<p>I live about an hour from UCI (near UCR) and I'm thinking about attending (deciding between UCI, UCSD, and UCR) but I don't know if I should commute or live in UCI
Pros and Cons would be helpful
Thanks in advanced!</p>
<p>Commuting as a freshman, with an HOUR drive? </p>
<p>Definitely UCI dorms…</p>
<p>Dorrrrmmssss. They’re expensive, but yeah, it’s worth it. Not worth the pro/cons list, but yeah, everyone has to live in the dorms first year. Simple as that.</p>
<p>Hey there!
Im a first year currently @ UCI and also from the UCR(Riverside) area. Commuting as a freshman would be a bad idea.
Even though UCI is not the biggest campus, it may take time for you to get used to the campus. Dorming has its perks such as accessibility to resources and entertainment within the dormitory that you choose. The only problem that you may have is that they force you to get a meal plan of about 1000 dollars for 100 meals or 1300 for 165 meals. I have friends that use all there meals and I also have friends that use maybe 20 swipes the whole quarter.
Let me know if you have any other questions!</p>
<p>Calculate your gasoline costs. You’ll be shocked how much it is for your commute. Then think about spending hours a day in the car: probably close to three hours, with traffic and parking. That’s three hours a day <em>not</em> studying, <em>not</em> working, <em>not</em> making friends. You could instead spend that time being immersed in campus life. </p>
<p>Dorms are expensive, but to get a true sense of the cost, do an expense analysis that subtracts gas, wear and tear on your car, and other savings for your parents (reduced food costs, etc) if you are not at home. </p>
<p>Think about what you could do with those 3 hours a day.
Then decide.</p>
<p>Not to mention the negative effect the commute will have on your body physically and mentally. You will be exhausted, you will be stressed just from driving.</p>
<p>I don’t know how your financial situation is, but even if you have to take out student loans to cover the dorm costs-- I would advise to do so. </p>
<p>Just imagine having 8-9am classes…</p>
<p>A two-hour drive will be more time-consuming that you think. The price of gas in California is insane these days, so commuting won’t necessarily be cheap either. I’d say dorm.</p>
<p>Also, the traffic coming from the inland empire (‘near UCR’) to UCI will <em>often</em> be much longer than an hour. I’ve made that commute 4xweek for many years: it’s typically 1.5 hours each way unless you’re driving in totally off hours (at night). Can be two hours EACH way. Imagine on a test day–you’d have to leave at least 3 hours early to make sure you didn’t miss the test and get a zero because you were stuck on the 91. You’d end up paying for the toll road many days to cut a few minutes off the drive and that adds a lot to your costs. Depending on your MPG, gas alone could be 300$-$400 a month–that’s $3k to $4k a year right there for the 9-10 month school year. In four years you’ll also go through at least one set of tires–might as well add that in to the budget now. You can deduct that from the dorm total in comparing home vs. on campus costs. The differential may not be as large as it seems. </p>
<p>And, again, think long and hard about spending 3 or 4 soul-numbing, stressful hours a day alone in the car every day. I would strongly urge you to live on campus, if at all possible. You will have a much better experience and be able to concentrate on school work and making friends.</p>
<p>DEFINITELY live on campus. My daughter is a freshman there now, and although we only live about 45 minutes away, there is no way in the world she could commute. Her class schedule one quarter started with a class at 8:00 am and no more classes until 5:00 pm, getting done at 7:00 that night. It would have been a killer to have to sit around a library all day, plus the commute itself would be ridiculous with rush hour.</p>
<p>Living on campus your freshman year is a great experience and a good way to get a feel for campus life, make new friends, and have some fun in addition to all the schoolwork. Do whatever you can to make that happen for you, I promise you won’t regret it.</p>