How far to drive to work? (Advice request)

[curtislemansky]

Hello pharmacy peeps,

I am graduating in a couple months and have been looking for a job in a retail store. I do not really care so much about which store. I have worked as an intern at CVS and have done rotations at Walgreens, Target and Wal-Mart, so I am fairly sure that "retail is retail."

The most important thing to me is probably location. All stores are offering me locations at least ~1 hour away. The furthest location would be ~1.5 hours (~80-90 miles) away where I could be partners with a friend from school. I can probably move a little closer, but not too far since my fiance is tied to her job. I have also been offered a spot at an independent pharmacy I worked at before school, but the position wouldn't be available until next year and would still be ~1 hour drive.

Anyway, what is the furthest you would drive to your store? Would you just choose the closest? Highest pay? Knowing your work partner? Better schedule?

Any input appreciated!

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[pharmwannebe2]

I know Im not a pharmacist yet. But when I worked retail all the pharmacists traveled at least an hour to their store. I wouldn't chose the highest. To me I think work partner and better schedule is important. You don't want to be with someone you don't like at work. It just makes time go slower.

 

[pharmdarling]

I think it really depends on the job. For example, I am working at a retail store as an intern, and it is about a 20 minute drive. I'm fine with that. The internship that I am doing over the summer is about an hour drive, but it's a good program and I am willing to drive an hour to get there. On the other hand, I'm fairly certain that I would not drive an hour to get to my current job.

 

[type b pharmD]

wow.. that is crazy. i would never take more than a 20 minute commute.

You're going to be working an extra 10 hrs a week and not getting paid, not to mention maybe an extra $300 a month for gas..

 

[Pharmavixen]

A long commute gets depressing in the long run - you start thinking about what else you could be doing with all of this time you're spending in the car/on the train, and the money you spend on gas/train tickets.

My personal rule is no more than an hour one-way. Though...the nurses I work with do 12-hour shifts, 3 on, 4 off, and I could probably handle that.

 

[rxforlife2004]

A long drive is a very turned off thing. Just find the closest place that you can...believe me, you'll be depressing getting stuck on traffic for an hour or more.

 

[PumpkinSmasher]

Spending 2 hours/day in your car is a depressing thought. I would look for the closest place you can find.

Commuting is horrible, if you can find a way to avoid it , do it!

Being close has so many advantages.

 

[npage148]

I had a 45 min commute when I was an intern. It was a serious drag. Plus is was all rural 2-way highway/local roads so that added to it as well.

 

[StaviZFingerZ]

This is a question everyone will have a different answer to.

I've commuted as far as 60 miles one way and now I commute 15 steps from my bedroom to my office. Then again my territory used to extend 1,500 miles from office.

In making this decision, you need to look at your goals...short term and long term; 6mo, 1 year, 5 years.

Is this a job you'll be doing for the rest of your life? If so, you'd hate to waste 10 hours per week, 520 per year on the road and not get paid. Or is this a job that will get you to the next level of management and a steppin stone for your career?

How comfortable is your car and how economical? Do you like driving and are you going with or against traffic?

Future may be uncertain but you need to set out clear goals of what you want to accomplish with your career. That will help you make this decision easier.

 

[twinspharm]

I'm not a pharmacist and haven't commuted serious distances to work yet. I am currently an under-graduate student and commute exactly 29 minutes to school each day. 29 minutes isn't too bad but I think any longer of a communte would be too much.

 

[Ava999]

In my opinion it could be quite difficult to commute for that long.
I live like in the boondocks where it takes a minimum of 30 minutes to get anywhere. Going to school and church takes about 45minutes or more, doctor visits takes 1hr....so I can tell you that it can be REALLY stressful, because you can't predict the traffic. At times I would leave the house earlier than usual and still show up to my destination late. I would estimate what time I would go to a certain doctor, and show up to the appointment late, due to a random car accident, ,or road block. So unless you leave the house EXTRA early, there will be days where you might be late, because you can't predict what goes on in the road.

 

[Silvermist]

I think there may be a regional component as well. In my area, many people can't afford to live in towards the city, so they live pretty far out unless they have a large income. Commutes of 1 hour are pretty normal around here and I have even heard of 2 hours (generally those folks arrange something where they work extra long days 3-4 days a week though). So, in my area, 1 hour I wouldn't bat an eye. That in fact will be my commute to pharmacy school when I start in the fall ...

 

[type b pharmD]

I think there may be a regional component as well. In my area, many people can't afford to live in towards the city, so they live pretty far out unless they have a large income. Commutes of 1 hour are pretty normal around here and I have even heard of 2 hours (generally those folks arrange something where they work extra long days 3-4 days a week though). So, in my area, 1 hour I wouldn't bat an eye. That in fact will be my commute to pharmacy school when I start in the fall ...

wow.. yet another reason to live rurally.

