<p>In a situation where someone needs to go to a hospital, the resident advisor and/or dean of students would make sure it happened in any college I know. That's if someone else did not take care of that issue.</p>
<p>But in a case where it is not that urgent, yes, it is an issue. If your kid breaks his glasses, needs to see the dentist, needs a pair of shoes, and he is on a campus that doesn't have any of those things within walking distance and there is no public transportation to those areas, he would have to get a ride from someone or get a cab. It does not have to be a remote campus for that situation to arise. Even city and suburban schools are sometimes located at a location that is not close to anything commercial including public transportation. Some of these rural schools are in small towns that do have the amenities within walking distance.</p>
<p>I agree with cpt, the RA would be all over this.</p>
<p>Meanwhile, I guess there is no perfect answer. I would worry more about my D in a big city. I am just worried about D getting back and forth from rural school. They allow freshman cars, and Dad has given her one.</p>
<p>Well, I have felt perfectly comfortable with my D in NYC. Her campus is gated and a guard needs to sign you into the dorms. The entire campus is lit.</p>
<p>But I also feel perfectly comfortable with S on a rural campus. Frosh year he was chauffeured around by JA's (sort of like RA's but volunteers) and this year he doesn't seem to care much. He and GF did take a cab to the mall one day. The mall is 20 minutes away. It was kind of pricey, but they split it, and I suppose it was their entertainment budget for a while. I am going to give him a car when he feels confident about driving to school. Well I am going to give him my old car with 125,000 mlles that my mechanic has assured me still has life in it. It is also ten years old. Meanwhile, I am enjoying driving it.</p>
<p>Another thing to consider regarding rural and/or isolated campuses is the degree to which alcohol plays in the weekend activities. If kids are stuck on campus with little to do within walking distance or short cabs rides, does alcohol become the primary source of weekend entertainment?</p>
<p>There are drawbacks to a rural college, but it's not like he will be alone in a cabin in the woods! Seriously, there is an entire community of students, staff, and faculty, all of whom have to be there too. The staff has most likely already dealt with any problem your son might have I understand your concern, but isn't it a little premature to worry about this if your son hasn't even visited the school? If he wants to go to college in a rural area, and he loves this school, your worries don't seem like a good enough reason for him to not go there. Kids, boys especially, have very different requirements from us parents, which is a good thing. No matter where he ends up there will be something for you to worry about if you look for it. Perhaps do a reasonable amount of research (nearest hospital, how he would get there), which it sounds like you've done already, then let it (and him) go.</p>
<p>Thanks all. I don't worry about requiring a pair of shoes (they can be ordered on line). I don't worry too much about glasses either bc he would have a back up pair to get through. My son has never had a toothache, and he can get his twice per year check ups/cleanings at home, so chances about neeeding one at school are much reduced. I do worry about getting proper medical care for pneumonia or other type of acute unexpected illness requiring prompt medical care. It seems strange to me that a health center does not offer some kind of arrangement for transportation with a limo/taxi/shuttle bus service for a fee to be paid by the student for these situation, even if its a business card with the name of a company that can offer transportation to a nearby town. Oh well, just something to really think about and consider.</p>
<p>As noted, no matter where you are, most health centers don't have transportation arrangements. That's generally through campus security.</p>
<p>But the other posters did mention something that I think needs to be highlighted - the "community feel" of a smaller, isolated school. If there is a problem at a rural school, never mind the transportation issue, your son is more likely to have professors who care, who will help with whatever work is missed, etc. My niece goes to school in NYC, and had a friend who fell ill. The professors didn't care, weren't flexible, demanded work on time, so the friend ended up having to take a leave of absence and miss a semester. I'd be surprised if that scenario would play out the same way at a small school.</p>
<p>Northeastmom: Sorry for the delay in replying...one of S1's housemates has a car, but his class schedule doesn't always jive with hers. I know last semester he was involved in student government and a club and was was often looking for a ride late in the evening. The neighborhood they rent in has other students. This semester he has a 7:45am lab and says that he stays on campus on Monday nights; I assume he's found someone in a dorm who lets him sleep on their couch.</p>
<p>I honestly don't even think about it, much less worry about him. H & I were clear that we preferred he stay in the dorms, but he insisted on renting the house. We have also been clear that we are not providing a car for him in addition to the college education, and I don't know how he would afford the costs of a car anyways. He must be very resourceful and charming to have survived this long without his own transportation.</p>
<p>archiemom, He sounds very charming and resourceful! Glad it is working out for him. I have thought of all of those pitfalls about moving off campus without a car. Guess your son is surviving without the car and is still living where he wants to live.</p>
<p>My kid goes to a small, rural, isolated school. He is a junior and doesn't have a car. I guess about 1/4 of freshman have cars and then it increases a bit after that. S hasn't had any major health issues. Dental issues, eye exams, etc. had to be taken care of when he was home for Christmas or summer breaks. A couple times other students have given him rides to town to get a haircut. The school sells some basic toiletries, laundry detergent, etc. Really, there is nothing he needs. A couple times he's asked me to mail him something, or ordered something on line. It has been no problem. If there were a true emergency, I'm sure someone would call 911! The school doesn't have a health clinic, just a nurse on call who can come to campus twice a week. (Once my kid had the flu and by the time he thought he should contact the nurse, he was getting better anyway). There are enough students with cars that he can find someone going to town and hitch a ride if he has to (which he rarely does--he doesn't like to impose on friends or ask for favors).</p>
<p>I'm considering letting my D, who'll be a college freshman next year, have a car--so she can participate in her sport. A relative told me, "Don't let a freshman have a car--she'll never know who her real friends are!"
