Table of Contents
Introduction—So, you want to commute to campus?
Document Design—The who, what, and how behind this student commuter guide.
What’s a “Commuter” Student? Do you fit the bill?
Commuting Challenges—No more waking up at 8:00 for you 8:05 class.
Tips for Success—Take charge of your academic life.
Transportation—WolfTrails, Wolfline, and GoPass.
Parking—For free and for a fee.
Textbooks—Buying, renting, exchanging, etc.
Dining—Hillsborough, Western, Mission Valley, and Cameron Village.
Computing—Computer labs and printing.
Helpful phone numbers—Who you gonna call?
Introduction
Commuting to class on a daily basis can be a hassle, but it can save you money. At NC State, housing costs $5,480 and a meal plan costs at least $2,000 annually, according to rates from the 2014-15 academic year. So if you lived on campus for four years, you would spend nearly $30,000—not including tuition or textbooks!
But commuting is an adjustment.
You need to find some way to get to class, whether it’s taking the bus or your bike. If you drive to campus, you’ll have to find a consistent parking place. You’ll most likely be eating meals at campus, which gets expensive if you don’t have a meal plan. And if you forgot to print your paper last-minute, you’ll want information about computer use and printing. This guide for NC State student commuters will touch on all of these topics and more.
I lived on campus for my first three years of college, but moved home with my parents my last year to save money. From my house to my first class, my commute was about 45 minutes one way. I filled up my gas tank once a week and had long breaks in between classes during my eight-hour days.
Saving money was difficult for me during my first semester. It was convenient to eat at Talley Student Center for lunch every day with friends who still lived on campus, but costs added up quickly.
There has to be a way to save money here, I thought. So I researched any advice and any resources NC State had for commuter students. Finding information took a lot of digging. Since I didn’t find an all-inclusive resource, I decided to make my own guide for commuters.
This document became a personal project which I even submitted as a final presentation for a technical document design class my fall semester.
Document Design
This commuter guide was created and edited by Casey Reep. This document was last updated on March 28, 2015.
The document uses the Babel Sans font by Manfred Klein and the Headline font by HPLHS Prop Fonts.
The title page collage and watermark, titled “NC State Visuals,” in this document is a combination and derivative of the following images:
“Tompkins Hall – NC State” by Melizabethi123 is licensed CC BY-SA 3.0. “Andrew Brackman basketball NC State” by maggieandcharles is licensed under CC BY 2.0. “Freeexpressiontunnel-ncsu” by Ducttapeavenger was released into the public domain. “NCSU Belltower” by Thunder8 was released into the public domain. “NCSU DH HILL Library” by Thunder8 was released into the public domain. “Ncsutower2” by Kamran rab is licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0. “Ncsuband1” by BiscuitFarmer is licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0. “NC State Smokestack” by Scott Akerman is licensed under CC BY 2.0. “Creamery @ NCSU Library” by orionpozo is licensed under CC BY 2.0. “learningspaces (45)-ncsu” by Chad Kainz is licensed under CC BY 2.0. “And they shall beat their swords into plowshares” by Suzie Tremmel is licensed under CC BY 2.0. “Talley Student Center, NC State” by -ted is licensed under CC BY 2.0. “Live Life Well…” by Suzie Tremmel is licensed under CC BY 2.0. “Walkway” by -ted is licensed under CC BY 2.0. “DSC_0030” by ncrob1 is licensed under CC BY-SA 2.0. “20100620-IMG_4745” by Chris MacLeod is licensed under CC BY-SA 2.0. “NC State University” by Suzie Tremmel is licensed under CC BY 2.0. “DSCN0184” by Christine Schmidt is licensed under CC BY 2.0. “College of Engineering Building II, North Carolina State University (2013)” by Cgb628 is licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0. “Hunt Library, NC State Univ.” by Payton Chung is licensed under CC BY 2.0.
“NC State Visuals” is licensed under CC BY SA 3.0 by Casey Reep.
This document is interactive, and as such there are links to online sources and links to topics from the table of contents.
What’s a “commuter” student?
Commuter students are what NC State calls students who live somewhere other than university housing—residence halls and apartments including Wolf Village and ES King Village.
They live off campus and get to school by riding university and city buses, carpooling, driving, biking, or walking.
Commuters have diverse living arrangements. They may live with their parents or guardians at home, with friends at apartment complexes, or by themselves.
If these situations describe you, then you are part of the 73% of students at NC State who are commuters.
