<p>How do you feel about going to graduate school far from your home (if that’s the case)?</p>
<p>Do you get homesick? How do you deal with it?</p>
<p>For myself, I am the only one in my family (including cousins) going to graduate school, so they’ll all be in one place here, except for me.</p>
<p>i moved 3000 miles away from anyone i knew for my undergrad, but then i don’t really like most of my family so i considered that to be a bonus rather than a drawback. even then, i got a bit homesick when i first moved, but long weekly phone calls (2+ hours) and regular emails helped. after a little while you just get used to it.</p>
<p>when i move from my current location to go to grad school, i will miss many of the friends i’ve made here, particularly since i’ll be harder pressed to find a justification for visiting them instead of my family. i hope to make at least one visit a year to see them, but that’ll be hard to swing on a grad student’s budget.</p>
<p>When my niece moved 5 hours away for grad school, her mom missed her terribly and she also missed her “old nest”. By year 2, she wasn’t coming home as often and even decided to stay with friends for Thanksgiving since her projects were still looming but she was also making a new “nest”. Time usually has a way of helping the transiiton, but you should really look at the school and surrounding area to see if you can live there 3-5 years depending on the degree. I’ve read posts by students saying how expensive Boston or NY was and how they didn’t factor things in very well. I’ve also read posts from students in “cow towns” as they put it going stir crazy!
How far and how long will your grad school be?</p>
<p>My parents live in the middle of the US, and I did undergrad in New England. This fall I am going to grad school in Southern Cali… My poor mother. I am extremely close to my family (talk with them ~5 times a week), and this is tough for me. It’s unfortunate that there are not really schools near home that fit my interest well enough. I only visited home about twice a year (winter break for 2 weeks, summer for 2 weeks) in undergrad, but I’m determined to visit more often in grad school, for shorter lengths like weekends. Calling definitely helps-- long conversations with my mom who is my best friend, emails with my dad who hates the phone, etc… They never got into the whole Skype thing, but that’s a good option too especially if you want to talk to / see multiple people at the same time. </p>
<p>My take is this- chances are, you’ll end up far from home at some point in your life because of work or school or spouse. Going far from home just makes going back home sweeter. 
And it helps to know that they’re proud of you, I promise.</p>
<p>I went to undergrad 6 hours away from home in a different time zone. I adjusted well, and my parents supported my decision.</p>
<p>It sounds difficult at first, but if your school offers lots of opportunities, you will miss home less. Get your education!</p>
<p>ookla, some point in your life you gonna live away from your mommy’s home, might as well learn to do it asap, say before you have your own job/family/kids to worry about.</p>
<p>back to you question, my home is across the Pacific ocean. First few months I moved to the states was very difficult due to culture shock and various obvious reasons. But now I love it, I talk to my mom weekly for years and has become regular routine.</p>
<p>I have been to this place so long even met my wife, got married and have my own family now, so *where *is my current “home” is debatable LOL. However, moving domestically could be different than us moving inter-continentaly, but just to tell you my experience.</p>
<p>I attended undergrad about 5,000 miles from my “home”. It is hard at first, but actually - you adjust quite quickly. Being away from home forces you to get out and make friends. Plus, you are on a new adventure - new places, new people, new customs. If you make it fun, it will BE fun.</p>
<p>I am now moving even farther for graduate school - this time across the Atlantic Ocean. I am really psyched for this to occur - and yes…settling in is always hard - but you come to find new things you love about a new place and homsickness goes away. Remember - family and friends and maybe your SO are just a phone call/skype/email away…</p>
<p>I attended undergrad in Wisconsin (all of my family lives in Colorado). A couple of years after college I moved back to Denver. This has been unpleasant- I have been overwhelmed by family obligations and sucked into drama that I don’t really want in my life. There are numerous expectations associated with living in the same city as your family. I am very much looking forward to moving away.</p>
<p>I’m not going to argue that moving away from home isn’t good…However… if you really are very close to your family and they bring you support and enjoyment I don’t see moving away for the sake of moving away necessary (assuming your grad school options are otherwise equal in terms of academics, funding, etc.) If you have a strong support network and are happy why give it up?</p>
<p>I totally agree with backflip. I went to undergrad about 6 hours from home, and a spent a year in England. While I enjoyed learning to be on my own and experiencing these new places, I realized that the people at home were really important to me, and I didn’t want to be far away from them if I didn’t have to. So I limited my grad school search to schools in new york and philadelphia, near where my parents and friends are. I think this might’ve been less reasonable if I weren’t from an area full of so many good schools, but I think staying near family/friends is a totally valid concern in choosing a school.</p>
<p>I think the level of comfort depends on what type of person you are. I know a number of people who left home at 18, moved halfway accross the country, and have never looked back. Most of them didn’t have great family situation, however. On the other hand, a number of my friends have gotten very homesick after leaving home for school or for work. As someone above said, however, homesickness never persists very long. It’s bad at the beginning but you get used to it.
The most important thing to do is to stay active and keep your mind off of your loneliness. This always works in the short term.</p>
<p>I have lived in Toronto since I was 3 and my school is a 1hr subway trip from home so I live at home with my parents.</p>
<p>I plan on going to grad school in the states far away from anyone I can call family.</p>
<p>Sometimes it’s not just distance you have to worry about. My daughter would like to have the freedom to choose any grad school, but unless you are getting a funded PhD, sometimes the cost of an apartment, living expenses, transportation, etc. can make living too far from home not viable. Of course if you went to ungrad loan free, taking some out for grad school and living elsewhere wont be as overwhelming.</p>