I will be applying to colleges next year and believe I have a good chance of getting into most of the colleges I want to attend ( Small liberal arts colleges) however, I don’t believe I can afford the tuition, even with financial aid. I plan to pursue a career in psychiatry and want to avoid as much dept as possible. My question is: does it matter if I attend a state school if I want to attend a prestigious top 20 school for my graduate studies? Will it affect my chances of getting accepted? Also, how would it affect my job opportunities? I apologize for any spelling or grammar errors, I am typing this on my phone on the way to work and don’t have time to check for errors 
If you excel at your state flagship you should have many fine grad school opportunities. And FWIW going to a LAC won’t guarantee you getting into a top 20 grad program.
I know several very highly regarded psychiatrists and all of them attended state schools. Go where you can keep your debt down and grades up.
Psychiatrists are MDs/DOs, which means that you will need to go to a medical school and enter a residency beyond college. Your question might as well be “does an undergrad school matter for getting into a medical school and later residency?”. and this has been asked many times on this board, just search for answers. For starter, if you have trouble paying for LACs’ tuition its even more reason to overlook them for college, as medical school will likely cost you far more.
Undergrad school shapes you into who you are while grad schools helps with your income and career. I think undergrad education is much more important than professional school. Ones who think of undergrad only as a trade school stepping stone, do get a degree but not an education.
True, but med school loans are automatic, such that the problem is admittance, not paying for it, so do everything you can to gain admittance, if being a doctor is more important to you than the incurred debt.
For your path, I’d forgo the debt and opt for less expensive options.
You have gotten good advice here, but you might consider posting on the Med School board.
What’s your EFC? what’s your budget?
Do you need financial aid or merit aid?
Depending on your situation, you could have an affordable LAC.
Have you run the NPC on your favorite LACs?
What about LACs ranked 40-85 where you may be able to get substantial merit?
What about running the NPC on UMN Morris, Truman State, SUNY Geneseo, St Mary’s (Maryland honors public college)? All of these ^ are excellent, public LACs.
@Melisol321 - Welcome to the Forum! I won’t add much as the advice given above is sound. The bottom line is that graduate programs so not care so much about what university you get your B.S. from. They care much more about your performance at that university and how well you have prepared for entering graduate school. You can feel comfortable choosing a financially affordable option for your BS. The less financial stress you are under the better you will do in your studies.