two ways to save $$$ when going away on interviews...

[ocean11]

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1) Forget flight tickets... take the train/greyhound bus

2) Don't buy your food, bring it with you 🙂 pack sandwiches/fruit whatever.

 

[exmike]

stay with a friend or student host
pack anything you toiletries ahead of time so you dont have to buy them on the road.

 

[Optimist]

Originally posted by ocean11
1) Forget flight tickets... take the train/greyhound bus

Saving money is great, but not at the expense of a poor interview experience. Spending 20 hours on a bus can take it's toll, especially if you're not used to it, or are one of those people who have trouble sleeping on a vehicle.

 

[thekaratekim]

true. i have family in most cities i have/will interview. so that definitely saves me from spending money on a hotel.

 

[rgporter]

Holy crap. Any idea how long it would take to greyhound from Utah to D.C.? Me either, I'll gladly drop $600 to avoid that. Wish there was a way around this for me, alas it is not to be.

 

[lane]

i had a weeks notice to go to UT san antonio and it cost me $550 for airfare

i couldnt attend the interview at UT galveston when they offered so i asked for any open dates...the only ones left are this wednesday and friday. i would have blown almost $1200 in one week for airfare alone had i taken it. i had to turn it down though 😳

stupid airlines. stupid final exams.

 

[woolie]

A friend offered me her couch when I fly back east in January for an interview and while I would love to save a NYC hotel expense, I have visions of her two dogs climibing all over me and the tv blaring and all kinds of crazy agida. (Agida, did I spell that right?? - agravation!)

I might just cough up the $$ and stay in a quiet hotel somewhere in Midtown, peace of mind and a good night's rest = pricele$$.

 

[XCanadianRagwee]

Originally posted by lane
i had a weeks notice to go to UT san antonio and it cost me $550 for airfare

i couldnt attend the interview at UT galveston when they offered so i asked for any open dates...the only ones left are this wednesday and friday. i would have blown almost $1200 in one week for airfare alone had i taken it. i had to turn it down though 😳

stupid airlines. stupid final exams.

Wow...coast to coast in a week was a mere $300

 

[lane]

Originally posted by XCanadianRagwee
Wow...coast to coast in a week was a mere $300

if airtran flew to san antonio it would only be about $300, but of course they don't

my dad also has 45987094852835094 frequent flier miles on southwest, but of course they don't fly to atlanta

so instead i had to look on all the discount sites and the best i could find was $550 with a connection in dallas

 

[ForensicPath]

I just got roundtrip plane tickets from philly to boston for $100. I was originally going to go home to LI and then take the ferry to drive to Boston. The ferry would probably cost me $30 and cause me a whole bunch of headaches.

I know I just rambled, but my point here is that you can get some good deals on flights if you look. Now I am trying to decide whether I should stay in the hotel recommended by Tufts or use one of their student hosts. Does anyone who used a student host recommend me taking that route?

 

[lady bug]

I must say that Friday interviews are the best b/c then you get to spend an extra day if you like and see the town where the med school is located.....also don't have to worry about being in class the next morning. Additionally, if you book a saturday-night's stay, airline tickets are much cheaper.

 

[spumoni620]

lane, did you try southwest? they have ridiculous deals to places w/in tx.

as for the greyhound...i did end up taking the greyhound to houston. (don't ask, details = too complicated). that was a very weird experience. i wouldn't recommend it...unless you're one of those romantic types seeking inspiration for a debut novel...

