Introduction

Admission

Itasca Orientation/Annual Retreat

Financial Aid

Resources

Student Life

Suggestions

Student Life

Housing

Housing options for graduate students at the University of Minnesota vary greatly. Many students rent houses or apartments in residential areas close to campus. However, some students live in the greater metropolitan twin cities area. University Housing Services has on-campus dormitory accommodations for single students. Students with families may also apply to live in off campus housing complexes.

Housing services is a valuable resource for those looking for housing. In addition to family and dormitory housing, they maintain a database of rental properties looking for tenants. Their services are available on a walk-in basis throughout the year. Contact them at their web site or by phone at (612) 624-2994.

The Twin Cities

Minneapolis, the largest city in Minnesota, and St. Paul, its capital, are known as the Twin Cities, the state's major metropolitan area with a population of 2.4 million. They are rich in what makes cities exciting yet have few urban drawbacks. Here are negligible pollution, low crime rates, affordable housing, and people known for their friendliness.

The Twin Cities are centers of commerce and industry with major corporate headquarters in electronics, computers, food processing and milling, retailing, medicine, transportation, and forest products industries.

Cultural Activities

• Minnesota Orchestra, conducted by Osmo Vänskä, is based in Minneapolis
• St. Paul Chamber Orchestra, conducted by Christopher Hogwood and Hugh Wolf, is one of only two full-time professional chamber orchestras in the country. It is based in the new Ordway Music Theatre in St. Paul
• Northrop Auditorium on the U of MN Minneapolis campus features the Northrop Dance Series with major national and international dance companies performing each year. A variety of events sponsored by different organization are held in Northrop, check the Minnesota Daily for advertised events.
• The Guthrie Theater, one of seven professional theaters in the Twin Cities
• The Minneapolis Institute of Arts displays world art from antiquity to the present
• The Walker Art Center highlights contemporary painting, sculpture, and prints and boasts a large sculpture garden.
• The Weisman Art Museum on the U of MN Minneapolis campus is housed in a new modern building designed by Frank Gehry.
• The Science Museum of Minnesota in St. Paul features an omnitheater.

Sports Attractions

• The Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome in Minneapolis features major sports events including games of:
  • The Minnesota Twins major league baseball team
  • The Vikings football team
  • MN Big Ten Gopher football team
• Big Ten Gopher Hockey and Basketball games are highlights during the winter months.
• For other MN Gopher sports, go to the Gopher Sports site.
• The Timberwolves basketball team plays at the new Target arena in Minneapolis.
• The St. Paul Saints, an independent minor league playing in the Northern League, attracts large crowds at its outdoor stadium in St. Paul.
• Minnesota's NHL team, the Minnesota Wild, play at the Xcel Energy Center in downtown St. Paul.
• The Minnesota Thunder professional soccer team plays at the The National Sports Center located in Blaine, Minnesota, about 25 minutes north of the Twin Cities.
  

Seasonal Events

• Renaissance Festival during August and September
• St. Paul Winter Carnival starting the last week of January
• Minnesota State Fair, adjacent to St. Paul Campus in August, September
  

Outdoor Attractions

• Three great rivers, the Mississippi, the Minnesota, and the St. Croix cross the metropolitan area.
• Many large lakes, including five within the Minneapolis city limits, feature beaches, bike paths, hiking trails, and parkways. Popular summer activities are swimming, canoeing, sailing, water-skiing, hiking, and bicycling. By December, Minnesota waters are frozen, and favorite pastimes include ice skating, cross-country and downhill skiing, and ice fishing.
• Como Park in St. Paul, one of many outstanding public parks, features a zoo, one of only ten Victorian glass conservatories in the country, a lake and golf course.
• The Minnesota Zoo, located on the southern edge of the metropolitan area, features open habitat and naturalistic exhibits.