Commuting Challenges
Commuting is a drastic change from on-campus living that brings its own set of problems. You may not be as involved in on-campus activities and programs as you would be if you lived in a dorm. You’ll need to make campus feel like home by getting involved.
You’ll likely have to rely on other people to get you to school if you carpool or take a bus. If you drive yourself, you’ll find that parking spaces are limited and hard to come by during peak hours. (NC State has a C-rating for parking.)
A lot of events happen at odd hours, which may not be convenient if you work after class or have a relatively long commute. Clubs and student organizations meet in the evenings, sporting events take place on nights and weekends, and group project meetings may be late at night. Last-minute notifications can be frustrating, like when professors send out class cancellation emails after you’re halfway to class.
NC State stresses on-campus housing as a way to get connected with the campus, but you can make the most of your own experience.
Tips for Success
Use your time as a commuter student to focus on academics and social life, and ensure that you are making the most of your off-campus experience. Here are a few ways you can excel as a commuter:
Prepare for travel delays. Car trouble, late (or early) buses, or heavy traffic may alter your travel times to campus. Allow a little leeway so that you’re not rushing to class. Attend campus events. Get involved and meet friends by joining clubs and organizations. Take advantage of free parking by going to NC State football and basketball games during the school year. Keep up with what happens on campus. Check your school email regularly for updates on class cancellations, adverse weather, last-minute homework assignments, and campus events. Stay on campus between classes. If you have a three-hour break between classes, stay on campus instead of going back to your residence. You can get homework done, study for a test, or eat lunch with some friends. Use your breaks wisely to make the most of your time. Take advantage of commuter benefits. NC State offers free and reduced-price transportation options for commuters. Carpoolers can split the cost of a commuter parking pass. Commuters who live several miles from campus can park for free at three park-and-ride lots. And all students can request a GoPass to ride city buses for free.
Transportation
Getting to class on a daily basis is harder when you live off campus. You can’t just roll out of bed five minutes before class starts and still arrive on time. Start planning out your commute long before classes start in the fall semester.
NC State offers free public transportation for students through university bus services, and it partners with Raleigh bus services to provide students with free rides.
Make sure to keep up with NC State’s transportation office to see updates and improvements to campus transit.
WolfTrails Commuter Incentive Program
Instead of driving yourself to campus, you can use WolfTrails, NC State’s alternative transportation options. By biking, walking, taking transit, or carpooling, you have the opportunity to earn commuter benefits. If you participate in the commuter incentive program, you will receive six daily scratch-off permits to use in the Varsity lot during the academic year. NC State says the overall benefits of finding alternative transportation to campus include reducing wear and tear on your personal vehicle, saving money, and reducing your carbon footprint.
Students who carpool receive a commuter parking permit that is valid in Coliseum Deck, Dan Allen Deck, West Deck, Perimeter lots, and Varsity lots. Parking permits cost $336, split between carpoolers.
Review the student carpool policies and fine print before applying. To be eligible for the program, you must live at least a half-mile outside the “Wolfline buffer.”
To apply for the commuter incentive program, visit the WolfTrails Commuter Benefits Application.
Wolfline Bus
Wolfline is NC State’s public bus service, free for students and the general public. Buses run every day that classes are in session. Eleven routes operate during the regular academic year. Download the free TransLoc Rider app from iTunes or Google Play to find a bus.
Ten bus routes serve Main Campus and shuttle students around the surrounding area during the day: The Main Campus circulating buses are Route 2 Hillsborough Shuttle, Route 5 Varsity, and Route 7 Wolflink Shuttle. The Centennial Campus and Main Campus connectors are Route 3 Engineering, Route 8 Southeast Loop, and Route 11 Village Link. The Avent Ferry, Greek Village, and Main Campus connectors are Route 1 Avent Ferry and Route 9 Gorman Street Local. The Park & Ride buses are Route 4 Westgrove and Route 6 Carter-Finley.
These routes generally operate between 7 AM and 10 PM during the fall and spring semesters. Check the transportation website for specific timetables and bus frequencies. Check the bus map for stop locations.
Night bus services generally begin at 10 PM and run until 3 AM. During the week, three bus routes serve Main Campus: The Night Wolf connects Avent Ferry to Main Campus. Centennial Night circles Centennial Campus and Main Campus. The Werewolf Shuttle loops around Main Campus.
GoPass Transit
Students can ride Raleigh CAT (Capitol Area Transit) buses and Triangle Transit buses free of charge by using a GoPass. You can order a pass online in the summer, and it is valid for one year.
