Finding housing for the school year is a task dreaded by many, but scrambling to find a place to stay during the summer can be just as frustrating.
For those Penn students either staying in the Philadelphia or heading to nearby cities, here are number of tips on how to quickly snag summer housing.
n Several Web sites, such as Craig's List -- www.craigslist.com -- list housing vacancies across the country. This site is most useful for students looking for housing in large cities.
n Another housing site that caters specifically to students is Sublet.com, created by a Columbia Business School student. Users must create an account before viewing the listings.
n For those with summer internships, InternNation.com is a new site designed specifically for interns looking for summer housing.
Founded by recent University of Notre Dame graduate Francis Larkin, InternNation offers a wealth of information for interns in over 500 cities. Users can create free personal profiles as well as organize groups to find others with similar needs.
n Many larger businesses have human-resources departments that should be able to provide information about local housing.
Gregory Borgstede, from Penn's Career Services center, said it is always a good idea to talk to employers.
"If they have an internship program, they may have specific suggestions regarding housing, or they may be willing to put you in contact with previous interns," he said.
Also, make use of any local connections that you have: Family and friends will be able to tell you a little about the area.
n Check out the Vice Provost for University Life Web site's page at vpul.upenn.edu/careerservices/college/summerhousing. html, which has a list of summer-housing resources, especially for large East Coast cities such as New York and Washington.
"Many major universities have summer-housing options as a way to fill up dorm space over the little-used summer months," Borgstede said.
n It can also be beneficial to start with browsing the classifieds section of a local newspaper, which will give basic details about most apartments. Once you find one that looks reasonable, phone the landlord for more information or to schedule an appointment.
