<p>For a CA resident, is it the local community college that can potentially get you to a UC after two years?</p>
<p>Any college or university that you and/or your parents can afford to pay for. And yes, the California CCs with a transfer agreement are a pretty good financial deal for the vast majority of college bound kids and families.</p>
<p>A financial safety school is a school that you are 99% sure that you’ll get admitted to and that you can afford to pay for out of pocket, with assured scholarships, small loans, and/or assured FA (without needing big loans or some unknown financial aid package.)</p>
<p>That could be a CC, a Cal State, a UC…or some other affordable school. For some kids who are guaranteed into a UC, it could be a UC (if affordable).</p>
<p>A financial safety is a school your admitted into that you can afford.</p>
<p>OK, I suppose “what you can afford” depends on your risk profile and outlook, conservative vs optimistic.</p>
<p>If my parents are willing to take out $50K loan for a car which is a depreciating asset, why wouldn’t they take out a $100K loan to get me through college at the best college that I get into? If I start out on a $70K job after I graduate and double my income in seven years I can easily pay back the loans, right? I know I have to ask my parents this question, my guess is they’ll say yes.</p>
<p>Is there some fatal flaw in this logic, apart from the risks?</p>
<p>first of all… do you know how FEW kids start out making $70k a year out of college?</p>
<p>What is your likely career?</p>
<p>As for your parents… Aren’t you a senior? Haven’t you had “the money talk” with them, yet? If not, have they said anything about the schools you’ve applied to? Do they know how much they cost.</p>
<p>Just because a parent will borrow a $50k car, doesn’t necessarily mean that they will (or can afford) to also borrow $100k for a college education. </p>
<p>What is your parents EFC? How much will they pay out of pocket each year for your education? Would you expect them to borrow in addition to their EFC?</p>
<p>:) I suggest that you go ask your parents NOW, how much they’ll spend and borrow.</p>
<p>EFC is 0 because dad is unemployed. He said he’ll take out Plus loan if he can get one, his credit is excellent, but income is zero, so savings are running out. Last resort is to liquidate home.</p>
<p>Hoping that UC’s could work out with Cal grant, Pell grant etc.</p>
<p>If your dad is not employed and has no income, could he even get a Plus loan?</p>
<p>BTW…why did you use the $50k car scenario if your dad is unemployed?</p>
<p>When he was employed he was making a lot of money, $200K.
I think he lost a lot of money in stock market.</p>
<p>A school that you would not consider attending is not a financial safety…that’s an important element of every safety school! However, a college freshman is (or is almost) an adult and should be fully conscious of how the decision they make now can impact their future, especially their financial future. No reasonable adult would put themselves or their parents at risk of bankruptcy or extreme hardship over a “dream school” experience, especially at the undergrad level. </p>
<p>Remember that your real dream is to work in the career/field you’ve chosen and there are likely many paths that will get you there if you look for them. Just ask people working in that field how they did it. If you don’t know any, google for a career forum for that field or post a question here on the Parents forum.</p>
<p>None of my daughter’s financial safeties were CC’s. Instead, they included an instate public (which she ultimately chose for reputation and depth of program, in addition to very low cost) and a school offering a lot of merit aid. For some, a private school close enough to home that they can commute may be the answer, at least until the economy improves. Hopefully, if you are a senior, you’ve targeted some true financial safeties. Good luck!</p>
<p>Some Calif kids have to pick CC’s as their safety schools because getting accepted to a UC or Cal state (especially one that can be commuted to) is such a crap-shoot. Only a few kids have assurance that they will get into the Calif public close to them. </p>
<p>For my kids, the cheapest safety was the public that the could commute to. They chose to go to a better safety, our flagship state.</p>