Ok, so this might sound crazy but here me out. I’m debating on whether or not I should go to UC Davis or Sac City and then transfer to Davis. (Yes I got admitted to Davis for the 2015-2016 year) However, over the course of 4 years I would produce about $60,000 worth of debt.
Would it be better to transfer to Davis while doing the TAG agreement at Sac City? I would save money. Plus, I would have more contact with my professors at city. Which path is better? I want to major in Clinical Nutrition at Davis, even though I was admitted for Civil Engineering xD.
Please offer any advice you have on my dilemna! Thank you.
I did community college and then transferred to UC Davis. It saved me so much money that way. So I’m more biased towards going to community college first then transferring, but at the same time, if you start off at Davis, you’ll have a chance at experiencing dorm life, which transfers nowadays don’t get (I was lucky to get the option to dorm when I first transferred to Davis, and then they stopped offering transfer dorms in 2013 in favor of all the freshmen). But if you don’t care for dorm life, that probably won’t be a big deal for you.
If money is an issue, then yes a CCC is definitely a better route. I would also suggest you do TAG, so you are guaranteed admission. My older son’s friend was accepted into UCD for Animal science as a Freshman. His parent’s wanted him to stay closer to home, so he opted to attend a CCC for 2 years and then transfer. He did not meet the requirements for TAG and did not get in by RD, so now he has settled for another year at the CCC and will try again. It is getting increasingly more difficult to get into the UC’s, so unless you do TAG, I could consider starting at UCD as a Freshman. Good Luck.
If you can help it - don’t go into debt at this stage of your life. CC is a viable and much lower cost path to an education.
Sac City and AR send lots of students to UCD via TAG every year. Be flexible with your schedule, stay focused on your goal and try to balance your classes so keeping your GPA over the TAG threshold every semester isn’t a struggle. Take the required classes…and plan ahead so there’s plenty of time required sequences - Counselors at Sac City and UCD can help you there.
You do risk not getting back in if you can’t hit the TAG threshold. There a LOTS of other options.
You are far better off at 25 with a BS via a CC and Sac State and no debt than you are with $60k in debt and a degree from UCD.
Good luck
@NCalRent I was thinking the exact same thing! Thanks so much this really helped me 
@Gumbymom thanks for the advice! I appreciate it a lot! I’m really conflicted. I know the prestige of a UCD degree is definetely weighing on my mind.
@sopranokitty Aw man! That’s definetely something to consider. I didn’t know dorms wouldn’t be available to transfers anymore.THIS DECISION AT SUCH A YOUNG AGE IS SO STRESSFUL. Thanks for telling me your insight Im glad it worked well for you!
@intellagence You should talk to the UCD nutritional science department; internships are very important in that field. You can obviously commute and start interning as a sac city student, but internships are only advertised internally. Approach professors during their office hours, discuss your goals and ask if/how transfer/CC students can intern in their labs.
@Autumnal ok I’ll do that when I go down for orientation! I know sac state does an internship too, is there really that much of a difference between the internships at the two schools? Thank you for your advice and time!
@intellagence Yes, research is significantly better at UCD. The clinical internship is different, but you’ll want both to keep your job opportunities high.