Moving to and Studying at UBC-Okanagan

[jimmy]

hi guys,

so i've been given the opportunity to apply to UBC okanagan away from home,
if offered, i will 100% go to Okanagan

so i just have a few questions about what it is like living there and stuff

first of all my situation will most likely be:
1) i will not have my mazda3 or any car as a matter of fact
2) i will be living on campus (i dont even know where the campus is)
3) i will be living with 3 other people
4) i will stay there from sept-april for 2 years in a row starting in 2009
5) i will have a U-Pass allowing me to travel by bus


what kind of things are availble in terms of entertainment? (net cafes, arcades, movie theatres (silver city?), sports arenas (badminton places?) )

is it much colder there than vancouver? what kind of things are essential for winter survival? do i need a ski jacket everywhere i go? or am i ok with what i'm wearing here in vancouver?

does it rain alot during the fall/winter seasons? will i need snow boots or am i ok with just runners?

whats the population like there? do you see alot of asians (girls? lol) running around?

whats the cost of living there like? is it more expensive than vancouver? food prices? choice of restaurants?

employment opportunities? even though my tuition and living costs are paid by my parents, i would still like to re-coup their "losses" so i want to make money and pay as much of the tuition as i can afford...
what kind of jobs are available for a student like myself ? (im 22, not very buff so i can't do very labourous jobs, and im asian) what kind of salaries should i be expecting?

ease of obtaining goods? future shop? bestbuy? computer shops? sporting goods (other than snowboarding gear, im not into snow activities lol) ?

is it a bitch to get around without a car? does the transit system suck balls like the lower mainland?

personal safety? whats the crime rate there like? what should i look out for? what do i need to look out for?

thats all i have so far
but i'll most likely have more questions later on

oh yeah a big minus is that im not attracted to alcohol at all so, yah
i know theres alot of drinking going on around the campus so i need to keep msyelf busy doing other stuff lol



if my plans continue the way they are going, i will almost guaranteed take a trip to kelowna in the summer (driving there... WITH MY 3!!!!... and my sister and her boyfriend and my parents) ...


just FYI for anyone wondering what im doing there
if accepted, i will be entering 3rd year in the Faculty of Management, hopefully ending up with a Bachelors of Management (B.Mgt)
it is a big deviation from what i started with, i was attending UBC vancouver for 3 years doing my Bachelors of Applied Science (chemical biological dept), except i got suspended. my plan WAS to jsut grab any degree i can and the choice came out to be Bachelors of Arts (psycology)... recently( like 2 days ago) my parents and i were talkign and apparently they are ok with me going elsewhere to complete my studies (despite the increased costs, they said its all worth it in the end when i am successful), and i've always been interested in the program at UBC-O, one aspect that i am particularly interested in getting my hands into is Human Resources
all in all, you can say that Management is kind of like a dumbed down version of Commerce. I was never interested in commerce though, i worked in a bank for a summer and absolutely hated it.. This is more like business management and handling resources in a business environment

[dmogx]

what kind of things are availble in terms of entertainment? (net cafes, arcades, movie theatres (silver city?), sports arenas (badminton places?) )

Cherry picking?

is it much colder there than vancouver? what kind of things are essential for winter survival? do i need a ski jacket everywhere i go? or am i ok with what i'm wearing here in vancouver?

yes it's colder

whats the population like there? do you see alot of asians (girls? lol) running around?

friend who goes there hangs out with all of the asians there, all 5 of them.

whats the cost of living there like? is it more expensive than vancouver? food prices? choice of restaurants?

doubt it, vancouver is one of the most expensive cities in Canada to live in lol

employment opportunities? even though my tuition and living costs are paid by my parents, i would still like to re-coup their "losses" so i want to make money and pay as much of the tuition as i can afford...
what kind of jobs are available for a student like myself ? (im 22, not very buff so i can't do very labourous jobs, and im asian) what kind of salaries should i be expecting?

You're done!  end life now!

personal safety? whats the crime rate there like? what should i look out for? what do i need to look out for?

when you're in prison, don't pick up the bar of soap that you drop....




as long as you're happy with what you're doing and they offer it somewhere, you should definitely go for it! (hey, it's better than going to prince george at UNBC lol)

[tonyzoomzoom]

I've only travelled to Kelowna and have never lived there.  So I can't give you any advice as to what's there.

But don't overthink or over-prepare for the situation.  It's a great opportunity to experience life in a different community.  You will have access to everything that you need.  Whatever you are short (a warm jacket, etc), you can buy it there.

It's going to be great.  Enjoy it !!

Just remember to show up at our monthly meets   

[lucky1201]

no advice/idea. but ah...good lucky there if u really go to Okanagan
and hope u will come back soon

Add Oil X1000000 

[ladiesman217]

i am gonna miss you <3

[jimmy]

thx for the support and advice guys!
lets hope everything goes well!
unfortunately i will be cutting my insurance in the case that i do go there, so  i wont be able to attend monthly meets =( (unless coincidentally i am back at the same time and someone can give me a ride LOL)

[Keiichi]

This is an excellent opportunity.
Hopefully you end up liking what you do at school...because it makes it that much easier.

Honestly, I think you will learn more about yourself, your life, and what you want, potentially more than what you will gain from school.  Living by yourself and with a bit of distance away from home is a good thing to make yourself better.

[Keiichi]

oh yeah......the girls in Vancouver are safe...for now....

[jimmy]

yeaaaah im not so much worried about living alone
its jsut the extra costs thats giving this a bad taste lol.. but if i do succeed academically then its all worth it


lol safe.. for now... in 2 years i will strike again!

