What does this mean - your values, goals. You can live in California from UGA - and how do you know the campus goals - or are you just extrapolating state politics?
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Actually you seem pretty invested in being a UCLA booster. I never said it was hell on earth, I said it lacks retail, has an hcol, and there are a lot of homeless people, all of which are true and negatively impacted me when I lived there. And I haven’t even mentioned the traffic on Wilshire Boulevard. Not everyone loves Los Angeles.
Op has already mentioned what she sees as the downsides of Athens, which is why I mention the downsides pf Los Angeles. Yes, every location has them.
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And you seem to be pretty invested in dissing UCLA.
Like I and you said, no place is perfect. But to slam UCLA and Westwood with all that it has to offer is not the appropriate metric.
I know LOTS of students this year who are deeply concerned about social issues in terms of what college they want to go to. That, too, seems to be important to OP.
Athens is a great place, but Westwood/UCLA is too.
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regardless of their locales, no sane person would undertake that degree of debt for schools of similar quality (or for any school, actually). If it were easy to pay off student debt, millions of Americans would not be burdened by it now with awful consequences for their ability to buy a home, start a family, change jobs, etc. Incurring that degree of debt can very easily ruin one’s life. Why would anyone take that chance?
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Well said !!!
And what if the economy tanks, the markets tank, and the student becomes unemployable (due to no fault of their own).
Eeryone has been playng for perfect markets - but everything has gotten jittery.
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This student would not be able to join the National Guard in California upon arrival to California. To join the guard, he/she would have had to have been a resident of California for at least one year, prior to joining. https://nationalguard.csac.ca.gov
As for setting up residency, this student would not be able to receive any help from any relative or friend. The Residency Determination Officers are savvy. Coming in, with an OOS HS transcript is the first red flag, and without parents, 2nd flag, who have moved to the state for jobs, is huge.
If the student has moved to the State for educational purposes, all bets are off. Matriculation to a CC, upon arrival to California, confirms arrival for educational purposes.
Trying to gain instate residency, for tuition purposes, at California’s public universities is almost impossible.
The student is required to be self-supporting, with documented proof, and cannot accept ANY help from ANY relatives or friends. State taxes must match documented income and expenses. Rent contracts, cable, utilities, moving expenses, and transportation/vehicle receipts have to be in the student’s name alone.
Rents, even in the low income SES neighborhoods, are extremely expensive. In my mother’s barrio community, the lower rents are running $2K per month, not including first and last month’s rents, utilities, and expenses. Our costs for gas are extremely expensive (currently at $5 gal.) and we have terrible public transportation, hence the impacted freeways. Uber is not cheap.
Regarding attendance at a CC, he/she must pay OOS tuition for the CC, then work and pay the going high rents/utilities, without ANY financial help.
If current residents are having a tough time paying rent, utilities, and transportation, then a nonresident student will have it even worse because it has to be done by him alone; without help from anyone. Finding a job is not the issue. Finding a job, without a degree, that will sustain these types of harsh expenses, will be the major issue.
Regarding scholarships, @l_f2004, the UC’s are public universities funded by the taxpayers of California. Where would all of these monied scholarships come from? Most “scholarships” run from $2k to $5K per year and tend to target instate residents.
UCLA’s current tuition/fees are running about $72K per year. They will and do go up. Any scholarship would still put your cost, at best, at $67K per year. $67K-$45K = $22K x 4 years =$88K (still owed for undergrad after parent’s offer of $45K per year)
$71,091 in residence halls
$72,137 in off campus apartments,
$63,623 as commuting students.
Neither you, nor your parents can afford California at this point in time.
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In addition, OP could study abroad which I recommend for all college students.
It sounds like some of the best suggestions for OP is to go to UGA and figure out ways to spend her time there elsewhere. 
Anxious to hear her other results and the final decision.
Good luck @leeann04!
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In addition to NSE and TONS of study abroad programs, UGA also has a Spring Break in NYC for 1st year Honors Students, and lots of “domestic study away” programs including some in NYC, DC, Seattle, and Chicago (none in LA that I could find but you can also join a non UGA program and with the 25K/year your parents “save” on their budget, you could certainly find one within budget). One thing I find really cool is “Maymester”, so you could potentially go somewhere as soon as freshman year.
