<p>I was wondering if it is smarter to attend a Private university like Santa Clara University for instance because I would be guaranteed to graduate in 4 years, while if I were to go to somewhere like UC Davis I might face the issue of having to spend more than 4 years. So which one is better? And will the UC system get better in the next couple years or do we expect it to get worse till things actually get better?</p>
<p>I just ran the numbers on a calculator. You would have to take eight years to graduate UC Davis before you reach the cost of four years of SCU.</p>
<p>The way I figured it is that UC Davis currently costs about $13,000 per year. Worst case scenario, that figure is going to increase $1,000 to $2,000 per year over the coming years. So, I randomly estimated that your average cost over those eight years would be about $18,000. So your tuition payments would total $144,000 over eight years.</p>
<p>SCU’s undergrad tuition is $39,000 per year. Let’s assume that this figure is stable over the next four years. So, you’re looking at a total of $156,000. Add housing, food, and transportation on top of that.</p>
<p>Let’s assume a more realistic scenario for UC Davis. Let’s say you take 5 years plus one quarter, and your average tuition is around $16,000 per year. You’ll be paying $85,280 for tuition, plus housing, food, and transportation. You can avoid this scenario by taking summer classes to stay on a four year track.</p>
<p>That said, ask Santa Clara what their financial aid situation looks like, and what scholarships are available. If they make you an offer that brings the cost down to where the two schools are comparable, take SCU.</p>