I'm thinking about taking a class at night at George Mason University's Arlington campus in the Fall.  The class starts at 1610 and goes to 1930.  It will meet once a week from late August to late December.

The GMU parking FAQ describes the available parking for the Arlington campus in dire terms -- don't drive here, take the bus, don't count on a space, etc. .  They do, however have reserved spaces available for $185 for the semester.  $185 is more money than I want to spend on parking once a week.

Is parking at or near the Arlington campus really that bad?

Please let me know.

Short answer is yes it is, near Va square and Clarendon metro.  Short term street meters and expensive parking lots.  If you can roll the parking fee as part of the tuition or get reimbursed, might be worth paying for it.  Traffic is also a nightmare if your not use to city driving
 
Might want to consider taking metro in walk the couple of blocks and park at one of the outlying metro station parking lots.  Its ~5.60 and easier to get in and out.

What general direction are you coming in from?

That's <1 mile from my house... and yeah, parking can be tricky, especially around dinner time. At ~1600 it may not be too bad... but if you are late for class one day you might have trouble.

$185 for a reserved spot for an entire semester? Jump on that ASAP

I used to (until pretty recently) work in Ballston and I paid 120/mo for a garage spot

Guys, thanks for the replies.  It looks like one of my coworkers is also going to enroll in the class and we may carpool and split the cost of the parking space.

I went to law school at the GMU Arlington Campus. I purchased a parking pass my third year, but during second year I just used metered parking on the streets in the surrounding areas without too much hassle. Most of my classes were daytime, but parking at night seemed to be a bit easier. There's an area across the street from the law school right in front of a Catholic church that usually has a spot or two open during the day (though that area can get a bit packed when the church has evening activities).

It's doable, but not necessarily pleasant.

I'm in class at this at that time on Monday if you're around