Affordable Schools in Major Cities?

College Search & Selection
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<p>I'm a transfer student looking to transfer to a school in a major city. I'm a liberal gay male with some part time modeling experience that I would like to expand on, so I'm mostly looking in top 10 cities (NYC, LA, CHI, SF, etc) While I have a few in mind, I'm curious on some opinions.</p>

<p>I'm an Ohio resident, so OOS tuition is assumed, and money is a major concern for me. Unfortunately most Tier 1 schools (NYU, DePaul, etc.) will either be out of my price range or too competitive for a transfer from a low-ranked university (Cleveland State University). I'm currently majoring in Marketing with a minor in Art/Graphic Design, but I'm flexible on related programs in visual communications, multimedia w/ business, etc.</p>

<p>My cumulative college GPA is ~3.5 but my last two semesters have been 4.0. My high school GPA was ~3.5. My ACT was a 27, though I doubt that plays into a transfer. I graduated high school a year early and have a headquarters internship from the clothing store I work at (both of which I hope help my chances). </p>

<p>My budget is ~20,000 per year tuition, though the lower the better. Any suggestions on colleges to look at? My ideal cities would be the majors, but I wouldn't turn down a great fit in a mid-size city.</p>

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<p>Baruch College</p>

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<p>@whenhen, that’s one of the major ones I’m looking at. What’s the reputation of the school outside of Accounting/Finance and the honors college? That’s really my only reservation aside from the cost of living in/close to Manhattan.</p>

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<p>Howard University. </p>

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<p>Not sure if you consider Minneapolis to be ‘major’, but University of Minnesota is pretty close to your budget even for OOS, and you can probably get the majors you are interested in.</p>

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<p>Sorry I’m not familiar with the school’s reputation for non-accounting/ finance majors. </p>

<p>If you are concerned about the CoL in Manhattan, there are other CUNYs located throughout the five boroughs, including Queens College and Brooklyn College. I don’t know anything about these schools other than they have programs in your area of interest.</p>

<p>Portland State University barely falls in your range of affordability although you could substantially reduce the cost by living off campus. It appears as though there is one scholarship available to OOS transfers, although I don’t know how competitive it is
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<p>The University of Houston estimates that an OOS student will pay around $16k/ year in tuition and fees. Certainly not as exciting a city as NYC, but much lower cost of living (an unfurnished room relatively close to campus can be has for about $550/ month).</p>

<p>Metro State University of Denver may also be worth looking into.</p>

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<p>When considering CUNYs, it is important to realize that housing is not guaranteed and hard to come by. The notable exception is FIT, which is actually a SUNY (state University of New York as opposed to city) . Though they don’t guarantee housing, I believe they have more spots available. Also, it is primarily a transfer school, requiring an associates degree for most majors. I know they have a degree program in interactive marketing, and I really can’t think of a better place for a model than at the fashion Institute in NYC. You might want to check it out.</p>

<p><a href=“http://www.fitnyc.edu”>http://www.fitnyc.edu</a></p>

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<p>Temple’s tuition might be out of range, but Philly is a much more affordable city than NYC and off-campus housing can cost considerably less than dormitories. </p>

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<p>Does this mean $30,000 to $35,000 all-in (including room, board, books, misc) is your overall price limit?</p>

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<p>You can look into FIT but I I’m not sure that it will fit in your budget although there are good OOS rates. And I do agree that you need to be careful of the CUNY schools because any decent type of living arrangement could easily blow the budget.</p>

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<p>Thanks for all the replies!</p>

<p>@whenhen Brooklyn College was another I looked into, but again I worry about their reputation in New York, as I had never heard of it before looking at CUNYs. Are there any NY natives that can give any insight on this?
@neatoburrito FIT was actually my first choice school right out of high school but my parents insisted I stay in-state. The fashion/retail sector is one I could see myself working in, but I’m concerned how a degree from a “fashion institute” is viewed in other industries like tech or media, I don’t want to be pigeon-holed into an industry that I’m not fully committed to.
@ucbalumnus Thereabouts, but I didn’t include room/board etc. because at 21 I’d most likely be living off campus with roommates to save money, and books, food, etc. are a more flexible expense. Tuition and general CoL are my main concerns.</p>

<p>I may just have unrealistic concerns about a school’s reputation given my price range, but if any NYers have insight on Baruch, Brooklyn, and FIT let me know!</p>

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<p>Brooklyn College is a pretty well-respected CUNY in New York. Generally the well-regarded ones are Hunter, City, Lehman, Baruch, Queens, and Brooklyn Colleges (and College of Staten Island more or less). One of my best friends went to Baruch for undergrad - he had a great experience and is gainfully employed. One data point, lol. You can attend any of the CUNYs and live in NYC (Manhattan even) for a total CoA of around $35,000. OOS tuition at the CUNYs is about $10,000 a year for a full load, and you can live frugally on $25,000 in Manhattan if you get roommates and live in the upper part of Manhattan (Harlem, Wash Heights, Inwood). I’ve done it and I know many other students who have.</p>

<p>Brooklyn College is in Flatbush, which is cheaper than living in Manhattan (even in most of upper Manhattan, although only marginally compared that way). On the subway it’d be roughly 45 minutes into midtown Manhattan, less into lower Manhattan like the Lower East Side (although it depends on where and what train you take - the LES can take just as long if you ride a local train).</p>