Four CAT buses serve NC State: Route 4 Rex Hospital travels between Moore Square and Towne North Shopping Center. It is in service from 4:30 AM to midnight during the week. Route 11 Avent Ferry moves between Moore Square and Trailwood Hills. It runs from 5:45 AM to 11:30 PM during the week. Route 11L Buck Jones serves NC State up to Westgrove Park & Ride between 6 AM and 10:50 PM during the week. Route 12 Method goes from Moore Square to Meredith College, 5:45 AM to 11 PM during the week.
Several Triangle Transit buses stop at NC State. Plan a visit around the Triangle with the trip planner, or use the system bus map. Check the NC State transportation website for more information.
Parking
NC State provides parking for commuter students with their own form of transportation. You can purchase commuter permits beginning in the summer. In addition to parking permits, there are hourly pay-to-park lots at NC State and on Hillsborough Street. There are even some free parking options on and around campus.
Free Options
NC State offers free parking for commuters through its Park & Ride lots. These three lots are all served by Wolfline buses. The Westgrove Park & Ride lot is on Blue Ridge Road and Westgrove Street, next door to the K-Mart on Western Boulevard. Route 4 Westgrove runs to this lot, but there is no evening service. The last bus destined for Westgrove leaves at 5:28 PM from DH Hill Library. The Carter-Finley Park & Ride lot is within Carter-Finley Stadium, accessible through Gate B on Trinity Road or Gate F on Westchase Boulevard. Route 6 Carter-Finley travels to this lot and stops on the main drive within Carter- Finley. On nights when there is an event at Carter-Finley or PNC, this route will take a detour to the lot through Gate A on Trinity Road. The last bus leaves at 9:54 PM from Scott Hall. The Food Lion Park & Ride lot is located at the intersection of Avent Ferry Road and Gorman Street. Parking is only along the perimeter wall for this lot, near Greek Way and Avent Ferry Road in the Food Lion end of the shopping center. Towing is enforced by Food Lion management. Route 9 Gorman Street Local and Route 1 Avent Ferry both access this lot. The last Route 9 bus leaves at 9:52 PM from Greek Way, and the last Route 1 bus leaves at 9:55 PM from Greek Way.
If you have an evening class that starts after 5 PM, you could park for free on campus. Some parking lots have time restrictions that end at 5 PM on weekdays. But pay attention to parking area signs: Residential parking areas have time restrictions that end at midnight Monday through Thursday and end at 5 PM on Friday. There are no restrictions enforced on weekends or official university holidays. Pay lots have 24-hour towing enforcement.
Permit Options
NC State offers several parking permits for commuter students. On Main Campus, deck passes and perimeter parking spaces are available. You can buy parking permits starting in July before the start of the academic year. Check the transportation website for more information about parking permits. Many permits have a credit requirement that you need to meet before you can buy a permit.
The following permits are in order according to cost: Off-Peak parking permits cost $61 per semester. These permits allow commuters to park in the Coliseum, Dan Allen, and West decks at off-peak times: 7-9 AM and 3-5 PM. There is no credit requirement. Varsity Lot permits cost $102 and have no credit requirement. Perimeter parking permits cost $220 and have a 24 credit hour requirement. West Deck permits cost $268 per year, and require at least 30 credit hours. Coliseum Deck and Dan Allen Deck permits cost $336 per year and require at least 75 credit hours before purchase.
Textbooks
Getting required class materials every school year is an issue not exclusive to commuter students. Textbook prices have doubled in the last decade, increasing in price quicker than health care and housing. But students have spent less on textbooks over time due to a variety of textbook sources.
If you are new to NC State, avoid getting your textbooks at the Bookstore if at all possible. In general, campus bookstores are expensive and often overprice their merchandise ($49.99 for a hoodie?!). The Bookstore does have a buyback program, where you can sell your books back at the end of the year, but not for the price you paid at the beginning of the semester. You can check the buyback prices of your textbooks at the Bookstore’s buyback lookup page.
There are different alternatives to getting the textbooks you need for class. Use these guidelines to help get the cheapest course materials possible.
Buying
It’s up to you whether you want to buy a new or used textbook. New books are more expensive but can get you a better buyback value. Used books are cheaper but are not guaranteed to be in great condition.
Sometimes you can’t avoid buying new textbooks. Some classes require that you buy supplemental materials, like access codes to online homework. You CANNOT buy used access codes. If you do need to buy a new textbook, you can sell it back to Neebo (at the Hillsborough Street or Western Boulevard locations) for slightly more than the Bookstore offers.
