Going away for University vs Staying near home

[Hakkola]

Originally posted by Destinova403

Ill probably end up going away for law school though.

Where are you planning on going?

[Destinova403]

Originally posted by Hakkola


Where are you planning on going?

not entirely sure yet, going to apply everywhere and see what my options are.

[Spoons]

Even if you do stay in Calgary, pay the money to stay in residence. It was one of the GREATEST experiences of my life. You have to be more careful with school work because there are tons of distractions, but fun. Pay the money to stay in rez, I would recommend it to ANYONE.

UC has a great residence (old as shit and the rules are a little dumb but that is everywhere) with great community spirit. I had a blast.

[Pahnda]

If you live at home it's best to date someone who doesn't... And a lot of hot girls still live at their parent's place.

[gqmw]

I stayed at home and I regret it. I was planning to go away and ended up not going cause I was too lazy to finish my ubc application. I applied to u of a as well, but I didn't really want to go to ua. So I ended up just staying here.

I'm posting this on my phone so I didn't read that many of the above posts too carefully, but I don't know if you mentioned your intended major?

[texasnick]

IMO you should first think about what you want to take, and what universities offer a good program for what you want.

That out of the way, I left home for school and I wouldn't change anything I've done for a second.

I moved from Houston to go to UBC in Vancouver. I needed something different, and I always have fun when I'm in other countries. I lived in Japan during high school (not on a military base lol). Cultural differences are and always have been fascinating to me.

I know a guy who has only left Edmonton to drive to Calgary, and other than that, he has only ever left Alberta once to go to a 5 star resort in Cancun. I feel so bad for him. I mean, living life within your comfort zone is one thing, but having it influence your life to the point of being afraid to leave the province is just sad. There is soooooo much to see and do in the world, especially nowadays. We live amongst a population that comprises roughly 0.5% of the world's total population. What we see day to day is only a tiny fraction of what we could see day to day.....if that makes sense to anyone.

My great grandmother (meemaw for those Texans in the room) on her deathbed gave me the greatest advice I have ever gotten;

"Try everything once, and the good things twice. Life is short, Nick."

[wintonyk]

I moved and it was for the best. Although the nature of my degree (nutrition) isn't available in Calgary, I moved to the most expensive place in the country for school. Do I regret it not one bit.

Residence was a blast, you learn how to take care of yourself. Meet a ton of friends, do whatever the hell you want.

You get thrown into the wild. Moving to Halifax, I did not know one person east of Toronto. I am a pretty social person so I had a solid group of friends pretty quickly. Some of which their parents adopted me for Sunday dinners.

The big downside as everyone mentioned is the cost. I had a bit of help with things, 3000 a year scholarship which was big. And my parents helped cover my living. During 2 summers I came back to Calgary and worked landscaping, banking some coin during the summer to cover rest of tuition and food/drinking habits.

My third summer was the best. I stayed back east, bartended and rickshaw ran. I partied 4-5 days a week, although at the end of summer I had only banked 4k and my last year was rough money wise.

So to sum it all up. Experience was unreal wouldn't trade it for a thing. If you can afford it go balls deep.

[psycoticclown]

I've done both. My first 2 years, I lived at home and went to U of C than I moved down to Lethbridge and have been living here for the past 2 school years. And I absolutely do not regret moving out. Met a ton of new people, learned to live by myself and just have so much more freedom. And I live close enough to see my Calgary friends and family every month or every week if I really wanted to.

Only things that kind of suck is that Lethbridge is such a small city, sometimes it's hard to actually find stuff to do. And having roommates are a bitch sometimes too. And no garage parking like in Calgary and house is a dump compared to Calgary and no cooked meals. And having to worry about money. Other than that though, moving out is a great experience during the College years.

[rixxx]

[krazykhoja]

Like most people have said above I would get out if you can. I found UofC to not be the greatest university out there...I don't like the look/feel of the school personally, and had quite a few profs who didn't seem to really care about the students. Don't get me wrong I had some great profs and some fun times, but overall I really regret my decision to stay here.

Moving away allows you to get outside your comfort zone, learn to live on your own, have some independence & learn to be responsible. Its a whole new experience living away from home for school and I regret it constantly that I never went away (I got accepted into 3 out of province universities, but decided to stay here because its cheaper). I still spent lots of money and have a student loan to pay back, so that would not have been much different than going away).

