I’m not sure about Penn, but many universities require freshman to live on campus unless their parents are local, and a two hour train ride would not be considered local. You should check the freshman residency requirements at all these schools.
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You have to live on campus the first two years of UPenn, minimum.
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Princeton also requires on campus for the first two years.
So does Columbia (for one year)
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You’d have to look more closely at the real commute time, during rush hour. You’d still have to get from 30th st station to campus. It is just insane, having a more than 4 hr round trip daily commute, although you could study on the commuter train. How long would it take you to commute to NYU during rush hour? To Columbia/Barnard? To Pace? And realize that while you can study on a commuter train, you cannot study on the subway - you have to be ever-vigilant while riding the subway.
Is there a college near you, that you would actually like to attend, that you can afford, and that you have a decent chance of getting into? Would Rutgers or TCNJ work for you, if you could study something besides pharmacy?
Also, a wild idea, but it would lead to a degree from a prestigious U, including possibly Princeton. Our Partners - Transfer Scholars Network LaGuardia community college in Long Island City, very close to Queens Plaza, is a community college within commuting distance for you that is part of this network. A student of your caliber could zoom through your associate’s degree in 4 semesters - summer and fall 2024 and spring and summer 2025, and be at Princeton for fall of '25, then take three years at Princeton. It is worth looking into as a possible alternative.
Looks like Borough of Manhattan comm coll and Kingsborough in bklyn I think are also part of this.
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Given your familial challenges, you should find the local public school to attend.
There is time to transport, waiting for transport, bad weather, etc. Best to be close to home.
Good luck.
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Thanks for giving us an update.
This appears to be the list of schools that you would like to attend:
Although you say you’ve calculated your travel distances, did you include all components? For instance, catching a 6:55 train for a 9:00 class at UPenn. How long does it take to walk from the train station to the campus, and the particular building on campus? Realize, that also assumes that you are already at the door of the station getting ready to walk out on the sidewalk. That doesn’t take into account the amount of town walking within the station to get out. Then there’s also the amount of time it’s going to require for you to get to the train station from your own house.
Google Maps does have a way of estimating walking times (as well as biking, driving, etc). I would get the estimates for each component you need to do…and then add at least 10% minimum.
Additionally, there are the issues of trying to plan your class schedule around the times that classes are offered. How would you feel if this really interesting class is offered, but at a time that would be extremely inconvenient with respect to the rest of your classes and your commute time?
Lastly, many people who find the experience at Top X colleges particularly valuable is because of everything that happens outside of class. The people they meet and make friends with because they’re living in the dorm (including on the weekends), eating their meals (including dinner) together, in addition to participating in various clubs and other activities. If you’re a commuter, you won’t be building those same types of relationships with your peers. And the longer the commute, the less time you have to participate in anything extra.
If there is no possible way that your family would be willing to let you live on-campus, then I would look for the closest schools to home. I would also take an especially good look at schools that have a high percentage of commuters, because then there are more of you to be able to bond for those times when you’re in between classes, or really valuable the lunches you can eat together, etc, in comparison to being on a campus where 95% or more of students are all living together and you’re on the outside, looking in.
I would take a good look at St. Peter’s. As a Jesuit institution, it has a very strong educational ethic, but because it doesn’t have a lot of land, there’s a fairly large percentage of commuters there (only 28% of first-year students live on-campus, per College Board). And as your family is okay with Seton Hall, it doesn’t seem to matter that it’s Catholic.
Apart from TCNJ, these are among your closest options. I would definitely continue to dig and see what there is to like about them.
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You all make good points. However, I’d like to commute a distance from home because even if I commuted a short distance I would still be restricted from clubs, activities, student life, etc. due to my parents’ strict mentalities. Therefore, I want to attend a large institution, preferably in a large city, where I have more opportunities available to me. When I calculated the commute distance, I took into account actual timing. Although it says 2 hours, my sister, who commutes there, only needs about an hour and a half to arrive. Monmouth is expensive and doesn’t offer a good curriculum for me, and NJIT is more STEM-related which would decrease my chances of doing what I want. Brookdale is a community college that is too close to my house (it would be like I never left high school). In short, I would like to be more independent, even if I can’t live away from home or drive to college.
