<p>Hi, a parent here with second kid going to college in 2012. </p>
<p>He is OOS-Int'l (American Citizen) applying from an American Int'l School. We have no residency anywhere (sold our house in NY long ago).</p>
<p>He is looking at an Engineering or Comp Sci major, warm weather and has narrowed down to a handful of UC's in Publics, Gtech, UT austin. Privates - USC, Santa Clara, LMU so far. Maybe UMiami.</p>
<p>Wants good weather be be near brother who is in CA.</p>
<p>My question is whether it makes sense to pay same kind of $$ for UCLA (55k) vs Santa Clara where he might get merit aid? or even if no merit aid then same price?? UCLA is a reach for him ;)</p>
<p>Will not qualify for finaid. We went through this same dilemma with S1 in 2010 and he did not apply to any UC's, but now we are rethinking this strategy.</p>
<p>I don’t think it is a good value to pay full cost, out of state tuition for any of the UC’s at the undergraduate level. You just aren’t getting the same quality of attention as is available at a a strong academic private school.</p>
<p>I’m a very strong believe in public education and would have been delighted if either of my kids had chosen to attend a UC … but at in-state prices. (And without all the recent tuition increases). I mean, at the price I would have paid, it was a bargain. My son did spend his final 2 years at a CSU… and it was an incredible bargain (tuition then was about $3500/year). But it’s not nearly the equivalent of a private education.</p>
<p>It’s kind of like paying first class airfare to fly in the regular section of the plane. You are going to get to your destination at the same time as the first class passenger. You are going to pick up your luggage from the same baggage carousel they use. There’s a very good argument to be made that they have paid far too much for their tickets. But you can’t argue with the fact that they are getting perks with their first class ticket that makes their flight more comfortable. Whether it is worth the extra money is a matter of individual preference and financial resources… but it certainly isn’t worth it to pay that cost without the perks that go along with it.</p>
<p>I think that the distinction between the first class section and the regular section doesn’t exactly match the distinction between publics and privates in terms of academic quality and reputation.</p>
<p>There are some public universities – UCLA among them, along with Berkeley, University of Virginia, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, University of Michigan, and perhaps a couple of others, that are as stellar academically as all but a handful of private schools. And even the “ordinary” state flagship schools are superior to large numbers of privates.</p>
<p>My daughter, who ended up at Cornell, had UVa and William and Mary on her list, and we don’t live in Virginia. But they are better schools, academically, than our own state university (which was her safety school) and better than many private colleges. I wouldn’t have objected to paying out-of-state tuition for either of them.</p>
<p>If your son is interested in engineering or computer science, one of the best schools in California is a state school, Cal Poly San Luis Obispo. Estimated total cost of attendance in 2011-2012 is $23, 488 plus an additional $248 per unit non-resident tuition. So add an additional $6000-$7000 a year for the non-resident fee and you are still at around $30,000 a year. That is a great deal. The fees will go up every year but not by much. Cal Poly SLO is a highly respected program in a wonderful part of California, the Central Coast, in the middle of wineries and located in a great sophisticated small town near beautiful beaches.</p>
<p>This is my D’s plan. She would love to attend a college in California and prefers universities to LACs. I see that it’s a better fit for her. It’s not like we will be saving money if we send her to a private college and she will be happier there.</p>
<p>Aside from the time spent in the classroom,what kind of school is your S most interested in other than the warm climate near CA? What are his other interests that need to be met in college to make for a happy kid?</p>
<p>For instance, my S’s went to a very large high school and wanted to go to a college with big time football (both played in h.s.). They couldn’t see themselves being happy at a college smaller than their h.s. with no D1 sports. Both chose big state u’s. that were a good fit for them both academically and socially. </p>
<p>On the other hand S2’s good friend (football teammate) really liked the big state schools but got a scholarship to small private making the COA equivalent to the state u. His parents (both teachers) urged him to choose the private. He went and was unhappy, a fish out of water. He dropped out after freshman yr. Not to say the small private wasn’t good. It just wasn’t the right atmosphere for this kid.</p>