I'm thinking of moving just to get a change from the city as well as I really don't like it, and to make it up to myself for not going away while I had the chance.

However, if you love the city and don't have the means to go elsewhere then make the most of what you can here. But IMO if you can afford to move out then do (at worst you can probably transfer back in after 1-2 years), but you don't want to look back with regret after and say I wish I had....

[Nusc]

Originally posted by rixxx
If you've got the extra money GTFO!!! I didn't so I stayed at home with my parents and went to the U of C. Post-secondary education sucks in Calgary. Don't get me wrong the U of C isn't "statistically" one of the worst universities but I don't know a single person who actually enjoys it.

haha nicely said.

[Idratherbsidewayz]

Originally posted by a social dsease
I've seen the size of the rooms at residence (@ uofc) and they are tiny, I just can't imagine living in those kind of conditions.

I lived in a tiny room with another person. Our beds were 2m apart. Each person had their own 2m x 6m space. It was horribly cramped, the lack of privacy was terrible, don't even get me started on the communal bathroom that people never flushed, and it was super hard to focus on school.

Having said that, I wouldn't trade it for any other experience. I learned a ton about myself, living with people, sharing, friendship, love, hate, and respect.

You are guaranteed to grow as a person from living in adverse conditions like the ones in Res. For every bad time, there are at least 3 good times to be had!

[dino_martini]

Originally posted by a social dsease
I've seen the size of the rooms at residence (@ uofc) and they are tiny, I just can't imagine living in those kind of conditions.

haha...yeah I have a friend who is in res @ UofC and I was surprised. Though he got lucky and has no room mate.

[sexualbanana]

Originally posted by krazykhoja

Moving away allows you to get outside your comfort zone, learn to live on your own, have some independence & learn to be responsible. Its a whole new experience living away from home for school and I regret it constantly that I never went away (I got accepted into 3 out of province universities, but decided to stay here because its cheaper). I still spent lots of money and have a student loan to pay back, so that would not have been much different than going away).

I'm thinking of moving just to get a change from the city as well as I really don't like it, and to make it up to myself for not going away while I had the chance.

I stayed in the city, and as much as I enjoyed my time at U of C (I really did), you start to realize certain downsides to staying at home vs going out on your own.

1) The U of C is a commuter school. What that basically means is you, and about 90% of the student population, will go to school, then go home and go to your friends you've had since high school or earlier. That's great and all, but one of the greatest experiences you could have as a young person (you start to lose all kinds of social and financial mobility as you get older) is to leave what you have behind at home and venture out on your own to see what you are truly capable of; You take that away when you decide to stay home and go to a local school.

2) As a commuter school, student's don't have a reason to venture out of their little bubble. When you either live in another city (or even just in the dorms), you are forced to leave your bubble. Fortunately, there are 1000's of other students just like you, so it's significantly easier to make friends because you're all in the same boat. It also means you are much more likely to establish some very long-lasting relationships with some great people.

Originally posted by Idratherbsidewayz


I lived in a tiny room with another person. Our beds were 2m apart. Each person had their own 2m x 6m space. It was horribly cramped, the lack of privacy was terrible, don't even get me started on the communal bathroom that people never flushed, and it was super hard to focus on school.

Having said that, I wouldn't trade it for any other experience. I learned a ton about myself, living with people, sharing, friendship, love, hate, and respect.

You are guaranteed to grow as a person from living in adverse conditions like the ones in Res. For every bad time, there are at least 3 good times to be had!

All residences are the same, at least at the underclassmen level. Maybe once you get into your later years, or at the graduate level, dorms change, but for the most part, they're all the same regardless of school.

[urban_chic]

Thank goodness for this thread!! I've been asking myself the same question for about 2-3 months now..Got accepted into the UofL Nursing, already paid down payments for res and tuition..but still hesitant to live there. Honestly, it all comes down to money. Majority of my friends/coworkers said that I should just go there. I've experienced living on my own 2 years ago, moved out with a friend, had a blast, but I was too immature back then, got into debt, so I moved back in. Few years leading to today, I learned to budget, control partying, became more mature, and I think I can handle myself responsibly.

So I guess my question would be has anyone lived at the UofL res? How is it living there?

