8 Great Things About Living Near Boston

When searching for colleges, a great way to narrow down your choices is to take into account the location and setting of the university. Are you looking for a large rural school on the west coast? Or perhaps a small urban college in an east coast city? The location may very well shape the culture of the school and the experiences you create while you are there.

Personally, I was looking for a school that was in or close to a city, which is one of the reasons I was intrigued by Boston College. What’s great about BC is that the students here are able to enjoy all of the benefits of a traditional (and beautiful!) college campus while still having quick and easy access to the city of Boston and all of its resources. Students here love living so close to the city. We have convenient access to two T stops that can transport anyone into Boston fairly quickly. Because of this, there are so many things to do on the weekends for fun -so if you don’t feel like taking part in the numerous activities occurring on campus, you can easily get away and do your own thing in the city whenever you please.

Here are some other great things about Boston and being so close:

1. Just like in any city, Boston has a huge array of restaurants, shopping, art, historical sites, shows/concerts, and great nightlife. For great ideas or examples of fun Boston activities, I would recommend visiting this Facebook group: http://www.facebook.com/365ThingsBoston?ref=ts or simply check out this awesome site: http://mysecretboston.com/ 
2. Boston is a college town! There are more than 100 colleges and universities located in the Great Boston area, so there are tons of college students and other young adults all over the city. Many businesses in the area take advantage of this, offering products, activities, and services that are specifically targeted to college students. 
3. BC sponsors or partners with other events that are going on in the city such as the Museum of Fine Arts College Night, tickets to sports events and Broadway shows, and homecoming at the House of Blues, so you have a VIP access to some of Boston’s greatest attractions!
4. Boston has great sporting events! For all you sports enthusiasts it is easy and fun to get tickets to Boston Red Sox, Bruins, and Celtics games. Did I mention Fenway is only five T stops away…
5. Boston doesn’t have to be expensive! The T is very inexpensive to ride and there are plenty of cheap things to do in the city such as walking around, exploring, picnicking in the commons, and going to the MFA (art museum) just to name a few. Check out the photo above of me enjoying a beautiful day in the Boston Commons. 
6. Boston is also a great place for service and club activities. Many BC classes and service clubs such as PULSE and 4Boston have volunteer placements in the city that students visit each week. In addition, BC performance groups such as the Voices of Imani perform at Boston events/charity benefits and the CSOM business academies visit businesses and conferences in the Greater Boston area. There are just a few examples of how Boston College clubs and organizations take advantage of being so close to the city!
7. Boston offers great job and internship opportunities! Whether you are a nursing student looking to train at a local hospital or a CSOM student seeking an accounting internship, the city has a myriad of resources. 
8. Lastly, what I love about Boston is its wonderful historical aura and the fact that it is such a walkable city. Because of its relatively small size, it is pretty easy to find your way through each of its small and unique neighborhoods, making exploring a favorite pastime. To prove my point, I decided spend a Columbus weekend afternoon walking all the way from BC to the North End! To hear more about this excursion, visit my next post. 

Please feel free to email me with any comments or questions: papastam@bc.edu

Thanks for Reading!!

Sofia Papastamelos