Anyone commute long distance to school everyday?

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Hi everyone,

I am wondering if anyone here commutes long distances to get to school everyday? I was accepted into the practical nursing program which starts this september. The college is a 55 min drive from where I live. Feeling sort of nervous about the long drive back and forth everyday. I have 3 kids and will need to get them off to school before I go to school. And I don't have an idea as to when my classes will start. It's a great college though and I feel happy that I got in.

Specializes in NICU, ICU, PICU, Academia.

OP: You can find out the school schedule with a simple phone call.

I commuted an hour each way in LPN school - five days a week. But I had a carpool group that made it enjoyable.

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Thanks for your reply. :) Sorry about having to deal with your daughter having ALL. I hope she will respond well to her treatments and will heal quickly.

It's a good idea to make most of the commute by studying, etc. Thanks for the tips! All the best to you in your future plans! :)

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I'm also commuting about an hour to get to school. I usually leave an hour and a half for commute just because instructors are not sympathetic to "There was just so much traffic!" It's really not that bad! Like a few of the other commenters mentioned, you do get used to the drive. I've been using the time to listen to podcasts or just decompress and cry a little lol. The only thing that really sucks is if you're really tired, the drive back home can be the worst because all you want to do is be home and relaxing.

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I had a 70 mile commute to school, and my clinical locations were even further, and in LA traffic. To avoid the two hour commute (2.5 hours if it was raining) and to prepare for a 13 hour clinical day, I would travel to my clinical location and stay in a hotel the night before.

I listened to recorded lectures during my commutes because that was the biggest problem with the long commute - that it really cut into time available to study. Because trust me, you don't want to get home and then study after driving 1-2 hours.

As far as the kids, you're really going to have to ask friends and family for help. Nursing school required a lot of sacrifice. I remember being on many camping trips with my kids while I was in school, and I couldn't even do the fun stuff - I had to study. I thanked my kids all the time for understanding and supporting me through it. All I can say is that I am SO glad nursing school is done! One classmate did quit because the demands were just too much and she missed her kids. Another classmate had a baby while in nursing school and was able to return to class and graduated. It is possible, you're just going to need help and be prepared to miss out on things. I exhausted quite a lot of friends' patience by always saying "I can't...because of nursing school." One "friend" bluntly told me that just because I made the choice to go to nursing school, he (or any of my other friends/family) shouldn't have to suffer the consequences of my bad moods, frustration or not having enough time. Needless to say he is no longer a friend, and he was a big jerk in the first place. But his comment did make sense, my friends and family HAD to totally be on board with my choice to go to nursing school and had to be willing to help me or help themselves if I wasn't available.

Your experience may differ, of course. I'm just letting you know that you may not want to expect to do it all by yourself.

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I'm also commuting about an hour to get to school. I usually leave an hour and a half for commute just because instructors are not sympathetic to "There was just so much traffic!" It's really not that bad! Like a few of the other commenters mentioned, you do get used to the drive. I've been using the time to listen to podcasts or just decompress and cry a little lol. The only thing that really sucks is if you're really tired, the drive back home can be the worst because all you want to do is be home and relaxing.

Yeah I was told by a nursing student friend to leave an hour and a half early. I sure hope I get used to the drive! :)

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I had a 70 mile commute to school, and my clinical locations were even further, and in LA traffic. To avoid the two hour commute (2.5 hours if it was raining) and to prepare for a 13 hour clinical day, I would travel to my clinical location and stay in a hotel the night before.

I listened to recorded lectures during my commutes because that was the biggest problem with the long commute - that it really cut into time available to study. Because trust me, you don't want to get home and then study after driving 1-2 hours.

As far as the kids, you're really going to have to ask friends and family for help. Nursing school required a lot of sacrifice. I remember being on many camping trips with my kids while I was in school, and I couldn't even do the fun stuff - I had to study. I thanked my kids all the time for understanding and supporting me through it. All I can say is that I am SO glad nursing school is done! One classmate did quit because the demands were just too much and she missed her kids. Another classmate had a baby while in nursing school and was able to return to class and graduated. It is possible, you're just going to need help and be prepared to miss out on things. I exhausted quite a lot of friends' patience by always saying "I can't...because of nursing school." One "friend" bluntly told me that just because I made the choice to go to nursing school, he (or any of my other friends/family) shouldn't have to suffer the consequences of my bad moods, frustration or not having enough time. Needless to say he is no longer a friend, and he was a big jerk in the first place. But his comment did make sense, my friends and family HAD to totally be on board with my choice to go to nursing school and had to be willing to help me or help themselves if I wasn't available.

Your experience may differ, of course. I'm just letting you know that you may not want to expect to do it all by yourself.

Thanks for your reply. I will definitely listen to lectures in the car during the commute. I can't believe how long your commute was! I am happy to say that I have a lot of family support so that's one less thing to stress about! I know this will be a big sacrifice but will be so worth it in the end! :)

P.S-Nice "friend" you have! Or should I said "HAD"! lol

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I've been driving 2 hours one way to get to school, so I'm looking to rent a room... hopefully I'll have a room by this weekend!

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Two hours ONE way?? Wow. I thought one hour was bad... What time do your classes start??

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I drive an hour and half each way 3d/wk, I work full time and I am a single mom. I always leave two hours ahead of time in case I run into traffic or the unknown. The drive is really not that big of a deal to me b/c this is what I want. It will all be worth it in the end!

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