<p>I'm almost done with high school and I'll be going to community college as an econ major next year and hoping to transfer to a UC (possibly CSU)...if I live at home, the only UC's I can go to are Irvine and San Diego, but both seem incredibly boring and I don't know if I want to stay home (even though it's more affordable)...I was looking at UC Davis which is supposed to have a good econ program because I love northern California, I visited UCSC and it was absolutely amazing but they don't really have a good econ program from what I've heard? </p>
<p>What I am asking is...is it worth the money to go away to Davis or should I stay home and go to Irvine or SD (if i get in)? The only reason I am considering Davis over Irvine or SD is because it doesn't seem as boring...I love the city I live in now and I don't want to leave but I just don't like the schools near here...</p>
<p>My sister goes to UCI and she thinks it's a good education but the school is boring and everyone is unfriendly...from what I've read, SD is even more antisocial</p>
<p>The best way to tell if a campus is boring or not is to go visit yourself, when school is in session. </p>
<p>If you went away to Santa Cruz or Davis, how would you pay for it? Are you considering loans, or would your family be able to cover some of the cost? What are your plans after college? All of these issues affect if going away to school is “worth” it or not. Taking on big debt (meaning more than you can get from Stafford loans, or more than a year’s salary after graduation) is generally a bad idea.</p>
<p>UCSD has over 23,000 undergrads. Does it seem reasonable to you that there are no friendly, non boring people on campus? You should spend some time at these schools and take anything you read on the internet with a grain of salt.</p>
<p>slithy- My parents would pay the tuition and I would have to pay the room & board, i’m trying to save as much money as possible with my job in the 2 years i’m in CC. I might need a small loan but with my parents paying tuition and paying for room&board from savings I could get by without loans if i could find a job once I got there…I’m really not sure how it’s going to work out with trying to save money in CC because I don’t make much but I’m trying to save 4K per year which I think is reasonable so I would have 8K by the time of transferring and I could just live in a studio apt. or get an apartment with a roommate (which is cheap in Davis). The biggest problem is finding a new job if I move because if I don’t that’s at least $7K/year i’m missing out on (part-time, minimum wage) </p>
<p>Obviously staying at home is the most practical thing because I know I can keep my current job, and not have a care in the world about paying for anything seeing as I live with my parents for free and they’ll pay the tuition. But it’s incredibly boring…which is why I am considering going through all this money trouble</p>
<p>piggyy, this sounds like a reasonable plan. You have a few years to save up, and if you did need to take out loans they’d be relatively small and within Stafford limits. </p>
<p>Do visit Davis (though not in the heat of early fall or early summer! :eek:) and see what you think.</p>
<p>You have a few options that don’t involve room and board …which will be quite costly…about $10-15k per year. I don’t think you should take out loans for that. While going to school and paying for typical college kid stuff, I don’t think you’ll be able to earn/save that much.</p>
<p>UCI, UCSD, and San Diego State.</p>
<p>San Diego State isn’t boring…and neither is UCSD. </p>
<p>Actually, I realized the only school I can commute to is UCI because UCSD is 60 miles away from my house. There is no way I am driving that much, and spending 4 hours a day sitting in traffic on the freeway…I feel like my only options are going to a school I hate or getting loans. Even UCI is about 26 miles…</p>
<p>Go to Davis. It’s a neat little college town that has everything you need. And if you want to get away for some out-of-town fun, Davis is located halfway between the ski slopes of Tahoe and the bright lights of the Bay Area.</p>
<p>Well…then, there should be a closer CSU…maybe CSU Fullerton or CSU Long Beach.</p>
<p>The room and board costs for UCs are running very high…UCDavis room and board was… Room and board: $12,498 (this is for the past year…each year will rise.)</p>
<p>The student can ONLY borrow $7500 per year with a federal student loan. to come up with another $5k+ per year to solely put towards room and board (and not personal expenses) would be nearly impossible. </p>
<p>This student has less expensive options that will provide an Econ degree.</p>
<p>Piggy…what kind of career do you see yourself having and how much do you think you’ll be earning upon graduation?</p>
<p>I know a lot of kids who would beg to differ about SD. </p>
<p>But to the OP, Davis has a fine college-town feel. Also, not sure who you have been speaking to, but UCSC has a fine econ program. According to the NRC, it’s a top 50 program, only a few spots lower than Davis, but higher than UCLA and Irvine. So if you love UCSC, go there.</p>
<p>The OP is planning on working and saving $8k by the time they’d transfer to a UC. Adding on $15k in Stafford loans over two years gives $23k, just short of on-campus room and board. Off-campus will be cheaper. If the OP can find a part-time job, or work summers, that will cover personal expenses. People have different levels of tolerance for debt, but this doesn’t strike me as a soul-crushing level. </p>
<p>It sounds like the OP is located between Irvine and San Diego, in which case Fullerton and Long Beach wouldn’t be closer. Irvine might well be the closest CSU or UC campus for the OP. </p>
<p>The OP has some time before deciding between these different options.</p>
<p>Fullerton is 38 miles away. I don’t know how far Long Beach is from me but I don’t think I want to go there. I don’t know what career I want to do with an econ degree…Econ degrees seem to be “in demand” but I know there aren’t any guarantees of finding a great job with any degree…</p>
<p>Anyway…it may just be too early to be making these decisions…students change their majors…you may not be able to save that much while in college…who knows. Make this decision in another year.</p>