Decisions- Pay for the on campus experience? Or save and commute.
CHello, this is my first ever post. It is decision time and we are stressed!
Have 2 daughters 2 years apart.
Daughter graduating this year from HS was accepted into 10 of the schools she applied to (out of 13)
She is an excellent student, level headed amazing kid. We have no savings and cant afford to send her where she really wants to go! :(
Unfortunately the privates , although she received some scholarships are still out of reach for us.
FAFSA gave us no aid at all.
her major now is kinesiology, however she is hoping to go to physical therapy program or orthopedic surgery
So it is decision time, we have narrowed it down to 2 schools. One she can live at home and commute CSULB, the other she will have to live on campus SDSU.
SDSU and living on campus adds an additional $20,000 per year that she will have in loan debt upon graduating.
Knowing she will be in school far more than 4 years, is it worth spending the money for her to have the "college experience" Or should we encourage her to live at home for her undergrad and then transfer???
HELP! We have only a couple days to decide!
Replies to: Decisions- Pay for the on campus experience? Or save and commute.
However, note that having her continue to live at home and commute is not free, even though it costs substantially less than having her live on campus. You will continue to have her food and utilities costs, as well as commuting costs (though much of these may already be built into your household budget as a continuation from supporting her while in high school).
If she has top-end GPA and test scores, consider the full ride scholarships (verify on college web sites):
http://automaticfulltuition.yolasite.com/
http://competitivefulltuition.yolasite.com/
http://nmfscholarships.yolasite.com/ (if National Merit)
If she were my child and those were the only two options, she would be commuting to CSULB.
If she wishes to broaden her circle of friends, I think a dorm experience will be good. Perhaps you can try it for one year and see if she likes it because during freshmen year, everyone is looking for new friends. After the first year, it's harder to make friends. I think the money will be worth it as UCBalumnus said, being a commuter costs money too.
SDSU https://newscenter.sdsu.edu/student_affairs/financialaid/tableundergradcaresident.aspx?
CSULB https://www.csulb.edu/financial-aid/undergraduate-cost-overview#cost-of-attendance---california-residents
Doing frosh year in the dorm if financially possible but commuting other years to save money is a possibility at CSULB (obviously not at SDSU). However, it looks like it may be financially difficult for the OP to do even that.
Dependent on the rest of the financial picture and other debt of course. But, not for SDSU. No disrespect to SDSU alums. Sorry, but that's just me.
Commute and save.
Also starting Fall 2017, out of area students are required to live on-campus for 2 years, so that may be a factor. Many students like to move off campus Sophomore year, but this doesn't always translate into $$$ savings, since housing is expensive in SD.
Even though many considered SDSU a commuter school, most students live within the surrounding area so it definitely has a more residential feel.
SDSU is a excellent school and my son has had a great experience so far, but I would NOT take out a huge amount of loans ($80K/4 years) for any school. CSULB has a very good reputation for Kinesiology and if PT school is in the future, save that money.
Depending upon the AP classes she has taken, she could opt out of several courses and as stated @my2caligirls, finish within 3 years. Still if you have to take out loans for anything more than the student loans ($27K/4 years), I
think it is not worth it.
Being a commuter at CSULB may not give her the full "4 year college experience", if you get involved on campus, you can make that commuter school experience a very positive one.
Best of luck with the decision.