What would you do?

[free_radical]

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Downstate=

35,000/year, 10 minute walk from my house

(slim chance I'll prove in-state residency, and pay only ~20,000/year.)

UMDNJ-NJMS=

13,000/year, 1 hour commute, minimum, from my house.

(slim chance I'll be awarded a full scholarship.)

----Schools are academically similar, I think.
----For certain reasons, I can't move closer.

What sayest thou?

 

[ChubbyChaser]

geeze...I would go to the cheaper one but 2 hours everyday roundtrip is bound to take its toll....cant you get an apt closer to school?

 

[Bibbed]

Yeah, lease an apartment with the $22,000 you're saving each year...

 

[HanginInThere]

(slim chance I'll prove in-state residency, and pay only ~20,000/year.)

You'd be in-state after the first year anyway though, right? So the price difference over four years is 35K+(20K*3) vs. 13K*4 = 95K vs. 52K = 43K. Still significant, but better than 35*4 - 13*4 = 22*4 = 88K.

How would you be doing that NJMS commute - drive? bus? train? Don't forget to figure either the gas money and tolls or the bus/train fare into your decision.

If you really can't move, that long commute sounds like a killer. If it were me, I'd be very tempted to go with Downstate.

 

[flip26]

Is this at your parents' house? Assuming yes (and at no rent), what matters is total cost to attend...and to go to NJ, you would need to move closer...and pay rent...a lot of hassle...and not likely to save much money...unless you would simply be paying rent either way...

If you don't have to pay rent in your current location, I would stick with Downstate...and I think it is the "better" school to boot...

 

[EpiPEN]

if your house refers to living with your parents, then i would say go for the further one and rent an apartment near there. You gotta leave the nest some time 🙄, especially if there won't be that big of a difference in overall price.

 

[free_radical]

thank you very much.

the fact that i may get full scholarship to umdnj complicates it more. because while the commute may not be worth it for cheap tuition, what if i were to get in free?

 

[ar2388]

thank you very much.

the fact that i may get full scholarship to umdnj complicates it more. because while the commute may not be worth it for cheap tuition, what if i were to get in free?

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why is that you cannot rent an apartment closer? if i were in your situation, i would do downstate unless i got a full ride and if i got a full ride, i would DEFINITELY rent an apartment or even pon campus housing? how come that isnt an option?

 

[HanginInThere]

I saw another post where you mention that your wife is a law student - I'm guessing that's why you're tied to your current location. Are there more considerations (kids in school, parents you're living with, etc) that add to it? Would it be possible to move somewhere in between so you'd both have an almost-reasonable commute? Would she be willing/able to transfer to a different law school? (I've got a friend who did her first two years of law school in NYC, then her third in Boston for family reasons.) After she graduates, in your MS3 and MS4 years, would she be willing/able to move so you could be closer to NJMS, or will she be looking to practice in Manhattan? What options will you have for locations in your clinical years at NJMS - will you be stuck doing this 1-hour commute after long shifts at the hospital?

You're asking for advice based on very little information. We can bring up questions and offer opinions, but none of us know the details of your situation, much less your priorities and where you're willing to compromise.

Saving close to 100 thousand dollars is a huge deal, but I think the commute you're talking about would be a huge deal too. (And if your wife will be going to a big firm in a couple years to make the big bucks, the money might be a little more managable for you than it would be for most people...)

 

[EpiPEN]

gas burnt is money gone. But money paid on morgage is real estate that might come back up one day.

 

[nonesuchgirl]

if you get a full you go there

 

[Rikkye]

rent an apartment & go to UMDNJ