Which college should I choose?

College Search & Selection
1

<p>So my top 2 colleges are UC Davis and University of Nevada Reno, and I would really love to go to UC Davis, but I cannot afford it.</p>

<p>I'm stuck in the middle class so my EFC was 40,000, so I am definitely getting no aid, but I also cannot afford UC Davis anywhere close. UNR is a lot cheaper with the WUE plus the 1,500 merit scholarship they gave me. I'm planning on studying Biochemistry/Biotechnology and go into research or Forensics. </p>

<p>I know UC Davis is a top research institution, but UNR has research opportunities for me as well. Should I choose UNR to save money and do Graduate school at UC Davis which I plan on doing anyways (MS in Forensic Science), or should I go to UC Davis to get better opportunities, but also go into probably 100,000 in debt in the end. What should I do?</p>

2

<p>No college is worth $100k of debt; go to UNR for now.</p>

3

<p>No school is worth that much debt…it would ruin your life. Besides, unless your parents are very naive, they’re not going to cosign for that much debt.</p>

4

<p>which ever u think will get u to where u wanna be. im not gonna tell u what choice to make and no one should</p>

5

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<p>Those two things don’t really seem to add up.</p>

6

<p>Jetsfan…</p>

<p>most young people cannot really fathom how that much debt will negatively affect their lives. </p>

<p>Things just aren’t that simple that a statement like, “whichever u think will get u where u wanna be,” is really helpful. There isn’t just one school that will get you where you want to be.</p>

7

<p>You can’t borrow more than the maximum Stafford loans without a co-signer, so chances are you can’t get into $100,000 in debt in the first place. UNR will be just fine. Start there, get to know the professors, take advantage of research opportunities that are available in your field, and go to a better place for grad school.</p>

8

<p>turntabler: My parents salary combined in 130,000, and middle class is considered 90,000-150,000 according to the UC’s simce they are trying to start a scholarship program for the Middle Class. It’s also very high because the only people left living in our house is my parents and I, so I am considered an only child which will raise EFC up a lot.</p>

<p>But no I dont think it is fair to be that much.</p>

9

<p>I am also taking into consideration that tuition is also increasing at UCs 8-16% annually over the next 4 years. That would make a UC for me about 40,000 a year in the end. UNR is about 17,000 a year.</p>

10

<p>Hillsdale…</p>

<p>UCD for an OOS student is costing over $50k per year NOW. Where are you getting your estimate of $40k later? Are you just looking at tuition without looking at Room, Board, etc? </p>

<p>Or were you looking at instate costs or what??? </p>

<p>UCD
Out-of-state tuition and fees:…$36,738
Room and board:…$12,697 </p>

<h2>Books and supplies: …$1,589 </h2>

<p>Basic costs are about $52k…and that’s NOW.</p>

<p>Estimated personal expenses: $2,489 </p>

<h2>Transportation expense:…$1,000</h2>

<p>Plus another $3500</p>

11

<p>Yeah I am instate. now its about $15,123.36 for tuition.
so its about 32k now… thats why i said in a couple years it will go up to about 40k.</p>

12

<p>You’re a Calif resident? And UNR is your only OOS option? That seems like an odd choice. Frankly, I didn’t think many kids applied to UNR from OOS, that’s why I thought you were instate.</p>

<p>Were you just looking for a cheaper school? If so, why is UNR your only option? </p>

<p>What are your stats? How much will your parents pay each year?</p>

<p>Wouldn’t a school like UArizona, UNA, or AzSt give you merit? or some others? Maybe U New Mexico?</p>

13

<p>Mom2collegekids, i wouldnt take that amount of debt personally. Just making the point that if he wants to deal with that debt cuz uc davis is where he can get to where he wants to go then his choice</p>

14

<p>Someone in this topic doesn’t understand the pain of six digit debt…</p>

15

<p>Well all the schools I applied to are: UNR, UC Davis, UC San Diego, U of Portland, Chaminade University of Honolulu, U of Oregon, and CSU Channel Islands.</p>

