My Interesting Dilemma: Private vs Public vs Community College, Help me out CC!

College Search & Selection
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<p>Hi everyone so college acceptance season has ended with waitlist decisions coming up in the next few months. As a senior preparing himself for college, these times are good and quite stressful at the same time.</p>

<p>To open here are my general stats</p>

<p>GPA: 3.35 UW, 4.05 W, 3.92 UC gpa, 7 APs</p>

<p>SAT: 1960, 1350 m+cr</p>

<p>I got into the following:</p>

<p>Private: Northeastern D'Amore McKim, Boston University School of Management, Babson College, Bentley University, Santa Clara Leavey, Chapman Argyros (20k per yr scholarship). All business schools really. Planning on double majoring in business and a more technical degree like cs/math/stats whatever (to make the bus degree look good)</p>

<p>Public: Yeah this is kinda dissapointing, just San Diego State Univeristy.</p>

<p>Waitlisted at UCI, UCD, UCSC, UCSD and rejected at Berk/LA. (all Economics/Math or Bus Admin)</p>

<p>I've narrowed the privates down to Boston University, Chapman University, Babson College. Would be interested in any of the publics. </p>

<p>Here's my dilemma. Except for Chapman i have not gotten any aid (200k family income and my gpa is shit so yeah..) All the schools above generally run into 60k per year. My parents say that my loans would be around 40-50k and that could be cut down from jobs during school etc.</p>

<p>UCs are about 30k per year. By taking econ there, i would save a chunk of money and may position myself for grad school.</p>

<p>I have recently been considering community college, incase the UCs dont work out. I figure since my grades were ok (bad freshman year, average rest) I could have a real shot at Berk/LA/usc if i do well in cc. HOWEVER, my parents are extremely opposed to this because they feel like i'd be throwing away perfectly good schools for a chance atBerk. They also think that if I screw up there i'm done for sure with no chance to xfer while at a private school i'd atleast have a degree. </p>

<p>I see community college as a way to mature academically since i've had some problems focusing throughout high school. On the other hand, i limit myself in terms of social growth by not taking my private school options since there isn't much of a scene at community colleges. I'd be considering De Anza or Foothill if i was to go to a CC.</p>

<p>Many people think I'm foolish for putting so much thought into this. But perhaps they are right. My grades aren't awful, I'm not poor, I don't NEED to stay home....why bother with community college? What do you all do in my situation?</p>

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<p>Your parents say YOUR loans would be 40 to 50 per year? No they would not because all YOU will be given is 5,500 student loan for freshman year. It would be THEIR loans. If your parents don’t want you to go to CC tell them to pay up. It is outrageous that they would want to put their loans on you.</p>

<p>I do not understand why you are looking at private colleges if your parents won’t pay more than 10 to 20k per year. That means you can’t afford it. Take SDSU and hope a UC comes through, but if it doesn’t then you will be okay if you work hard. Maybe do a CS or stats minor unless your parents pay for extra semesters.</p>

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<p>As I said in the other thread, you need to clarify whether it’s 40-50K total or per year. Per year, I agree with Brown Parent. Total - a little high, but your parents would be taking on the risk too and they seem to be willing. Assuming that you end up doing well, it’s significant, but not a crushing burden. Frankly, with $200K income, splitting the debt with you between your Stafford and their PLUS loans is not unreasonable. </p>

<p>But to advise your more clearly, you need to clarify what the deal is. </p>

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<p>To clarify, we have about 200+ saved. The remaining amount would be on me/them, they’d be willing to work with me throughout the entire process. My dad insists money isn’t a problem, (we live in the Bay and our house has increased 25% in value) but I don’t want to reduce their quality of life because they have both worked very hard for it. </p>

<p>@ClassicRockerDad, its per year. Total is looking to be 240k for 4 years, parents have 200, other 40 i’d have to chip away with jobs over 4 years. My issue is this puts me in an awkward spot IF I want to go to grad school, whereas the UC or CC route positions me to have grad as an option while being able to aim for a more prestigious college.</p>

<p>I’m sorry if this comes off as extremely pretentious (because i clearly dont have a need issue).</p>

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<p>There is a matrix your counselor will have that shows the cutoff for a guaranteed place at a UC. If you qualify, you have a guarantee of admission to Merced. So you have that option.</p>

<p>If you go the CC route then take a look at the TAG program which guarantees admission to UC (choice of 6 campuses). </p>

<p>There is a world of difference, as you noted, between the experience at a CC and away at college. Tough decision…</p>

