Advantages & Disadvantages of Studying in Detroit

You think about studying in Detroit but want to get additional information on student life, quality of education, career prospects, nightlife, living costs, housing and much more before making your final decision in this regard?

Great! This article is exactly for you since I will show you the pros and cons of studying in Detroit in the following chapters.

Study in Detroit – Overview

Advantages of Studying in Detroit

1. Students in Detroit can benefit from relatively low living costs
2. Rents are still affordable for many students in Detroit
3. More than enough housing options for students in Detroit
4. Overall financial pressure for students is rather low in Detroit
5. Easy to get around in Detroit
6. Many decent bars and clubs in Detroit
7. You can join student clubs
8. Students in Detroit can do many extracurricular activities
9. You will find some decent libraries where you can prepare for your exams
10. Many student jobs in Detroit
11. You can work as an intern for big corporations
12. Students in Detroit can enjoy real seasons
13. Lots of entertainment in Detroit
14. Students in Detroit find most things they need close to their home
15. Detroit is not the most crowded city
16. Detroit may be an underrated student city

Students in Detroit can benefit from relatively low living costs

One advantage of studying in Detroit is that living costs are relatively low compared to many other big cities in the US and this means that you have to spend less money on drinks and various things of daily life and can afford much more for the same budget compared to students in San José or other more expensive regions.

Rents are still affordable for many students in Detroit

Not only living costs in Detroit are reasonably low, but also rents are still affordable for many students and while people who study in Los Angeles or other more popular places have to spend lots of money on housing, you will have to spend far less in this regard and will have more money left to spend on other important things.

More than enough housing options for students in Detroit

Since many people are leaving Detroit, housing shortage is not a big problem at all and this means that you will have a rather easy time finding a decent place to stay as a student in Detroit while many students in more popular regions often have to search for many months to find an affordable place to live.

Overall financial pressure for students is rather low in Detroit

Thanks to rather low living and housing costs, students in Detroit also don’t have to deal with the same high financial pressure as students in Austin or other more expensive regions and while people in more expensive places often spend lots of time worrying about their finances, students in Detroit will be better able to focus on their studies since they don’t have to worry about financial problems as much.

Easy to get around in Detroit

Another benefit of studying in Detroit is that you can also get around by car in a pretty efficient manner since traffic jams are not a big problem yet and while students in NYC often get stuck in traffic, you will often not have to waste as much time in traffic in the Detroit region.

Many decent bars and clubs in Detroit

As a student in Detroit, you can also enjoy really great nightlife in this region.

In fact, there are many decent bars and clubs where you can meet many interesting people and if you are a party person, you will also find many locations where you can party all night long.

You can join student clubs

There are also many decent student clubs in the Detroit region where you can meet up with other students and can share useful tips and tricks on how to make student life in Detroit better.

Students in Detroit can do many extracurricular activities

If you not only want to get your degree but also want to do good for society, you can also join many extracurricular activities where you can work on social programs that have the potential to make the lives of many people better.

You will find some decent libraries where you can prepare for your exams

You will also find decent libraries and other quiet spaces where you can prepare for your exams in a decent manner without getting distracted by people or loud noises so you can study in the best possible manner and can get really good grades.

Many student jobs in Detroit

While unemployment rate in Detroit is pretty high, there are still many student jobs where you can make some money on the side so you can finance your degree to a certain extent.

You can work as an intern for big corporations

Since there are still many big corporations in the Detroit region, you can also work as an intern for one of those big corporations and by gaining this practical work experience, you can already get a foot in the door during your studies and may have an easier time finding a decent job after you graduate.

Students in Detroit can enjoy real seasons

Another upside to studying in Detroit is that students in this region can experience real seasons.

While you will have warm and sunny summers, you will also have pretty strong winters and this enables you to go swimming in summer and skiing in winter and your student life in Detroit may therefore be much more interesting than student life in El Paso or other regions where it is just warm all year long.

Lots of entertainment in Detroit

There are also many great sports teams you can watch and lots of entertainment in general so you will never run out of ideas regarding what to do with your leisure as a student in Detroit.

Students in Detroit find most things they need close to their home

Due to decent public infrastructure and solid supply of material goods, you will also find most things you need pretty close to your home and don’t have to spend lots of time on shopping but can rather use your precious time to study in the most efficient manner.

Detroit is not the most crowded city

Since many people are leaving the Detroit region, it is no longer the most crowded city and you will therefore find many recreational spaces where you can hang out in public without getting distracted by other people so you can also study outdoors in a pretty efficient manner.

Detroit may be an underrated student city

Since most things are pretty affordable while Detroit still offers the comfort of living in a big city, it may be an underrated student city and you may get quite a lot for the money you spend in this region.

