I guess if you are comparing SLO to Los Angeles or San Fran, yes, it’s rural. But it is far from “the middle of nowhere”. It isn’t as fast paced but it has access to shopping, restaurants, hiking, the beach, arts, transportation, etc. One of the biggest things going for SLO is their connection to businesses and alumni. My cousin graduated with his masters in 5 years. In his 4th year he was recruited by Amazon (CE) for a summer internship (fully paid including housing) and his 5th year he accepted a position with Intuit making twice as much as I do straight out of college.