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While in grad school at the University of Illinois, I commuted back and forth from a city called Decatur Illinois. I did it because of a lack of funds (commuting back and forth was actually cheaper for me than living on campus). For me it was beneficial, I do not recommend this to people who are tight on time, or do not like driving or are prone to narcolepsy (in which case you shouldn’t be driving at all).

For me it was good because it gave me a time to think and relax after a day at school. It was great unwinding time, because the traffic was never bad, therefore there was little stress driving back and forth. However, there were times that I would be on the line of sleeping and being awake, and that is never a good line to be on. Luckily there is a substance called coffee that was an antidote for that problem. Also, the time spent on driving could have been used towards more productive things such as writing reports, or studying for the next big exam (it’s kind of hard and dangerous to study from note cards when driving 65-70 miles an hour).

Now parking on campus was a bit of a challenge due to a entity called the Champaign-Urbana Parking Authority (I am not sure if this is their correct title, but whoever lives in Champaign Urbana knows who I am talking about.) I was very fortunate not run into these people, because they really like to hand out parking violations, and they are very good at their jobs. What makes it even more difficult is that pretty much all of the parking on campus is either metered (2 hour limit) or a permit is required. Luckily, my first year on campus there was free parking at the Assembly Hall so I was able to park my car in the lot, and walk to class thus avoiding the infamous CUPA. However, a year later they did away with the free parking, so I was forced to buy a year long parking permit for 95 dollars. This is a lot of money to pay for a permit, but it is cheaper than the alternative of meter parking, (25 cents = 20 minutes yikes!) and risking receiving a ticket through the CU parking authority for not putting enough money in the meters.

One last aspect about commuting was missing out on the college life that living on campus can provide. I missed a great majority of a college experience by commuting. You can learn much in the class room, but there is also a lot to learn outside of the classroom, such as interacting with your fellow colleagues, or experiencing the college scene. Though I wasn't able to experience all of the college life that the University of Illinois has to offer, I was able to experience some. I would study at various locations of campus such as Granger Library (the engineering library), or in the Union, or in the Business and Economics Library. I spent time eating down Green Street. I also went to several shows while on campus. Seeing Interpol and the Decembrists were some of the highlights.

Overall, commuting can be beneficial in that it takes you away from a lot of the distractions that campus life offers, and it can provide you with some time to unwind and relax. However it takes time away from work, and you miss out on some other experiences that cannot be attained in the classroom.

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