university in ATL friendly to out of state students?? (Atlanta: loans, hotel)

[mscbrown]

I'm from the north and the OOS prices are a little ridiculous compared to in state tuition. There HAS to be a loophole. I wanted to go down there for a year and hopefully get residency and do the HOPE scholorship but i need to get down there first

idk where to start. I wasnt the best highschool student (20 ACT, 2.75 GPA) but dang can I catch a break? LOL. with OOS tuition its like the states want to send the message stay in your hometown, we grew here you flew here

could anyone help me?? I really dont want to work there for a year and get residency because I'm not familiar with it and it's hard to get a job out of state and you have to stay at your job for 6 months before you can get a place with no cosigner which i dont have unless I transfer but even then I need hella money to stay at a hotel until I find a place. thats a little too risky for me, Id rather go to school-more stable. HELP!!!!!!!

[ATLTJL]

There aren't any loopholes. You have to become a resident to get in state tuition, unless the university feels like giving you a tuition reduction to bring your price down to in state leves (which is unlikely with your GPA and test scores.)

You may be able to get around the 12 month requirement if you come here to live before registering and your parents do not claim you as a dependent on their taxes. You might have luck enrolling in some kind of community college as an in-state resident and then transferring to a university later.

[lastminutemom]

HOPE is for GA high school graduates with very few exceptions. There is no getting HOPE simply because you move here. HOPE is not for people in your situation, unless you graduated high school before 1992 from a GA high school.

In-state tuition is nearly impossible to get. States have out of state tuition for a reason, they aren't fond of waiving it. If you are a recent high school graduate and had top (very high) SAT scores and grades, there may be some schools that will give you a scholarship.

The job market stinks here, especially for those with no college degree. I suggest you stay put, go to school where you are, complete your degree and then move here.

Atlanta isn't going anywhere. Earn your degree first.

[PeteATL41]

Why should you benefit from programs paid for by GA taxpayers when you haven't paid a dime in GA taxes? Talk about feeling entitled...

[rzzz]

If you are moving states for public school, why even bother with GA? California has a better system with more options.

[residinghere2007]

You are not eligible for HOPE and even if you move, you would not be since you didn't graduate from a GA high school.

As far as out of state tuition, many private schools don't have OOS tuition, so you would have option there but many of them are more expensive than a public school. I was from out of state when I first came here for college and I did get a grant from the state, a Georgia Tuition Equalization Grant GTEG. But I also had to take out some loans. I went to CAU and eventually got a scholarship from UNCF that paid for my last two years of college. They didn't have OOS tuition fees at the time, not sure if they still do but I don't believe they do. They are more expensive though than a public school and you are not guaranteed an UNCF scholarship. Also I was an exemplary student (came in with a 3.95 GPA from high school and remained on the Dean's List throughout matriculation) but I did know students who came in with a worse GPA than you and who did get UNCF assistance after achieving good academic scores upon entrance to college.

[lorilove]

I wasnt the best highschool student (20 ACT, 2.75 GPA) but dang can I catch a break? LOL. with OOS tuition its like the states want to send the message stay in your hometown, we grew here you flew here

States are more likely to wave OOS fees for top students as an incentive. Your best bet at this time would be to stay home an attend a local college and get top grades. You can then consider transferring to at a later date.

[residinghere2007]

I actually agree with the above in regards to going to a trade school or community college. You can earn a good living or set yourself up to open a business by learning a trade. Also they are cheaper and may have more financing options for you.

But FWIW, my husband was a complete slacker in high school and even had below a 2.0 which is horrible and would be embarrassing for me but he did get into a traditional college and did get a degree in 4 years and did very well in college. Some high school kids are just slackers. I honestly could have gotten above a 4.0 in school (was an Honors/AP student so you get higher points on GPA due to that) but I didn't like school because it was boring and I didn't even go to school on Tuesdays at all and so I got points deducted from my grades due to attendance.

[red92s]

Oh look. Another person trying to skirt the tuition system, and asking for advice on how to do so publicly. We just went through this earlier in the month . . .

Getting in-state tuition at a Georgia university

[ATLTJL]

Sometimes it's better to go out and get your behind kicked by the real world for a year or two before going to college. Then you will have real motivation to do well.

I did well in high school, and then did really well in college.

But I still think I would have benefited from learning some hard knocks lessons in the real world first. Even though I did well in college, I did pick a pretty BS major. I had to go back and get a master degree to actually learn anything. I probably could have done things a lot better had I known what the real world was like, and losing a year would have been better than losing the 10 years it took me after college to break $50k. Had I majored in the right thing, I could have done that my first year.