Hey all!
I am currently a Community College Student looking for which school to transfer to. My major is Psychology. I am having a tough time figuring out which transfer school would be best for me. I applied and got accepted to all 3, (I chose them because they are the ones closer to Philadelphia and have great transfer agreements with my CC). I don’t know which school would be best for me.
These would be the total out of pocket costs (I purposely excluded federal loans from the final total) from each school after scholarships and grants.
Holy Family - $14,838 (As a commuter driving there, 17 minute drive)
Chestnut Hill College - $21, 839 (As an on campus resident)
Temple University - $14, 798 (As a commuter taking the train there, 1 hour ride)
All of these school have their benefits and disadvantages in terms of travel. By living on campus, I am comfortably close to attend my classes and can fully focus on my academics and save the most time, however, it makes the overall cost more expensive than if i were a commuter, which is not an option. By taking the train, I would risk delays (which often happen) and time loss, however, money is saved from living at home. Holy family seems to have the best option financially, but Holy Family is my bottom choice as it seems to have the least networking opportunities and opportunities for personal growth, and access to Center City Philadelphia is most expensive and most difficult here.
I really am not sure what to do here, my friends tell me I am over thinking it and think I should try Chestnut Hill College, I enjoy small class sizes and the access to the city, it IS overall not a bad price to be a resident and to attend, however I am worried I might be selling myself short, I am an intelligent girl, I am Hispanic and a first generation born American citizen, first person in the family to (hopefully) obtain a bachelors. My GPA is 3.9, I am Vice President of the Psychology Club and an Executive Director in my Student Government Association. I thought of applying to UPenn for giggles, but at the off chance that i’d get accepted, most of my credits wouldn’t transfer. At Holy Family & Chestnut Hill, all of my credits would transfer, at Temple University, most of them would.
I feel like Temple University is the most renowned out of the 3, but I am not sure if that really matters for these 3 schools, especially as a Psych Major. I also really hate big classes, and the idea of unreliable commuting. I feel like the other thing to consider is that the more known my professors I am, the better opportunities there are to network, an opportunity I think Chestnut Hill could offer more easily (given that it’s tiny) compared to Temple (where professors may not even know my name)
And honestly, I’d like to live on campus. Like every other 19 year old, I’d like to live away from my parents (as much as I love them!), I am not really interested in partying or student life, just a great academic school, networking, and intellectual growth. Plus a nice area would be cool to explore and learn from.
I don’t want to make the worst decision here, I feel like I’m smart enough to deserve to go to a great school, but most importantly I want to be happy and proud of the school that will be stamped on my BA, I am stuck!