Are the Cal State universities worth the tuition? Some people told me that those schools are not looked at any better than a community college and I want to go to dental school. I have been looking into UCLA and USC as well as Cal State L.A and Fullerton. The problem of financial aid/scholarship opportunities is also a factor I am considering. But, for now I would like to know if people regard those state unis as CCs for grad school consideration. Or any helpful information.
Any help would be much appreciated!
Thanks guys!
There are several excellent Cal States that would help you get into Dental school, but if you are interested in Grad School, the UC’s have more research/Grad school opportunities. As an OOS applicant, you will receive little to no financial aid at either a CSU or UC but there will be a huge difference in OOS price for both. CSU’s would cost you around $35K/year and UC’s around $55K/year.
My current neighbor is a Bio major at CSU Monterey Bay and planning to apply to Dental School, so Cal States are a viable option. I would not consider Cal State LA, but Cal State Fullerton, Cal State Long Beach and San Diego State would be much better CSU’s for Pre-dental studies. USC and UCLA are excellent schools with many research opportunities, but you also need to be a very competitive applicant for a chance at an acceptance.
@Gumbymom thank you so much for the reply! I have heard a lot of people refer to CSULA as a “joke” but they said that about all of them. They just said that one was the worst one. So I have really wanted to go to Fullerton or Long Beach the most. I am looking into majoring in Spanish (I know cray right?) so that my practice can be bilingual! A tip from a friend of mine. Do you know if their language programs are good and can I still take my DAT prerequisite courses at CSUF or CSULB?
You can take your DAT pre-req’s at CSUF and CSULB, which are biology, physics, english, general chem and organic chem even as a Spanish major. There is no written rule that you have to be a science major to apply to dental school. Regarding language programs, I am really not too sure about the quality of their specific programs but overall their academics are very good.
@Gumbymom okay thank you!
One thing to add - you mention financial aid in your post. Apply understanding that there is virtually no financial aid available to OOS students at our public colleges. Be ready for $35k/yr at the CSUs
Another clarification - USC is a private school - a whole different animal. They do offer aid to some transfer students.
Good luck.
I don’t totally agree with the assessments of Cal States- even CSULA is a very good school as are most of the Cal State schools- however there is little name recognition of most outside of California, and with OOS tuition, they are not worth such a high cost. There are no scholarships to Cal States for OOS students, so you are looking at around $35,000 per year depending on the campus and where you live. Since you can only borrow up to $27,000 over 4 years as a student, you would have to somehow fund $113,000 over the 4 years to attend a Cal State. While they are good schools, they are just not worth that much, especially if you then go on to an expensive dental program. If you are set on California, you might be better off looking at private schools that might offer more aid, depending on your stats.I believe the University of the Pacific has an accelerated dental program that offers good aid. You might also check out University of San Diego. There are many other private schools to look at in Calif. but the costs would be very dependent on your grades and test scores.
I have friends who’ve gone onto great grad schools from fullerton and long beach
@NCalRent are you saying I can’t get federal loans at the Cal States being oos? Like from filling out a FAFSA? I would be going for the last two years not all four @takeitallin
Probably just the loans available at all schools ($7,500/year if you are a junior & senior those two years). You will get no grant aid, so you will have to come up with the other ~$27,000+ per year…
The only funds available to low-income, OOS students coming to California, are federal funds in the form of loans and there is a maximum ceiling on those.
Your FAFSA application will net those loans. And some start accruing interest immediately.
So at $7500 per year for federal loans that’s $3750 per semester, that you will have to repay.
Where will the rest of the owed $26k per year come from?
You can’t take that out in loans by yourself and it doesn’t sound like your parents will be eligible for any Parent Plus Loans to cover that large gap.
Scholarships, for OOS transfer students, are almost nonexistent in the California public schools. (Maybe department scholarships of $500 total).
You may try a private school, but these schools use their dollars on incoming freshmen. California Privates typically charge $50K+. They rely on some California funds to help equalize financial aid packages for California residents. (FYI-USD does not provide good transfer packages)
The Cal states will be very expensive for an OOS student with no funds. If you don’t pay your fees upfront, you are deleted from the class roster immediately.
Additionally,
*You won’t get instate residency because your transcript is from OOS (working a part-time job is not sufficient funding to cover expected tuition expenditures by the state). California is very strict on residency requirements.
*You are not eligible for any State-funded services nor programs. The state gets hundreds of thousands of applications for our CSUs such that the state would go broke if they provided OOS students with free educations. The state can barely provide for its own residents, why would they fund people who haven’t paid the insane California taxes we pay?
