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<p>You can go to a good grad school from anywhere if you have good grades, and you’re more likely to get good grades at CU than from the biology department at Cal, which is going to be highly competitive. </p>
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<p>Not nice, and a bit expensive. Call the offices, and ask if you could extend the deadline by a few days. Better yet, take the advice you’re being offered here, and send the deposit only to CU. The debt you are contemplating isn’t going to be a mere $80k for four years at Cal, because it is a very safe bet that tuition costs will be going up, especially for the cash cow out of state students. Remember also that interest will be accruing while you are in school. Your final debt for Cal by the end could easily run to $90k-$100k. Your parents would be cosigning those loans, and would be responsible for them. Are your parents in good health, with sufficient retirement funds? Is their credit good enough to be approved for additional loans?</p>