<p>takmuieo, the reason I think that it is possible for you to attend USC is because you stated that you are attending USC. Is that incorrect? I must have misread your post.</p>
<p>I agree with you, takmuieo, students should avoid loans and I consistently advise applicants making that decision to take the option that results in a lower debt. Applicants (and their parents) typically respond as you have, that USC offers them something the lower-cost public university does not and they choose the higher cost opportunity. That is not a position with which I agree - I feel strongly that our California public university systems (23 CSUs, 9 undergraduate UCs and over 100 CCCs) offer an excellent education and if they are more affordable those are the options that should be chosen by applicants at all income levels. </p>
<p>Again, financial aid isn’t meant to make attending college easy or affordable. Financial aid is other people’s money. In the case of federal aid and state aid it is taxpayer money, and in the case of institutional grants it is alumni donor money.</p>