Use price comparison sites like BigWords and TextSurf to find your books. These websites will give you the cheapest online textbook offers.
Renting
If you prefer having a physical copy of a book just for a semester, consider renting your textbook. You’ll pay less than buying a new copy and you won’t have to worry about it taking up space on your bookshelf in the future, especially if you know you won’t touch the book again.
Alternatively, you can check out textbooks from the campus library. DH Hill has a textbook circulation desk where you can check out the latest version of the textbook for two hours at a time. If there is an older version available in the bookstacks, consider using it for the semester. The page numbers will likely be different, but you can check the book out for a few weeks at a time. Textbook exchange
NC State students have a Textbook Exchange group on Facebook. You can buy, sell, or trade books with other students at prices you can offer.
Dining
Even though it’s convenient to eat at Talley or the Atrium after class, it gets expensive if you don’t have a meal plan.
Buying food from a grocery store and making yourself a meal at your off-campus residence is a good way to save money and have different food options. You can even buy yourself a microwavable meal and heat it up at school—there is a microwave in Talley next to One Earth.
If you need a quick bite to eat, there are vending machines in just about every building. Many drinks and snacks in the vending machines are cheaper than at the C-Stores located around campus.
But should you want to eat out, there are dozens of restaurants within reasonable walking and driving distance to campus. The restaurants listed in this guide are sorted according to four primary locations—Hillsborough Street, Western Boulevard, Mission Valley, and Cameron Village. The price ratings for restaurants in these areas came from Yelp, with prices ranging from $ (cheap) to $$$ (expensive).
These lists do not encompass all the restaurants at these four locations. Restaurants listed under Hillsborough Street are located between Dan Allen Drive and the Belltower. Likewise, restaurants for Western Boulevard begin past Dan Allen Drive and end at the ramp to I-440. Mission Valley and Cameron Village shopping centers encompass most of the restaurants in these locations.
Hillsborough Street
RESTAURANT NAME FOOD TYPE PRICE RATING Bruegger’s Bagels Bagels $ Checkers Pizza $ Chipotle Mexican Grill Mexican $ Coffee Haven Coffee & tea $ Freshberry Frozen Yogurt Ice cream & frozen yogurt $ Café Global Village Organic Coffee & tea $ Coffee Gumby’s Pizza Pizza $ I Love NY Pizza Pizza $ Insomnia Cookies Desserts $ Jasmin Bistro Mediterranean $ Jersey Mike’s Subs Sandwiches $ Jimmy John’s Sandwiches $ La Rancherita Mexican $ $ McDaids Irish Restaurant Irish $ $ & Pub Mitch’s Tavern Bar & grill $ Nara Lounge Coffee & tea $ $ Oishi Japanese Cuisine Japanese $ Reverie: A Coffee Den Coffee & tea $ Saxby’s Coffee Coffee & tea $ Shanghai Express Chinese $ Subway (Dan Allen Drive Sandwiches $ and Belltower locations) The Golden Dragon Chinese $ WABA Korean $
Western Boulevard
RESTAURANT NAME FOOD TYPE PRICE RATING Amedeo’s Italian Italian $ $ Restaurant Bojangles Chicken $ Cookout Burgers $ Domino’s Pizza Pizza $ $ Dunkin Donuts Donuts $ Greek Fiesta Mediterranean $ McDonald’s Burgers $ Papa John’s Pizza $ Subway Sandwiches $ Sushi Nine Asian $ $ Taco Bell Mexican $ The Gourmet Factory Italian $ $ Wendy’s Burgers $ Wicked Taco Tex-Mex $
Mission Valley
RESTAURANT NAME FOOD TYPE PRICE RATING Abyssinia Ethiopian Ethiopian $ $ Restaurant Baja Burrito Mexican $ Bruegger’s Bagels Bagels $ Burger King Burgers $ China Queen Chinese $ Cloos Coney Island Hot dogs $ Dalat Oriental Restaurant Vietnamese $ $ Miyako Express Japanese $ Ruckus Pizza and Bar Pizza $ Sammy’s Tap and Grill Bar & grill $
Cameron Village
RESTAURANT NAME FOOD TYPE PRICE RATING Ajisai Japanese Fusion Japanese $ $ Baskin-Robbins Ice cream & frozen yogurt $ $ Benelux Coffee Coffee & tea $ Brixx Wood Fired Pizza Pizza $ $ Café Carolina and Bakery Sandwiches $ Cameron Bar & Grill Bar & grill $ $ Cantina 18 Tex-Mex $ $ Chick-fil-A Chicken $ Faire Seafood & steak $ $ $ Goodberry’s Creamery Ice cream & frozen yogurt $ K&W Cafeteria American $ McDonald’s Burgers $ Moe’s Southwest Grill Mexican $ Noodles & Company American $ Piccola Italia Italian $ $ Starbucks Coffee & tea $ $ Sugarland Desserts $ $ Tazza Kitchen American $ $ The Flying Biscuit Café Brunch $ $ The Village Deli Sandwiches $ Village Draft House Bar & grill $ $ Which Wich Sandwiches $
Computing
Things happen. Maybe you forgot to print your five-page English paper, or maybe your computer broke and you need to submit something to Moodle. No matter the reason, it’s helpful to know where computers and printers are located around campus. Computer Labs
School computers often come equipped with updated, premium software, which you can access for free as a student. If you can’t make it to a computer lab and you need the software for a class, you can use Virtual Computing Lab (VCL). This service provides you with remote access to programs like Matlab or Maple. Unlike physical computer labs, the Virtual Computing Lab is available 24/7.
