Hello! I'm in my first year of a PhD in Psychology and I'm seriously considering moving back home to live at my parents for the rest of my PhD. I'm currently living in the city where my uni is but I probably spend at least as much as my time back home (2 hours drive away) as my boyfriend lives there. This is my second year at the uni (I did my Masters there too). For nearly two years I have lived in the city but I still feel no connection to the city or to the university department particularly, although I am very much enjoying my PhD and it seems to be progressing well. I also have a good working relationship with my supervisor and a couple of girlfriends who I often have lunch with. But I really would prefer to commute from my parents house. That way I could see my boyfriend way more and save tons of money on rent. At the moment I am paying £550 a month on rent and I'm not there half the time! If I lived at home I wouldn't pay rent and the only money I would spend would be on travel. Do you guys think this a reasonable option for me? Advice would be appreciated!

Sounds like you've already made your mind up. As long as the commute/distance isn't detrimental to your work/health/sanity then why not?

I don't think it would be detrimental to my work but I'm 100% sure how my supervisor will feel about it. :S

======= Date Modified 03 May 2011 14:59:12 =======
Depends on the uni. Oxbridge can be funny about it but most places don't really care as long as you put the work in and turn up when needed. When I've worked in research groups in London people have commuted from Cambridge, Oxford, various places in the home counties. During my masters in London there were even a couple of people commuting from Nottingham.

If you're wondering what your supervisor might say - then ask him/her! :)

I guess it shouldn't matter where I work as long as the work get done and I'm there when I need to be for research and meetings. But I do know a lot of the younger phd students in my department see it as a 9-5 office job and talk about "being late for work" etc if they arrive at 9.15am! But I'm kind of the odd one out as I do most of my work at home anyway. Being an older student (I'm 28) I've already experienced the real 9-5 office experience and I want to make the most of PhD flexibility while I can :)

I guess ultimately it's my own decision and as long as my work doesn't suffer there is no reason for anyone else to decide where I live or my schedule. I just hope people are understanding about it.

======= Date Modified 03 May 2011 18:41:49 =======
Hi Minnie, I too live a long distance from my uni. I did my MSc part time there whilst working in a different city and had to commute 2.5 hours by train (each way) to get to uni. I am now 6 months into a full time PhD at the same uni and am still commuting the same distance but only go in 3 or 4 days a week depending on work load. I am thinking about moving closer but there are financial restrictions as my partner has a specialised job and may struggle to find work nearer to uni and we can't afford to live on my stipend alone, also the train fares are surprisingly cheap so it's not too bad to commute.

But the key point I want to make is that if you are happy to commute then why not do it. Yes it can be annoying sometimes especially trains but my supervisor is happy for me to do this. Everyone else in the office thinks I'm mad but apparently I'm making good progress at the moment so it can't be that detrimental. My supervisor has told me more than once that as long as I am getting the work done and am at uni when I need to be for teaching, meetings etc then he doesn't care where I work.

If you have a good relationship with your sup then they should be understanding and as long as you are making good progress it shouldn't be a problem.

edit - I am also a 'younger' student (25) and whilst I see it as a 9-5 job my body doesn't work on that schedule after years of shift work but I still do the same number of hours each day, so don't worry about being 'late' for work :p

You've not mentioned how this would affect your parents, do they mind at all?

I'm pretty sure they would be fine with it, as long as I made some contribution towards food etc. My mum wanted me to commute when I was doing my MSc but I didn't listen to her - at the time I was thinking of the social side and I was single at the time and so I didn't have a boyfriend back home to consider like I do now.