Need some insider help // A Swede

Hi everyone! I’m a soon 24 years old Swedish girl who haven’t gone to college yet because I could never figure out what I wanted to study. I’m now planning to study 2 years at a community college in California (probably Santa monica college) and then transfer. I’ll probably choose either business or film production as my major. The problem is I don’t know what school to transfer to, I ofcourse want to go to a good school but I have a budget of around 15000 USD to spend on tuition each year. Could anyone please help me out and suggest some good colleges/universities. I’m also OK with transfering to a school outside of California but preferbly some place with warmer weather. So far I’m considering applying to CSUF(business - marketing or international) or FSU(film).
Any advice would be highly appreciated

Santa Monica is expensive. Very, very, very expensive. I say go to a Community College up north in the sacramento/san joaquin valleys and then transfer to CSUF (Business) or ( I know, not Southern California) SFSU for film.

Also, California is the same size as Sweden. The “sunny beach” is maybe a fifth of our geography. We have the coastal and sierra nevada mountains, rocky coasts, deserts, forests, and farmland.

You WILL be needing much more money. Even in state students take out loans.

Good luck

Are you planning to enroll in community college as a California resident or non-resident? Nationality does not necessarily determine whether you are eligible for this status. If you can attend community college as a resident, the fees will be a lot cheaper than as non-resident, and also non-residents are usually not eligible for student loans.

Please research the very strict rules on residency status for purposes of tuition before making any plans. Are you in California now? If not, you have almost no chance of qualifying for resident tuition and out-of-state is very expensive.

I will never obtain residency status since I’m a foreigner so I know I have to pay out-of-state tuition. As for a loan it’s no problem since I can take a student loan from my own country even if I study abroad.

“I have a budget of around 15000 USD to spend on tuition each year”

What is your budget for living expenses? Look for the estimated Cost of Attendance for International Students that is posted right on the college/university website.