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<p>I have personally been to all three types of schools since I have transferred twice. I started off at a small private school in Massachusetts. Springfield College. I was a sport management major. I loved it there. I made some great friends and everyone pretty much knew eachother since it was so small. I loved every part of the school except it was way too expensive for me to stay at. I did one inbetween semester at a community college. It is good to stay on track with school and stay used to an academic environment. As far as the course work, it was a joke. To me, it was easier than high school. It felt like high school as well. I definitely reccomend not commuting if you want to get the best experience. I then transferred to UMass Amherst which is a publich school of over 20,000 students. The course work there is much more challenging then the private and community colleges. It is much harder to meet new people though as you could see someone one day and never see them again since the campus is so big. There is something for everyone at large state schools though. I guess it is all just what you make it. If you are looking for challenging course work and a somewhat cheap education go with the state school. If you want a stronger sense of community go with private. There is nothing wrong with going to a community college however I wouldnt reccomend spending more than one year there because it will be harder to complete gen ed requirements at whatever school you transfer to. Having said all this unless you’re going to an IV League school, a degree is a degree. Just keep your grades up and you should be fine when looking for jobs. Choose somewhere the right distance away from home for you and a campus size you will be comfortable with. </p>

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<p>I think you belong at UC Davis so I would stay on that waitlist. Boston is a fantastic college town, but I am not clear that you can afford out of state school. Go to SDSU over a community college. Also, consider UCR or UCM since it looks like you are guaranteed one of them. You might turn out to like Riverside or Merced well enough; if not, you can make a plan to transfer to a higher tier UC. Best of luck—you have great choices.</p>

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<p>$40,000 to $50,000 in debt is on the high side, although it is possible that you can keep the debt down to the federal direct loan limit by working and contributing the work earnings. Any loans beyond the federal direct loan limit would require a (usually parent) co-signer, which is not a good idea for either you or your parents.</p>

<p>CC->UC/CSU is a fairly common route. If your parents are worried about the worst case, note that even a 2.0 GPA in CC will get you into an unimpacted CSU (e.g. CSUEB as non-business major, CSUMB, CSUB, CSUCI, CSUN as a non-business major, CSUDH) as a transfer (and getting a <2.0 GPA at an expensive private school will result in academic dismissal after spending lots of money).</p>

<p>De Anza and Foothill apparently do have a lot of students aiming for UCB, UCLA, etc., although they are not the optimal CCs for some majors (notably UCB CS and EECS, though business and economics are usually easier to find CC courses for) in terms of course coverage (see <a href=“http://www.assist.org”>http://www.assist.org</a> ).</p>

<p>What’s wrong with SDSU?</p>

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<p>Says who? They make $200K and own their home. </p>

<p>So basically you come away with $40-50K in debt, some of which is cosigned by your parents who you’ve said make $200K per year in the Bay area but own their home. I don’t think splitting that debt with your parents is crazy, and it’s probably not even crazy if you had to bear the whole thing - perhaps a little difficult, but not totally unreasonable . They said they will work with you, I’d trust them to do it and not second guess them. </p>

<p>Before you go the CC route, which seems much more acceptable to Californians then it is around Massachusetts where I live, make sure that you can get the classes that you need so that you don’t need to spend extra time at a UC. That often wouldn’t be the case back east. A whole bunch of the same posters and I had an argument a while back where some kid was going to forgo going to UConn for CS when it turned out the CS offered at the third rate Connecticut CC was totally inappropriate to transfer. </p>

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<p>@ucbalumnus nothing wrong with SDSU. I personally feel the academic environment isn’t suitable for me. While my GPA isn’t showing my interest to advance myself, I do want to push myself for higher and better standards. I feel that I might get caught up with the atmosphere there. CC seems better because its only for 1-2 years and I have the opportunity to transfer up.</p>

<p>@ClassicRockerDad Yeah the classes should transfer, i’m still reading into it. They just worry that i’m throwing aside some decent colleges in order for a <em>chance</em> to transfer. They think the debt is worth it in the long run because i’ll be in an environment that will make work harder. I do genuinely want to work hard and I know I’m capable of achieving more than what my transcripts show. Question is; do I figure this out there or at home? </p>

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<p>CC -> UC/CSU course transfer can be looked up at <a href=“http://www.assist.org”>http://www.assist.org</a> . Pre-transfer courses for math, economics, or business should be widely available, but pre-transfer courses for CS are often more difficult, so attending multiple CCs to cover all of them, or taking the courses as “catch up” after transfer may be needed.</p>

