school money

as some of you may know im currently in florida. The reason for this is that we are here to visit the school i was accepted to, to see if it's something I'm still interested in. I still like it, but ever since i've gotten here i've felt like this may not be what i want to do, and have started to shy away from it.

So, me and some family members were sitting around having a conversation, and one (who has kinda been like the voice of reason ever since I started looking at school) was trying to inquire about what my plan was as far as finances go. We were talking about tuition costs and such, and my dad said that the school he went to was $7000 a year (my jaw dropped) whereas now it is $40,000. The guy who was asking me questions couldn't believe that school was that expensive because it has been so long since he's gone to school. He said that before he knew school was that expensive he thought that once you graduated high school you should move out, go to school and get some life expierence. He brought up a good point, is it worth going to a 4 year school if you're going to have thousands and thousands of dollars to pay off once you get out? He's not sure anymore and neither am i.

I knew that, but it just hit me how good of a point that is.

Now, of course I'm not going to say that I dont want to go to school, and I've always said that I wanted to go to a 4 year school, but now I'm starting to wonder if going to a local community college for two years, or a local 2 year school and then transfer to a 4 year school would be something to consider. It would save tons of money in the end.

Now obviously if we had the money I would go to a 4 year school, but considering how much money it will cost, is it really worth having all that money to pay just to get life expierence?

Basically I have no idea what I want to do, and theres not much time left to decide.

 

I attend community college for money reasons too, I would like to try going away to a four year school but I'm basically putting myself through on financial aid, scholarships, and my part-time job. The community college in my county has a pretty bad reputation, they accept everyone and it's treated kind of as "slacker school." I've never attended a four year school so I can't compare the two, but my school is a lot better than I expected. Commuting is sometimes not fun (parking can get really bad), and there are a lot of people at the school, so it can be hard to make friends ( but that's an issue at many colleges ). Besides what I'm saving money-wise, I am also getting the added benefit of small class sizes (classes max out at 30 here, Honors classes at 23), which allows you to develop a relationship with the professor and your classmates.

In terms of finances, if I did go to a four year school I would attend a state school. With tuition and room & board, my bill would be around $22000 dollars per year. At my community college, I'm probably paying $5000 a year, including gas expenses. Those are without financial aid and scholarships of course.

Community college definitely has its benefits, but what I noticed most of all was you said you didn't know what you wanted to do. Community college is perfect for that. Because it's so cheap, you can switch your major and take whatever classes you want, even if that puts you in school for an extra semester or two (however, if I recall correctly you've taken AP classes, so with them you could probably graduate in less than two years). It's just a really, really great place to find out what you want to do.

Nobody is going to care where you got your Associates (assuming you continue schooling and go for more). It's all about just getting your liberal arts credits out of the way and having some exposure to your major, if you choose to matriculate into a specific degree program.

Machina is right in that you should check out how credits transfer, though. Also look to see if your local community college has some kind of Honors program--mine does and it offers a nice title, smaller class sizes, and personalized advising. Go in to see an adviser and tell them the names of the colleges (if any) you would like to transfer to and ( at least at my school ), they can look up the degree requirements at those schools and tailor make your schedule to that.

Definitely apply for scholarships and financial aid and see what your options are for four year schools, but community college is a great thing.

 

debt doesn't always have to be a deterrent from a good school. it really depends on how much you'll be borrowing after financial aid and other freebies.
from what i read, it seems like the guidelines are not to take out loans that equal more than 1 years entry level salary of the field you're hoping to get to. i heard that is the point that it becomes extremely unmanageable to pay off without going broke.
i've personally graduated college with about $30,000 and found the monthly payments aren't too bad. but of course $30,000 is far from ideal in terms of debt.

but it's really hard to determine whether it's worth going to a 4 year college without knowing what career/major you're trying to break into. because depending on what it is can hugely determine whether it's worth it or not. for example, someone looking to become an electrician, would probably benefit more from a trade school rather than a 4 year college. i think the answer to whether it's worth it or not really does depend on what you're trying to become. i've heard some bad things about being an "Undecided" major in a 4 year college. with most people saying that it was a complete waste of time. if you have absolutely no idea what major/career you want, i would advise against a 4 year college.

the first step should be determining what you want to do as a career. take a career test to figure that part out.