Are these college hours normal?

***YOU CAN SKIP THIS BORING EXPLANATION IF YOU WANT***

When I was going to college, it took me a 15 minute walk and then a 30 minute bus and an hour train to get there each day. So I spent about 1 hr 45 mins to get to college each day. However getting back usually took over 2 hrs or 2 hrs 30 mins cos of having to wait on the train, due to the bus and train times not syncing up.

College hours for Mondays and Tuesdays then were 9:00 till 6:00, and for Wednesdays and Thursdays was 9:00 till 4:00. Friday wasn't too bad at 9:00 till 1:00, but it still meant I actually had to spend a little bit more time travelling than I did actually in college. I went to a club after college on Mondays and Wednesdays because the college counseller encouraged it so I could try to make friends (which didn't work), plus otherwise I would've had absolutely no social life whatsoever.

***YOU CAN SKIP THIS BORING EXPLANATION IF YOU WANT***

So the times I left home and arrived back each day were:

Monday: 7:15am - 11:15pm
Tuesday: 7:15am - 8:45pm
Wednesday: 7:15am - 8:45pm
Thursday: 7:15am - 6:15pm
Friday: 7:15am - 3:45pm

I always thought that it was utterly inhuman to be doing those hours, but my parents acted like it was normal enough. But I was destroyed by it. I kept falling asleep on the bus/train and in class. For Mondays, Tuesdays and Wednesdays I had to bring cold cheese sandwiches with me to eat for dinner on the journey back, even in the middle of winter, and even though I had also already had those for lunch. I became really depressed by the end of it. It was so disheartening, I remember one day I got there and just saw a note on the door saying that all my classes were cancelled for the day. Needless to say I dropped out after a few months. A year later I met someone from the course and he told me about half of the students on that course dropped out also (although I can't be sure if that was because of the hours or just because it was a shit course).

Voting Results
23% Normal
Based on 13 votes (3 yes)
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Comments ( 8 )
  • charli.m

    That's a lot of dead time in commute. It would be exhausting. You couldn't have moved closer to your college?

    I use public transport to get to work, and I won't spend more than an hour each way. I did that once, never again. It's too much.

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  • RoseIsabella

    This is why commuting can be Hell. I'm sorry, I wish you had a car. Are you in New York? No offense, but ya couldn't pay me to go through that. Then again I'm 48, so I'm old, and tired. When I was in my teens and early twenties, and going to school in the Houston area I was driving so much. I think I would have done better if I hadn't been partying so much, and if I didn't work so many hours at my part-time job. I wouldn't mind doing it all over again if I had the energy and money. I do think it's a lot harder to commute back and forth to school than to live on or near campus. College is so expensive nowadays, it's insane and I feel bad for kids today. Sorry for the rant.

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    • McBean

      When the going get tough, the tough get going. When I was age 51, I had hours like that but they started at 5am. Top game performance was expected every second of the day. It was a privilege, it was a meat grinder, the competition was brutal, but I'm glad I held on. I pushed the technical envelope of integrated global financial markets, and got $265,000/yr to boot. Most importantly, now I have the memories.

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      • RoseIsabella

        Good for you. New York has never appealed to me very much for whatever reason.

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  • Only Thursday and Friday sound normal. Do you ever study or do homework during your commute?

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    • JellyBeanBandit

      Well this was a while ago, but yeah I did.

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  • kelili

    When I was working in Mauritius the bus took 1h30 to get to the capital where I worked and 2hours back and I thought that it was inhumane to spend this much time sitting in a crowding bus especially in summer. But compared to what you had to do to get to college. No wonder you dropped out.

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  • SeekNPlay

    Lmfao

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