Commute to school?

Published

How much of a commute is too much of a commute for nursing school? I'm looking at accelerated BSN programs, and my options are within 15-20 minutes via public transportation but massively expensive and possibly totally unaffordable, or 45 minutes or so one way in the car, which would mean we'd need to buy a second form of transportation for my fiance who needs to drive to his job (we're looking in to a scooter- they're not too expensive, get great mileage, and would be ok for in-city driving).

Would a 45 minute drive for an accelerated program be too much, or does it just sound like a long time?

Up Vote Up Vote ×

I don't think 45 minutes is all that bad, but that's just my :twocents:. One school that I'm looking at is 80 miles from my house...now that's a commute!:bugeyes:

Up Vote Up Vote ×

You know, when I lived in NYC, it took me 45 minutes to get to school...but somehow it seemed like it might be different driving. But I would rather drive an hour and a half a day than take my other affordable route- go to the local community college and take twice as long to get an ADN. I just wanted to make sure I wasn't crazy ;)

Up Vote Up Vote ×
I don't think 45 minutes is all that bad, but that's just my :twocents:. One school that I'm looking at is 80 miles from my house...now that's a commute!:bugeyes:

You would drive 80 miles to school everyday????

I actually came here today to start a thread to ask everyone how long of a drive they had to school everyday, because frankly that is the only thing holding me back. The school I want to go to is about 35-40 minute drive one way. My concern is the WINTER time, because I know that can be a pain getting up for those 6am clinicals @ 4am, and it's snowing out, bad roads, etc. That really worries me. Anyone else? How long is your drive/will your drive be?

Up Vote Up Vote ×

You might want to talk to someone in the Nursing Department or someone attending one of your school options. I have 6 different RN programs near me with commutes of between 15 and 60 minutes depending on the school. However, all of them state that clinicals can be held up to an hours commute away from the school and students are responsible for their own transportation to clinicals which start at 6:30am (and in my area this makes them entirely impossible to get to using public transit). If you want to save on transportation costs and getting another car is out of the question, you may need to find a reliable student to commute with.

-Kristine

Up Vote Up Vote ×

One of my clinical sites was 97 miles from my home. My school was 65 miles away. It wasn't easy and as time went on the commute became more and more of a tedious drain on my physical and mental health as well as making my car more and more a mechanical wreck. But this was the way things were.

Up Vote Up Vote ×
Specializes in SNU/SNF/MedSurg, SPCU Ortho/Neuro/Spine.

my school is about 30 miles from home, but if traffic is bad it takes me up to one hour and a half just to get there! Thanks God my work is 2 miles from the school!

Up Vote Up Vote ×
Specializes in Emergency.

The commute has been my concern as well. I'm starting an Accelerated BSN program on May 12th, and the university is 30 miles one way...but with traffic, it takes a LONG time to get there. A good day with no traffic takes 30 minutes,...bad can take over an hour. I am more concerned with how my car will run...it's not the most reliable of cars and I'm so scared of it breaking down on the highway..haha!:uhoh21:

Up Vote Up Vote ×
Specializes in Cardiac Care.

All of the NS programs I am looking into are over 50 miles away and all but 1 costs an arm and a leg too.

Up Vote Up Vote ×

My concern would be gas mileage, and of course the time spent away from home on the road. With gas rumored to be going up to $4.00 a gallon by summer..can you afford that? Factor that in and it gets EXPENSIVE to go to school or anything else. I work at home as a dog groomer so I don't have to fill my tank up but every other week. (I only drive to school on Fridays) THere are already people cutting back on getting the dog groomed because of what they are spending on gas to drive to work or school. There is a nursing program in a town 45 mins away but there is NO WAY I can afford the upcoming gas bills. Esp. when I am not making as much $$$ due to people cutting back. My friend spends over $600.00 A MONTH on gas right now. CRAZY!! SO she sure as heck isn't getting her dog groomed, and she also had her acrylic nails removed. LOL. I cut my own hair a month ago and I have a halo of roots showing. (Getting that fixed next week..finally) Before you jump into a program though...think it through cuz who knows how bad the gas issue is going to get. It's freaking me out.

Up Vote Up Vote ×
Specializes in PMHNP, Faculty,.

My school is about 25 miles from home, and the commute takes between 45 minutes to an hour + depending on traffic. I have had work commutes longer than that and commuted over an hour for two years of my undergraduate degree, though. So, for me it's not a very big deal. One of the clinical sites I may be assigned to is about 50 miles away, though, and I'm not looking forward to that commute (an hour and a half with little traffic). But, to me it's worth it. I just try and do things like pack a lunch instead of buying and not impulse shopping, etc. Just cut back in other areas so that the gas won't be such a big deal. But, that's just my :twocents:.

Up Vote Up Vote ×
Specializes in Corrections.

The 3 schools closest to me are 30 to 50 miles away....needless to say I'm going to the closest one. :) One of my biggest factors was gas mileage and consideration of where the clinical sites would be held at.

Up Vote Up Vote ×
+ Join the Discussion