I have a few weeks to make a decision on which undergrad I am going to accept. I do not have as many choices as I had hoped, but I am glad that at least I do have choices. It boils down to Columbia University, University of California Davis, and University of California Santa Barbara. I am still waiting on University of Toronto but am growing disgruntled that they refuse to make a decision because I have one outstanding class (even though I have received straight A's in all other eight of my classes). So unless something happens, I think I am ruling them out. I also have the option of appealing the decision at Berkeley, but I am not confident it will change anything and I am not excited about having to wait another six weeks.
Check out my undergraduate voting page, choose your school, and leave me a comment on why you choose that one.
Check out my undergraduate voting page, choose your school, and leave me a comment on why you choose that one.
Are you under the $60K bracket and eligible for the free financial aid at Columbia GS? If not, personally I would go UCSB.
Actually Columbia General Studies doesn't have the same FA deals as Columbia College does. There is no such thing as "free" at General Studies (not taking into account the military programs available). The max aid is $18,200 and I got $8,400. I keep looking at the numbers thinking somehow they will work themselves out, but alas, they don't.
Ouch. I assumed the
Will the ROI from GS be enough? What a tough decision ... ugh
I have a question about your process so far. Were you working full time when you attended community college? Did that make performing in classes more difficult?
Do you plan on having a job (full or part time) when you attend UC Davis? Or will you live on just student loans alone?
I am planning on doing the same thing and I am just wondering if school loans alone will cover all of my living expenses.
Yes I was working while I attending CC. However, I run my own business from home so my schedule is very flexible. Though, CC is not really that hard and I can imagine would be doable with a full time job (as long as you could make all the classes).
While at UC Davis I plan on taking loans so I won't have to worry about finding work to cover expenses and screwing up my grades. I always have some project going on to cover bills, so technically I will be working part-time.
Loans will cover as much expense as you want. The government Stafford loans cover up to $12,500 (depending on how many credits you have). Then there are private loans. These will have high interest rates so be VERY careful you're not paying more in interest then the principle of the loan.
I would say count on getting a part time job to cover rent and food. And get loans for everything else. Debt is not a nice thing. A little is okay, but once you get past a certain point, it will take over your life.
Hope that helps.
Ben (HOB)
Another Splendid piece