I think it may have been addressed earlier upthread, but I’m too tired to look through 300+ posts. Do you have any interest in looking for scholarships where you will get a full ride? Meaning a school that will cover your full tuition, room & board with no loans?
Yes, I am currently applying for some, and if I get full ride at a college I will probably attend.
Which colleges on the list above have full rides??
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But you are still restricted to living at home? I suggested military academies bc they would be free and you would not depend on your parents to help with the cost.
Opportunities are outside of the classroom and only available if you are there to take advantage of them.
Have you factored in the cost of these commutes? Commuting to NYC costs hundreds of dollars each month.
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Thinking you can commute to Penn or NYU for 4 years is a huge mistake. You will be commuting 4 hours a day at a minimum- it will likely be a lot more. As noted above, it will be difficult if not impossible to be involved in your school.
Travel to the train, waiting for the trains, travel from the train to school, weather and other delays etc.
If you have to live at home and commute, you need to find a school that is commutable.
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What does it cost to commute 4 hours a day?
I agree with this.
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I just re-read your original post. Your household income is 140K/yr in the greater NYC region, which means very high cost of living. Your parents are already supporting several kids in college, one in med school, basically can’t give you much more than room and board at home (and they’re insisting that you live at home), and 5K/yr, which probably wouldn’t even cover the cost of commuting.
You have high stats. You want humanities, and your parents are dictating tough career paths that you most definitely don’t want.
I am hoping that you will be 18 before you start college, so that you will be a legal adult. You have very high stats, but if I recall, you didn’t make National Merit, and so wouldn’t qualify for the automatic full ride that provides at a few schools (which are all very far from home).
While I understand the cultural background that dictates that you not sleep away from home until you leave home to as a married woman, I do feel that your parents’ requiring that you plan on med school or pharmacy, despite your distaste for these fields, is simply untenable. I see that you are struggling to make options for yourself, but with their income (and I don’t understand how they can be paying for the older kids’ schooling on 140K/yr in the greater NYC area), you’re not gonna get a full ride via fin aid, only via merit, and at lesser schools, far away. Yet, I think that this is an option that you need to make.
Take a look at the threads re: full merit rides for high stats students. See if there are schools that would offer you a full ride based upon merit, that you want to attend. If you can do it discreetly, without starting WWIII at home, perhaps you should put in apps to these schools, too, to make other options for yourself.
If you don’t already have a part time job and your own bank account, I suggest that you consider getting one, if you can. Your own money gives you the opportunity to make your own choices.
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And two younger siblings that the parents enrolled in private school too. Another expense.
Please be mindful of the financial impact for your whole family.
And I agree with others…there is so much at college that happens outside of attending classes and studying. And much of that happens on the weekends or in the evenings.
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This doesn’t add up. How does an income of 140K in north Jersey, outside of NYC, pay for several kids in college, one in med school, and 2 in private school?
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I agree….it does not add up. It’s very possible this student doesn’t have a full grasp of his family’s financials.
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In what sense?
Gaining admission - yes likely.
Commuting - less so. Having to get on the Bergen Line will really add to the trip.
OP- take a deep breath.
Your goal is to get an education at a cost you can afford, which positions you for the life you want once you graduate. You will not be able to do this with a 3-4 hour commute every day. Trust me. Winter. Frozen train lines. Bus diverted due to flooding on an underpass. Etc. College is demanding- and you don’t want to be exhausted every night from your commute when you are supposed to be writing a paper, studying for a midterm, etc.
You’ve got good, solid direction on your professional goals. Don’t get diverted with the fantasy that you’re going to be able to do the “outside the classroom” stuff you’ll need to bulk up your portfolio, resume, etc. while you’re on a train. Your classmates are meeting over herbal teas in the student center to write the business plan for a hyperlocal newsgathering organization on campus to qualify for university funding. Where are you? On the train. Your classmates are setting up interviews with a local politician who is about to be indicted for something or other-- and you are on the train.
You’ve got some mighty hurdles ahead of you- don’t make it harder. U Penn will still be there when you are applying to graduate school. It’s not going anywhere.
You sound like such an outstanding student and human being. We are all rooting for you. But don’t make your life harder than it needs to be. Unless your strategy is “if I get into Penn maybe they’ll let me live there”-- is that the case? I don’t know any parent who wants their kids spending 4 hours a day traveling…
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