<p>I'm an incoming freshman and I'll be driving to UMD this semester...it's gonna be about 30 min on a good day.</p>
<p>My classes start 12 to 1, and end at 3 (except Wednesdays when my last class ends at 9:30)...will that be a problem?</p>
<p>I've been reading all these posts from students moving in and I already feel bad about commuting.... Do colleges usually allow freshmen who lived off-campus to move into dorms for the spring semester?</p>
<p>Probably. There should be space vacated by kids transferring out.</p>
<p>I know a guy who commuted last semester and is living on campus this year so it's definitely possible.</p>
<p>You save money by commuting. If you would fund your housing through Stafford loans, then try to be strong and commute because that will be more Stafford loan money for Graduate School. </p>
<p>I used to, honest to goodness, commute for over three and a half hours on two separate buses. And, I am still here, yeah! My commute took me through the "Hustle and Flow" area of Memphis. I only did that so I would have more money, you know?</p>
<p>Now, for academic reasons, I have transferred and do the online opp.</p>
<p>I miss a few things, but having your own privacy and ability to do what you like is really nice.</p>
<p>Dorms are a smidgen over rated.</p>
<p>A commute under one hour by car is no big deal at all. You are saving mad cash.</p>
<p>
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Dorms are a smidgen over rated.
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</p>
<p>no they aren't. first of all it's not like students say its the BEST thing in the world. everyone admits there are good and bad dorms, so they are "rated" fairly.</p>
<p>and no matter if you get a crappy dorm or awesome one, you can't replace the comfort of living on campus. you'll know about stuff that goes on, you're closer to everthing, you'll meet more people, and you don't have to worry about being to drunk or tired to drive anywhere.</p>
<p>but yeah, you're saving cash by commuting. but you might also be wasting some of the precious college experience.</p>
<p>Current_Student</p>
<p>You can still make nice friends and socialise without living on campus. As well as find out what is "going on."</p>
<p>But you can truly save money commuting. Trust me, the more money you save now. The more money you have for grad school and furthering your precious College experiences.</p>
<p>OP only has under a one hour commute.</p>
<p>The "college experience" is over-rated. You can live off-campus and still know everything that's going on. Read the college newspaper (or if you're journalisticly inclined join it!), talk to the people in your classes and around campus, join organizations, go to sporting events, etc. You can make it work if you want to.
I've commuted my whole college carrer, and actually seem to more in-tune with what's going on than my friends in the dorms. But then again, I'm at my school because I want to be there, not because they offered me a better scholarship or were the only ones that would take me.</p>
<p>I think that it's pointless when posters say something about college experience being over-rated when they have never even lived in a dorm! Over the summer, I stayed at a dorm and I loved it. I never thought that it would be as nice as it was to live in a dorm. Now, I couldn't imagine living off-campus in my first year of college. Get some perspective before you start posting comments claiming you know which is better. You can give information/personal experience without saying that you shouldn't live in a dorm.</p>
<p>^agreed.</p>
<p>and what i mean by what's "going on" isn't what is in the newspaper...which is usually what already happened. i meant like if there are random rally's going on, get togethers, a sudden urge to throw a movie party in a huge lecture hall w/ a big screen, any thing thats just word of mouth. </p>
<p>people that commute are missing all those little inside jokes, bonding sessions, unexpected events, and other great things that happen in a dorm or on campus when you don't live there 24/7. of course you can make friends without living on campus, but def not as many. yes you are saving some cash, but you're missing out on many things too.</p>
<p>seriously, there are a lot of things that happen that you won't experience if you're a commuter. but i guess it doesn't matter since technically you won't even know that you're missing anything, b/c you'll be home.</p>
<p>at least by commuting you'll be able to have your car!</p>
<p>Of course, I argue this.</p>
<p>Now that I commute, I'm putting what would have been housing costs into renovating a basement. 15 years from now when my mom sells the house we can get a ton of money back from the investment. You can't get that return from living in a dorm. Memories of some movie that will mean nothing to you in 2016?</p>
<p>I know people who commuted to my college from my hometown (30-35 minutes away) but I couldn't imagine not living on- or at least near campus. I feel like I made alot more friends and got alot more involved than I would've had I lived at home. The girl I know who commuted is still stuck in the rut of high school friends and high school drama. I branched out of my comfort zone and found some absolutely amazing people here. I would recommend living on-campus if at all possible.</p>
<p>^wow, that's a depressing outlook on a college experience. maybe you should try one first.</p>
<p>anyway, veganactrees, is it not possible to have a car and live on campus? i know plenty of people w/ a car on campus...</p>
<p>Also, I think people commuting are missing out on the freedom that comes with living on your own. I went home almost every weekend my first semester so it was practically like I was commuting then, and I definitely realize now how much I missed out on stuff. I didn't make any friends until second semester when I stopped going home so much and actually started hanging around on the weekends and doing stuff where I could meet people. I never could've met the friends I have now if I hadn't been able to be around at night and on the weekends. We go swing dancing on friday nights, and go to parties alot on friday and saturday nights. We also sometimes go to the movies on tuesday nights for student discount night.</p>
<p>i actually think the college dorming experience is UNDER-rated. There is so much to be gained from living away from home. At my school, I notice a big difference between kids who commute and kids who dorm. I mean, it obviously depends on the type of person you are, but especially at private schools where pretty much no one knows each other initially (as opposed to state schools where you'll have lots of kids from the same high school attending), a lot of students find their first college friends among the people they live with. And when you're living with people and seeing them 24/7, you bond faster and stronger, as cheesy as that sounds.</p>
<p>Well, different strokes for different folks and all of that.</p>
<p>I think it is nicer to have your very own digs. But, I also see how living with your parents would be differently thought of amongst those who just totally have to live on campus. </p>
<p>However, saving a buck is saving a buck. I personally never saw the appeal of spending over 5k a semester on a tiny little room with communal showers and all of that. But, that is just me. </p>
<p>The reason why I do the online opp at the uni I transferred to is because I would rather die than leave my nice home just to live in a little room. Prior to my transfer I commutted to uni and the bulk of folks at my uni all lived in the same city as the uni. I never understood why someone would want to spend 5k a semester living at a uni all of an hour and a half from their house. But, that is just me. Obviously it is different if you are from out of state. </p>
<p>However, I think that commuting should not be looked down upon. It does not mean that you are still oh soo very "high school." You can still socialise like a right son of a gun if you commute.</p>
<p>i guessing fin aid has a lot do with some people commuting or not commuting too.</p>
<p>current_student </p>
<p>to a degree</p>
<p>Trying to keep your finances on point for grad school and the like is really important.</p>
<p>I'm about 10 miles from campus, so it's not worth spending an extra $3000 a semster and putting my parents and myself into debt to live in a dorm. I'm going into a high-demand field and skipping on my masters (unless they offer some heavy-duty scholarships!), so that's money that will go to an apartment or house and a newer car when I graduate.</p>
<p>I'm commuting...but then again in Ontario that more of the norm. I mean there are schools that you can go away to but alot of people tend to commute.</p>
<p>It's usually much cheaper on a monthly basis to get a room or share an apartment near campus. Dorms are mostly for first year students as a means of meeting new people, but lose their appeal afterwards. If you're outgoing to begin with, it probably won't affect you if you commute. If you're not, then it's very easy to fall into the trap of just going home after class and never wanting to leave your comfort zone. Most people who live an hour or more away from campus probably don't want to make another trip just to go to an
optional event.</p>