<p>I am going to RU engineering and I could commute from my home or I could just live on campus.
I would prefer to live on campus, where I can have a normal social life and do homework with a group of students. I am worrying that I won't be able to find friends on campus because I am not very social and have problems finding friends and not living on campus will completely reduce any chances of finding friends.
My parents are concerned about paying an extra $9k. They say I could just commute & spend the whole day at Rutgers and come home at night. Is it going to work for me?
Is it worth it to live on campus? </p>
<p>Thanks in advance for all replies,
leapformula4</p>
<p>Have you and your parents calculate the true cost of commuting? Spending the whole day on campus will probably mean buying some food. There is also the cost of the car, maintenance, parking fees, insurance and gas. If you live on campus, would you be willing to be dropped from your parent’s insurance (no driving at all during the school year) to save money and selling the commuter car? How long is the commute?</p>
<p>Commuting in NJ can burn up a lot of time. Winter weather can really add to the mix. It does make connecting with other students more difficult.</p>
<p>I would consider living on campus the first year and then reevaluate. However only if you can afford it without borrowing more. I would guess the real cost would be 4-6K assuming that you would need to buy and maintain a car. If you already own the car and need to maintain insurance then the cost would probably be closer to 8K. If you can commute using public transportation then the number would be totally different.</p>
<p>If you can afford it, I think it is best to live on campus. It will start you on the path to independence.
If you did live at home you will make friends in class and other commuters.</p>
<p>On-campus room and board at Rutgers is about $11,000 to $12,000. Rutgers’ cost of attendance page assumes that living at home and commuting costs $0, but that is not realistic, since you consume food and utilities at home, and need to pay for transportation (either public transportation, or car related costs including car insurance). Schools which do estimate these costs typically assume about $4,000 to $5,000, so the difference would be between $6,000 and $8,000, although at-home and transportation costs can vary greatly between different students and families. However, many parents more willingly subsidize students’ at home and transportation costs than they do dorm costs.</p>
<p>If you can only live on-campus some years but not all (due to cost constraints), frosh year is probably the most advantageous to live on-campus, since it allows you to better connect with other students and the school. In later years, you will already mainly associate with other students in your major, and should be well aware of how the school works.</p>