<p>@strawberries21: I completely understand where you’re coming from. I was in a similar situation.</p>
<p>Here are some concrete strategies on how to deal with the problem:</p>
<ol>
<li> Starting at a community college saves a great deal of money. Many community colleges are surprisingly strong academically. Many strong students attend community colleges for financial and other reasons, so you’re likely to meet other talented students. Some community colleges offer Honors Programs to cater to the needs of said talented students. While it’s true that many students take classes and leave, it’s often possible to get involved on campus if you choose to do so.</li>
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<p>The advantage to a community college is that you probably won’t need to borrow any money to attend. You can probably earn enough money through part-time work to pay for basic living expenses and the rock-bottom tuition at most community colleges. Thus, you can pay twice as much per year for the remaining two years and be back where you started. This dramatically increases the range of four-year universities you can consider as schools from which you can eventually graduate.</p>
<p>That said, it’s important to do some research into the community college you’d attend to make sure that it’s actually solid.</p>
<ol>
<li><p>The public universities in your state are usually going to be your most affordable four-year universities. If they’re academically solid and otherwise a good fit, they are probably your best option. A caveat: State universities usually reflect the culture of their state. This is unsurprising given that at most state universities, the vast majority of students are in-state. If you don’t feel that you fit in socially where you are, you might have a hard time at your state’s public universities.</p></li>
<li><p>Public universities in other states are usually cheaper than private universities if one is paying the full sticker price. Some states are more expensive than others for OOS students. Minnesota and New York are some of the cheaper US states for OOS students; tuition and fees are in the neighborhood of $15,000 in either state. Interestingly, some Canadian universities, notably McGill, are at a similar price point for International students (including US citizens.) Even the more expensive Canadian universities for International students are generally cheaper than the more expensive US public universities for OOS students. Thus, if you have solid reasons to avoid your in-state public universities, public universities elsewhere may be a good alternative.</p></li>
<li><p>If you have solid stats, you may be able to earn merit aid at a private university which brings the cost down significantly. Full rides are rare, but it may be realistic to earn enough merit aid to bring the cost of the private university closer to the price of public universities.</p></li>
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<p>WARNING: You usually need to be at the top of a university’s applicant pool to qualify for merit aid. In practice, this usually means you have to consider universities which are not the strongest to which you could have been admitted. Dropping down one tier is probably not the end of the world. If the drop is more than that, I’d very seriously consider whether the amount of money saved is worth the drop in academic quality.</p>
<p>NOTE: (4) contradicts (1) to some extent. This is because financial aid is usually better for students beginning as freshmen than for transfer students.</p>
<ol>
<li> If you have an interest in serving this country (I’m assuming you’re located in the USA) and are willing to work very hard, the military offers excellent tuition benefits. Also, people who have served in the military are considered independent for financial aid purposes.</li>
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<p>Good luck!</p>