Reduced fares and campus transit programs
Student transit passes, reduced fares and campus shuttles can lower the cost of riding in, and each has its own sign-up steps.
Commuter students
Fares, parking, meals and long days between classes, for students who travel to campus and go home at night, and the parts of cost of attendance that follow them.
Usually decides: Your school's commuter services office and financial aid office
The full cost of driving to campus
Gas is only part of the bill. Parking, upkeep, tolls and tickets add up, and the aid office can explain its transportation allowance.
Living at home and your cost of attendance
Living with parents usually lowers the housing allowance in your aid offer, and it leaves your FAFSA dependency status where it was.
A full day on campus without a room of your own
Lockers, commuter lounges, quiet rooms and charging spots make a long day on campus easier when there is no dorm room to go back to.
Eating on campus when you commute
Commuter meal plans, the campus food pantry and student SNAP rules can keep long days on campus from running on vending machines.
When the car breaks down in the middle of a term
A repair bill mid-term can put your classes at risk. Emergency aid, a budget review and a backup route can keep you enrolled.
Snow days, late buses and missed classes
Weather, delayed buses and traffic hit commuters first. Learn how closures are announced and what each syllabus allows.
Joining campus life when you live off campus
Commuter student groups, midday events, campus jobs and study groups help you belong to a campus you leave each evening.
Commuting from another state and in-state tuition
Crossing a state line to reach class can change the tuition rate you pay and the state grants you can use. Ask early.