Experience of commuting to uni
Hiya id like to hear of commuters experiences? im debating on commuting myself. For context, i can take an hour bus and take another 15 min one from there to get to uni so would take me 1.5 hr. I am used to commuting pretty much same time for my alevels and im used to commuting around a rubbish time table. Reasons why I want to commute is too save money, i dont want to leave my job behind and my job would suit around uni as i start at 7 pm. Im used to long days at college .Another reason is i just would prefer being home and live like 3 mins away from bus stop and the course im doing is primsry education and my local primary has offered me to my placements and i loved it there when i volunteered yr 12. Only downside is there is a gap of time between buses but like i said im used to commhting around buses and crappy timetable. The city the uni is in is small and the uni itself has a small campus. Thanks any thoughts would be nice 😁
Reply 1
Original post
by Flower-koalaHiya id like to hear of commuters experiences? im debating on commuting myself. For context, i can take an hour bus and take another 15 min one from there to get to uni so would take me 1.5 hr. I am used to commuting pretty much same time for my alevels and im used to commuting around a rubbish time table. Reasons why I want to commute is too save money, i dont want to leave my job behind and my job would suit around uni as i start at 7 pm. Im used to long days at college .Another reason is i just would prefer being home and live like 3 mins away from bus stop and the course im doing is primsry education and my local primary has offered me to my placements and i loved it there when i volunteered yr 12. Only downside is there is a gap of time between buses but like i said im used to commhting around buses and crappy timetable. The city the uni is in is small and the uni itself has a small campus. Thanks any thoughts would be nice 😁
Hi Koala,
Your commute sounds manageable since you’re used to similar journeys, though personally I would dread 1.5H there and back, I'm already tired of my hour long commute, especially given the state of buses here 😓...
However, the benefits you state, like saving money, keeping your job, being at home, and having placements nearby make it more than worthwhile.
The only downside is the bus gap, but if you’re used to dealing with timetables, it shouldn’t be a problem.
With good planning, commuting can work well.
It's not much advice, but I hope this helped 😅
Reply 2
Original post
by Flower-koalaHiya id like to hear of commuters experiences? im debating on commuting myself. For context, i can take an hour bus and take another 15 min one from there to get to uni so would take me 1.5 hr. I am used to commuting pretty much same time for my alevels and im used to commuting around a rubbish time table. Reasons why I want to commute is too save money, i dont want to leave my job behind and my job would suit around uni as i start at 7 pm. Im used to long days at college .Another reason is i just would prefer being home and live like 3 mins away from bus stop and the course im doing is primsry education and my local primary has offered me to my placements and i loved it there when i volunteered yr 12. Only downside is there is a gap of time between buses but like i said im used to commhting around buses and crappy timetable. The city the uni is in is small and the uni itself has a small campus. Thanks any thoughts would be nice 😁
Hey @Flower-koala
I don’t personally have experience with long commutes but i know many people on my course do and it’s definitely do able, especially if your already used to it
. The main thing about this they struggled with is feeling behind on uni work due to being exhausted from all the travel when they get home.
One piece of advice they recommended was to treat every uni day as a 9-5, even if your lectures are only 9-3 for example, stay the extra 2 hours to do work in the library because otherwise they found that they would be too tired from the long commute.
Best of luck with university and hope this helps 🙂
Molly
BCU Student rep x
Reply 3
Hello!
For two years of my undergraduate, I commuted for 1.5-2 hours each way. Personally I found this manageable, and used the time to catch up on work, or to relax and read etc!
It's completely personal as to what is manageable for you.
With courses like primary education, it's worth considering that (depending on university) your placements will be more local to you, so for blocks of the year you won't have to do the long commute - for me, my placements were only a ten minute bus away, so balanced out quite well!
Any more questions, feel free to ask!
Beth
BA Primary Education/MA Special Educational Needs, Disability and Inclusion
University of Sunderland
For two years of my undergraduate, I commuted for 1.5-2 hours each way. Personally I found this manageable, and used the time to catch up on work, or to relax and read etc!
It's completely personal as to what is manageable for you.
