[christine101]

I'm indecisive if I want to dorm at the college im going to. It takes me about 1hour to get to the school. My parent don't want me to dorm because they think it is a waste of money since i live close, but I kind of want to move out, but dorming is so expensive. I was thinking maybe i want to rent a place close to the school. Will the school give me more money if i decide to live off campus but not with my parents as oppose to living with my parents?

[jo3y]

I am sorta in the same dilemma. I don't know where you are, but the place around the school is expensive and it is probably cheaper if I lived on campus. You will definitely save more money if you lived with your parents and commuted but it is totally up to you. I too think that it is a waste of money to live somewhere where it would be easy to access by commute even if the commute is long. I don't know if this helps at all since I am in the same dilemma. Good luck with your decision though!

[love]

^ actually for my school, dorming is a lot more expensive than renting an apartment. dorming breaks down to 1k a month.

if you're getting financial aid and your aid covers your other expenses than your tuition then that let over money can be used to live on/off campus.

one hour is pretty far and considering how expensive gas is, living on/off campus might be cheaper or the same as commuting. you can use that to convince your parents :]

[akira53]

The whole reason I dormed my freshman year was to save money on gas. I don't know if it really did or not but it was enough to have my mom convinced,
Unless you have left over money from your financial aide, the school won't give you money to live off campus.
Commuting takes a lot of time and energy. The first week I commuted to school I was totally drained. I didn't really realize what a strain it put on my body and I really hate it but I guess you get used to it.

[fROSTY.MINt]

On-campus housing is pretty expensive in my opinion. It will save you some gas and food money, but it won't really be saving since they overcharge anyway. If you're planning on living off-campus, I don't think the school cares whether you're living with your parents or not. It might be different from school to school though. Usually the school will just deduct the housing costs from the tuition if you tell them you're gonna live off-campus. My school makes dorming mandatory for all freshmen and sophomores unless you're a local. If you're receiving financial aid of some sort, that money will automatically be used to pay your tuition. If the financial aid doesn't cover enough, that simply means you have a balance to pay. However, if you're receiving grants, scholarships, and loans that total an amount beyond your tuition fee, then you can request a refund check and use that money to support yourself while living off-campus. I think it all depends on how much financial aid you're receiving though. Overall, if you calculate the expenses for on-campus housing, it will probably come out to be a lot more than what you would spend living off-campus.

[josebiwasabi]

a one hour commute 1-way is really really far.

[she-smiles]

gas price is pretty high these days.
you'd still be wasting a lot of gas for an hour drive.
it'd actually be 2 hours, driving back and forth ;]
living on campus is a great experience.
but if money is the issue, then get a nearby apartment.

you're going to college. it's a big world out there.
so make your own decisions.
don't let your parents make them for ya.

[christine101]

^ actually what i meant was 1 hour by public transportation. but i have to transfer several times.