<p>My parents seem to be against my going somewhere far away from college since I wouldn't be able to visit very often and traveling costs would be much more expensive. They seem to want me to go somewhere on the east coast within driving distance (no plane tickets involved). The problem is, most of the schools I'm interested in aren't close to home at all so my parents and I are having a bit of disagreement.</p>
<p>In general, what would you say the pros and cons are of staying close to home versus moving somewhere far away?</p>
<p>You can almost always find a great school within 400 miles of home. That's about an 8 hour drive. Closer is better. More convenient, less expensive. On the other hand, try to go at least 50 miles from home to get away from the old high school ties.</p>
<p>I think Rocky Mountain States and NM AZ might have to travel farther for a good school.</p>
<p>Our family "rule" is you can find any school you need within 300-400 miles unless the school is a service academy or you have a COMPLETELY free ride - then you can go anywhere you want.</p>
<p>It has worked well when there has been a death in the family since they can usually get a ride home with a roommate, etc. No one wants to give you a 2600 mile ride.</p>
<p>I currently attend a school that is slightly more than 400 miles away from my house, and I like the distance. It is far enough away from home that I'm in a different environment experiencing different things, but at the same time, I'm within an hour of home by jet (which is cheaper at that distance than driving for me).</p>
<p>I know this isn't quite what you asked, but for what it's worth, I was in a similar situation - I live in Vermont, and I really wanted to visit a school in Oregon. My parents were vehemently opposed. What I ended up doing, and what may help you, was to write a profile of the school explaining what made it stand out to the point that I wouldn't be able to get a similar experience back home. In addition to persuading my parents that the school was worth visiting, it also helped me to learn more about the school in general, and made the ultimate decision-making process easier.</p>
<p>Back on-topic - I ended up deciding, once I visited the school and got a tangible idea of the distance, that I really didn't want to be that far from home. (My ED school is 600 miles away, so I'm still making a trip - although it's a direct flight.)</p>
<p>Pros:
- Definitely experiencing new parts of the country, especially if you've led a geographically isolated life.
- For some programs, it's worth the trip. If I got into Caltech, I'd be on the next plane to California, distance be damned. And if you live someplace very remote, you may not have a choice.
- Depending on your personality, the cons may not be such big obstacles - if you're very independent, or if you just really want to get away from your family.</p>
<p>Cons:
- Ease of access - look at plane/train/bus schedules and costs, or driving times. Are you okay with 1-2 full days of travel to get to and from school? What about the logistics of moving in and out?
- Getting home - even if you think you're okay with only visiting home once or twice during the school year, you never know when there will be an emergency and you'll need to get back quickly. And even if you're fairly independent, you may find during your first semester or two that you really want to visit home more frequently.
- Comfort level - if you've mostly lived in the same place all your life, it can be very weird to find yourself in a part of the country where you aren't familiar with the weather or geography.
- Friends - depending on where they go to college, it may be very hard to see them in person.
- Think about the effect of crossing time zones - in terms of travel back and forth, as well as being able to talk to your friends and family on the phone when you want to.</p>
<p>Hotpiece, you are right! I was thinking of "back in the day" when only the very wealthy students flew to their colleges. Please pardon my age! haha</p>
<p>MovieBuff: you are right, too, of course. However, if I am paying the bill, I can still make some of the rules, no? If my kids want to go to school thousands of miles from home, I hope they have a great job to pay for that travel. Sounds mean, I guess, but when there are 3 or 4 in college at one time, plus a bunch at home, plane tickets at Thanksgiving, Christmas, Parent's weekend, Spring break, etc. can really add up. </p>
<p>I agree with the 400 mile comment. Quite frankly it doesn't matter to me if a college is 1.5 hours away or 3.5. It doesn't feel any different... (at least while visiting).</p>
<p>well, Im still in HS, but i think if you stay close to home during college then there's a good chance that's where you will end up living.</p>
<p>Of course theres tons of exceptions, but if you want to live in florida some day, but you go to school in NJ and your family is in NJ then odds are you will probably get your first job there, first appartment etc...</p>
<p>Where as if you start off in florida, your first job out of college will likely be there (like from a job fair or some connection you made) and you will start off there.</p>
<p>Its much easier to make the jump going into college (because it really is a new beginning) than when you're already setup.</p>
<p>Well, when I was applying to college, I applied to 5 or 6 out of state colleges and only 2 in-state (one of those was my first choice though). I was SURE that when I was in high school I wanted nothing more than to get as far away as possible if I couldn't get into UMich (top choice). Well, flash forward a year and I am sooo glad I went to school in Ann Arbor. Shortly after I returned home for the summer, my mom passed away suddenly. I am thankful for the few weekends I was able to come home and spend time with her, etc... The time at school allowed me to grow up away from her, but I was close enough that we got to see each other more than just a couple times.</p>
<p>I can see the pros and cons of being close to home (or far away from home). I was a 6 hour drive from home when I began school, but now my family has moved across the country and I'm not a 6 hour plane ride. It hasn't really affected me since I've effectively moved out and am a generally independent person who doesn't need to spend a lot of time with family. But if you're the kind of person that is very close with their family, the closer school might be more desirable. It really comes down to family personalities in my opinion.</p>
<p>I'd like to stay close to home, but can't -- all the colleges I'm interested in are far away (there are no near ones). I don't want to leave California, though.</p>
<p>i'd prefer going to college far away, preferrably on the other side of the country since theres so many schools on the east coast im interested in but i think i'm going to miss california and friends. my family is worried about me not have any family-ish people near me and coming home will also cost a lot of money. basically the schools im applying to are half west coast, half east coast</p>