In general, how did most of you pay for res and tuition? (to those that did) Did you get a loan? As much as possible I dont want to get a loan as I got a little $$ saved up but I dont think that would be enough. And I dont want my parents to help me financially, so I might end up getting one anyway..not too sure. Paying for Res + tuition + books + meals per year at the UofL is about 14K.

quote: cressida_pimpin has a very good point as well.

"If you live at home while you go to school you save: 800 per month I would guess (groceries and rent) x 44 months (length of degree program including 3 summers) =$35,200

In my opinion you would get far more "life experience" by going to a local U. and spending that $30,000+ travelling the world than you would by living in a different city for a few years."

Edit: I guess the reason why most people highly suggest moving out while in school is because all of these things that they say about why moving out teaches you things about life won't make sense at all unless you are actually on your own with monthly bills to pay. Its just all words until you really experience it. Moving away while in school forces you to do your best, budget your money, forces you to be responsible...and honestly forces you to finish your degree. You do not really have a choice but to suck it up and be responsible for your own self..you can be responsible too while living with your family but you always have that leniency that may cause you to cheat (ie: slack off some days...etc)

So I guess it really depends on the person if they want to risk it financially or not..and their maturity and what they want out of school.

[flipstah]

For me, I don't regret it one bit. I'm close to family, stayed in touch with old friends, and met new ones during my three years here at the UofC.

Granted, I couldve went somewhere else (UBC for one) but Calgary is oil-territory and it's what interests me.

Its all about perspective because only you can make life work.

[l/l/rX]

Just throwing this out there for consideration, but that 47% increase in tuition for certain programs, would that help you make a decision to go somewhere else? I mean 47% is a huge jump, I'm sure by that time it'd be worth it to go somewhere else to get a better education for the same price as UofC.

Just my 0.02

[Idratherbsidewayz]

Originally posted by urban_chic
I've experienced living on my own 2 years ago, moved out with a friend, had a blast, but I was too immature back then, got into debt, so I moved back in. Few years leading to today, I learned to budget, control partying, became more mature, and I think I can handle myself responsibly.

Sounds like you've already grown out of the res phase of your life, haha.

Res is about uncontrollable partying, barely scraping by in school, immaturity, and late late nights. I hear the UofL res is particularily dungeony, too. Also keep in mind most of the other people in res will be 17-18yr olds out of the house for the first time.

Get a room in the student ghetto and you'll save money, meet better people, and have a great time!

[RecoilS14]

Im gonna throw this out there because no one has commented on it yet. Now i dont know your age, but im assuming your either in high school now or you graduated last year.

Take some time off school and get a job you have never done before or travel and see where your MIND takes you. I KNEW what i wanted to do after high school, but life happened and i couldnt go to college right away. A year or so later, my mind changed and I KNEW what i wanted to do. Then as life progressed i became interested in other things and again I KNEW what i wanted to do.

The thing is; every time knew what i wanted, it was something different that what i wanted before that.

Get out of your current life and try something else for a bit and find out for yourself if what you want NOW is what you really WANT.

I know too many people that have thrown away thousands of dollars and years of their life to find out that they hate what they went to school for and are starting all over again. Hind sight is 20/20 for sure, but experience breeds knowledge and if you have no real life experience (sorry bud, high school sucked but it doesnt count worth shit) then how do you really know what you want?

(Im not saying dont go to school, education is important, but so is real life and real life experience)

[Manhattan]

It all depends on what your priorities are...

If you are serious about your undergrad education and know exactly which program you'd like to get into and/or maybe even pursue a graduate degree eventually then pick the school with the best program in your field. But if you're like most people and have no idea what you wanna do in school then it comes down to finances vs life experience. Living away from home in a dorm is by no means the only way to make friends or get the most out of the college experience but it definitely helps.

Staying at home means you're saving at least $30K on expenses like rent, food, toilet paper, etc. But it also means you'll be one of the lucky few to graduate with little to no debt (assuming you'll be working part-time and summer). Imagine the rude awakening at graduation of being in debt for $30K+ and possibly no job.

On the other hand...a new city, scenery, and friends can completely change the course of your life. Look at the big picture. IMO if you decide to venture out, pick a school in a city where you can see yourself living in for a long time (i.e. not a small college town) because you're likely gonna make a lot of contacts there and find work there after graduating.

There's no right or wrong answer here. Just think about what you want and dive right in and don't pussy out on your decision. You'll find a way to make it work.

PS - Living in rez in the same city you grew up is just stupid