<p>UNR is the cheapest school besides CSU, and it has more research that all the other schools except the UC’s.</p>

<p>My parents aren’t paying anything. I have $50,000 from my Grandpa’s retirement to use and other than that I am completely alone.</p>

16

<p>What are your stats?</p>

<p>Is it possible that Channel Islands will give you merit?</p>

<p>Right now, research shouldn’t be your primary concern. Right now your concern will be getting costs covered.</p>

<p>If you tell us your stats, we may be able to direct you to some schools that are still awarding merit.</p>

17

<p>I don’t want to go to New Mexico honestly, and CSU won’t have any research for me since it’s a CSU.</p>

18

<p>Then maybe the best thing is to go to a Calif CC for two years, and use TAG to get you into a top UC. Then you can use your Grandpa’s money for those last two years.</p>

<p>Most kids don’t do much research their first 2 years anyway.</p>

19

<p>hillsdale… would you consider a school in alabama that is known for research and sciences. It is still accepting apps and still has oos automatic merit available.</p>

<p>app is quick and easy…no essay required and you will hear quickly once they receive your transcripts and test scores… I recently checked with the scholarship people and the oos scholarships are available but going quickly. so if you put in your app, you have a great shot at it. It is too late to apply to the honors college, but there are honors tracks for most majors.</p>

<p>total cost for oos is 20-25K (tuition, dorm and food)(easy to keep food cost down as dorms are suite with mini kitchen or full apt with fridge/stove etc)
Fall 2011 First-Year Freshmen Estimated
First-Year Freshman Out-of-State
Tuition and Fees* $14,256
Books and Supplies** $1000
Meal Plan $450 - $3,894
Total $15,706 - $19,150
Residence Hall (Blazer/Camp Hall)*** $5,200
Grand Total $20,906 - $24,350</p>

<p>The last scores that we will consider for scholarship purposes are the December ACT and SAT test scores from your senior year in high school.
Blazer Elite Scholarship
$15,000
Based on academic achievement (28-36 ACT and at least 3.0 GPA)
Blazer Gold Scholarship
$10,000
Based on academic achievement (26-27 ACT and at least 3.0 GPA)
Blazer Pride Scholarship
$5,000
Based on academic achievement (24-25 ACT and at least 3.0 GPA)
Students receiving UAB merit-based scholarships are required to live on campus for their first year of enrollment. </p>

<p>with your 29 act you would get the blazer elite which means you would need between 5-10K per year… easily covered by the 50K you have…no loans no debt</p>

<p>food costs can be kept to a minimum at uab, as the suite dorms have mini kitchen area and the apartment style dorms have full kitchens with fridge stove etc.</p>

<p>tier 1 research university. receives more research funding than all other alabama schools combined. Incredible research opportunities for undergrads. </p>

<p>faculty student ratio is 17:1. average class size is about 30 students. avg act is 24.3. i recently checked for someone else and its 2010 75% stats are on par with upitt as a comparison. for sat scores uab had 75% of 680 and 690, pitt had 670 and 670… so it is a good school, just not talked about very much on cc.</p>

<p>it has been ranked 3rd for student race/class interactions and 11th for student happiness by princeton review. It is 26%AA. It is not a strong football/greek school. Only about 6% greek. </p>

<p>here is an overview:
University of Alabama at Birmingham - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia</p>

<p><a href=“http://collegeapps.about.com/od/sat/...sat-scores.htm[/url]”>http://collegeapps.about.com/od/sat/...sat-scores.htm&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

<p><a href=“http://collegeapps.about.com/od/sat/...lvania-sat.htm[/url]”>http://collegeapps.about.com/od/sat/...lvania-sat.htm&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

<p>feel free to ask questions…S2 is there doing forensic chemistry and molecular biology, has already done research began in 1st semester freshman year and has presented, currently working in another lab doing research.</p>

20

<p>parent56… Thank you, I will definitely look into it! I think Alabama is a little too far… but I will look more into it!</p>