<p>So I thought I knew where I wanted to go in the fall for sure, and even put in a housing deposit. But now I'm doubting my choice and thinking about other choices that I hadn't considered before. </p>
<p>The school that I was planning on going to wasn't exactly a college I was totally in love with. The good things about it/ the reason I chose it were:
-It's in-state. So obviously the in-state tuition is a plus, and since it's a little less than 3 hours from home I figured it'd be a change but not so far away that it'd be hard to visit home.
-It has a good choice of majors and, you know, just all around seemed like a pretty good college and a decent choice for me.
-Honestly I had gotten in over my head and applied to mostly out of state colleges, which ideally I would prefer but I came to reality last minute and realized I definitely couldn't afford them, so this place was probably my best choice.
-Once I finally visited it about a month ago I liked it a lot more than I had realized before, both because I liked the campus pretty well and because I learned more things about it that I hadn't realized, like the fact that it's a lot "greener" than I thought, which is pretty important to me.</p>
<p>But the bad things about it, which are becoming a lot more real to me now that fall is getting closer, are:
-Even with it being in-state, I'm going to be taking out a lot of loans. My EFC is 0, and my parents really are poor enough that they definitely won't be paying any, but even after financial aid I'll be taking out $5,500 a year in federal loans plus around $9,000 in other loans. Obviously I'll try for more scholarships other years, and if it all worked out well paying all that back would be worth it to me, but I worry that it's just too unreasonable. Especially because I'm not 100% in love with this place, so if I decided to transfer in a year or 2 I know I'd think, "The reason I was willing to pay so much was because I thought I'd be happier than at a CC, then I wasted all that money just to transfer when I could've gone to a CC for 2 years in the first place."
-I really hate how isolated it is. I love the campus and there's lots to do on it, but I feel like I'd kind of prefer to go somewhere where there was at least a decent town nearby if I ever wanted to get off campus.</p>
<p>Like I said before I always felt like I really wanted to go out of state or at least away from home, which is why I've never really even given much thought to other options like doing CC. But now that the costs and everything are becoming more real, I'm feeling like maybe I should consider that. The one way I would be willing to do CC is if I at least got to move out of my house. My best friend and I have always talked about getting an apartment together, and she's told me that she would definitely do it if I decided to stay here and do CC. There's a decent CC near my town and, just because I obviously love making lists haha, the pros and cons I've thought of for taking that route are:
Pros:
-Even though I'm 18 and a senior, I still haven't had a "real" job, I don't have my license yet (but plan on getting it soon), I'm pretty shy and have never really been involved in sports, volunteering, or anything like that. Pretty much, I feel like I'm a lot less independent than I should be/would like to be. So I feel like maybe going to CC first would be like a smaller step to help me become more independent, outgoing, ect before I go off to college further away. (But at the same time, I feel like maybe going away to college might just be the huge push I need.)
-Obviously, the cost. I think FAFSA would cover my tuition and I do plan on getting a job. So even if I took out, let's say, $5,000 or $6,000 in loans to make ends meet, have emergency money, and possibly buy a cheap car at first (I think student loans can be used to cover living costs and things like this even if you're at a CC? Correct me if I'm wrong.) I'd still be saving around $10,000 a year.
-Since I kind of feel like I'm not totally sure if I'd want to be tied down in this state at the other college for 4 years, if I did CC for 2 years and then decided I wanted to transfer out of state I could. It'd be easier because of the money I'd saved and because with the smaller steps towards independence that would come with going to CC, maybe by then I'd feel like I was capable of doing that on my own and being so far away from my parents.</p>
<p>Cons:
-Even though from what I've said it may seem like I don't even like the in-state school I'm planning on going to, believe me I do. I feel like I've really grown to like the place and despite my doubts about it I've got my heart set on it so much. I feel like, knowing myself, come fall I'd probably be so upset and feel like, "Wow, I should really be at [college name] right now like I'd planned to," and regret it.
-Like I said before, I desperately need a change. If I got an apartment and was going to CC, even that would be a big change but I don't know if it would be enough. I'm just really tired of the area I live in and don't know if I'd want to be stuck here or even in the area near here for 2 more years. And the CC I'd be going to has a lot of people from my high school and the same types of people I've been going to school with, and I really want to be somewhere with more diversity.
-I feel like changing to the whole CC route now is just too risky/unstable. Especially with it being so late now, I don't know if I could really get everything settled and all the arrangements made that I'd need to by fall. I'm not even 100% sure that the CC is still accepting applications for fall, so I'd need to find that out. And I do not want to be living at home so getting an apartment would be a must, and since I need to decide what I'm doing ASAP I don't think I'd be able to be 100% sure the whole apartment thing was going to happen before I decide. </p>
<p>Sorry that was so ridiculously long.
TL;DR I'm stuck between going away to a 4 year college that I'm having doubts about or going to CC for 2 years then transferring somewhere even though I have doubts about that too. Any advice on my situation or the whole CC for 2 years then transferring vs. just going away to college immediately would really help. TIA.</p>