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<p>High income people sometimes have high spending habits, resulting in much more precarious household finances that one might assume for the income level.</p>

<p>Also, it is probably not a good idea for the OP to choose a school where the finances are stretched to the limit (maximum parental contribution plus maximum student loan and work contribution) for four years, when being a B+ student in high school indicates a high likelihood of needing an extra semester or two (regardless of which school).</p>

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<p>Have you thought about Santa Barbara City College followed by a transfer to UCSB? Lots of SBCC students live and socialize with UCSB students. That way you would get the “sleep away” college experience and the community college transfer. Here’s a detailed thread on how it works.</p>

<p><a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/university-california-santa-barbara/468098-backdoor-way-to-get-into-ucsb.html”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/university-california-santa-barbara/468098-backdoor-way-to-get-into-ucsb.html&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

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<p>@ucbalumnus why would i need an extra semester or two? I have AP credits and im doing courses over this summer? goal is to graduate asap</p>

<p>@AlbionGirl Sounds amazing actually, parents would be the challenge here. Gonna read into this.</p>

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<p>Try putting in your characteristics at <a href=“Higher Education Research Institute”>http://www.heri.ucla.edu/GradRateCalculator.php&lt;/a&gt; . This is not to say that you will need extra time, but most B+ students in high school do end up needing extra time in college.</p>

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<p>Just realized my link leads to the last page of the thread. Here’s the first page:</p>

<p><a href=“backdoor way to get into UCSB - University of California - Santa Barbara - College Confidential Forums”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/university-california-santa-barbara/468098-backdoor-way-to-get-into-ucsb-p1.html&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

<p>Good luck!</p>

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<p>

As the author of that thread, let me add a bit more advice based on what I’ve seen from other kids who have considered this. You have a delicate negotiation ahead of you. I’d suggest bringing it up more as an exploration, a “what-if” idea that you and your parents jointly look into as you weigh the pros/cons vs your other options. Going to your parents and saying “hey, I’ve decided this is best” is likely to get a lot of pushback.</p>

<p>I’ve recently read a fascinating book about negotiation called “Getting More” by Diamond. You can get a flavor of his approach at <a href=“http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZOZo6Lx70ok”>http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZOZo6Lx70ok&lt;/a&gt; although I really suggest getting it from your local library if they have it. Time is short here since you have to make a deposit if you’re going to a 4-year soon, but you can skim the book and get the gist in a nite. </p>

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<p>@ucbalumnus Ty btw, yeah it does seem like i’ll need an extra semester. I’ll see if that can be settled over the summer, idk.</p>

<p>@mikemac Yeah i think being subtle would be the best plan of action. My parents have been very vague about what they can pay, but i’m aware that they have been saving for awhile. Will check out the book, maybe i can look online or something.</p>

<p>I’m visiting Chapman on friday so we’ll see then. Ultimately, I feel like my heart lies at BU but i’m not sure whether its really worth it down the road.</p>

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<p>The vagueness may indicate that they have saved up a lot less than they want you to believe. You may want to tell them that you are uncomfortable with the idea of going to one of the expensive schools if it will require more debt than the federal direct loan limit ($27,000), especially if they are not clear about what they will contribute. Remind them that you cannot take out loans larger than that without a co-signer, and you do not want to put them on the hook for your college debt.</p>

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<p>Actually we had a chat today. It is quite more than what I expected, enough…for well, a lot. Had a look at the account itself, my mom felt it was time for me to know.</p>

<p>It makes sense though. We’ve always lived a modest life despite earning a decent amount. Anyways, it seems that cash isn’t the issue anymore, what does matter is whether I could use the 2 years to sort myself academically or whether I should just dive in and experience a new environment and develop there.</p>

<p>There does lie within me a lingering doubt. What if? What IF I go to CC, apply myself in econ/math or whatever and get into Berkeley or LA? What IF I luck out and go even higher? What IF instead of spending all the money that they saved, I keep some of it and use to to jumpstart me right out of high school. Investing the savings and all you know, so my future kids can forget about this college debt thing.</p>

<p>I honestly think too much. Many friends have told me that “settling” for Boston University is absurd, it is considered a great school by many. But I just hunger for more, something keeps telling me that I can do it and this is the perfect time to do so.</p>

<p>Pardon the anxiety/cheesiness. </p>

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<p>I think you’re wrestling with the right questions. And I don’t believe there is any choice that is better on all counts; each has pluses and minuses. The world isn’t really such a black-and-white place. </p>