Yeah but it will be worth it in the long run. Need a break from this line of work. Something where I am home more often. Hope the results come soon so i don't get pulled for next upcoming deployment. Looking at Woodbridge Va to move to. I like a commute and to be far away from military bases and traffic. I hear the schools are good and there is plenty of public transportation in the region once i start at USUHS. BAH works for that area too since the closer to DC the more expensive it is. Any comments on places to live for the 2 yrs in EMDP2 and 4 yrs in USUHS are most certainly welcomed.
Your BAH will be for Bethesda, which is decent no matter where you are in NOVA. Goes a little less far in MD.
As for where to live. First, you have to decide whether you want to move once or twice. If you don't mind paying for your own move after the two years at GMU, you can live in NOVA and be pretty close to class every day, then move closer to USUHS like the vast majority of people do. I would recommend against Woodbridge, personally. It is a 35 minute drive without traffic to GMU, and you will be on campus every single day M-F. In the first semester, MWF you'll be there until at least 3, and then second semester, you'll be there until 4 every single day. W and F are 0900 starts. There are really nice places to live around Manassas and Bristow that are 5-10 minutes from campus.
If your concern is being away from a military base, Manassas and Bristow are an hour from USUHS at a minimum (unless you leave at 0500, in which case it takes 40 minutes). Additionally, the drive from Woodbridge to Bethesda is 45 minutes without traffic. But there is always traffic. You can expect that commute to be anywhere from an hour if you're lucky to up to two or three hours if you're not. More likely, it will be somewhere in between (~1.5 hours) most days. We had a few folks buy houses in Manassas and Centreville (which is closer to USUHS, but still 40-50 minutes away), and many of them are selling and moving closer to Bethesda because the commute is so horrible.
I can PM you the neighborhood I live in if and when you get selected if you want, but it is only 8 minutes from GMU and a really great neighborhood. The houses are super nice, and the rent is substantially below the BAH. As for when we start at USUHS, we are planning to move to Rockville, MD, which is where a lot of the med students live. It is a really nice neighborhood that is ~15 minutes from campus, and the rent is reasonable (slightly higher than NOVA, but still under the BAH).
If you have any other questions, feel free to ask them here. Or, if they're more personal, you can PM me. I'm praying you guys find out soon, because I know exactly how you feel right now. We waited until the last couple days in May to get our results. It was excruciating, but it is 1000% worth it. This has been a whirlwind of a time, and I wouldn't trade it for anything.
