Absolutely agree. I don’t understand the need. Don’t forget transportation back and forth. It adds up and affects the home budget. Flights are easy to come by, but she will be limited by what she can bring on the airlines and costs. Southwest has cheap flights but their on-time and consistency are now questionable. Ground transportation? SoCal relies a lot on cars. Our public transportation is not good. Hopefully, she can get to where she needs to go using the school shuttles. If she has a bike, she should be okay, but the weather, or longer commutes will affect her.
She wont qualify for any State funding while at any California universities.
California residents qualify for available grants sponsored by the State. Merit scholarships run $2K to $5K per year (a drop in the bucket for fees) and the preference and priority are usually given to instate students.
There is a cap on the numbers of non-residents, so her priority for transfer may be affected. What if she doesn’t get into a UC? What then?