Should I stay at home for uni?
My top choice uni is in my home city. I was thinking of staying at home to save money but I'm a little worried about the commute time. By car its only 20 minutes away but I'll usually have to rely on public transport, which will take over an hour.
Do you think this is a good idea?
Do you think this is a good idea?
it depends on what you want from your time at uni and your opinion about commutes i think. For me, that time of commute would be annoying because I like going to the uni library a lot and also student events are often near campus. But if you're only going for lectures really then you can download a podcast or whatever and be alright.
Original post by moonswooning
it depends on what you want from your time at uni and your opinion about commutes i think. For me, that time of commute would be annoying because I like going to the uni library a lot and also student events are often near campus. But if you're only going for lectures really then you can download a podcast or whatever and be alright.
I was thinking I'd commute, spend a good chunk of my day around the university (lectures, studying in the library, socialising a bit) and then going home in the evenings. Could spend the extra commute time reading.
Original post by Spoon1313
I was thinking I'd commute, spend a good chunk of my day around the university (lectures, studying in the library, socialising a bit) and then going home in the evenings. Could spend the extra commute time reading.
Sounds like this is a good option for you then! In fact, I can imagine having a longer commute could make you more productive in the day - maybe by living close to uni I am too tempted to just go back to my room and not study after a class lol
Original post by Spoon1313
My top choice uni is in my home city. I was thinking of staying at home to save money but I'm a little worried about the commute time. By car its only 20 minutes away but I'll usually have to rely on public transport, which will take over an hour.
Do you think this is a good idea?
Do you think this is a good idea?
Hello,
This can differ depending on each person's situation and preferences. I personally go to the university closest to my home town, about half an hour in the car, but chose to live at my university anyway.
I know lots of people who commute and they still have a full university experience. When on campus for lectures you can socialise with your course mates and friends, societies often have a specific day to meet and so you could very easily go this after your lectures when you are in already, you can head into the city if you have any breaks between lectures and you can make the most of all the facilities. If you want to do a night out, university students are always more than happy to have you on their sofa!
The hour commute should not be too bad, I know people who travel further. As you have mentioned later on in the thread, you can use the time to ready or complete some independent study. This is a great idea because it is dedicated time and you know you can plan to do work in that time. However, it could also be a good time to relax some days!
If you complete your first year and decide that you want to live with some friends, there is nothing to stop you! You will have course friends who will be more than happy to live with you and it can be a new venture for second year. I know lots of people who have done this and I cannot remember a time when they commuted! However, it is right for so many people and they commute for their whole three years.
If you feel it is right for you, then go with your gut!
Lydia
Original post by Spoon1313
My top choice uni is in my home city. I was thinking of staying at home to save money but I'm a little worried about the commute time. By car its only 20 minutes away but I'll usually have to rely on public transport, which will take over an hour.
Do you think this is a good idea?
Do you think this is a good idea?
I'll always recommend staying in halls at least for the first year you might not be in uni every day but I was always popping in for something and some of the breaks between lectures can be brutal like 9 hours people say oh i'll just stay in the library (what for 9 hours pull the other one your having a laugh aren't you.).
There are several very good reasons to stay at uni some of these may seem like the obviously don't apply to me but it's worth reading them anyway because I might come up wit something you haven't considered.
1/ Finance is often a major consideration for student when it comes to staying at home or not. Some times it can actually be cheaper to stay in halls. If we take where i went to uni (Solent) it would cost me at least £13 a day if i just went i when I had lectures (it would cost lot more now and halls worked out cheaper. So you want to think about how much public transport will cost you how much parking will cost (if you drive) add on food about £5 for lunch each day. but also consider if you have 5 days a week it happened to me in Portsmouth would that make halls work out cheaper for you.
2/Social life is a big part of student life societies and clubs usually meet up in the evening to train and for socials and then if your part of a competitive sports club your going all around the country for competitions at weekends being in halls helps an enormous amount you get not the uni mini bus rock up compete and go back late at night to halls you might even have missed the last bus or train.Then there are house parties hall parties that you'll probably miss out on if your not around (tend to be very last minute. Then there are things like Movie nights, video game tournaments, and some really fun stuff that people in halls come up with like one halls set up a water slide and had races chair jousting was another one all good fun stuff that just won't happen at home. you say you can sleep on sofas that really only happens in house in 2nd and 3rd year.
3/ Independence is also biggie your parent might be cool I don't know but they could impose things like curfews and not let you go out if you have a 9am lecture the next day. they might even impose (shudder) a bed time. people big this as a great thing and it is but it's not quite like you expect your more learning how to live like how to eat healthy how to do laundry and things like that it's such available experience you really don't want miss out on that.
