<p>My family continues to insist that I go where I want, and they have personally told me that they have my back financially because they know $100k+ is literally impossible for a teenager to handle</p>
<p>What kind of incomes do these people have? IF they have extra money leftover each month, why aren’t they willing to just make payments DIRECTLY to the school starting in the fall? Most schools have a monthly payment plan that is interest free. If these people are willing and able, then just have them make monthly payments to the school starting this summer. And, if they won’t do that, then you’ll really know the truth.</p>
<p>Why are you even considering Chapman? Does the OP know that Cal Poly graduates have the highest mid career starting salaries? Cal Poly Pomona is a top 20 school in the nation of schools that don’t offer a PhD. Work study at Chapman is competitive? You can do work study at a large university (Poly) with more opportunities. </p>
<p>Cal Poly has co-op agreements w/ major employers where you will be making more than minimum wage opposed to work study. These mean 10-20 dollars an hour or 5-6000 a month during the summer for a good internship. </p>
<p>If you are worried about being in a small environment then go to community college and learn the exact same things for close to free if you qualify for Board of Governors grant. Pepperdine or USD would be better options than Chapman if you want to go to a religious school and they are well known private schools that are generous with aid. </p>
<p>If you want to go to school for the cheapest, go the Cal State route. It doesn’t make financial sense to go to a private unknown school for computer science in California that will put you in 100k debt. </p>
<p>I am an engineering student that just got accepted to SDSU as a transfer. Average debt there is less than 20k for graduates. </p>
<p>I think the OP has the support of his family, and he will hopefully have a few choices. When Cal Poly comes up with their aid package, he can compare the costs and also the environments of the schools and pick what suits him the best. I think he’s had sufficient warnings about the perils of loans both to himself and to family members, so that he is informed. </p>
<p>I would not have my kids go around collecting promises in writing from relatives t pay. Yes, you hake some chances and yes, it might not work out, but right now it’s all systems go for Chapman, and with family support he’ll get through the first year and work it out year by year. He’ll need cosigned loans because he certainly is not going to get them on his own and if the relatives bail he has to look for other venues. Not the tend of the world. He knows his family, and it’s up to him and his parents to make the decision. </p>
<p>Good luck, OP and let us know where you end up going.</p>
<p>Yes. That’s why it’s odd that this family is pushing Chapman over CPP for CS. Chapman is more of a LAC with a B-school. </p>
<p>The student mentions that he’d be the first to go to college, so perhaps the family is just impressed with the name, but is unaware that the school isn’t strong in CS.</p>
<p>I’m posting this from my dorm room at Chapman University. Financial aid and scholarships came through for so my total cost for all 4 years will be less than $40k. I couldn’t be happier with my choice to attend Chapman over the Polys/UCI. </p>
<p>I’m now definitely an advocate of “Go where you feel the most comfortable, because that is where you will be the most successful.” The Computer Science program is so perfectly small that I have the privilege to work with my professor (all of my professors, actually) multiple times a week.</p>
<p>I’m now definitely an advocate of “Go where you feel the most comfortable, because that is where you will be the most successful.”</p>
<p>Well, at this point, your debt will be less than half of what you first mentioned. I wouldn’t be advocating the “go where you want” attitude if you were truly facing huge debt.</p>
<p>Glad that it has worked out for you so far, but it could have been a nightmare if you were to borrow that much.</p>