College?!?!? Yikes!!!

[bamabcs]

Hello, right now im having a bit of a predicament in choosing which college I should attend. It is that time of the year where I have to decide which college im going to send my deposit to but there are so many choices that its hard to choose. I have between 3 options

-Attend an in-state college

-Attend a prestigous university

-Attend a Community College

What I am very concerned about are loans. I mean, im planning on being a pharmacist and I feel like accumulating loans (mostly from board and room, personal expenses, all that crap) during undergrad years will be bad when I get my bachelors degree and than have to figure out how to pay for Pharm school! In your eyes, are taking out loans That bad? After calculating my finaid packages, I would say I would have to take out 8000 bucks in loans for an in-state college or prestigous college. Regarding the community college, it would be virtually free... I know what you may be thinking.. Go with the community college!! But, there are also things that universities offer that community colleges don't.. And im sure that some people would agree on that (or disagree.)Hehe.. Im sure you could see my frustration in all of this, but I just wanted the honest thoughts of some of the members on sdn as to what route I should take. Thank you.

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[anishannayya]

Dude, fix the formatting; it was so bad that I didn't even bother to read the question.

EDIT: Thanks for the fix.

Now for a response:

Take what I say with a grain of salt because I too am a college-bound senior, but I would personally attend the in-state college. Even if the prestigious university is the same cost as the in-state college, I would pick the state school. There are several reasons for that:

1) If you are thinking about attending a pre-professional program, attending a CC might be looked down upon (if you take any pre-reqs there).
2) In the eyes of an adcom, a 3.8 a state school is > than 3.4 at prestigious university (remember that a "prestigious" university will be filled with more academically qualified candidates, and therefore you will be competing with smarter applicants).
3) The state school will give you all the same opportunities as the prestigious one. You will still be able to conduct research, etc.

In regards to loans, I think that going into debt isn't necessarily a bad thing, as long as the debt isn't extensive. Paying 40k a year so that you can attend a private uni. just doesn't make sense, and I know many who are doing just that. However, if you really can get the debt down to 8k/year, that really isn't bad. In fact, you can pay off a big chunk of that by doing work-study and getting a summer job (maybe knock out 4-5k). Then, graduating with a bachelors and then pursuing pharmacy in 20k debt isn't too horrible (though I believe that you can apply to pharm school and attend after only 2 years, and this is acceptable to most programs, unlike, say dentistry where you are expected to have a BA/BS; correct me if I'm wrong).

Wish you luck in your future endeavors, and keep us posted on your final decision.

 

[jc14]

You're saying there is no difference in the amount of potential debt between your in-state and the 'prestigious' university? Personally, I would advise avoiding the community college route for the reason you stated. If you wish to pursue professional school, a university can afford you better opportunities to get the right start on that path.

There definitely is plenty of opportunity to rack up the debt in professional school... I would heavily factor expense in the choice of universities.

 

[Cmaj7th]

Personally, I would advise avoiding the community college route for the reason you stated. If you wish to pursue professional school, a university can afford you better opportunities to get the right start on that path.

that is complete garbage IMO. I know many physicians who got their AAS before transferring to a university. it saves money and helps the transition from high school to college. plus when you get a bachelors it only has the name of the university on it.

if you're going to be racking up debt from professional school why not ease the load?

when it comes down to it the main factors for success are your own work ethic and intelligence, not the name of your school.

 

[Myuu]

Eh, if the in-state school and the prestigious and presumably private university are in the same price range, might as well go for the prestigious one (unless you like the state one better).

(I took out 20k in loans to attend state schools in undergrad, so 8k isn't bad at all.)

 

[jc14]

that is complete garbage IMO. I know many physicians who got their AAS before transferring to a university. it saves money and helps the transition from high school to college. plus when you get a bachelors it only has the name of the university on it.

I was merely commenting on the options OP presented; I'm not knocking getting some credits at CC and then transferring. I'm just saying that if OP is looking to invest him/herself in one institution for the entire college career, go with the university, even if it costs a bit more.

when it comes down to it the main factors for success are your own work ethic and intelligence, not the name of your school.

 

[Evergrey]

that is complete garbage IMO. I know many physicians who got their AAS before transferring to a university. it saves money and helps the transition from high school to college. plus when you get a bachelors it only has the name of the university on it.

if you're going to be racking up debt from professional school why not ease the load?

when it comes down to it the main factors for success are your own work ethic and intelligence, not the name of your school.

This is true, name counts for very little. On the other hand, the quality of education and breadth of opportunities can vary between different institutions. Work ethic and intelligence are important, but you're only going to get so far depending on the availability of opportunities and how much you are challenged. If you are great at challenging yourself and maintaining focus and direction, then that's awesome. But I don't think that's true for everyone.

Case in point -- I decided I want to do research 7/9ths through my education. I asked around, got a lead, applied for intramural funding, and then just a few weeks later I was doing paid research with a professor 1 on 1. This experience really shaped the direction of my career plans, and I don't think this would have been possible at every school. My school was a bit more expensive than my state school, but I think I grew a lot more from my experience here. (For the record, I took some summer classes at my state school so I do have a decent frame of reference.)

 

[bamabcs]

UPDATE:

oh geez now I found out from the prestigous U that I would have to take remedial type courses as a requirement.. I don't want to waste time so I think I might just go with the state U and transfer when I need to apply to the Pharmacy program, what do you all think?

 

[bamabcs]

Bump

 

[Myuu]

Bump

Wouldn't you still have to take the remedial courses then? Also, wouldn't you need a certain number of credits taken at that institution in order to get a diploma from there?

 

[Instatewaiter]

Hello, right now im having a bit of a predicament in choosing which college I should attend. It is that time of the year where I have to decide which college im going to send my deposit to but there are so many choices that its hard to choose. I have between 3 options

-Attend an in-state college

-Attend a prestigous university

-Attend a Community College

What I am very concerned about are loans. I mean, im planning on being a pharmacist and I feel like accumulating loans (mostly from board and room, personal expenses, all that crap) during undergrad years will be bad when I get my bachelors degree and than have to figure out how to pay for Pharm school! In your eyes, are taking out loans That bad? After calculating my finaid packages, I would say I would have to take out 8000 bucks in loans for an in-state college or prestigous college. Regarding the community college, it would be virtually free... I know what you may be thinking.. Go with the community college!! But, there are also things that universities offer that community colleges don't.. And im sure that some people would agree on that (or disagree.)Hehe.. Im sure you could see my frustration in all of this, but I just wanted the honest thoughts of some of the members on sdn as to what route I should take. Thank you.

As a graduating medical student, I would recommend going either to the state U or the prestigious U, especially if they are only $8K. That may sound like a lot to you but I can tell you it is a bargain for undergrad. You will likely have an easier time getting into pharm school and will be opened up to a number of opportunities that you wont have at CC.

There are a ton of scholarships you can get so that $8K may even be less.
Were it a private school we were talking about and you were having to take out $50K/year it may be different but given the tuition, I think you should go to one of the 4 year university programs.


I haven't read the thread, so someone probably already said what I did- but that's my take.