As an OOS at a Calif State school you will be able to take out a total of $15000 in loans for your junior and senior years. With a total of around $70,000 for cost of attendance (COA) for those 2 years, you would still have to come up with about $55,000, either from parent loans or from other parent contributions. Cal States do not award scholarships to OOS students. That’s a lot of money to spend for 2 years, especially when dental programs are very expensive. Just curious why you want to come to CA-what’s your home state?
@“aunt bea” and @takeitallin would it ever be possible for me to get Cali residency for tuition purposes? The point of going to school there is because I’m moving there not the other way around. So my point is that I want my life there.
I actually want to go to dental assisting school and be a DA for the remainder of my undergrad years and just build my entire adult life there just because that is where I want to be. But I saw that you have to have went to high school for three years there as one of the listed requirements.
Would going to DA school throw off my residency?
And @takeitallin I have been in FL for 11 years. We moved here to help my siblings survive but they moved away and we are here for nothing now. It has never been where I wanted to be. Plus I act and model on the side and the higher paying jobs are in LA.
You won’t get instate residency and the California colleges are strict about that; the State demands that the colleges assume and collect full fees.
An OOS education is the first big red flag.
Once they see that, it’s downhill, and on you, to prove for two years, without attending any cc or college, that you are paying the significant amount of taxes, through a full-time job, to fund your college education. A minor part-time, unskilled job doesn’t seem to justify their investment.
We have so many people who come to California, with certain expectations “dreams”, and are shocked by the cost of living. (Lots of people end up homeless).
Those of us natives, are used to it.
Our rents are ridiculously expensive, and the houses are small. Native Californians bought houses, when they were reasonably priced, or have inherited their homes. No, they are nowhere near the beaches. Those homes costs in the tens of millions of dollars.
Most of your money will be spent on your housing and enormous electric bills, along with the other utilities. We are currently in drought conditions, so if you use more water than expected, you will be fined. My husband just paid $4.69 per gallon just outside of LA. Everyone drives because our public transportation is minimal. People who do eventually settle in California have significant financial resources.
If you don’t have the financial resources to go to school in California, and pay OOS fees comfortably, you will be in debt for your life time.
Oh, the acting and modeling, you will be one of thousands of waitresses.
Check out this post for more information on California:
look @“aunt bea” you are completely unnecessary at this point. The job I have lined up in California is sufficient enough for me to be comfortable with my life/living expenses. It is a government job with benefits…I have relatives who live in Cali just fine and I will be making more money than them so don’t bash my wanting to be an actress/model. I am going to school to be a dentist so I will eventually make plenty of money to be able to pay off my student loans so on that mind your own business.
It isn’t necessary to make judgments on things that were not asked of you. By the way I’m not unrealistic and just dropping everything and moving to Cali…I’m a planner and making this post months before my job in Cali begins. I just know that I am going to eventually want to go to school out there as well and not just establish myself as an adult in the location I want to live in (which is again my business and I don’t need the permission of strangers to do so).
Thanks for trying to be helpful but no thanks.
You never mentioned this job. You are asking for advice here and we give advice based on what we read.
Even saving money from this job, I don’t think you can qualify for large student loans.
I don’t see your whole story. Did you take all the sciences that you need?
@Happy2Help My question was “what school should I go to in or near Los Angeles coming from out of state?”
That being said the only necessary answers are “these schools are better when it comes to out of state” or “none in or near los angeles but these…”
Not “stuff all of your hopes and dreams back into your box and stay where you are far far away from here.”
As a person who is not unreasonable, I expect only answers that are within reason. Don’t you think there are enough discouraging posts or people trying to talk people down? Instead of doing that, it is helpful to steer someone in the right direction regarding the question they asked.
What I have is a current job where I am saving thousands of dollars, a future job in the city I want to live in, and a school opportunity in a city near my current city. I know that I am going to want to go back to school and get my bachelor’s degree and then go to dental school. But, while I am taking a couple years hiatus from school and working and establishing myself in Cali, I would like to take advantage of the acting and modelling opportunities that will be all around me, just because I enjoy doing it.
I am qualified to help you. I was born and raised in L. A. and went to the schools you’ve mentioned. I have helped my kids get in to college too.
So you want to major in Spanish. Do you have your AA? Did you take the science courses needed for dental school? How many units do you have? That would help us to help you determine what school you might attend. At the same time we can advise you on estimated costs.