<p>thank you all (especially the acclaimed @calmom !) for your feedback. I just finished a conversation with my dad wherein I was informed that only $100k of my education would be payed for should I choose to go to Barnard. I would be responsible, through loans, for about $50k. While I do view UCSB as a big academic and even social compromise considering my personality and what I hope to gain out of college, I do not view the prospect of an additional $50k in debt as a worthy sacrifice. I acknowledge UCSB’s recognition in the sciences, engineering, and accounting worlds, but ultimately don’t think it’s the choice for me. This leaves me with the options of UC Davis (which poses the same problems as SB) and community college (SMC). So my “plan” is as follows: Attend a year at UCSB and try to transfer to USC after one year. If I’m not accepted after a year, study abroad at King’s College or Cambridge for a year (UCSB has fantastic study abroad programs), and apply to UCLA, USC, Columbia, and any other schools as a junior transfer. I would be completing my general classes at SB for a reasonable price while still leaving home and gaining the freshman experience, as well as completing my more generalized upper division classes as a transfer at a school that’s more befitting to my educational needs. Hopefully at least a little of this idealistic prophecy comes true 
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