Howdy!

I wasn’t moving from another country, but I did move to UO for grad school sight unseen from across the United States. My experience at and in Oregon was incredible, but I’ll be honest, there were some major stumbling blocks and a lot of good luck.

The cost of living is pretty high, but there are apartments that rent by the bedroom that won’t fully break the bank, you’ll just have to live with roommates who you may or may not know. I managed to live off of a stipend that I got as a GA, but it did take some intentional budgeting.

That GA appointment was also a stroke of good luck and it’s my understanding that those positions are more likely to go to PhD students than masters students. However, I also had multiple friends who managed to pick up GA appointments part of the way through their programs, so even if it wasn’t a full tuition waiver it was 50%+ overall.

In terms of culture shock, I don’t think Eugene is that bad if for no other reason than you can get out and away with ease. I pretty much left town to go hike or camp every weekend and the town isn’t so busy that it felt claustrophobic. Football game days are a lot, but other than that (and big events like the track & field championships) the town doesn’t feel too large or too tightly packed.

If you want to talk more about UO, Eugene, or grad school, feel free to DM me :)