Commuting 2 hours to Penn Dental after 2nd Year

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honorandrespect

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Hi All,

For those of you who have been through, or are going to through dental school at U Penn...I would like some advice. I live about 2 hours away from the dental school. Do you think commuting after 2nd year would be a feasible option? 30 minute drive to train station, then 1.5 hour train ride, directly to the school...what do you think? Doable? Crazy? Thanks!

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I will be commuting for an hour each way to UPenn. I tend to do my best studying on public transportation. I have a feeling that us commuters will feel pretty left out on all the after-hours activities though.
 
Hmm..2 hours back and forth is definitely doable, but 4 hours back and forth is insane..
I guess it all depends on how well you can multitask, because that can shave a ton of time.
 
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that sounds terrible...there'll be days when you have a morning exam it would suck if you were to get stuck in traffic...more often, you'll forget something at school or at home and you'd have to travel 2 hrs back and forth (+4 hrs total) to retrieve it.
 
That's a little much. Agree with all that's been said. Just being an hour away is a pain enough for me.
 
Maybe you could get a small, cheap studio apt or room in a house nearer to campus and go home on the weekends? Unless you have kids if course, but it could work just to crash in a couple nights a week maybe.
 
I assume that you plan to live with your parents? (which of course would save you money).

Even so, it's not worth the hassle. Even 30 minutes is too much IMO for a student.
Why don't you find a cheap studio over near Rittenhouse square? Or in the graduate hospital area?
 
Hi All,

For those of you who have been through, or are going to through dental school at U Penn...I would like some advice. I live about 2 hours away from the dental school. Do you think commuting after 2nd year would be a feasible option? 30 minute drive to train station, then 1.5 hour train ride, directly to the school...what do you think? Doable? Crazy? Thanks!


I did it ...3hrs. ea way (not at Penn). It can be done. The biggest asset or obstacle is mindset. If you think it's going to be a drag, it will be. If you see it as an opportunity to save tens of thousands of dollars, then it will be just that. You will need to be ruthlessly efficient in how you use your train time to study, so that when you get home, your day should basically be done. You should be able (with some exceptions) to use your evenings and weekends for family, relaxation, and targeted review for exams and boards. You will have to keep to a schedule religiously. Since you will, mostly, be in clinic, it shouldn't be that bad. You will have some late nights (for lab work). Factor in train delays due to weather, accidents etc.. These will cause you to leave earlier or return later.
 
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