[quote=FlyerInHi]BG, I just meant to say that you can’t just let the state take care of your kids. They are many young folks who can’t do what they want because they don’t have family financial support.
Some people just don’t have the inclination of getting a marketable degree and going to work right after college. Some people find their ways later. For those guys, family support is essential or they can drift down quickly.
Of course, everyone is different, but I don’t think leaving the rat race is recommended for most people.
I just met a neighbor at complex where I have a rental. She is 21 with new baby child and husband. Her parents paid cash for the condo in a nice community, Seven Hills in Vegas. Good school district. Without her parents she could be a drug addict living in the hood.[/quote]
I agree that students going to public colleges in CA without financial aid (waivers, grants or scholarships they don’t have to pay back) is at a disadvantage unless they have a deep-pocketed benefactor(s) to keep them going long enough to obtain their degree. I’m not sure in all cases but I don’t think getting a 4-year degree from a UC/CSU is worth it (depending on campus and major) if the student is going to be saddled with more than $20K in student loans to pay off after graduating. The recent graduate has too many needs in the months after college graduation, especially if they have to relocate for their first job. For example, the old beater they were driving in college might need to be replaced to hit the road, pulling a small u-haul. They may now be too old to qualify to be on their parent(s) healthplan anymore (Tricare upper limit is still age 23) … and the list goes on.
My kid(s) were/are fortunate in that they have a fee waiver (tuition only) and a scholarship of up to $7K year (if they attend summer term FT in addition to the academic year FT) as long as they maintain a 2.0 GPA. My youngest kid’s expenses were/are the greatest, of course, due to substantial fee hikes (campus and dorming fees) over the years. Last year (their freshman year living on campus) was ~$22K for which I paid ~$12K and this year (soph year, living off campus) will cost about ~$20K, for which I will pay ~$9K. I set aside $50K to get them to graduation (combo masters/bachelor degree in 4.5 to 5 yrs attending summers) and I expect it will be enough if there are no substantial rent hikes (split 4 ways) or campus fee hikes.
Without this aid, my kid(s) would have had to go to community college their first two years and attempt to transfer into university, which is NOT guaranteed. The “track record” of my kids’ community-college bound “homies” so far has been lackluster. I only know of ONE of my youngest’ HS friends who is on the deans list at CC and headed straight for SDSU (w/ guaranteed admission). The rest have dropped out or are only now taking one class at a time, due to all of their “overly-familiar” distractions.
As for my older kid(s), all their compadres from HS who stayed home to go to CC are still working for minimum wage locally or in parent-owned businesses and most of their female friend’s now have 2 or more children and no spouse. As far as their seriousness to attend and complete CC, that is a distant memory.
It doesn’t help that my kids’ local CC is right across the street from their HS :=0
I really feel it is best to get your kids out of dodge ASAP after HS graduation so they can grow up and learn to function on their own. From ages 18-25, hanging around in a parent(s) home with your straggling HS buds surrounding you (under the guise of “attending local CC”) is a road that surely leads to a dead end.
