Taking 10+ hour bus ride before interview

[and 99 others]

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Does anyone have any experience/tips with taking buses/trains to an interview several states away? I think I will be doing this because I cannot justify the cost of a $500+ plane ticket if I can avoid it.

Did you find it affecting your interview performance drastically?

 

[Kardio]

Does anyone have any experience/tips with taking buses/trains to an interview several states away? I think I will be doing this because I cannot justify the cost of a $500+ plane ticket if I can avoid it.

Did you find it affecting your interview performance drastically?

That's a rough trip bro. I did a 2.5 hour drive the morning of one interview and felt a little thrown off by it (and kind of regretted not just driving the day before and staying in a hotel for one night). There's also the psychological impact of knowing you have another 10 hour bus ride after the interview.

Could you save a bit on lodging by flying back home immediately after the interview?

 

[and 99 others]

Costs should ALWAYS be calculated in 1) Time 2) Energy 3) Money in that order
you are going to an interview that will set the course for the rest of your life, that may cost you $250,000 in debt to attend, that you want to be as well rested as possible and in the proper frame of mind as possible. Is $500 going to matter if you get in? Isnt it worth the 0.2% investment towards this goal?

Now this has to be balanced with how you will do on a 10 hour bus ride, plus the time at both ends from your house to the bus and from bus to where ever you are staying.

I'm only considering a bus for this one school because it is lowest on my list and if I get an acceptance on the 15th, I would just cancel or reschedule the interview. With a bus ticket, I would be losing much less money than with a plane ticket.

But yeah, in the case where I don't get in, I am not sure how the long trip will affect my performance so was just wondering others' perspectives.

 

[and 99 others]

That's a rough trip bro. I did a 2.5 hour drive the morning of one interview and felt a little thrown off by it (and kind of regretted not just driving the day before and staying in a hotel for one night). There's also the psychological impact of knowing you have another 10 hour bus ride after the interview.

Could you save a bit on lodging by flying back home immediately after the interview?

I have two more interviews right after the one I will be bussing to. But when I'm done with all of them, I will be taking a plane back.

 

[Kardio]

I have two more interviews right after the one I will be bussing to. But when I'm done with all of them, I will be taking a plane back.

Could you split the difference by flying in to another airport (~3 hours radius) and using a rental care or public transportation to get nearby? A 10 hours bus ride the day before an interview sounds grueling.

 

[Osteosaur]

If you're going to be cheap be cheap going home.

You need to be well-rested and focused. Showing up late because of unexpected delays and traffic is not going to lend itself to that.

 

[and 99 others]

Thank you for the advice everyone, I was able to find a stupid cheap ticket by flying in through a different airport, as @Kardio suggested, that would take a similar amount of time!

Much appreciated!