With courses like primary education, it's worth considering that (depending on university) your placements will be more local to you, so for blocks of the year you won't have to do the long commute - for me, my placements were only a ten minute bus away, so balanced out quite well!
Any more questions, feel free to ask!
Beth
BA Primary Education/MA Special Educational Needs, Disability and Inclusion
University of Sunderland
Reply 4
Original post
by Flower-koalaHiya id like to hear of commuters experiences? im debating on commuting myself. For context, i can take an hour bus and take another 15 min one from there to get to uni so would take me 1.5 hr. I am used to commuting pretty much same time for my alevels and im used to commuting around a rubbish time table. Reasons why I want to commute is too save money, i dont want to leave my job behind and my job would suit around uni as i start at 7 pm. Im used to long days at college .Another reason is i just would prefer being home and live like 3 mins away from bus stop and the course im doing is primsry education and my local primary has offered me to my placements and i loved it there when i volunteered yr 12. Only downside is there is a gap of time between buses but like i said im used to commhting around buses and crappy timetable. The city the uni is in is small and the uni itself has a small campus. Thanks any thoughts would be nice 😁
Hi there 🙂
Your commute sounds very similar to mine - 1 hour bus, wait around, 15 min bus; same back again.
From what you've said it sounds like you have a lot of pros of commuting rather than staying on campus. It is definitely tiring some days but if you're prepared to stay at uni late sometimes if you want to join in with things and to make extra effort to get involved on campus then commuting could be a really good call. I know you still have to pay for buses but accommodation would cost you a lot more so you'd still save a lot.
It also sounds like you've got a lot of stability at home with a job and possible placements lined up, which is fab. I too wanted to stay at home to be around my friends and family at home and have that separation between home/free time and uni/work life and it helped me to make more of my time on campus.
Completely up to you whether you decide to commute or not but having done it myself from second year onwards I'd say its definitely worth the saving and provides a helpful work-life separation which staying on campus just didn't do for me.
Hopefully this helps - best of luck with everything 🙂
Personally I think this commute is probably too long for a full time student, especially as it has two legs (involves a change to a second bus), which makes it very vulnerable to delays or cancellations. Also I think having a long commute after a long day at uni to immediately go to work in the evening is unsustainable anyway - just the long commute with full-time uni stuff is going to be very fatiguing without adding a late working shift on top of it all (when are you even going to be able to do your studying and work on coursework etc with all that 
!).
In terms of your local primary school offering placements, usually placements are done such that you aren't attending lectures while on placement so there's no reason you couldn't stay at home during those placements which makes things a bit more convenient for you still without having to commit to a big commute.
Bear in mind uni lectures can usually be scheduled any time between 9 and 5-6pm as well. It's not the same as with school where you have a relatively fixed schedule and it finish ~330pm. Also keep in mind for a full time degree student, you're usually expected to spend about 30-40 hours a week on your studies - as noted above will you realistically be able to put in that time commitment with spending 3+ hours a day commuting, while also working regularly late in the evenings? To me this just doesn't seem sustainable.
Note in terms of wanting to save money - bear in mind if you live at your parental home you receive a reduced maintenance loan. So do ensure you factor that into your finance planning; you may be saving less money than you think as a result..! Also don't discount the effective monetary value of time. Losing 3+ hours a day (unpaid) is quite a commitment and the time saved is worth real money if you e.g. got a job while living at the uni which works around your uni work still (and may even facilitate working more hours than you could practically by staying home and thus earning more money that way anyway).
!).In terms of your local primary school offering placements, usually placements are done such that you aren't attending lectures while on placement so there's no reason you couldn't stay at home during those placements which makes things a bit more convenient for you still without having to commit to a big commute.
Bear in mind uni lectures can usually be scheduled any time between 9 and 5-6pm as well. It's not the same as with school where you have a relatively fixed schedule and it finish ~330pm. Also keep in mind for a full time degree student, you're usually expected to spend about 30-40 hours a week on your studies - as noted above will you realistically be able to put in that time commitment with spending 3+ hours a day commuting, while also working regularly late in the evenings? To me this just doesn't seem sustainable.
