Big Decision

[n2o*]

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I got a really nice apartment for the summer and I'm considering living there while I attend dental school in aug. The apartment is about an 1hr 15min away from the school. Do you think it would be wise for me to make this decision? Do you know people who live that distance away from campus and still do well in first year? Is it a matter of motivation?

 

[galangvu]

I got a really nice apartment for the summer and I'm considering living there while I attend dental school in aug. The apartment is about an 1hr 15min away from the school. Do you think it would be wise for me to make this decision? Do you know people who live that distance away from campus and still do well in first year? Is it a matter of motivation?

thats a long comute time.... since dental school is a big time commitment, i think you should really consider finding some place within 30-minutes travel time of the school... 1 hr and 15 min.... thats 2 and a half hours of travel time EVERYDAY! thats time well wasted, if you ask me.

 

[UOPDDS09]

thats a long comute time.... since dental school is a big time commitment, i think you should really consider finding some place within 30-minutes travel time of the school... 1 hr and 15 min.... thats 2 and a half hours of travel time EVERYDAY! thats time well wasted, if you ask me.

Try to stay as close to school as possible. If you can't live in the nicest area, you need to suck it up and make your quality of life better by not stressing over your commute. I have a 15 min walk from school and could not do it any other way. Good luck!

 

[dexadental]

I know of a girl at UF dental who travels from Jacksonville to Gainesville every day for class. I think she married a guy who lives there and couldn't move. The commute is about an hour and a half.

 

[beannaithe]

That's a heck of a long commute time to go to school. Are you staying just for the apartment? If so, I'd recommend living closer. If your school starts at 8, you'll need to leave at like 6:30. 😱

My apartment is about a 20 minute walk from Pitt's campus and if I had to commute any further, I just don't think I could do it. Just think of how much gas is!! 😱

 

[n2o*]

I know of a girl at UF dental who travels from Jacksonville to Gainesville every day for class. I think she married a guy who lives there and couldn't move. The commute is about an hour and a half.

did she do well? was she unusually stressed out?

 

[n2o*]

That's a heck of a long commute time to go to school. Are you staying just for the apartment? If so, I'd recommend living closer. If your school starts at 8, you'll need to leave at like 6:30. 😱

My apartment is about a 20 minute walk from Pitt's campus and if I had to commute any further, I just don't think I could do it. Just think of how much gas is!! 😱

the apt is cheap, it's in a god area, and it's amazing. I've already paid my housing deposit to the school i will attend and i'll be living in the dorm with a community kitchen and bathroom. I would really love to stay in my apt, i'm just wondering if the commute should be of major concern.

 

[FreshBreath]

the apt is cheap, it's in a god area, and it's amazing. I've already paid my housing deposit to the school i will attend and i'll be living in the dorm with a community kitchen and bathroom. I would really love to stay in my apt, i'm just wondering if the commute should be of major concern.

It all depends on you. I mean I commute about 45 minutes coming and going but I enjoy the public transportaion (most days) becuase I like getting up early. I use the commute to study, read for pleasure, listen to tunes, and just take time for myself. However, there are people that live close becuase they like to get up and in 10 minutes be at the school. In the end, if this apartment will make you happy then you will be happy in dental school, but getting up early everyday and coming home late from a full day can be taxing.

Also remember, your social aspect might suffer becuase you will not be geographically conveinenent to the rest of your classmates where the majority will be close to school.

 

[CorneliusFudge]

I personally think that dental school alone will eat up enough of your day that you will quickly resent those 3 hours spent in your car.

If you just love to drive that much, get a place close to school and then deliver pizza for Domino's three hours each night. At least make some money during those three hours.

 

[mochafreak]

When I was an engineer I used to drive 65 miles each way to work through Denver's rush hour. I don't mind driving at all, but I even found a house to rent that's within 10 min. of campus. I don't care how much of a nicer place I could have gotten. I'd much rather spend my 1-2 hrs. of free time each day relaxing than driving. Depending on where your school is weather could make the drive far longer. Also, add up the gas expenses. If you take those into account maybe you could a afford a more expensive apt. closer to campus.

 

[loro627]

I will be commuting 70 miles this year since school this year is in Baton Rouge but my husband and I live in New Orleans. HOWEVER, when we have 8am classes I will be staying with family who live in BR so I won't have to get up at 5:30am. Keep in mind that although your drive is 1 hour 15 min, you want to get to school early to park and get to class. Also, you don't know what the traffic will be like so you would have to leave at least and hour and a half before class starts. My advice would be to make friends with someone who lives within walking distance and crash at their place at least once a week in order to keep you sane.

 

[dexadental]

did she do well? was she unusually stressed out?

She is in her third year now so I think she is doing fairly well. Personally, I wouldn't be able to stand such a drive everyday...being close to the campus is really important, I'm right across the street from Nova.

 

[gryffindor]

I got a really nice apartment for the summer and I'm considering living there while I attend dental school in aug. The apartment is about an 1hr 15min away from the school. Do you think it would be wise for me to make this decision? Do you know people who live that distance away from campus and still do well in first year? Is it a matter of motivation?

It's not a matter of motivation. Instead, it's a matter of too much to do, and not enough time to do it all. It is also dependent on which school you are attending. But for the most part, the pre-clinical years of dental school are about having way too many classes to study for & do labwork in all at the same time and having exams & practicals back to back to back in the same week with not enough time to devote to each one as you'd like. Add to that you'll be on the road each day for over 2 hours. Clinical years are a little more manageable and you have some more control over your time. But pre-clinical, forget it. At our school, traffic jam was not an acceptable excuse for being late and missing an 8am quiz; you would have to forfeit and take a zero. Even if you ran in breathlessly at 8:03, there were some super strict faculty who would have said "tough" and gone back to reading their magazine.

To sum it up: No, it is not a wise decision.