Now that you know the reasons for studying in Detroit, we also have to talk about the drawbacks of studying in Detroit so you can better decide whether you still want to study in Detroit or rather want to study in a different region instead.

Disadvantages of Studying in Detroit

1. Hard to build a strong business network for students in Detroit
2. Not many great universities in the Detroit region
3. Studying in Detroit may not be great for your CV
4. Graduates may not have great career prospects
5. Not many great guest professors in Detroit
6. Winters in Detroit may be too cold for many students
7. Detroit is not the safest city
8. You will be confronted with social inequality on a daily basis
9. Students may end up in pretty sketchy neighborhoods
10. Detroit is not a classical student city
11. Many people are leaving Detroit
12. Hard to meet many international students in Detroit
13. Detroit has a rather poor reputation
14. Detroit is not located at the coast

Hard to build a strong business network for students in Detroit

One problem with studying in Detroit is that since many people are leaving this region, you will also have a hard time building a strong business network as a student in Detroit and this may slow down your career progress since the more important people you know, the easier it is to climb the corporate ladder.

Not many great universities in the Detroit region

You should also know that it is pretty hard to find world-class education in the Detroit region and if you want to get the best education possible, you may be better off studying in Boston or other more prestigious cities instead.

Studying in Detroit may not be great for your CV

Since you will have a hard time finding really good education in the Detroit region, studying in Detroit may also not be great for your CV and may slow down your career progress quite a lot.

Graduates may not have great career prospects

You may also have a hard time finding a good job as a graduate in Detroit since unemployment is a big problem in this region and you may therefore have to search for quite a long time to find a decent job right after getting your degree.

Not many great guest professors in Detroit

Compared to other fancier regions where education plays a much bigger role, you will also not find many great guest professors in Detroit and this may make your student life in Detroit less interesting and your education less comprehensive.

Winters in Detroit may be too cold for many students

You should also know that winters can be pretty cold in Detroit and in case you can’t stand cold weather at all, you may be better off studying in Fort Worth or other warmer regions.

Detroit is not the safest city

Another downside to studying in Detroit is that crime rates are pretty high and many students just no longer feel safe in certain parts of the city and this may lower overall quality of student life quite a lot.

You will be confronted with social inequality on a daily basis

You should also know that the city of Detroit has to deal with many social problems and since the gap between the rich and the poor is about to increase even further, you will be confronted with poverty on a daily basis and this is just not a nice picture at all.

Students may end up in pretty sketchy neighborhoods

If you are not careful, you may also rent a flat in one of the dodgy parts of Detroit and may not feel comfortable and safe at all which may prevent you from studying in an efficient manner.

Detroit is not a classical student city

You should also keep in mind that Detroit is just not heavily focused on improving student life but rather on middle-aged people. Consequently, it is not a classical student town and you may therefore not get the feeling of studying in a vibrant place with many other young people.

Many people are leaving Detroit

Many people are also leaving the Detroit region right now or have already moved years ago and population has been decreasing over the past decades. Hence, this could be a sign that overall quality of life in Detroit has dropped significantly and studying in Detroit may therefore not be a great idea anymore.

Hard to meet many international students in Detroit

Since Detroit has to deal with many social problems, many international students rather want to study in San Francisco or other more popular places where everything is just a little bit nicer and you may therefore not be able to meet as many students from all over the world in the Detroit region.

Detroit has a rather poor reputation

Due to the many social problems the city has to deal with and unpleasant incidents in the past, Detroit also no longer has the best reputation and your loved ones may therefore not understand your decision of studying in Detroit and you may have to spend lots of time convincing them in this regard.

Detroit is not located at the coast

Since Detroit is not located at the coast, you will also not have the opportunity to go surfing and this may make your student life in Detroit far less interesting compared to students in Seattle or other coastal cities where there will be much more action when it comes to water sports.

Top 10 Studying in Detroit Pros & Cons – Summary List

Is Detroit A Good City For Students?

While studying in Detroit can make quite a lot of sense since living and housing costs are reasonably low and you will still benefit from the infrastructure of a big city, you should also know that Detroit is not the safest city and it is hard to find really good education in this region.

Alternative Cities To Study

If you don’t want to study in Detroit anymore, you should also have a look at the following articles:

Advantages and disadvantages of studying in Denver

Advantages and disadvantages of studying in Las Vegas

Advantages and disadvantages of studying in Portland

Sources

https://www.census.gov/quickfacts/detroitcitymichigan

Own research.

About the author

This site is about living, moving and traveling to various parts of our fascinating planet.

My name is Andreas and when I was younger, I traveled the world and learned a lot about different cultures and countries.

Thus, I want to share my experiences with you so that you can benefit from them and avoid common mistakes in this regard.

In my articles, you will find everything you need to find the best location for a happy and successful life.