Pomona College (14k-year) vs University of Florida (free ride)

[uneven warren]

ok thanks for the input**

ok 2 points I feel like should be put up in the original post :

• My off-campus apartment is a 37min walk/ 23 min bus ride away from campus
• I am struggling to get my residency status approved for UF because my mom and I are not on speaking terms and my father does not keep documents. If I don’t get it approved, I may be charged as a OOS student, which takes away my free ride

[uneven warren]

ok yea if I don’t get my residency status approved, I lose bright futures (free tuition) and I will be charged $16,579 in tuition

my scholarship would only cover my first year fully

[narrow stream]

what would u say is the likelihood that your mom will cooperate and help get ur residency status approved

[uneven warren]

I am not sure.. she's really toxic but I''ll have to do it

[lusty moat]

This is a certified bruh moment- to me it sounds like you’re 50/50 on even getting UF residency approved and it is a PAIN to get residency changed later. With this in mind, my opinion has changed in favor of Pomona. Less risk, gets you away from having to deal with any of that.

If you don’t get UF’s approval but you’re committed, you risk having a lot more debt.

[uneven warren]

yea:(

i think i'll just double commit like @woven basin said and wait until my financial counselor comes back on wednesday and beg for more money

[woven basin]

that's a good idea

I have heard of people begging and getting extra pity/sorrow money from the university (like 5-7k/year additional after appeal was exhausted)

[woven basin]

really? my school didn't really require any docs to prove residency

[uneven warren]

oh shoot hope Pomona does this😭

Hello guys. I am currently undecided but leaning towards the social sciences realm -- political science, international relations, environmental science

Pomona

Pros

1. LAC perks
2. Cali connections?
3. More accesible to teachers (smaller student :teacher ratio)
4. Better departments for social sciences, hence more oppt and research
5. Brand name may benefit for grad school/employers
6. I really like the social aspect of the Claremont college system and may leverage registration at other colleges
7. It's really beautiful

Cons

1. Cost - I have to take out 5k loans per year (probably)
2. Cost of living in cali
3. Dead suburbs? not that big of deal though

UF

Pros

1. Free ride
2. Private bathroom off campus
3. Bigger school = more resources (but this is offset by the enormous student body)
4. decent programs

Cons

1. Lol i really don't want to see my high school classmates again
2. In Florida and I kind of want a fresh start
3. Party Culture
4. There are some really questionable people I have met who will be attending UF

[quiet vector]

20k in loans over 4 years is acceptable imo

Especially if you don't plan to go to grad school

You can also offset some of that with summer/part time employment

If you strongly like Pomona go for it

[lusty moat]

20k in the social sciences is iffy depending on what you do with it. Would need to know your post-college hopes before giving a solid opinion.

[proper herald]

Fr

[uneven warren]

i actually factored that into the coa. 14k/year if I work max hours (12hr/week which is not bad)

[uneven warren]

I was thinking of industrial-psychologist

which requires grad school

That can change tho

[lusty moat]

Not sure if you know how loans work in grad school- they will be deferred again once you enter grad school and you will not be making payments on them. This might seem like a good thing, but all it’s doing is pushing your loan lifespan back X number of years. How long is the program? Would it be a PhD or a MS/MA? Is the extra earning potential high enough to warrant pushing back industry earnings by X years?

These are all questions you should ask yourself. Weigh the pros and cons of that prior to going into debt for your UG.

Ultimately 20k in FEDERAL LOANS (do not take private loans if you can help it) is not bad. I would say that UF is a great school and the difference for admissions between the two will not be high. My thoughts on this are with a full-ride you won’t have to work a job you hate just to live and attend school. You’ll have more time for research apprenticeships, internships, etc in your field of study. This all equates to better chances at attending a solid grad program. Just my 2c but let me know if you have any questions or want anything clarified!

[uneven warren]

Oh ok, I did not know that. mos masters in io psych take 2 years

ms

[uneven warren]

I am probably going to shoot for being a consultant

doctorate take 4-5 years, I might pursue a doctorate degree in io psychology if I have time and money at the point

One of the key advantages of being at Pomona is that I can also take io psychology classes at CMC. They have a superb buiz school

[uneven warren]

I might stay in cali as well and they have highest median earnings for ms

[rich sandal]

They also have insane cost of living

[uneven warren]

right I also have to take in account of that

[narrow stream]

so u live in cali? i would take pomona

[uneven warren]

sorry I do not live in cali

[narrow stream]

oh nvm well i would still lean towards pomona

[lusty moat]

Do also consider most masters cost money whereas doctoral programs pay you to be there.