Of course i would hope you'd have a large enough income as a pharmacist to be able to live wherever you needed/wanted to. Schools another thing of course. Im lucky that apartments right next to school are only like $450 a month. heh, still hasnt stopped me from skipping 95% of classes

 

[wes011]

When I was working as a chemist for a pharmaceutical company I drove 74 miles each way. I did this because I did not want to relocate to a town of 40K people and because my wife had clients to the east and south of Louisville, KY so we were centrally located.

The 74 mile drive turned out to be about 75 to 90 minutes each way. Sometimes it was a good thing and sometimes it was a bad thing. I enjoyed it because I was able to decompress after work before I got back home, however, sometimes it sucked because after working 14 hour days I didn't want to get back in the car and drive for another 90 minutes.

I did this for nearly 3 years sometimes 7 days per week. After a while, you get tired of it....also, it sucks because you eat a lot of fast food.

 

[Rebel78]

If I'm working a "typical" schedule, meaning I make the commute 5 out of 7 days, 20 minutes one way is my max. I went to a job interview that was at a nice hospital about an hour from home when we moved to KC, when we got done, he asked what I thought. I admitted the commute was going to be a problem, especially being on call. I got lucky and found an even better position at a teaching hospital about 10-15 minutes away, I can come home for lunch The job I had before this was at WAG, it was about 30 minutes away, but I was 7 on and off, and traffic was light going in, and I was driving against it on my way home, so it wasn't bad at all.

When I was in college, I lived in the boonies, I had an hour and a half commute to a junior college I went to, and had a job in between there and my house. I did a ton of driving to work and school before I finished pharmacy school.

Trust me, the commute wears on you, but everybody is different. I just couldn't help but to think of all the pharmacies I'm driving by on my way in.

also, it sucks because you eat a lot of fast food.

That's very true, you start looking to save time, and going to the grocery store, or even sitting at a table go out the window.

 

[stevephhs016]

Like you said, a job is a job. Considering there is a job, you really don't have a choice but to take it.

I had to relocate 200 miles to get a job. And even then, I still have to deal with a 40 min traffic to work pretty much on rush hour. Its a drag, but what can you do at this time period.

 

[dgroulx]

I commute 80 miles each way. If I was not married, then I would move closer. If the hospital that is 30 minutes from my house offered me full time, then I would still refuse. I love my job and the drive is all interstate. I listen to Sirius radio which really makes the drive seem short. Especially, if I'm listening to Raw Dog comedy.

 

[Namishin]

I read a study that ranked job place happiness in this order:

1) Distance of commute
2) People that you work with
3) Salary

I could never bring myself to drive 1 hour to and from work everyday (for too long anyways). If I were in your position though, working at the pharmacy with your friend might be your best option to keep your sanity in the long run.

 

[spacecowgirl]

This is a question everyone will have a different answer to.

Exactly. Some people don't mind commuting and consider it "me time" to relax. I hate driving so for me it's a HUGE factor in choosing a job and one of the many reasons we moved to a small community. My commute is 3 and a half minutes at the least and 5 if I hit "traffic".

I would move closer to my job because it's worth it to me not to waste like Stavi said - hours and hours of your life you'll never get back. Unless you take public transportation, you can't use that time for anything useful except maybe books on CD.

 

[confettiflyer]

Exactly. Some people don't mind commuting and consider it "me time" to relax. I hate driving so for me it's a HUGE factor in choosing a job and one of the many reasons we moved to a small community. My commute is 3 and a half minutes at the least and 5 if I hit "traffic".

I would move closer to my job because it's worth it to me not to waste like Stavi said - hours and hours of your life you'll never get back. Unless you take public transportation, you can't use that time for anything useful except maybe books on CD.

Yeah I used to commute 90mins and it honestly wasn't that bad...good "me" time just listening to music. This was hardcore morning non-carpool commute direction Los Angeles traffic, too. The only thing that I didn't like was waking up early...I like sleeping in.

Would I do it again? Maybe. Depends on the job, work environment, pay, commute vs. anti-commute direction, etc.... different answers from different people, and even then, different answers based on different variables.

 

[curtislemansky]

Thanks for all the input! I knew this type of question comes with different answers from different people.

The driving job would come with a higher pay rate (~$10 more per hour) and a schedule of 2 on then 2 off then 5 on then 5 off. I would be working 7 out of 14 days at a store that is open 77 hours per week. If I wanted to take a long vacation I would only have to take off 2 days.

I figured the driving time would be nice "me" time. I have done the drive a couple times on rotation and it is not too bad. It is a pretty straight drive down a highway with the heavier traffic going in the opposite direction.

I really don't plan on doing this long term, if I choose the further job. I would probably only sign on for a year max.

 

[clachan3]

I read a study that ranked job place happiness in this order:

1) Distance of commute
2) People that you work with
3) Salary

I could never bring myself to drive 1 hour to and from work everyday (for too long anyways). If I were in your position though, working at the pharmacy with your friend might be your best option to keep your sanity in the long run.

I like that study. For me distance of commute and people I work with are on top, then salary. I just want to drive down the road and start working. I don't think it's work driving 30 minutes to go to work when there is another store next to where I live, but I would drive 30 minutes to work with the people I work with now I love my techs