<p>Philadelphia is a cheaper city than NYC, but the trade-off will likely be higher tuition even for public universities. Full-time OOS tuition for Temple is $25,000 a year in the school of media and communications. The two other closest public options are Penn State campuses (Abington and Brandywine) but both are about 45 minutes away driving. West Chester U is another public PA university that’s about the same distance. Some places in NJ are actually closer - Rowan University in Glassboro is about 35 minutes away over the bridge in NJ and their tuition is about $18K a year; there’s also Rutgers-Camden, which is even closer, but their tuition is about $25,000 a year (and Camden is a very sketchy city). Most of the private Philly options (Drexel, La Salle, Phila U, nearby Arcadia, etc.) are in excess of $35K just for tuition.</p>

<p>I’m pretty sure that University of the District of Columbia is an HBCU, but it’s relatively inexpensive, with out-of-district tuition being around $15K a year. Gallaudet University is about $15K a year in tuition. The school is designed for the deaf or hard of hearing, but they also have some hearing students.</p>

<p>Atlanta’s public institutions are actually relatively cheap for OOS residents. Georgia State’s tuition & fees is about $24K a year for OOS residents. There are also other affordable public options in metro Atlanta, like Kennesaw State, Georgia Gwinnett, Clayton State and Southern Polytechnic. You’d need a car to get around, but the cost of living in Atlanta is quite low.</p>

<p>The other thing to remember, though - assuming that you are a traditional-aged college student - is that you are still quite young and you can move to NYC or another major city once you graduate from college and can find employment there, and that’s likely to be less expensive/more affordable.</p>

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<p>Cooper Union</p>

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<p>@juillet Coming from Cleveland, these costs are gut-wrenching (my current apartment is a 600 sq ft 1br in a trendy neighborhood for $499 a month), but I know it’s possible and I even have friends that have done it. I may have to rule out Baruch for the sheer fact of trying to live close to it. With Brooklyn I could at least afford the outer reaches of the borough.</p>

<p>Philly was ruled out because there aren’t any affordable schools in the area unfortunately. Seems like a great city though! D.C. seems to be similar CoL to New York with slightly less benefits, but I’ll look into those schools you mentioned. And I may have to get over my fear of the south and look into Atlanta as well.</p>

<p>And your last point is a good one. I don’t know if NYC or LA would be good choices for me right now, but I definitely need to get out of Cleveland. The crime rate is outrageous, my school’s graduation rate is 8%, and the city is one of the least gay-friendly cities in the country. But I may have to set my sights on more affordable stepping stones like Columbus or Portland and ditch the modeling career. Who wants to live on diet coke and celery anyway?</p>

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<p><a href=“University of the District of Columbia - Wikipedia”>http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/University_of_the_District_of_Columbia&lt;/a&gt; says that UDC is the product of a merger of three predecessors. One of the three predecessors was a teachers’ college that was itself the merger of two teachers’ colleges in a pre-1954 racially segregated system. So UDC has its origins in both an HBC and its HWC counterpart.</p>

<p>UDC currently has 63.6% black enrollment among domestic students, according to <a href=“http://www.collegedata.com/cs/data/college/college_pg06_tmpl.jhtml?schoolId=1672”>http://www.collegedata.com/cs/data/college/college_pg06_tmpl.jhtml?schoolId=1672&lt;/a&gt; ; the next largest group is 21.8% unknown.</p>

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<p>Northeastern Illinois University in Chicago would only cost about $15k per year OOS (tuition and fees). You can get an affordable apartment in the area and be a moderate commute from a great gay city with a lot of modeling/theater (not NYC in terms of modeling, but nothing is). I think Brooklyn/Baruch have better reputations, but this might be a more affordable option.</p>

<p>For comparison’s sake, University of Illinois at Chicago, with a much stronger reputation, would cost more like $26-30k per year OOS.</p>

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<p>SDSU is reputed to have an excellent program in both Marketing and in Art/Graphic Design. They are $372/unit rack rate. San Diego may be a great place for you to be.</p>

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<p>$372 per (semester) unit tuition for out-of-state students at CSUs including SDSU is in addition to the usual full time tuition rate of $6,468 per year. Total out-of-state tuition per year, assuming 30 semester units, is $17,628.</p>

<p>Note that San Francisco State University (SFSU) is a CSU with the above tuition costs. However, it is in a more quiet residential area, so a student would need to take the bus, trolley, or subway to get to the parts of San Francisco that are usually seen as more interesting. Estimates for other costs are given here: <a href=“Office of Student Financial Aid | Office of Student Financial Aid”>Office of Student Financial Aid | Office of Student Financial Aid; . SFSU is probably about half commuters and half residential students.</p>

<p>There are also CSUs in the Los Angeles area as well as the previously mentioned SDSU.</p>

<p>The UCs are significantly more expensive than the CSUs, and probably far out of your price range.</p>

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<p>Thanks @ucbalumnus‌ for the clarity. I would add that I was mentioning SDSU in particular, not CSU in general. I know someone who was, in 2009, seriously deciding between SDSU and RISD (in Providence, RI- definitely go THERE if you can afford it! They cross-enroll with Brown, so Marketing will be covered) for Art/Design. He went to RISD and loved it. I have worked with UG marketing students from SDSU. SDSU has an excellent marketing department, and good ties with the Pacific Rim in marketing. SDSU is very popular, and it may be harder to gain admission there than at other CSUs.</p>

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<p>UDC is more community college level than anything else. I doubt anyone moves to DC for that school as it has no dorms and few traditional students. You won’t get a ‘college’ experience there imo</p>