<p>this post is particularly for students who are low income students.. </p>
<p>i am from a low income family and this is my situation...</p>
<p>so. i just look at my financial aid and it states the following:</p>
<p>Federal Pell Grant 4,000.00
UC Freshman Scholarship 8,170.00
Cal Grant A 10,302.00
Gift Aid Total $ 22,472.00</p>
<p>approximately, it costs about 31k per year to attend cal for school, lodging, etc (living on campus)</p>
<p>and according to my aid, i will only get 22.5 k of aid .... so im still short by 8.5 k and what sucks is that i dont have any outside scholarship... </p>
<p>so for those who are in similar situation like me, are you planning to take out huge loans? or would this actually deter you from attending cal?</p>
<p>i just want to get people's opinion about this dilemma</p>
<p>If I were you, I would work my ass off this summer trying to earn a couple thousand bucks. It’s definitely achievable. I know several people who earned about 4k through a summer job alone. Don’t let this obstacle get in your way if you really want to attend Cal.</p>
<p>I’m not in your situation, but one solution is don’t live on campus. get an apartment or rent a room in a house that’s cheaper off-campus. Cal’s dorms are notoriously expensive. this year my parents spent about 17k on housing and dorm food (which is cruddy), and next year we have a projected 12k on housing and food (which I get to cook and I know is fresh and delicious).</p>
<p>otherwise, you may want to take out a loan and consider finding jobs to make money while at Cal. after your first year, you could also consider applying for a resident assistant job, which would give you both housing and a small salary. I think Cal also has a work-study program? I don’t know how that works, but I know it exists because when I applied for a notetaking job they asked if I was on work-study.</p>
<ol>
<li><p>Live off-campus, co-ops are dirt cheap ($3200 for the ENTIRE semester), apartments with roommates are not that expensive. College living is not glamorous, so don’t expect it to be, and you might save some cash in the process. If you do decide to live on-campus, go for the cheapest options, it will only be for a year anyway.</p></li>
<li><p>Get some experience and responsibility with some employment. A summer job has its perks beyond just getting some extra cash, or even working during the semester is fine. By the time you graduate, you will probably have had to work at some point unless you have parents willing to throw lots and lots of cash your way (or you don’t want to keep asking them to send money). Work-study jobs are not hard to get if you are really persistent on it.</p></li>
<li><p>When all is spent and done, your financial aid should be adequate enough to fulfill your needs for the semester. Extra money will be needed if you want to live in a nice apartment, or plan on going Greek (fraternities mean living expenses and semester dues, and sororities are more expensive than being in fraternities).</p></li>
</ol>
<p>As a dad with a current sophomore at Cal and a senior who just accepted to Cal, I can tell you from experience that we have paid no where near what the expected cost that was indicated. If your parents have you covered on insurance for medical you can waive the medical plan and I believe that saves over $1000. Live in a triple first year, YOU NEED TO LIVE IN A DORM FIRST YEAR imo, then move into an apartment later. This school is too good to pass up. The gap isn’t that huge not to attend Cal.</p>
<p>wow, that’s a lot of grants. 90% of your budget will pretty much go to tuition and housing, so if you’re conservative with ur spending, your total cost won’t even be near 31K.
Like others have said, move out of the dorms ur sophomore year cause they’re ridiculously expensive. You’ll have to to either take out some loans or get some workstudy for your first year to cover it.
But, if you move into an apartment you’ll at least break even. Maybe get a job on he side and you’ll basically pay nothing.</p>
<p>I agree with soulkamikaze. Besides tuition and housing, you won’t be spending that much. Unless you are a huge spendthrift, I can’t imagine spending more than 4k a year in excess to tuition and housing.</p>
<p>You are aware that the rest of us take out LOANS, right…? Since when is one entitled to a “free” education at the university (low income, or not)? The days of the “full ride” are over, my friend. We must now work a few hours (the horror), and incur debt just like every other American. This, with your subsidies, will be sufficient. Suck it up.</p>
<p>first of all, i did start this thread by stating, “this post is particularly for students who are low income students.” this thread was meant to start an informative and meaningful conversation… not for ■■■■■■ like you to say stupid things. </p>
<p>second, never have i (or anyone) on this thread claimed that people of certain socioeconomic are entitled to “free” education. so please sharp up your reading comprehension skills because you will definitely need it in college.</p>
<p>Also, I feel REALLY REALLY BAD that you “must now work a few hours”… poor you. i dont really care, but lifetime might be interested in your life story… </p>
<p>but you know, in the past four years of my life, i was working my ass off in the military saving for college. so i dont have to work in college. </p>
<p>to the rest of you: thank you for the responses so far</p>