Tag: Rogers Park

Choosing the Right City

Choosing the Right City

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Throughout the travel season, I’ve noticed that quite a few students are applying to a wide array of schools. Applying to many schools can be a good way to keep your options open, but it can also be quite time consuming. I would recommend narrowing the list to save your self some time (and money if there are application fees, which Loyola does NOT have). One of the easiest ways to shorten the list, spend some time considering the city your school is located in and whether or not it’s a good fit for you.

Some things to consider about cities:

  • Distance- Is it the right distance from home? Are you looking to stay close by or do you want to move further away to get a new experience? What forms of transportation can you take to get back & forth? Will you be able to afford to commute home easily for holidays?
  • Weather/Climate- Are you looking for a city with all 4 seasons or just 1? Do you want a snowy winter? Do you want to be near a beach? (Loyola offers both of those options!)


  • Rural Life Vs. City Life- Are you looking to study in a small, rural town or do you want to experience fast-pace, city life? Are you looking for a quiet environment or are you okay with a little city noise?
  • Transit- Will you be able to easily commute to grocery stores, restaurants, etc? Do you need a car? How does parking work on campus? Can you rely on public transit to get around? Or is everything within walking distance? (At Loyola you can always rely on the CTA, Chicago Transit Authority, to get you around the city at no cost with your U-Pass!)
  • Diversity- How diverse is the campus & the neighborhood? Will you get a different experience from your hometown? What opportunities are there to explore different cultures, beliefs, etc.? (Loyola is in one of the most diverse neighborhoods in the country, Rogers Park.)
  • Internship/Job Opportunities- Are there businesses nearby who will provide internship opportunities? How far will you have to commute for work? How far are you willing to commute for an internship or job? (Being in Chicago, Loyola is very close in proximity to uncountable internship & experiential learning opportunities.)

There’s no right or wrong answer to the questions listed above, they’re all things you need to consider and answer honestly for yourself when deciding if a college or city is a good fit for you.

Good Luck!

The Midcollege Crisis

The Midcollege Crisis

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Half way through this summer, at the end of July, I turned 20. I was no longer a teenager; I had officially entered into adulthood!

While I was excited to finally take part in the world of grown up perks, I was also a little scared. I was nervous for just how fast time was flying by. Not only was I now 20 years old…I was also halfway through my undergraduate college experience.

Even though I’ve known that I want to be a nurse for years, all of the sudden, I started questioning if I was in the right major, living in the right apartment and making the right choices.

In other words, half way through my college career, I was having a Midcollege Crisis.

I wasn’t the only one.

Amongst almost all of my friends, halfway mark of their college careers, there has been a seed of doubt that sprouts right at that moment when they feel as though they’re past the point of no return. Most of my friends solved their crises with some heart to hearts from friends at Loyola and friends from home.

I had a more…extravagant…solution.

Me with my baby!

You know the stereotype of the 50 year old man who buys a red Ferrari? I guess I’m the 20 year old equivalent of that; i.e. a 20 year old girl who buys herself a beautiful longboard.

Unsurprisingly for anyone who has had the joy of longboarding before, it has been an amazing experience for me. Today, I went by myself for the first time all the way from my apartment at Jarvis to the Devon Market.

It’s funny, because RoPo is a pretty diverse, neighborhood. I was reminded of that today as I rode. A 20something guy who told me, “Keep going! Stay steady!” to the 7 year old boy who asked his mom, “What’s she riding? I want to look that cool!” to the little girl who yelled at her family, “Mira! Mira! La chica!” my ride today reminded me that Loyola is surrounded by a pretty awesome neighborhood that I’m proud to say I live in.

My rides have also given me time to relax and think about all the choices I’m making. And luckily for me, I’ve been able to realize that all of my doubts were really just from the confusing Midcollege Crisis, and that I have absolutely no regrets about any of the decisions I’m making right now.

Well…except for maybe that I’m up at 4 am writing this blog…but that’s a choice I can live with!

My Mini AutoBio

My Mini AutoBio

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Hola readers!! My name is Yuliya Chernyavskaya, but let’s just leave things at my first name. I’m a junior at Loyola University Chicago, if you didn’t already assume that much, and I’m a double major in Marketing and Sociology.

I was raised in the northern suburbs of Chicago, namely the village of Northbrook, since I was seven. I’ve lost track of exactly where I was before that, though I know I lived in Rogers Park at some point. Although I may have lived in Chicago most of my life, I wasn’t born here. Actually, I wasn’t born in Illinois, of the USA for that matter. I was born in Chisinau, Moldova, which can be found on most maps (I hope).

I spent my first semester at Loyola on campus in Simpson Hall, but I became an off campus student after that. In the free time that I create for myself, I love to write, take walks and ask people questions about their lives. I have an intense curiousity about anything and everything, so I’m constantly researching online, asking people their stories and scoping out new things to learn.

When I’m not trying to busy myself with self-created projects, I can be found studying in random places, working at my awesome on-campus job, or relaxing with friends and family. I love to dance, sleep, explore, laugh, and many other verbs, but most importantly, I love to do all of this in the one, the only- CHICAGO!!

Reason I Love Chicago #1: Graffiti

Reason I Love Chicago #1: Graffiti

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Graffiti and urban art have always fascinated me. Police and property owners see graffiti as a terrible inconvenience, but I love looking at the lines and curves trespassing artists leave behind. It may be illegal, but it certainly is an art form.

Check out this awesome graffiti mural I stumbled across today painted just south of campus near the Granville Red Line stop–

This is just part of it; the mural stretches across an entire building. I did some Googling and found that this mural isn’t the only one of its kind– it’s part of a project called “Before I Die” started by a woman in her own neighborhood in New Orleans in February 2011. Since then, the murals have been painted around the world: Amsterdam, London, Portsmouth, Queretaro, Almaty, San Diego, Lisbon, Brooklyn and Melbourne… and now it has come to Chicago.

This article tells a little more about the project– Before I Die by Candy Chang, via Good News Only, a non-profit art gallery in Chicago’s Edgewater neighborhood.

“It’s easy to get caught up in the day-to-day and forget what really matters to you,” Good News Only writes. “This wall is a temporary installation where we can learn the hopes and dreams of the people around us.”

(Photo by me!)