[dmogx]

what's to say that they are safe mon-fri, but maybe jimmy would come back once a week during the weekends

[jimmy]

no i wont lol
i wont be back that often
most likely once every few months? + holidays of course

[dmogx]

so there would only be 2-3 months of calm at a time before the predator strikes again!

[max_sensation]

let me enlighten you about kelowna...one of my best buddies goes there for school and he's done this semester..and he tells me all about it. Theres more downside than upsides though....

Kelowna is pretty much like a surrey..they have all the major stores we have around here, bestbuy, save on foods, canadiain tire...etc etc..

The little town closes down at AROUND 5-6pm..there really isnt much entertainment like Vancouver...theres a theater...but i have no idea where it is..The highway runs straight down city centre.

Transportation Via transit is CRAP..Youll rather drive...insurance is lower outside of vanocuver...ull save about 4-5 hundred a year using a kelowna address..a transit bus runs on route once every hour after 6pm..

Kelowna is about 3.5-4 hours away from vancouver..and u cant really driver there nor back until spring time.

IT fucking cold there during the winter days...LOTS and LOTS of snow. better buy a few jackets before heading there.

If u think city life is boring..kelowna isnt any better.

Only 2 clubs in town...and there full of white ppl..(no racial slur intended)

1 bubble tea place...and only tastes half decent..all else powder made

chinese food is mostly chicken chow main, chicken chop sui..no authentic stuff

the campus is pretty small..maybe the size of langara/kwantlan..

LOT AND LOTS AND LOTS OF TRUCKs...get out of ther way or theyll hurt you..

lots of crappy drivers...my buddy got hit and run three times WHILE driving...

There aint many place to go at night but to hit up a denny's or tim hortons...or stay home

Lots and lots of cops around...love to ding you with there speeding cameras

living on campus is pretty expensive...its better to live off...its lil cheaper...

Thats all the bad stuff..now the good.
YOu can concentrate...less fun = more work done......
lots of first and second year international students if your interested..especially jap and korean
Students there are super friendly and easily approachable
jobs are easy to find...but pay is below avg. and most likely need a car if u do work
Summer is great if u stay...gets really hot, lots of wineries, and a big lake for swimming. lots of dust and smog during a hot afternoon thou.
Skiing is relatively close by

tats all i can think of at the moment

[HeaTransfer]

Like Tony, I've travelled there and haven't lived there.

Kelowna is gorgeous.  There is plenty to do there, especially in the summer.  It does get colder than Vancouver.  Summers are hotter too.  

Don't worry - it's a decent sized city, so there are all the shops and services and big chains (if you're into them) that you'd expect.

I can't speak for UBCO, but I haven't seen many yellow people there and there's definitely less in the way of Asian food.  Perhaps the best thing to do would be to take a road trip up there -- maybe Easter weekend -- and see for yourself.

[max_sensation]

reading over ur OP again...the transit is worse than vancouver...it doesnt come as often...even during the busy hours..15 min a bus i believe at most..

recreation centres...not sure..buddy doesnt do much sports...

1 room at campus is about 7-8hundred i believe...could be higher...off campus runs around 500 with utilities depending on location

if you think the weather is cold in van...the wind chills are worse in kelowna..same with summer...VERY hot

Asian..not much..but theres a few...like a surrey as mentioned before...

it very quiet after 9pm..not much traffic...crime rates..not sure..but try to have a friend with you or stay off the streets after dark.

food wise...there all white food...even the Chinese stuff is made for white ppl ( no racial intended)

internet connection is crappy via UBC...too many ppl on one connection


Overall...my buddy says its boring there...its nothing compared to vancouver...

[tonyzoomzoom]

Not a good idea to keep comparing the two places.  They are different.

I'm sure that there are a ton of positives in Kelwona.  That's why so many folks choose to live there.

[rob]

I haven't lived in Kelowna but I've lived in Prince George from Sept to May which is also a small town further up north.

Winters will be very cold, but as long as your skin is covered you should be fine. Wear lots of layers.

Getting around town will be a hassle, as you can probably imagine. But I'm sure you'll meet some locals (hopefully with cars) that will help you out a lot.

Don't be afraid to initiate conversation, I found people in Prince George to be very nice and welcoming.

Do some research of where the campus is, where you'll be living and the transit routes. Familiarizing the bus routes will help you in the long run.

Oh yeah, if you like your cell phone number, you can choose to "freeze" your account for up to 6 months. I wish I had done that to have kept my old cell phone number. Although you'll be "gone" for more than 6 months, you'll be back during the holidays (4 months or sooner) and such and you'll definitely wish you had a cell phone.

[H2O SPEED]

Kelowna's pace is like taking a step back in time 20 years in Richmond where I grew up. I know this shows my age. Kelowna has most of the major stores which have decent hours ( no 24 hr home depot ) The smaller stores usually close on Monday's with sometimes shorter Saturdays. The movie theatre isn't too far from campus. Staying on campus isn't for everyone and you can get a 3 br condo on the lake for 1200/mth. The weather is way better overall than yvr, usually -10 is the cold through winter but way dryer. This year we had an unusual amount of snow. You can get from one end of town to the other end in 20 minutes fall - spring. As for the night life you will have to ask M-ziggy, she the party girl. Personally I would take the car and live off campus. Finally we don't have shootings on the daily.   

[lucky1201]

Girls will Miss U....hahaha....i mean young girls

[M Speed]

As a honger....I think you will be bored to death. But if you can concentrate on the education, I think this will be a great opportunity for you.