For off-campus housing within a mile of the university, the Upper Montclair and Clifton neighborhoods offer a variety of housing options, such as the Upper Montclair Gardens, which offers studio apartments, or complexes like Great Notch Village or Garret Village, which offer studio to two-bedroom units.

For off-campus housing a little further from campus, there are a few more options that are only about three miles or so from campus. For instance, the Bloomfield and Little Falls areas offer apartments with up to two-bedrooms, and the Cedar Grove neighborhood offers some great one-bedroom options. Complexes to check out include Commonwealth Garden Apts, Pompton Gardens Apartments, and Country Club Towers I and II.

Finally, if you want to be within approximately five miles of campus, you can check out the Paterson area, which offers many single- and double-bedroom apartment options. Other complexes within a five-mile radius of campus include The Vestry Apartments, Montclarion at Bay Street Station Apartments, and Bellclair At Montclair Apartments.

There are essentially endless housing options in the surrounding area of Montclair State University, so pick the apartment/home that works best for you.

Dining

Montclair State University has many good eats, especially when you are looking for some off-campus hot spots!

If you are craving some authentic, Italian cuisine, Matthew’s Italian Restaurant, located in Clifton, is highly rated. You can also look at Lunello’s Restaurant in Cedar Grove for some great, top-rated Italian food.

Great European cuisine can be found at Montclair’s De Nova European Pub, as patrons rate it highly, though they do also note it can be a pricier location.

For Chinese cuisine, T.S. MA in Upper Montclair has gluten-free, vegetarian-friendly Chinese dishes that you’ll want to taste, or you can even visit Sandwich Theory in Upper Montclair for quick, American food with no fuss.

Looking for something fast, but amazing? Applegate Farm offers take-out options and outdoor seating so you can enjoy their delectable desserts.

Transportation

Given Montclair State University’s high number of students living off-campus, they offer a wide variety of commuter options to their students to make getting to and from campus a breeze.

For starters, the university has a Quik-Tik Program through which they offer a 25% discount for students (must be full-time students) using public transportation (including trains and buses).

As part of this program, the university has 2 train stations, one located at the North End of campus (known as the Montclair State University station) and one located at the South End of campus (known as the Montclair Height Station).

If you prefer to travel by Bus, there are five different lines currently operating on the Montclair State University campus, four of which are run by NJ Transit and the fifth is a private carrier. Schedules for all lines can be found on the Montclair State University transportation page.

The university also has information pages for bikes, carpool options, and even Zipcar.

Parking

Montclair State University has a large selection of parking options.

They offer the ZipCar solution for students that do not want to pay for parking, which ultimately provides students with discounted ride sharing.

If you have your own car and would like to park on campus, your best bet is to purchase permit parking, which runs about $130 for a semester. In addition, you can utilize the Parker app, which tells you where parking is available before you even arrive at campus.

Safety

Montclair State University offers campus police through the University Police Department, which enforces state and local laws as well as university rules and regulations.

The department has 30, full-time police officers as well as ten dispatchers and an administrative assistant, ensuring they can support all campus safety needs.

Additionally, the campus offers a variety of health and wellness centers across campus.

Shopping

Last, but not least, the Montclair State University campus offers numerous shopping opportunities for students.

If you are looking for a little retail therapy in the form of mall shopping, look no further than the Promenade Shops at Clifton.

Looking for some unique finds? Barneys II, Once Upon a Skirt, and andThat! are all great options for those pieces you can brag about to friends and family thanks to their one-of-a-kind charm.

For those looking for clothing and home goods options, there are the typical retail chains, such as TJ Maxx, Marshalls, and Kohl’s, but you should also look into boutique shops such as Pink Bungalow, Dot Reeder, and One Savvy Design Consignment Boutique.