4/ Academics really obvious but the closer to uni and the library the better. You might need a book suddenly on a day your not in instead of travelling 2 hours there and back to get the book you'll have what a 10 minute walk there and back. Then there is group work so easy if you in halls much more inconvenient if you need to get a particular bus or train to get home. all if you only have on hour on a day and your spending 2 hours travelling to get there it's not good. Also all you can really do while travelling is busy work real work is so much easier tif you only have a short walk rather than an hour travelling.
5/ Comfort You can have very long days at uni (12 hours on Tuesdays 11 on Mondays in my first year) you'll e much more comfortable after that if you are closer. Then there are the long breaks I had a 9 hour break in second year so halls were a real benefit there. Really you'll be more comfortable in halls. Your commute all could be nasty we are going in tho quite a cold winter so in the next couple of months find a day with rain wind maybe some sleet and do a dry run (get there at 9leave at 5) in fact do a a few and think really think could you handle that for months on end.
it is down to you but you will misroute on a very valuable fun experience if you don't do halls at least for the first year.
TLDR: You'll miss out if you don''t go into halls.
(edited 2 years ago)
Original post by jonathanemptage
I'll always recommend staying in halls at least for the first year you might not be in uni every day but I was always popping in for something and some of the breaks between lectures can be brutal like 9 hours people say oh i'll just stay in the library (what for 9 hours pull the other one your having a laugh aren't you.).
There are several very good reasons to stay at uni some of these may seem like the obviously don't apply to me but it's worth reading them anyway because I might come up wit something you haven't considered.
1/ Finance is often a major consideration for student when it comes to staying at home or not. Some times it can actually be cheaper to stay in halls. If we take where i went to uni (Solent) it would cost me at least £13 a day if i just went i when I had lectures (it would cost lot more now and halls worked out cheaper. So you want to think about how much public transport will cost you how much parking will cost (if you drive) add on food about £5 for lunch each day. but also consider if you have 5 days a week it happened to me in Portsmouth would that make halls work out cheaper for you.
2/Social life is a big part of student life societies and clubs usually meet up in the evening to train and for socials and then if your part of a competitive sports club your going all around the country for competitions at weekends being in halls helps an enormous amount you get not the uni mini bus rock up compete and go back late at night to halls you might even have missed the last bus or train.Then there are house parties hall parties that you'll probably miss out on if your not around (tend to be very last minute. Then there are things like Movie nights, video game tournaments, and some really fun stuff that people in halls come up with like one halls set up a water slide and had races chair jousting was another one all good fun stuff that just won't happen at home. you say you can sleep on sofas that really only happens in house in 2nd and 3rd year.
3/ Independence is also biggie your parent might be cool I don't know but they could impose things like curfews and not let you go out if you have a 9am lecture the next day. they might even impose (shudder) a bed time. people big this as a great thing and it is but it's not quite like you expect your more learning how to live like how to eat healthy how to do laundry and things like that it's such available experience you really don't want miss out on that.
4/ Academics really obvious but the closer to uni and the library the better. You might need a book suddenly on a day your not in instead of travelling 2 hours there and back to get the book you'll have what a 10 minute walk there and back. Then there is group work so easy if you in halls much more inconvenient if you need to get a particular bus or train to get home. all if you only have on hour on a day and your spending 2 hours travelling to get there it's not good. Also all you can really do while travelling is busy work real work is so much easier tif you only have a short walk rather than an hour travelling.
5/ Comfort You can have very long days at uni (12 hours on Tuesdays 11 on Mondays in my first year) you'll e much more comfortable after that if you are closer. Then there are the long breaks I had a 9 hour break in second year so halls were a real benefit there. Really you'll be more comfortable in halls. Your commute all could be nasty we are going in tho quite a cold winter so in the next couple of months find a day with rain wind maybe some sleet and do a dry run (get there at 9leave at 5) in fact do a a few and think really think could you handle that for months on end.
it is down to you but you will misroute on a very valuable fun experience if you don't do halls at least for the first year.
TLDR: You'll miss out if you don''t go into halls.
There are several very good reasons to stay at uni some of these may seem like the obviously don't apply to me but it's worth reading them anyway because I might come up wit something you haven't considered.
1/ Finance is often a major consideration for student when it comes to staying at home or not. Some times it can actually be cheaper to stay in halls. If we take where i went to uni (Solent) it would cost me at least £13 a day if i just went i when I had lectures (it would cost lot more now and halls worked out cheaper. So you want to think about how much public transport will cost you how much parking will cost (if you drive) add on food about £5 for lunch each day. but also consider if you have 5 days a week it happened to me in Portsmouth would that make halls work out cheaper for you.
