Awww, thank you!
I’m sorry to hear that this company hasn’t been helpful. Could your son ask the company for the contact information for previous interns so he could contact them and see where they lived?
That said, one of my D’s internships did require a 45 minute commute because it was in the middle of nowhere.
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Using the Niche map of colleges, I located these schools (I included Carnegie Mellon so you could see the time to Cranberry Township at the same time of day as the other colleges).
Cranberry Township:
- La Roche University: 27m
- Geneva College: 27m
- Penn State Beaver: 27m
- Duquesne University: 29m
- Point Park University: 29m
- Robert Morris University: 30m
- Slippery Rock University: 34m
- Carnegie Mellon University: 36m
- Grove City College: 42m
- Penn State New Kensington: 45m
- Westminster College: 46m
Do none of these have summer housing besides CMU?
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So I have driven by cranberry township for decades, literally, on my way to visit the MIL and FIL in truly rural western Pa, so I can see what you are up against in terms of finding places.
I would say that places like Zelienople or even Butler might not feel as far away. And to @AustenNut ‘s post, Slippery Rock (slimy pebble for those in the know) and even Grove City would at least have a fairly easy commute in the right direction.
I guess the main point is that the 30 minute drive on western PA roads should be fairly easy in terms of traffic and stress, as compared with Boston or DC traffic. So if that’s the best you can find, it might not be that bad for your kiddo.
If I get any good insights into housing from my husband or his local buddies, I will be sure to let you know. Good luck!!
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How about the site Next Door and posting there ?
Thanks @AustenNut - we’ll check some of those colleges to see what we can find! The company had given him a specific website to use that is purported to find internship housing at any nearby university and it only had CMU, but maybe it wasn’t searching well. Then when I google mapped it I got a 50 minute drive, but that could be because I happened to be looking around rush hour time, so maybe that was just bad timing (and he’d likely be going in the opposite direction of rush hour).
Thanks for the local knowledge @fuschiachop! Last year his commute was between 45 minutes and an hour from one corner of Albany to the job site in Schenectady - he purposefully avoided the busier roads to not have the stress, but that put a lot of miles on the car and used a lot of gas. He’s really trying to save money, so it’s more the gas money that he’s worried about than the time on the road. Plus he wants to be able to go out with friends form work. This summer he’ll be 21. He’d like to be able to go to a bar in town, but he doesn’t want a 30 minute plus uber ride. That’s not the end of the world, of course, and he doesn’t have to drink, but he felt it for sure last summer when he was the only guy too young to have a beer. So in a perfect world, he’d like to be closer. (But of course it’s NOT a perfect world, just, you know, trying to aim high and then adjust down as needed.)
@coffeeat3 I hadn’t thought of Next Door! That’s a good idea too. Thank you!
@Izzy74 - I priced out an extended stay hotel for him. It’s actually not terrible for the 80+ days he’d need to be there. So that’s a definite option.
@momofboiler1 - good idea to ask about previous interns. I’ll suggest that to him. He did have a 45+ minute commute last year for his internship, and if he has to, he’ll do that again. He’d just really prefer to be closer if possible, so I figured since I’ve got nothing else to obsesses over until S25 is ready to talk about college choices again, I’ll obsess over this. 
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The one benefit of the extended stay type places is that you can get a ton of points. My D’s company put her up at Marriott extend stays every rotation of her coop and she is now a life time elite something or other, got a ton of points to use for free stays, and she gets all kinds of upgrades and free breakfasts.
The one thing to consider is where the friends from work are living. If everyone is closer to Pittsburgh, it will be easier to go out and socialize.
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We dropped off D25 at the scholarship interview weekend event. They have a packed schedule with lots of interaction with current scholarship recipients, so even if she doesn’t get the scholarship I think it will help her with her final decision.
Also, I can see on here that Cal Poly SLO decisions have dropped. This was a reach school for her. She’s busy with activities until 9 tonight so she won’t be able to check until then. An acceptance there would add to the decision matrix.
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Talking it over more with my D, she is positive she bombed the interview. (She worked 60 hours this week, and has not had a day off in 3 weeks —she works 2 jobs). (I know I’m just making excuses but with her health condition she gets so tired.)
What’s even more disappointing than losing out on the extra money is that the scholarship is tied to a whole mentoring and leadership and skills program that I thought would be super beneficial for her. So bummed. 
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Good news and bad today for son, accepted to Carnegie Mellon, rejected from MIT
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Hopefully he is excited about CM.
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Finally heard from D25. She got into Cal Poly SLO! Hopefully that will boost her confidence for the scholarship interview tomorrow. I think the school she’s interviewing at is better match for her, but in the end it will be her decision. Now she is 5 for 5 with acceptances!
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In at Rochester today; no love from UC Irvine or UC San Diego (or Cal Poly SLO – for which he just hasn’t got a decision yet. Does this mean probable waitlist or denial? or are they releasing in waves?)
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In the past SLO has released admissions first, followed by waitlist, followed by denials. Occasionally an acceptance will trickle in, but it is rare.
Congratulations on Rochester!
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Wow, didn’t apply to UR but we are the exact same for D25. I knew UCSD would be a no, but I was surprised not even a WL for UCI.
D25’s bff has a 4.0 and very impressive stats got WL at UCSD. Brutal.
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I think our kids have very similar profiles, right? I have been preparing S25 and my husband for this wave of UC rejections for months and feel (again) so grateful for the ridiculous list of EA schools that we coerced him to apply to. I think he didn’t want to believe that he wasn’t competitive but even his friend with almost perfect grades (the one who is in at Purdue and GA Tech) didn’t get into San Diego today (waitlisted). I think this is just the reality in California now – perfect grades are no guarantee of admission but imperfect grades are probably a dealbreaker.
(am also feeling like this is a valuable lesson for S25 to learn – grades matter! work matters! being smart but sort of flaky isn’t necessarily going to get you everything you want in life. etc.)
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Son got into Cal Poly today (yesterday?)!!
I’m glad he has a couple of CA options - just in case he decides to stay in state and be close to the parents. (He won’t, but a gal can dream)
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Accepted to Haverford and U Rochester yesterday! Big celebrations after a waitlist from WashU … 3 to go…
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Any Pennsylvania residents, or OOS students attending PA schools, what are your thoughts on Grow PA grant - anyone applying? We are full pay and it appears to be a non-income based grant up to 5K a year for PA residents (up to 4yrs) you’re obligated to work in PA for each year you receive the grant or the grant converts to a loan. Thoughts? Good, bad, ugly? DD applied and I figured we could turn it down if we aren’t comfortable with the terms but I was excited about the prospect. Maybe other states have similar grant programs?
Wow, that is scary that 1510 is considered low 
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