Looking at the loan option, I'll assume: *Getting a FT job tacks on 1 year onto your time in school * Your FT job without a degree will pay $20k/year * Your FT job after getting a degree will pay $30k/year (conservative, not knowing your area of study, and implicitly including some risk of not finding work) * Your additional living expenses will eat up the money you would earn with a FT job, $20k/year * A PT job will pay half as much, $10k/year, and you'd make up the difference with loans - another $10k * The interest on student loans is 7%, payable monthly over 120 months * You pay no taxes because the income is so low * The change doesn't start until you start your junior year * There's no tuition impact for a 5th year, since your years are part-time Your additional loans to cover living expenses that a part-time job can't cover will amount to $20k over the last 2 years of college, which you will complete on time. If you pay over 10 years, you'll spend almost $8k in interest on that loan. Meanwhile, if you worked full-time, you can avoid additional loans, so you save $8k in interest expense. However, since you've delayed your graduation a year, you've delayed your $30k job by a year as well. That's $10k you lose in opportunity cost in year 3, instead of $8k you'd lose in interest expense over years 3 through 13. Slowing down your degree will cost you money.
My parents paid for my dorm/apartment for the 2 years it took for me to graduate. The HOPE scholarship paid my tuition. It was quite nice to have that going for me. I didn't have to start taking out loans until Grad school, and the debt is fairly crushing to me. My best friend though used loans and part-time jobs to pay for his living expenses and room. He has 5 siblings that have either finished school, or are currently going, and all did the same thing.
FYI- I am attending University of Houston the spring semester(before I attended a junior college and have completed my core curriculum courses or basics whatevered they are called), and my major is computer engineering. I started at UofH my freshman year and did well but I felt there was no need to have my parents pay so much for classes that are offered somewhere else for a much cheaper price. Also I will look into residential assistance(assuming it is the apartments near school), but I couldn't imagine being anywhere near the priceof a dorm/semester. Average apartment is around 700/month is it not?
*grumble* These spoiled brats these days ... If they are still offering to give you a bed to sleep in, you should stay, for the exact same reason the first replier gave you: your #1 goal should be to minimize debt. Getting out on your own is overrated especially if you can't afford it. I wish I had that option when I was in college... all the money I spent paying bills that could have been saved. You shouldn't be afraid of stepping out on your own and getting a job though -- that *is* part of growing up. You should count yourself fortunate that you've gotten a free ride for this long. Unless you're scared of actually having to work hard, get out there and do what you have to do. If I sound somewhat contradictory, maybe it's because I believe that learning how to be fiscally responsible is a far more important part of "growing up" than just learning to be on your own. Being on your own is overrated. Everybody needs somebody to survive. What's more important is making financially smart decisions at an early stage of your life so that you don't have to struggle later on.
I live in GA and went to college in GA, but the apartment I lived in was 4 bedroom furnished was $400/month per person with utilities included.
I agree being fiscally responsible is very important but at the sametime the experiences you will get living in a dorm or apartment in college is great and something you might not ever get to experience again. Obviously debt isn't good but that can be made up.
I would say stay on campus for 1 year to 'get the experience' and then stay at home and have as little debt as possible for your remaining years at school trust me if you can save that it'll make all the difference once you do finish school and truly "get out" in the world.
The way I look at it, you either live at home now while you're in college and minimize debt, or spend a year or two at home after you graduate (assuming your parents will provide for you then) to find a job and start paying off debt. Either way, at least find a part-job while you're going to school to cover as much of the expense as you can. Even if it is only a seasonal/summer job. I lived on my own (with roomates) for four years, then lived at home for a year and a half after graduating. During school I worked in retail/sales part-time during the holidays and over the summer...I was fairly good at it so they gave me a ton of hours, so I pulled in decent income for a student despite only working about 4 months out of the year. Still came out with a nice chunk of debt from student loans, and I am just now (2.5 years after graduating) starting to see the light at the end of the tunnel to pay those off. I would also advise anyone to NOT buy a car, house, or anything else that requires a monthly payment until you have your loans paid off. I bought a car right before graduating, and wish I would've gone with a used car instead.
If he lived on campus for a year just to get the experience I am sure he will regret not living on campus for all 4 years of school. What's so great about living on-campus for college for most kids is that they can be 'free' while not having to deal with all of the responsibilities of being out on your own, like paying rent or working a job.
It sounds like you dont want debt, but your parents are cutting you off from everything except a place to live. I'm sure they'll feed you too. So, all you have to pay is a car? Phone? Consider yourself lucky. You obviously dont want to move out, otherwise you would have done it right away when your parents were still handing money to you.
This. Getting out of college with no/little debt is so much better than the better time you'd have living on campus. If I lived with my parents and didn't have to pay for an apartment, I'd have a BMW by now.
Really? I paid my way through.....just bartended in the evenings and took out student loans and grants. Was worth every penny. Took me a couple of years extra, but who cares? College was the best ! DD
During these times, now is not the time to pile on debt. Yea, living in a dorm would be cool, but really... I know people who lived in a friend's dorm room, staying on the couch or because there was a free available bed. Better yet, if you have a girlfriend you can always crash at her place. So many people pay for a dorm room and meal plan etc, and then don't even use their room because they are staying in someone elses dorm. The "college" experience is not worth that amount of debt, especially if you can get that college experience by crashing at a friend's place. You have the chance to be debt-free AND get college life! But much depends on your school and what you plan on doing with your life. If you plan on going into a job that requires good grades to get in, do NOT go with a full-time job. You should be focusing on your studies. However, if you have different circumstances and grades/graduating soon aren't as important, then you can go with a full-time job. (I can't imagine getting a good full-time job these days though, why would it be worth it? The only way you get a good job in this economy is to make the grades. Jobs aren't going to be abundant like they used to be, even for the next few years.) Bottom line though is, Don't live in a dorm. The biggest theft that ever happened to me, or anyone else, is the college meal plan. Its the biggest rip-off you will encounter in your life. If you have a girlfriend, they don't even use half the money on their meal plan usually. And if you have a girlfriend, you can stay in the dorms... there is no reason to not live with your parents. You can get the best of both worlds: little debt, time to study with p/t job, and college life if you can make friends. Make the smart decision. College is only going to be the next few years of your life. College students don't realize that. It is all going to end faster than they think, and then they are stuck with the rest of their life.. with low grades, crap job and.... DEBT.
Why on earth would you piss away your college experience just to save a few bucks? Take out loans, enjoy college, and get laid a lot.
stay at home + grants + student loans(as little as possible) + part-time job + penny pinching = cheapest route The whole college experience argument doesn't apply as much to UofH as it does to other colleges. More than likely if you're going there you have already made a decision to spend less money.
