Want to go to college in Los Angeles.

why would you want to go to college in third world cities?

Cal state university LA is near Alhambra. This area is much nicer than the area around USC. And it’s not like it’s Compton or dangerous. You think that the housing estimate on the website does not reflect the actual rents around Alhambra?

Myos broke it down well.
OOS COA is $24k if u rent a room (suprising since in state COA is $22k if living in a dorm. So you do save a lot if money by renting an off campus room). Op, your parents will need to borrow $24k for college, then pay CSULA, then pay the bank back for the loan over a period of time, unless they have $24k sitting in the bank.

I don’t think that they offer any scholarships at CSULA.

@jimtoes‌ How is Los Angeles a “third-world” city? California is very expensive.
@YoHoYoHo‌ I would live in a cheaper area of LA, but not Compton. I know my parent would have to borrow a lot, as long as I’m OOS. (Or, in-state attending a NJ college…)

Here’s some pre-college accounting education:

Net Worth = Assets - Liabilities

Here’s some pre-college philosophy education:

Plato said that a soul exists and has three parts. 2400 years later, psychologist Sigmund Freud took Plato’s thinking and adapted it to his concept of the Id (impulse), the Superego (the subconscious concept of morality, the Good, and virtue), and the Ego (the Reality principle that balances the other two parts). So, let’s get real.

Like any other 16-17 year old, you are an asset to yourself, your parents, and your boyfriend, but a financial liability to everyone else. The goal is to transform yourself into an asset to all by parlaying their investment in you , while you limit your liabilities to them.

You cannot support yourself or pay for college yourself. Other people must invest in you. Your plan satisfies your typical teenage impulses and your own sense of good and pleasure, but it makes you a bigger liability to everyone else. I’m impressed with your research on making it work, but you should have learned by now that it is a foolish and foolhardy plan.

Visit California or Florida if you wish. Do it on your own dime. Move there and get a job there if you want. College isn’t for everyone. You can go to college later. My son has a buddy, a disinterested student who was much more passionate about playing soccer. At first, the soccer player went the traditional route, playing college soccer. He still slacked in the classroom, stressing out his Dad. I told his Dad that, instead of paying $200,000 for a degree that Junior would maybe never get, it might be better to invest $30,000 in him to try to latch on to an overseas soccer team and get it out of his system. He did. Son quit college. So far, so good. He’s travelled about Europe and latched onto a team in Spain. Will he be a top highly paid pro? Who knows? But he’s getting a great non-traditional education, in a multinational classroom, and doing what he loves.

I know of another NJ guy. Couldn’t wait to get out. Wrote songs about it. Never went to college. Worked hard, formed a band. Had some success. Broke up the band and moved to California. Married a very pretty actress. Made tons of money. But he was unhappy, and made a whole album about it. So, he divorced his wife, moved back to NJ, married a Jersey Girl. He said, “God have mercy on a man who doubts what he’s sure of”.

If college is for you, the best way to go with your projected major in NJ is to go the STARS route, but you’ll need to get the credentials to earn it. Other than that, it’s an in-state school or a job. Go to California or Florida when you’ve paid off your debt. Unless an earthquake or climate change erase those states from the map, they’ll still be there.