<p>Okay, so this is probably going to be a long post so if you manage to read it all the way than I am thanking you in advance!
So, a little background information. I am currently a senior in high school. I applied to multiple four year universities for theatre/drama major. I auditioned at a couple and applied regular admissions to others. At this point, I am accepted to Point Park University for BA in Acting, Marymount Manhattan College for BFA Acting, American University (WMP Program in Fall and than Regular Admissions for Spring), and wait listed at NYU. Out of these programs, I got very little money. For MMC and PPU I received about $8,000- $10,000 from both schools. American gave me nothing.<br>
At this point, I’m lost. I do not want to graduate from college with 200,000 dollars in loans. None of these are schools that I especially want to go to or can see myself at. What I want to do is go to California. What I thought about doing was attending my local community college here in Pittsburgh for a year. I wanted to take classes during this 2012 summer, the academic 2012-2013 year, and summer 2013. I wanted to apply this January 2013 as a transfer student to California schools. Some I’m considering are UCLA, USC, Chapman, Loyola etc. I decided that if I did this, I wouldn’t want to major in the performing arts anymore. I was thinking more of a communications degree or a media studies degree. If I’m in California I figure I can take elective acting classes as well as Los Angeles based acting classes and partake in local student film auditions etc. This way, I get my degree but also get some networking and connections.
Is it possible to transfer from a Pittsburgh community college to a four year university in California in a year? I plan to work and save up money as well.
My goal is to get into the film industry in anyway; in front of or behind the camera. Obviously, California is the place for that.
Currently, I get good grades. I’m in all honors and AP classes, NHS, and partake in multiple after school activities (usually acting, and dance classes). My parents feel that by going to a community college, I will not be challenging myself enough and won’t be getting the real college experience.
Now, I’m torn. I don’t know if I should just go to the four year school (At this point, I’m leaning towards American with a degree in Media Studies and minor in Theatre) or attend community and transfer to a CA school next year. Any advice at all will be much, much appreciated. Again, if you read this whole thing, thank you!</p>
<p>It is true that attending your local community college does not give you that ‘classic’ residential college experience. For some students, the residential experience is as much of a valuable learning experience as the classes themselves. For other students, particularly those who have had other independent living experiences, this may not be as important. In any event, if you go to a commuter community college and then transfer to a residential college, then you are only delaying the experience. This might even be a good thing, as many teens don’t find themselves well-equipped (maturity-wise) for the challenges of residential college campus life.</p>
<p>As for the academic side, although you can transfer whenever you want, you may be more successful in transferring after completing an Associate’s Degree. This will take about 2 years, but it will get all of your ‘General Studies’ courses out of the way and let you concentrate on your major-specific studies after you transfer.</p>
<p>I would not be worried about not being challenged at a Community College. Although the average academic ability of the student body will probably be lower than that for most 4-year colleges, all that really matters to you is the quality and rigor of the courses themselves. I think that you will find that in most cases the quality and rigor of community college courses are going to be similar to equivalent courses at 4-year colleges.</p>
<p>The nice thing about going to a community college is that it is a low-risk proposition. The worst-case scenario is that it doesn’t work for you and you decide to go to a 4-year college; you will have lost a little bit of time and a comparatively small amount of money. You can even possibly preserve your ability to go to the colleges that have already accepted you by requesting a one-year deferment.</p>
<p>If it turns out that the residential campus experience is very important to you, then go to one of your 4-year colleges and then look into transferring to a CA school.</p>
<p>First off, you can’t end up with $200,000 in college debt unless someone co-signs those loans for you. On your own, you can only take out the Stafford Loans and they are limited to $5,500 freshman, $6,500 sophomore, $7,500 junior, and $7,500 senior years.</p>
<p>The only college on your list that I am familiar with is Point Park. It is reasonably “transfer friendly”, so if you do end up at a CC in the Pittsburgh area, there would be no reason for it to not be on your transfer application list provided that you are still interested. Yes, you can transfer to a college/university on the other side of the country, but you almost certainly would not be able to be considered a state resident until you are no longer your parents’ dependent for financial aid purposes. You need to check that out for each public institution that you are considering.</p>
<p>Have you discussed paying for college with your parents? Are any of the places where you have been admitted affordable? If not, just exactly where do they think you are going to be able to go so that you can have that away from home experience? The flat-out truth is that nationwide more students do live at home and commute to their local community colleges or nearby 4-year institutions than live on campus. Living at home and commuting is the true “college experience”.</p>
<p>It’s OK to change your goals for your major and your career, but if you are set on working in the entertainment industry there is no reason to assume that starting at a community college will not be “challenging” enough. I’d suggest that you take a good long look at the CCs that are near you, and find out more about what they have to offer. Make an appointment with the transfer counselor so that you can ask specifically where students in your proposed major do end up.</p>