I assumed that if my D did have a car, she would use it only for sports, work (if she had an off campus job), or occasional shopping for necessities. (My relative thinks I'm crazy to imagine D will follow "mom's rules" when mom isn't around--but I trust my D).</p>
<p>To the OP- I think you and your kid have to determine your comfort level with a whole bunch of rural lifestyle issues before deciding if the school is a fit (see the other thread on "fit" to hear from the people who think it is over-rated).</p>
<p>Even healthy people have emergencies- grandparents get sick or die; a sibling is diagnosed with something awful and the college kid needs to get home in a hurry; my sibling and I both had appendectomies (otherwise we were perfectly healthy) while in college. We are just urban people, so while we didn't cross rural schools off the list because of the "what happens in an emergency" factor, we and our kids gravitate towards places that have good public transportation (our kids never had cars in HS or college) and convenient amenities. </p>
<p>I'm sure it meant we crossed some schools off the list that would have been great- but since there are so many that were good fits without the inconveniences... we never looked back.</p>
<p>Our kids also ended up with jobs or internships "off campus"-- so being able to get back and forth from work was a big deal as well. There are always things to worry about when a child leaves home (I obsessed for weeks that our oldest would starve since he'd probably lose his meal card or forget where the dining hall was...) but life is full of trade-offs.</p>
<p>And for the record, my nieces and nephews at rural colleges made it to their grandparents funeral (without owning cars) so it can be done-- there was much Greyhounding and asking favors from friends involved but it can be done on quick timing (although not as quickly as getting to an ER by taxi when my appendix was about to turn septic!)</p>
<p>blossom, those are excellent points, and are some of the things that are on my mind. Some of your points also make considering how far one is from an airport for travel from one area of the country to another important too. We looked at another school that is 7-8 hours from home. The school is rural too, but less rural than others. I think that they do offer zip cars to rent (this is new, and was not talked about, but on the way out it was mentioned when I discussed transportation with admsissions). The problem is that the airport is 1.5-2 hours from campus. For scheduled breaks this is not a problem. For a family emergency, it becomes more of a hassle.</p>
<p>Update, talk about the unexpected. Is this an omen? Guess whose glasses are not broken but need a big adjustment. Son's glasses were hit by a ball today. Has never happened and he has worn glasses for years. It happened today.</p>
<p>"We are just urban people, so while we didn't cross rural schools off the list because of the "what happens in an emergency" factor, we and our kids gravitate towards places that have good public transportation (our kids never had cars in HS or college) and convenient amenities. "</p>
<p>^^^ Same here - - convenient amenities and the independence that comes with public transportation are part of "fit" for D.</p>
<p>Wow, when I looked at a map on the Hiram homepage I was astonded at what some people call rural. S went to Humboldt, nearest town of any size was 3 hours away over a road often closed in winter, 5 hours from the nearest airport of any significance. It was a great place for him and has provided great opportunities upon graduation. Rural can be more a state of mind than a physical place.</p>
<p>I dont remember Hiram being all that heavy into the drinking scene, but then again when I went to school it was 18 for 3.2 beer. You were far too bloated to drink anymore before you ever were drunk. :-)</p>
<p>For any school S has considered transportation has always been on the factors list. And even two hours from the airport wasn't a problem if there was reliable transportation to said airport. This took all consideration of Colby off our list because it works out to almost a full day of travel just to get home or back (taking two full days out of any break).</p>
<p>csleslie, Hiram is not far from an airport, or a city, but to get to escape campus or run an errand it seems challenging without a car. We have not visited, but are getting a feel for it by reading. There are other schools that are in walking distance of some convenience shops, or have local public transit, but are 2 hours from an airport (and no public transit to get there). That is yet a different type of challenge.</p>
<p>Yes, what is rural is different for different people. We are in a suburb with public transportation to the city, but not much anywhere else. To us, Bucknell was rural. To her roommate, who had 35 kids in her senior class, Bucknell would be suburban.</p>
<p>She's now in a school on the outskirts of a medium-sized city. Guess what? Public transportation is pretty poor there. She had orthodontic work done last year that required a cab every month or so. She got an internship off campus that she couldn't get to if she didn't have her car.</p>
<p>Both my college age kids have not had a car. For D who has health issues it was difficult. She was in an area that had public transportation but it wasn't that useful to her. She did not adjust well to the change in weather and elevation. She was sick much of the time she was there. It was a one mile walk to the pharmacy often with snow on the ground. It is one thing to walk a mile each direction when you feel well but when you are sick and your illness is lung related it is pretty much impossible. The one time she went to the school med center and was sent to the hospital they did call her a cab and gave her a voucher. That went okay but it was scary for her to be headed off to the hospital on her own. She was treated and stayed 1 night. The hospital called her a cab that she had a voucher for. The problem came in that the hospital gave her prescriptions. She was to sick to go get them filled for several days till she found someone who could drive her to the pharmacy. She only had 1 friend with a car.</p>
<p>My son is a soph at a suburban school without good public transportation. He has not had much need to go off campus. I fill his monthly prescription at home and mail it. His health center also does not stock meds. He recently had an ear infection. He was able to borrow a car to get to a pharmacy. The pharmacy is close but to far to walk. He had an off campus Dr appt last week. Also no way to reach it by public transportation. He had no problem borrowing a car. At his school especially by soph yr many of his friends have cars.
I am grateful to the kids who have cars but on the other hand if my kid was the one with the car I don't know how I would feel about them being the taxi service.</p>