There are computer labs all over Main Campus. Check the OIT website for lab hours, since many of these computer labs are open at odd times.
LOCATION HOURS PCS MACS LINUXES
DH Hill Library, Open during library hours 43 4 0 Room 2413 First Year College 24/7 during Fall and Spring Commons, 21 2 2 semesters Room 107 Honors Village 24/7 during Fall and Spring Commons, 10 1 1 semesters 2nd floor
Language & Computer 1:00 pm Sunday - 12:00 am Labs, Saturday; 11 1 0 Room 109 8:00 am - 6:00 pm Saturday North Residence Hall, 24/7 during Fall and Spring 14 1 1 Room 119 semesters Sullivan Residence Hall, 24/7 during Fall and Spring 11 2 0 Room 103 semesters
Printing
To print using NC State printers, you need to set up an account through WolfPrint. It comes out of your AllCampus account, which you can make deposits into as needed. The AllCampus site charges a fee for making an online deposit—$0.25 for deposits $10 and under, and $2 for deposits greater than $10.
NC State printers have a service called FollowMe Printing, which lets you hold a print job for up to 12 hours. You can release a print job at any of these publicly available printers around Main Campus:
LOCATION BLACK & WHITE? COLOR? Biltmore/Robertson Hall, Room 3032 Brooks Hall, Room 111 Brooks Hall, Room 203 Brooks Hall, Room 316 Brooks Hall, Room 318
LOCATION BLACK & WHITE? COLOR? Daniels Hall, Room 203 Daniels Hall, Room 226 Daniels Hall, Room 243 DH Hill Library, Room 1102 DH Hill Library, Room 1113 DH Hill Library, Room 1228 DH Hill Library, Room 2413 DH Hill Library, Room 3413 DH Hill Library, Room 4413 DH Hill Library, Room 5413 DH Hill Library, Room 6402 DH Hill Library, Room 7402 DH Hill Library, Room 8402 First Year College, Room 107 Honors Village Commons, Room 206
LOCATION BLACK & WHITE? COLOR? Jordan Hall, Room 1102 Jordan Hall, Room 2105A-1 Kamphoefner Hall, Room 200 Kamphoefner Hall, Room 400 Language & Computer Labs, Room 109 Language & Computer Labs, Room 214 Leazar Hall, Room 300 Mann Hall, Room 320 Nelson Hall, Room B410 Poe Hall, Room 400 Poe Hall, Room 414 SAS Hall, Room 2105C Sullivan Residence Hall, Room 103 Tompkins Hall, Room 113
LOCATION BLACK & WHITE? COLOR? Williams Hall, Room 1400 Withers Hall, Room 131 Winston Hall, Room 118 Winston Hall, Room 133 Witherspoon Student Center
Other printers are available for public use around campus. Some of these printers reside in classroom computer labs, which are locked unless a class is in session.
Helpful Phone Numbers
For NC State emergency services:
For all emergencies, call 911 For a safety escort, lift the emergency blue light phone or call 919-515-3000 To report safety concerns, complaints, or suggestions, call the safety hotline at 919-515-5445 For counseling emergencies after office hours, ask to speak to the counselor on call at 919-515-3000 For general campus police information, call 919-515-5894 For disability services, call the Disability Services Office at 919-515-7653
For university information, call 919-515-2011
For NC State academic records and accounts:
For Registration and Records, call 919-515-2572 For the Office of Scholarships and Financial Aid, call 919-515-2421 For the Cashier’s Office and Student Accounts, call 919-515-2986