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If you are saddled with student debt, you’d be less likely able to travel freely after college. If you love exploring the world, that would be something to consider.
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UCLA’s $72k is just an estimate–that 72k also includes things like textbook fees, and majority of all people said they’ve actually paid less than 50$ for textbooks. that 72k also includes health insurance, which i won’t need. it includes an overpriced meal plan, which i don’t intend on getting. taking away all these fees, ucla would be around 65k for me.
Keep in mind, ALL private schools i’m applying to will be around 56k-60k for me. my efc on fafsa is 56k, for context. UCLA’s cost isn’t that different from all other priv schools i’m applying to.
thus, even with a 10k scholarship to ucla, i’ll be getting around the same cost to ucla as all other priv schools i’ve applied to (around $55k). if schools are 55k, and my parents are willing to pay 45k, that means i’ll be in 10k debt per year. however, i intend on applying to several private scholarships–not just scholarships specifically from ucla. further, i intend on working while in college. ucla has learning assistant and other jobs that i can use to pay off my debt. these are other opportunities i could use to pay off debt.
even if i don’t go to ucla, other schools like USC and emory would be around 55k-60k, give or take. usc and emory would still be cheaper than ucla, but obviously still more expensive than UGA. i think that usc is fine for my family’s financial situation–ucla is not though (if i don’t get any outside scholarships added). however, my parents can pay off 45k (like i’ve said), and the additional 10k/yr i could fund through my own jobs/working; i intend to work throughout all of college. i also intend to work full time this summer (20-24 hrs per week for 2-3 months) and use a lot of this money for college.
also, i’m not even completely sure i’m going to grad school. a lot of these comments discuss how i want to go to grad school, but i’m not completely sure i will. my major could change, my goals could change; many goals change within college. most ppl i know intended to go to grad school, but didn’t end up going to grad school. it’s not a certain fact that i’d go to grad school.
Airfare is about 1000 dollars right now. Hope you dont plan on returning for the holidays.
Btw full time is 40 hours per week.
I understand your desire, but the naivete shown in your posts is a real obstacle to you making Cali workable. There are hundreds of applicants for scholarships; you can’t count on any until the check is in your hand. LA is very high cost of living and the uber from the airport to your dorm alone may blow your budget. You will assume life changing debt if you go, but you will soon be an adult and many people make poor choices.
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i meant “full time” in the context of a teenager. my job employer won’t allow teens to work beyond a certain limit, so what i’m considering “full time” is in term of a teenager at my employer
You’re trying to justify a decision you want.
Your logic is not correct. You will spend huge $$ at UCLA. and tons off campus. LA is EXPENSIVE.
And is your scholarship 4 years or two years ?
Btw when you take out loans - and you can’t $10k per year - there are fees just for taking out the loan. So you borrow 10k but only get $9600 etc.
I hope you don’t become the next horror story about I went into debt and can’t escape story.
How will USC or Emory be $55-60k? Do you have need or are you a NMSF ?
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bro a flight from atlanta to los angeles is not $1,000…it’s around 150-300 depending on the season
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Think they meant RT but yes I agree $1,000 is a bit over stated. Larger point is very valid though.
The point is you are not a teen at 18, you are an adult fully capable of working 40 hours per week plus overtime. Expect to do so.
I purchase West Coast airfare all the time. I am lucky to get under 800 dollars.
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Parents are just trying to give you advise, which is what you asked for. However, you seem to have your mind made up. Good luck with your decision. You have lots of exciting opportunities.
I just did a search on random dates in May and was less than $300 RT on Alaska.
Last minute it will cost more plus weekends cost more.
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just look up the prices from los angeles to atlanta costs?? it is literally no where near $1000. i also travel to west coast often. also, it’s not that big of a deal what’s considered “full time?” i’m just referring to a definition in terms of what’s specific to my employer; my specific boss/manager doesn’t allow us to work over a certain time. im not trying to get into an argument