<p>I could understand picking Santa Clara over UCLA if it cost significantly less, or if the student didn’t want to live in a city or felt intimidated by bureaucracy. But straight-up, same price, focusing on academic opportunity? Don’t be silly. They’re not on the same level; they’re not even on adjacent levels.</p>
<p>If UCLA is a reach for this young man, as the OP says, then she should be looking at other options. Being willing to pay OOS might give him a slight advantage. My D got into USC and UCLA, but chose the latter because despite her very good stats, USC offered her zero in merit aid. Merit aid is not a guarantee anywhere.</p>
<p>Thanks for the responses! He liked the energy n vibe at USC and UCLA. Also the fact that both have a collegy atmosphere and good engineering. But both are reaches. Santa clara came in on top as a match due to its location and student vibe, neat looking safe campus. He does not drive yet so being close to transport is a plus.</p>
<p>Not into sports, does not matter. He is happy doing community service and teaching.</p>
<p>Santa Clara is a great school, with fine faculty, and access to top in-term internships nearby, which are just not available to UCLA students. From that point of view, Santa Clara is significantly better than UCLA.</p>
<p>Pixel…as you know we are very biased towards Santa Clara. The classes are smaller, there are no teaching assistants (all classes are taught by professors…not so at a place like UCLA), and the school really focuses on undergraduate students (has some masters programs… but really has an undergrad focus). You’ve already seen the facilities and campus, and you know how lovely the campus is. I think you would be getting your money’s worth…</p>
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<p>There is a HUGE community service component at SCU. Lots of outreach to the greater San Jose/Santa Clara community…part of the mission of this Jesuit school.</p>
<p>For engineering or CS, many of the top schools are public schools… going to a private just because it is private does not make sense, although some private schools are also among the top schools in engineering and CS.</p>
<p>As suggested above, also consider Cal Poly SLO, which has lower OOS tuition than the UCs (and privates). If he needs a less selective safety, consider San Jose State or Cal Poly Pomona.</p>
<p>Non-California bargains for the OOS list price student include University of Minnesota and Virginia Tech.</p>
<p>$50,000+ a year, $200,000+ for an undergraduate degree? I don’t think any college is worth that, unless you are wealthy and can pay whatever. Anyway, I think the privates are getting closer to $60,000 a year now. The estimated cost of attendance at USC this year is over $57,000. In four more years it will be $70,000, if trends continue. That’s more like $250,000 for an undergraduate degree. Ouch!</p>
<p>This OP will be paying OOS COA OR Private School costs regardless.</p>
<p>The cost of instate students at Cal Poly SLU for 2011-2012 is $23488…with an added cost per credit hour for OOS students (which I really couldn’t figure out…but I’m sure someone can…it was a “per credit” additional cost…maybe $180 per credit)…which does sound like a terrific bargain for a very fine school.</p>
<p>pixeljig,
Hi! Will S1 be returning to USC? Or is he going to transfer to a bay area school? If one of the goals is for S2 to live close to S1, then I understand the reason for adding SCU if S1 stays up here. Cal Poly IS a great school too, but kinda hard to get into. But given the choice between USC or UCLA, [if he was able to get in] and SCU, he should go to USC or UCLA.</p>
<p>If there’s an insignificant cost difference between SCU and UCLA I think UCLA would be the clear pick due to its academic reputation and selectivity of the students. USC would also be a strong consideration. I think there’s a better chance he’d get some fincancial aid at SCU or USC which would change the equation but of course, it’s not guaranteed. </p>
<p>And to mini’s statement about internships - there are a lot of internship opportunities for UCLA students with on-campus recruiters every year. LA isn’t exactly the sticks so there are local internships available (including Google which is down the street in Santa Monica) as well as a lot of out of area internships which can expand a student’s horizons even more. I wouldn’t suggest picking a bay area college over one in LA just on this basis - it makes no sense.</p>
<p>UCSD is another one to consider due to its excellent School of Engineering and Southern Cal location your S seems to be interested in (about a 2 hour drive to UCLA or USC).</p>
<p>“And to mini’s statement about internships - there are a lot of internship opportunities for UCLA students with on-campus recruiters every year.”</p>
<p>I think if you examined the percentage of students holding in-term (during the school year) internships between the two schools, it wouldn’t even be close. It’s not a put-down of UCLA. UCLA is just a very, very large school, and, if like other major public universities (good ones) that I am aware of, a much less attentive career services office.</p>