I wouldn’t have said this 4-5 years ago, because the CSU wasn’t faring too well, then. It was a mess, plain and simple … especially for juniors and seniors who played by the rules and expected to complete their upper-division coursework in a timely manner.
But it’s better now, and less campuses are “impacted” for fall 2015 than last year (for both freshmen and CC transfers):
I did a few spot checks from the links on the chart (above) and noticed that, except for a handful of campuses (incl SDSU), I found less impacted programs than last year. Not sure if there were less applications submitted for fall 2015 or more matriculating freshmen/sophs weeded out (or soon to be weeded out) of popular programs this year but it looks pretty good.
And yes, FIH, the CSU is still a bargain, compared to tuition and fees for residents of out-of-state public universities. The UC has competitive tuition and fees with most other states. Overall, I think a CA public university diploma (in an occupational field) is still a good buy.
I just really believe an 18-year old is best served by leaving “home,” where they learn for themselves when their sheets and towels need washing and how to manage their money thru trial and error, etc. It’s part of the growing they do by leaving the nest and staying motivated to succeed in their studies w/o heli-parents dictating their every move. It’s also good for them to keep their own resumes updated and work a PT job with their classes (under 15 hrs wk).
So far, so good. I’m happy with the opportunities the CSU has provided my kids so far and happy with the level of self-sufficiency they acquired for being out on their own.
Staying in mom’s back bdrm while going to local CC, working PT at Pep Boys with their K-12 buds and showing up at all hours after partying all night is not the same thing as being on your own in another county …. even with parents’ support.
