I made the decision in April to go to Fredonia State University, six hours (give or take an hour) away from home. While I do really love the school, it does stink attending college so far from home, and here are five reasons why it sucks:
1.) Not Knowing Anyone
When you go to college so far from home, the chances that you’re going with a lot of kids from your high school are slim to none (unless you’re attending a big name school). Here at Fredonia, I only know four people who also went to my high school (only one of them is in my graduating class), and I hardly ever see them. Attending Fredonia meant I had to meet all new people and make all new friends, something I hadn’t really had to do since I started middle school. I did make friends rather easily in all different areas, but that's not the case for a lot of people.
2.) Weekends and Short Breaks
Weekends and short breaks really stink when you go to school far from home. You’re stuck on campus while all your friends head home for the weekend or short break because the amount of time and money you’d spend traveling home isn’t worth it when you’re only given three days off. I made the decision to go home for fall break and I had to leave right after classes on Wednesday in order to get three full days at home since I knew I’d spend basically two whole days traveling.
3.) Adjusting To a New Area
Often with far away schools comes far away, unfamiliar areas. Adjusting to these areas can be an experience in itself. Adjusting to new climates, learning new slang, it’s almost like traveling to a different country. Being here, I can definitely see differences from my hometown such as being surrounded by Bills jerseys instead of Giants jerseys on Sundays, or hearing people talk about needing to make their daily Tim Horton's run, instead of Dunkin Donuts, or the biggest difference of all: the whole pop versus soda debate (which will always be soda).
4.) The Trips To and From Campus
The traveling back and forth to campus is definitely annoying. I only make the trip about three to four times a semester for Move-In/Move-Out, Fall Break, Thanksgiving, Winter Break, and Spring Break. If I'm going with my parents it only takes about six hours (which is still a lot), but if I go with my friends it'll take up to 10 hours since we're dropping people off. The only thing that makes it worth it is that riding with my friends is much cheaper than taking public transportation, and I get to see my family and friends.
5.) Missing Everyone Back Home
I think the homesickness is definitely the biggest con to going to school so far away from home. My parents can't really afford to come see me often and I'm not given many opportunities to go home and see them, so the long gaps between visits are rough, especially being a first year student. Near daily Skype calls help make the distance easier, though it isn't the same as being there in person.
Despite all this, I definitely picked the right school for me, even if the location is a little less than ideal. If you really pick the right school for you, your experience will be worth a little homesickness.