 

[lane]

Originally posted by spumoni620
lane, did you try southwest? they have ridiculous deals to places w/in tx.

as for the greyhound...i did end up taking the greyhound to houston. (don't ask, details = too complicated). that was a very weird experience. i wouldn't recommend it...unless you're one of those romantic types seeking inspiration for a debut novel...

southwest doesnt fly to atlanta

delta won't let them in hartsfield intl airport

 

[robotdancing]

www.studentuniverse.com saved me a decent amount flying from stl-boston and stl-new york... i mean, flying's gonna be a wallet killer no matter what, but it's worth checking out if you've gotta do it

 

[lane]

Originally posted by robotdancing
www.studentuniverse.com saved me a decent amount flying from stl-boston and stl-new york... i mean, flying's gonna be a wallet killer no matter what, but it's worth checking out if you've gotta do it

statravel.com is good for students too, but from what ive seen they are extremely limited within 2 weeks of travel. everything to san antonio was unavailable according to both of those sites :-\

 

[steve007]

Originally posted by ForensicPath
I just got roundtrip plane tickets from philly to boston for $100. I was originally going to go home to LI and then take the ferry to drive to Boston. The ferry would probably cost me $30 and cause me a whole bunch of headaches.

I know I just rambled, but my point here is that you can get some good deals on flights if you look. Now I am trying to decide whether I should stay in the hotel recommended by Tufts or use one of their student hosts. Does anyone who used a student host recommend me taking that route?

i used priceline. choose the chinatown area. i got a room in the radisson, which is a 3 minute walk for $60.

 

[spumoni620]

lane, sorry to hear about atlanta...my bad, i thought you were in tx. i've heard expedia, travelocity, priceline (in that order) are good for getting reasonable deals...but i'd guess you have to book in advance. (i can't believe they only gave you 1 weeks' notice?! that seems a little unfair.)

i know it's a little too late for ppl in this interview season, but for people interviewing next year...really look into accumulating the frequent flyer miles. (or if you're flying now, enroll in those frequent flyer programs!) american express has a delta skymiles credit card, for example, and they give you a number of miles just for signing up. and there are tons of deals where you get free frequent flyer miles for signing up for certain memberships (but of course, check to see what you're getting into.) i've heard you could actually purchase frequent flyer miles on auction sites, but i don't know if that's legal/still possible. anyway, if you start planning now you can drastically cut your costs next year. i've managed, luckily, to spend close to nothing on the plane trips i've taken so far.

 

[Spitting Camel]

I jumped from CA to IL (stayed three days) and then to MA (stayed 2 days) for only $400. I didn't think the cost was too bad 🙂

 

[Megalofyia]

The problem lies with San Antonio. For whatever reason barely anything flys directly in or out of San Antonio. For the most part you have to fly into Dallas or Houston first.

This sucks for me too.

If I lived in Dallas it would cost me 300 dollars to fly to Iowa City on a Sunday. From San Antonio it's going to cost me 500 dolalrs.

 

[MeowMix]

Originally posted by ForensicPath
Does anyone who used a student host recommend me taking that route?

It worked great for me for my one interview so far. I got a lot of inside info on the school that I wouldn't have had otherwise (good and bad).

I did have a few minutes of regretting the decision when I went to the bathroom to pee, flushed the toilet and it immediately backed up. I stood there watching the bowl fill and envisioning how embarrassing it was going to be to have to call in my hosts for help. Fortunately there was a plunger next to the toilet and I am a skilled toilet-unplugger. So my advice is to test the toilet's flushing power before you drop a big load in there.

 

[Neuronix]

As a student host I want to say... PLEASE USE US! We wouldn't sign up to be student hosts if we didn't want to be. I, and others, do appreciate small gifts, but we're hardly going to throw you out if you don't give us anything. I really don't like hearing "I don't want to inconvenience anyone." If the person volunteered to host, you aren't inconveniencing them!

PS: My big orange plunger is right next to the toilet.

 

[markus21]

try being in minnesota.. see if taking a bus or train is an option... 🙁

 

[jlee9531]

Originally posted by Neuronix
As a student host I want to say... PLEASE USE US! We wouldn't sign up to be student hosts if we didn't want to be. I, and others, do appreciate small gifts, but we're hardly going to throw you out if you don't give us anything. I really don't like hearing "I don't want to inconvenience anyone." If the person volunteered to host, you aren't inconveniencing them!

PS: My big orange plunger is right next to the toilet.

thanks...you dont know how hard it is for me to ask a student host if they have a plunger available....yunno....just in case....😀