The cost of living for Georgia State students students in both on- and off-campus housing is almost always higher compared to other Georgia universities.
Photo Credit: Raven Schley, The Signal
According to the Fall 2013 and Spring 2014 housing rates on the Georgia State Housing website, the least expensive housing option on campus is a four-shared bedroom and two bath apartment with five roommates in the University Commons for $2,633 per semester. Students also have the option to live in the Lofts, Patton Hall, Greek Housing and Piedmont North with the most expensive room selection being a single bedroom with a shared bathroom in Patton Hall at $4,941 per semester.
Georgia State vs Georgia Southern
A student living on campus at Georgia Southern pays slightly less to liveon campus than a Georgia State student.
The option of having five roommates at Georgia Southern’s Kennedy Apartments is $2,485, which is $148 less per semester than Georgia State’s cheapest living option with five roommates in the University Commons.
However, the setup for the two on-campus apartments is different. While Georgia State’s five-roommate room has four rooms with two people sharing a room, students who reside in the Kennedy Apartments have two rooms with three people sharing the first room and two people sharing the second.
At Georgia Southern, for the price of the most expensive room at Georgia State (the one bedroom dorm room for freshmen), a student can live in any of the apartment style residence halls or the University Villas, which are fully equipped townhouses.
Ibbie Owolabi, a Georgia Southern student who no longer lives on campus, said that she moved to an apartment complex walking distance from Georgia Southern because she liked how the model home looked. She pays $500 a month.
“I feel that’s a lot to pay for [an apartment] I have no real ownership of,” Owolabi said.
Apartments that are walking distance from Georgia State tend to be around $700 a month or more. Renaissance Walk, an apartment complex on Auburn Ave. leases their cheapest apartment, a one bedroom, one bath, for $1,201 a month. One 12 Courtland, another apartment complex walking distance from campus, leases their cheapest apartment, a four bedroom, two bath, for $775-795 a month.
Georgia State vs Kennesaw State University
If a student were to live in the most expensive dorm at Kennesaw State University, they would pay $4,200 per semester for a two bedroom, two bathroom apartment in the University Village. Both residents would have their own bedroom and bathroom.
That same set up in Georgia State’s University Commons is $4,668 per semester, a $468 difference.
However, the two bedroom, two bathroom setup in the Georgia State Lofts is $4,130 per semester, a smaller difference of $70.
“The Lofts’ living space is probably the biggest, out of every dorm here and the lofts are not expensive to live compared to the rest of the university, but it is more expensive than getting your own place,” Chase Williams, a senior and Lofts resident, said.
Senior Jamari White, a middle-grade education major at Kennesaw State, said that he used to live in student housing, but he moved off-campus into an apartment because he felt that he could get more for his money.
“I like the space that I have now, it’s not really close to campus, and it is gated, so it’s not noisy,” White said.
However, White also added that he dislikes the commute that he makes to campus because he lives three miles away from the University and he has to drive instead of walk.
Ariel Redwood, a junior and nursing major at Kennesaw State, also lives in an apartment off campus.
“I chose to live at West 22 because of it was cheaper than living on campus and it had nice amenities such as a pool, Wi-Fi, a clubhouse and a gym. It was also a new complex so I was attracted to it,” Redwood said.
Georgia State vs Georgia Southwestern State University
Students living on campus at Georgia Southwestern choose between Southwestern Pines, Southwestern Oaks and Southwestern Magnolia dorms.
“I live on campus in Southwestern Pines. It costs $520 a month which is pretty expensive. I chose to live on campus so that I could really have that college experience,” Nikki Corbin, a Georgia Southwestern student, said.
Southwestern Pines has the same setup as the four-bedroom apartment in the University Commons. It has four individual bedrooms with one resident in each room and two shared bathrooms. Southwestern Pines is $2,425 per semester, while Georgia State’s price is $3,898 per semester. That is a $1,473 difference.
Southwestern Oaks and Southwestern Magnolia residence halls at Southwestern are similar to the setup of the shared suites in Patton Hall at Georgia State.
The price of one of these rooms at Southwestern Oaks is $1,780 per semester and $3,317 with an unlimited meal plan. According to the Georgia Southwestern website, all residential students are required to have a meal plan.
The price at Georgia State is $4,012 per semester with an unlimited meal plan. That is a $695 difference.
Georgia State vs Georgia Tech
Although tuition at Georgia Tech is double compared to Georgia State’s with the average in-state tuition at Georgia Tech at $9,605.50 per semester and the average out-of state tuition is $14,426.50 per semester, the living situations for students are similar since both are located in downtown Atlanta.
The least expensive on-campus living options at Georgia Tech are the East Campus at Field, Glenn, Harrison, Hopkins, Howell and Smith residence halls.
Guatham Maran, a sophmore at Georgia Tech, said that he lived in the East Campus dorms his freshman year but he now lives in North Avenue Apartments, which is also on campus.
“I chose to live there [North Avenue Apartments] because it is in a similar location to where I was living my freshman year. There are many people I know who live there and it is a popular place to live,” Maran said
According to the Georgia Tech housing website, the pricing for rooms at the North Avenue Apartments are $2,794 per semester and they house two or four residents in the room.
The setup of these dorms are similar to the Piedmont North residence halls at Georgia State. They house two to four residents in one room but the room at Georgia Tech does not include a bathroom. Residents must use a community bathroom.
For a room at Piedmont North, it costs students $3,796 for a triple-shared room, and $4,639 for a large shared room with only one other roommate.
The price of an unlimited meal plan of $1,846 in the dining hall is included in the room price at Piedmont North and Patton Hall at Georgia State while at Georgia Tech the $3,992 meal plan is included in the university’s tuition for all students, according to their website.
Georgia State vs Emory University
Georgia State and Emory University dormitories share the same price ranges; however, attending Emory and living on campus is a little more expensive.
“I do feel like it is expensive to live on campus; however, I feel as if it is worth it. It is very functional to live near my classes (transportation time is drastically reduced compared to commuting to the university), and I do not have to worry about the transportation costs or monthly bills that would have followed had I chosen to live off-campus,” Laura, a sophomore and neuroscience and behavioral biology major at Emory, said.
Emory’s residence halls have a fixed amount for each room layout. Certain buildings are also reserved for students of certain years, which can cause a difference in the amount that a student pays.
First-year students at Emory normally pay a fixed $3,680 per semester while freshmen at Georgia State pay between $2,633 and $4,000, depending on the location.
Third- and fourth-year students at Emory tend to pay a more than first- and second- year students because of the available residence halls.
These students tend to pay between $4,070 per semester for a three bedroom apartment in the Clairmont Campus and $5,936 per semester for a one bedroom apartment in the Clairmont Campus Tower Apartments.
For the same setup in the Georgia State’s Lofts, a three-bedroom apartment costs $4,265 per semester.
There is no option for a one bedroom apartment style for students at Georgia State.
None of Georgia State’s other apartment-style residence halls cost more than $4,668 per semester.