2/Social life is a big part of student life societies and clubs usually meet up in the evening to train and for socials and then if your part of a competitive sports club your going all around the country for competitions at weekends being in halls helps an enormous amount you get not the uni mini bus rock up compete and go back late at night to halls you might even have missed the last bus or train.Then there are house parties hall parties that you'll probably miss out on if your not around (tend to be very last minute. Then there are things like Movie nights, video game tournaments, and some really fun stuff that people in halls come up with like one halls set up a water slide and had races chair jousting was another one all good fun stuff that just won't happen at home. you say you can sleep on sofas that really only happens in house in 2nd and 3rd year.
3/ Independence is also biggie your parent might be cool I don't know but they could impose things like curfews and not let you go out if you have a 9am lecture the next day. they might even impose (shudder) a bed time. people big this as a great thing and it is but it's not quite like you expect your more learning how to live like how to eat healthy how to do laundry and things like that it's such available experience you really don't want miss out on that.
4/ Academics really obvious but the closer to uni and the library the better. You might need a book suddenly on a day your not in instead of travelling 2 hours there and back to get the book you'll have what a 10 minute walk there and back. Then there is group work so easy if you in halls much more inconvenient if you need to get a particular bus or train to get home. all if you only have on hour on a day and your spending 2 hours travelling to get there it's not good. Also all you can really do while travelling is busy work real work is so much easier tif you only have a short walk rather than an hour travelling.
5/ Comfort You can have very long days at uni (12 hours on Tuesdays 11 on Mondays in my first year) you'll e much more comfortable after that if you are closer. Then there are the long breaks I had a 9 hour break in second year so halls were a real benefit there. Really you'll be more comfortable in halls. Your commute all could be nasty we are going in tho quite a cold winter so in the next couple of months find a day with rain wind maybe some sleet and do a dry run (get there at 9leave at 5) in fact do a a few and think really think could you handle that for months on end.
it is down to you but you will misroute on a very valuable fun experience if you don't do halls at least for the first year.
TLDR: You'll miss out if you don''t go into halls.
1. The public transport in my city is relatively cheap. I can pay £11 a week and get unlimited access to trams and buses. And if I stayed in halls I'd only have £26 left after accommodation, as opposed to having £91.
2. Never been much a party person.
3. Parents are pretty lax, and as I said, not really the type to party all night and turn up at 4 am.
4. Don't plan on going back and forth between home and uni that often. Think i'll be able to work around it.
5. If the weather's bad I'd probably be standing outside as much as any other uni student. I'd still be dry on a tram.
I have a few friends who are planning to go to the same Uni as me so hopefully i'll already have a social circle when I get there. Of course I will miss out on a bit of the social aspect but I'd rather save on money. When I go to Uni my parents will have to support 3 university students (me + my sister and brother) so I cant rely on them for extra cash.
If I do need to get somewhere quickly, I can always call a cab.
Original post by Spoon1313
My top choice uni is in my home city. I was thinking of staying at home to save money but I'm a little worried about the commute time. By car its only 20 minutes away but I'll usually have to rely on public transport, which will take over an hour.
Do you think this is a good idea?
Do you think this is a good idea?
Hi there,
I hope you're well.
It's definitely a personal choice! However, you definitely won't be disadvantaged if you pick one over the other - it really is down to what you're most comfortable doing. Everyone's advice above is really helpful, so I would definitely take their words into account. However, what really helped me when I was deciding whether to commute or live at University was writing a big pro's and con's list. It was nice to visually see the benefits and drawbacks of commuting or staying, and it made my decision a lot easier to make. I'm not too sure what it is, but there's something about physically writing it down which feels a lot more beneficial than just discussing it with my family / friends. Hopefully this technique will work for you too!
Best of luck to you,
Ana
University of Liverpool Rep.
Original post by Spoon1313
My top choice uni is in my home city. I was thinking of staying at home to save money but I'm a little worried about the commute time. By car its only 20 minutes away but I'll usually have to rely on public transport, which will take over an hour.
Do you think this is a good idea?
Do you think this is a good idea?
Hello there
First of all, I want to say that here is no right or wrong way to go to uni and this especially applies to your living situation. Living on halls isn’t better than living at home and vice versa, rather, each situation depends solely on you.
The best part of living on halls is that you won't need to worry about train times, traffic, etc. You will probably meet more people living on halls, however, you can still join some clubs and societies and meet loads of people.
I hope this helps!
Best wishes
Andrea
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