<p>In one week I will be starting school at UC merced but I am truly having second thoughts I don’t want to leave all the way to UC merced because I am very attached to my little sister and I was supposed to leave with a friend and we were going to get an apartment with her older sister but know she decided she doesn’t want to leave my question is would it be better for me to stay at smc or go to UC merced setting the money issue aside because financial aid is taken care of for UC merced.
Questions:
- could I get a dorm at UC merced last minute?
- Is it a better idea to go straight to UC merced or go to community college first?
- If I decide to go to UC merced and then I see that I can’t deal with the change would I be able to transfer to a cal state? </p>
<p>Please help </p>
<ol>
<li><p>Do you have a apartment rental and does it have a lease? Maybe you and the sister can get a place. You can call residential life and see if they have any dorms left, or listings for off campus housing. Maybe someone is still looking for a roommate.</p></li>
<li><p>I’d go ahead and go, you planned on it and likely just have last minute jitters. Your friend bailing doesn’t help. Especially if you have financial aid to take care of it. But if you really don’t want to sure you can go to CC first.</p></li>
<li><p>Yes</p></li>
</ol>
<p>It really doesn’t sound to me like you’re ready to take the steps to go away to college. Many kids like their siblings but realize its time in their life to move away. I get the impression this is going to be harder for you than for most. Second, I’m at a loss to understand why you and your friend didn’t plan on rooming together in a UC Merced dorm instead of an apartment. Frosh year is a real time of growth for many kids as they meet new friends, get exposed to new thoughts and ideas, basically have the world they had known shaken up a bit. It sounds to me like you wanted to avoid all of that, camping out with 2 friends you already knew instead of plunging into a new life.</p>
<p>Obviously from a few sentences I don’t know you, but the impression I come away with is that the CC might be the better alternative for you.</p>
<p>I agree with Mike. You’re not ready to go out of your comfort zone. You needed your friend to hold your hand, so once she bailed, you’re bailing too. You’re asking people on CC for advice, when what you should really be doing is asking Merced’s housing office about availability. Call them, or, if you can’t do that, send an email. These are nice people that are used to being asked lots of questions. Now, if you can’t event call them, you are definitely not ready for college life. I’m not meaning to be harsh, just real. </p>
<p>If you go to Merced and decide that you can’t handle it, you will have to reapply to the Cal State by going to CC for two years, and hoping that they accept you so that you can transfer. Fullerton, Northridge, & SDSU are becoming or, already are impacted, so those might not accept you. If you do LA, you’ll be in lots of traffic-often. </p>
<p>I agree with the others that you’re not ready to leave. It is probably too late to get into the dorms at this point, and I think it will be very hard to make friends if you are in an off-campus apartment with an older student. She will already have a set of friends and you will be left on your own. The great thing about staying in the dorms your freshman year is that they have all kinds of activities designed for you to meet other freshman and to make new friends. However, if you signed a lease for the apartment you may have a hard time getting out of it unless the sister has other friends who want to move in.</p>
<p>SMCC is a great school and it sounds like you might be better off staying there and then transferring in two years. That time will go very quickly and you might be better prepared to leave home at that point. I would definitely suggest that you stay in the dorms at whatever school you end up transferring to. It will give you an opportunity to meet new people and get to know the school better. You will get much less support from the school services if you are off campus. Good luck!</p>
<p>I’m a little less certain that you’re not ready to leave. Everyone doesn’t want to leave their little sister or brother or someone they’re close to. This is normal week-before jitters until proven otherwise. I just dropped D off for her freshman year and it wasn’t jittery, just grim. No tears. Just tight-lipped. She’s ready for college and has lived in all kinds of strange parts of the world for months at a time, but it still is a huge step to leave home and go off to the rest of your life. Lots of students will be feeling the same way at college but only some of them will show it when you’re around. Talk to your Resident Advisor (when you get one) and the college’s counseling department if the feelings persist. The counselors can help you resolve your feelings.</p>
<p>Thanks everyone I made my final choice I’m defiantly staying home and going to community college that is if I have time to apply I already applied but I need to take my placement tests and I’m not sure if they will allow me to do that I will call smcc tomorrow first thing in the morning and ask if I would still have enough time to take the placement tests and figure out my classes and hear about financial aid I feel so much better knowing I’m going to stay home 
</p>
<p>I think you might be a little bit too late. You will find class at SMC that you wanted might have been filled already.</p>
<p>You also need to ask if some of your funding from the Merced acceptance will transfer to SMCC. You may be out of luck, because, believe it or not, money runs out for the year.</p>