The climate is SO much better, the people were more relaxed (depending on where you are, of course) and it’s just more hospitable to commuting, waking, and being a human. Public transportation leaves a lot to be desired here (outside of Boston.) That said, welcome!
If you can get an airbnb close to downtown you will be ok without a car
I will be living on campus!
Hello! Worcester resident here, I graduated from MCPHS ABSN program in 2016. While you will pretty much be immersed in school stuff for 16 months, you might want to reconsider bringing your car. Worcester public transit isn't vast and there is so much to see in New England.
I highly recommend that you get a car. The bus system is just...well it is there is you absolutely need it. If you won't be bringing your own, at least get some sort of beater car to drive in Worcester. Outside of Worcester, the Public transit system is nowhere to be found, and that can really be also said for within the city itself in large parts.
Number of CA transplants replying here is wildly surprising to me.
I'm from the worcester area and just want to let you not this is not a safe city to be out and about alone especially as a woman. I would highly suggest bringing your vehicle at the very least.
D_is_for_Doomsayer t1_ixs2rce wrote
Transportation is rough without a car. We have a bus system, but it's more of a spoke system. It's not a fast method. The central hub is fairly close to MCPHS at least.