With a daughter at UM, I need to stay in state for tuition. I'm being offered a job at a major cable company in downtown Philly. The only possible solution we see short term is doing the daily Acela or regional run from Baltimore till she's done in 2 years. I am already on the Amtrak frequent program, use my chase card to get points. I am platinum spg and will use that on occasion. Any thing else I should consider to maximize this, reduce costs, or any other travel thoughts?

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Check to see whether Amtrak offers monthly commutation (or any other type of multi-ride) tickets on the route.

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Also, check to see whether the new employer offers TransitChek, or any similar program that let's you purchase commuter transportation with pre-tax dollars.

http://www.transitchek.com

Looks like Amtrak offers 10-trip and monthly tickets on this route. If you know exactly which trains you'll be using, you can also save money by buying 14-days in advance. If you specifically want to use Amtrak, you may get better advice over in the Amtrak forum. A monthly pass on Amtrak is kind of spendy, but depending on your job it might still make sense.

Depending on where you live in the Baltimore area, you may find it tolerable to drive to Newark, DE and take the SEPTA commuter train. You'd pay I-95 tolls but save a ton on railfare.

Why don't you just sublet a room on Philly and go back to Baltimore on the weekend? The cost should be a wash, however you don't waste 2-3 hours everyday for commute.

Why do you need to stay in-state for tuition purposes? Typically once a student is admitted to a college their tuition status is set regardless of the parental status. I would get that question answered before thinking about alternatives.

Yeah, I've never heard of someone losing In State status because their parents moved after they started their Freshman year.

http://www.testudo.umd.edu/rco/policy.html

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I'd suggest trying to sublet something in Philadelphia, heading home to Baltimore on weekends.

All states have that rule. The intent of that rule is to prevent students who move to a new state for school and then try to get residency after their freshman year on the basis that they've lived there for a year from getting in state tuition. Not to punish a kid who's parents moved out of state after they started school.

If your child graduated from a Maryland high school they should qualify for in state tuition throughout college, no questions asked. If you are really concerned about it just send the admissions or financial aid office an anonymous email.

I have literally never heard of someone who has in state status losing it halfway through school.

Edit: I even read the guidelines for you.

The procedures are all to make an out of state student in state. There is no mechanism for changing a student from in state to out of state other than for them committing fraud to be assigned in state tuition in the first place (which wouldn't be the case if they were legitimately in state when they were first admitted)

[Unduly personalized reference edited by Moderator.]

[Conforming moderator edits to previous quotes.]
The OP asked a question about commuting options. Lots of people have daily commutes comparable in time and distance. It's an hour from BAL to PHL on Amtrak, and perhaps another 5-10 minutes from 30th Street Station to the "major cable company". The real question is the amount of time/hassle required to get from OP's house to the train station, and whether the salary justifies the expense of the commute. The apartment/hotel option seems sensible, though.

Because he's looking at spending several hours a day, and a large chunk of money based off of an incorrect assumption.

It is freaking out because he went to looking at an extreme option rather than just realize it is a total non issue and he can just move.

It's this little thing called marriage and family. We actually would not like to lose our life to the job. The wife commutes toward DC. This is a compromise idea. My tombstone is not going to say "was a Dedicated IT guy" After daughter is done with college, the wife and I can move to Philly. It's great being able to attend her games and still be a part of her life. Soon enough, she will be off on her own in another city like my other "kids". The thought of hotel/apt living in Philly for the job was a non starter to taking the job. The time to get to Baltimore train station right now is negligible. While I appreciate the research/guidance on the UMCP rules, that's the not point of my thread. It's to get feedback on people who have done this, ways to minimize the cost, hassle, etc. All good discussion and I do thank you for the ideas.

[Moderator edit to depersonalize the discussion.] Why don't you look for commuters and ride shares on CraigsList?

Hopefully, I am not being put into that camp but the OP's initial question and reason for the commute seemed strange. Thus my question. Now that we have a bit more and clearer info as to the exact circumstances I think folks can given reasonable answers.

For the OP, I would be asking questions like can I work from home one/two days a week or is it possible to have a flex schedule 4-10s (Fridays off) or 9-9s (every other Friday off).

While a sublet and traveling home for the weekends might not be ideal. You might think about a room were you can crash perhaps once or twice a week. If combined with working at home that might be tolerable.