All in all, I’d do UF for the ability to focus on your degree and focusing on getting solid grades, letters of rec, and experience for grad school.

[uneven warren]

my mind is also telling me this

but people are telling me I will miss out and regret it if I choose UF

Ughhh this is so difficult lol

maybe I should beg for more money

[narrow stream]

lol maybe have u tried appealing?

[uneven warren]

yes I have and they reduced it to 14k/year. they also gave me until Friday to commit

so I don’t think I can appeal anymore

[narrow stream]

oh ok

u know what yea both options are amazing so whatever u choose don't regret

if ur parents r generally unsupportive with stuff just go with UF ig and don't worry about finances
even if they r supportive u can build independence?

[woven basin]

brand name does not matter too much for what you are looking to do

see if you can ask for more money? If your family makes under $65,000 per year your total commitment should be near $0, and sliding as it goes up.

[woven basin]

but of course you will miss out on the intellectual and caring community Pomona is well known for

[uneven warren]

my family does but that’s for 2021 and we have some assets I think that impacts my COA

[woven basin]

even with assets it should be that way

assuming it's under 500k

[uneven warren]

but like my parents do not have any money out of pocket so it’s weird that they didn’t take account of that

[uneven warren]

yea it is

[woven basin]

maybe pomona lacks fin aid funds?

idk but I'd for sure ask for more than that

[uneven warren]

could be since I was a waitlisted student

they give me until friday to decide , is it worth to even ask for more aid atp

[woven basin]

double deposit is what I would do

you have a legitimate reason

[uneven warren]

Ok that was my plan b

but I lose all leverage if I try to appeal as a committed student?

[woven basin]

true

can you call them now?

and speak to a higher up

[uneven warren]

yea I think I can

But what would I say? I already appealed once and listed all my extraneous circumstances

and I had a meeting with my finan counselor too

[woven basin]

tell them it's not enough, it would be ridiculous to commit that much money on that type of income/assets

[uneven warren]

mhm ok

[woven basin]

I know a few people at my HS on 65k-80k income and <500k assets which had COA of around 9k, and that was a public

[uneven warren]

damn

[uneven warren]

yea I just called and they said that if there is no new information, the same decision will be made

and I alr presented everything I feel like

[lusty moat]

Brand shouldn’t be factoring into this really. @uneven warren if you are going to do grad school, THAT is the university they will care about if at all.

To be blunt; you will be racking up debt like nobody’s business in a professional masters program. There is zero need to add to that for a program that isn’t THAT much higher. I will say that I went to a very, very large public school for my UG and didn’t encounter any issues with it translating into grad programs. The opportunities you will have at any school will depend on how you go after them.

[woven basin]

especially for industrial psychologist

though I will say, some professions might scrutinize your undergrad as well

[lusty moat]

Some will. This one won’t.

[woven basin]

it really sucks to be in that position

[uneven warren]

:( Yea I really love Pomona but based on what you guys said here I think UF is the most rational choice

[woven basin]

14k is really quite a lot for that income level and actually sort of unexpected

[uneven warren]

true and interest acrrues like crazy 🥲

I was actually banking on the fact that my fa improves drastically second year

but im not sure

[woven basin]

did you check the price esimator?

[uneven warren]

yea it said that net price would be 10k

[woven basin]

oh I guess Pomona aid just isn't great then

[uneven warren]

I think assets had a huge play or something in my fa . because my family coowns a restaurant

[lusty moat]

@uneven warren if you have any questions about how to navigate a large public system and how to approach finding opportunities, message me. I’m more than happy to speak from my experience or help you however I can.

[woven basin]

if you have a matching aid offer that's better though i know they often will match similar schools'

[uneven warren]

ok thank you so much :)))

[uneven warren]

I unfortunately don’t have a matching offer rn

bowdoin offered me 20k/year but I denied them

this is rly weird and somewhat sad bc I was initially so set on transferring to Pomona. now that I miraculously got in thru the waitlist, I cant even afford it

[woven basin]

oh the irony

I was going to apply as a freshman but their admission rate was so low I didn't even bother

[sharp breach]

i don’t want to be the person who pushes you to one side or another, but I would personally say Pomona especially since it seems to be a top choice for you + yeah there may be debt but 14k a year doesn’t seem so bad at all actually

also if you plan on staying in cali after your collegiate years, it may also be preferable