Note in terms of wanting to save money - bear in mind if you live at your parental home you receive a reduced maintenance loan. So do ensure you factor that into your finance planning; you may be saving less money than you think as a result..! Also don't discount the effective monetary value of time. Losing 3+ hours a day (unpaid) is quite a commitment and the time saved is worth real money if you e.g. got a job while living at the uni which works around your uni work still (and may even facilitate working more hours than you could practically by staying home and thus earning more money that way anyway).
Reply 6
Original post
by Flower-koalaHiya id like to hear of commuters experiences? im debating on commuting myself. For context, i can take an hour bus and take another 15 min one from there to get to uni so would take me 1.5 hr. I am used to commuting pretty much same time for my alevels and im used to commuting around a rubbish time table. Reasons why I want to commute is too save money, i dont want to leave my job behind and my job would suit around uni as i start at 7 pm. Im used to long days at college .Another reason is i just would prefer being home and live like 3 mins away from bus stop and the course im doing is primsry education and my local primary has offered me to my placements and i loved it there when i volunteered yr 12. Only downside is there is a gap of time between buses but like i said im used to commhting around buses and crappy timetable. The city the uni is in is small and the uni itself has a small campus. Thanks any thoughts would be nice 😁
Hi @Flower-koala ,
I don't commute to uni myself, but quite a few of my close friends do and they always say it was worth it! I think it depends on each individual and their circumstances but as long as you are willing to do the commute I would say it would be okay.
I live around an hour away from my uni but I decided to move into halls rather than stay at home as I wanted to live with others and I wouldn't be able to do an hour commute twice a day multiple times a week, and I am glad that I did this as I had a good time in halls but it isn't the only place to meet people at uni! There will be societies, events and other ways to meet people, or if you are not that bothered it is worth saving the money to live at home. There are also sometimes groups on social media such as Facebook where you can meet people who also commute and make friends this way too!
One thing I would suggest is to practice the commute so you know how long it would take if it was a busy time (so as if you had a 9am), or if you were leaving at a busy time from uni too come home (so as if you finished at 5pm). This should give you a good idea of whether you would be able to do it or not and if you think you would be too tired if you had to do it multiple times a week.
I hope some of this helps,
Lucy -SHU student ambassador.
Reply 7
Original post
by Flower-koalaHiya id like to hear of commuters experiences? im debating on commuting myself. For context, i can take an hour bus and take another 15 min one from there to get to uni so would take me 1.5 hr. I am used to commuting pretty much same time for my alevels and im used to commuting around a rubbish time table. Reasons why I want to commute is too save money, i dont want to leave my job behind and my job would suit around uni as i start at 7 pm. Im used to long days at college .Another reason is i just would prefer being home and live like 3 mins away from bus stop and the course im doing is primsry education and my local primary has offered me to my placements and i loved it there when i volunteered yr 12. Only downside is there is a gap of time between buses but like i said im used to commhting around buses and crappy timetable. The city the uni is in is small and the uni itself has a small campus. Thanks any thoughts would be nice 😁
Hey @Flower-koala ,
I’ve commuted since the start of sixth form myself, so I completely understand being used to long days and navigating a tricky timetable. When you're already accustomed to that routine, it honestly doesn't feel like as much of a hurdle as people make it out to be.
Based on what you’ve said, commuting seems like a very practical choice for your situation. Here is why your plan works well:
•
Financial and Career Stability: Keeping a job you already like that fits around your lectures is a massive win. You’ll be saving a significant amount of money on rent while building up your work experience.
•
The Placement Advantage: For a Primary Education degree, having a local school already willing to host your placements is a huge bonus. It saves you the stress of finding a new school in an unfamiliar city and keeps you connected to your local community.
•
Routine and Environment: You mentioned you prefer being at home, and the campus is small. A smaller university often has a tighter-knit community, making it easier to see familiar faces even if you aren't living in halls.
Ultimately, if the convenience of home and work outweighs the desire to live on campus, commuting is a brilliant way to navigate uni life.
Hope this helps!😊
Rachel
(Third Year)
Undergraduate Multimedia Journalism
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