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Okay I have a situation I'd like an opinion on....
I have been accepted into several CUNY schools: Hunter, John Jay, & the City College ($11-13k/year schools out-of-state). I have also been accepted into several in-state (I live in the west coast area) schools that cost about 2-3k less than those school's tuition rates.
The in-state schools will require that I have a car. That is the "norm" at these schools. Even if I make do without one the first year or so, I would eventually get one. So at some point there is gonna be a purchase of a car, either it be some used junker up-front or in payments financed through my parents. In addition I'd have to be paying for gas, insurance, repairs.
Naturally, if I were to attend a CUNY school I would not own a car. The obvious draw-back to these schools, however, is the price of housing. It's my understanding that it is possible to find a small studio apartment within Manhattan or Brooklyn that runs $900-1300/month? Comparatively, if I were to attend the in-state schools I know I would be able to find a more reasonable rent between $550-950.
I haven't received the scholarship/financial aid packages that the schools send out yet, but I do have a trust fund, that allows me $15k each year I attend college. The first SCHOOL year due to technicalities I will be allowed $22.5k. I'd be willing to do loans in addition, if need be, for either schools, although of course I'd like to minimize them. My parents won't be able to contribute really besides some of the small day-to-day living expenses. Work? I wouldn't have a job set up at either prior. Assuming I could find one, it would be the most basic entry level one there is obviously. I figure, at least initially, it wouldn't be something I got going until later in the year -- so it's not what I'd consider a "safe" source of income.
As almost every young adult, one of my dreams would be to live in New York City. I'm just not sure if this really.....sounds like a good idea? I mean, on paper it seems like it could potentially be something that's do-able? but I know real-life can be a different story. Putting aside budgeting, I don't know a whole lot about the city...but does anyone really? Sure, I've visited before several times, but it kinda seems like something everyone jumps head-first into. I definitely feel like the in-state school are the safer (& much more boring! ) choice.
So, what do you think? Is there something I'm not considering? Is my logic naive? What would you do? I'm up for any or all opinions.
Reading this back it all seems a little "diary entry", excuse me if this isn't an appropriate thread here lol
I graduated from Hunter- it's a good school academically but it has virtually no student community. I only met a handful of people there. But there are so many other opportunities to meet people in NYC that I guess the point is moot. To be honest in your case I would say go for it and come to NYC. It seems like you're being really realistic about everything (i.e. aiming for CUNY rather than a 60k/year private school). The 15K a year that you will have should cover most of your tuition expenses, but you will definitely need loans for living. You can find a roommate situation in Brooklyn/Queens for around $600-700 a month (and that will give you a way to meet people and form friendships too). I would figure your monthly living expenses to be somewhere in the 1500-2000 range depending on how frugal you are able to live. Between your trust fund money and working a part time job you could probably keep the loans to a minimum.
Also, something to consider- the expense of having a car will be pretty close to the expense that you will acquire in NYC between transportation (metrocard and occasional cabs) and the general higher cost of living.
CUNY schools have dorms. Why don't you just live in one of their dorms? You really need to speak to them about housing, but Hunter definitely has dorms, as does City College. In recent years, as CUNY's profile has grown nationally and internationall, they have been building dorms for their students.
CUNY schools have dorms. Why don't you just live in one of their dorms? You really need to speak to them about housing, but Hunter definitely has dorms, as does City College. In recent years, as CUNY's profile has grown nationally and internationall, they have been building dorms for their students.
Ahhh, the likelihood of getting into a CUNY dorm w/b like winning LOTTO!
Also, if I recall, most are reserved for upper classmen and specific programs.
Besides, considering the the CUNY population, the dorms have a capacity of about 5%!!
So, imo, its not realistic.
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OP, you can always move to NYC after graduation or later once established in your career. I suggest you focus on school and doing well. I would choose the environment which would be easiest to keep focused!
Plus, are CUNY schools really worth the cost and struggle? Will a CUNY degree open doors and get you an income which will pay for the high cost of NYC *and* pay off the LOANS you took just to live while in school.
There it is. I say absolutely not! Do a search check out the difficulty some kids are having financially post graduation.
Btw, "financial package"??? CUNY??? Somehow, I don't think so.
CUNY schools have dorms. Why don't you just live in one of their dorms? You really need to speak to them about housing, but Hunter definitely has dorms, as does City College. In recent years, as CUNY's profile has grown nationally and internationall, they have been building dorms for their students.
Where does this person get information. And the delivery with such confidence.
Hunter College has only three not-so-big residences, and one is a YMCA I seem to recall. This is an issue with Hunter. The residences have always been deemed substandard by the students, granted that I have not lived in one.
City College has dorms but not enough. They are just completing a large-ish dorm complex on upper St. Nicholas Terrace, which might mitigate the problem - that they cannot attract as many out-of-state students as they would like given housing costs here.
Dorms are too expensive...
You can live in Brooklyn or Queens with a rommmate for $700-800... Maybe even in some areas of Manhattan.
Plus you can always find work at the restauant or something...
But what major are you planning on getting? Maybe it's really not worth it to go to CUNY for it?
In-state school will be cheaper anyway. Consider the fact that your expenses other than rent will be higher, too (metrocard = $100, food, etc...)
Is your goal serious education or to play?
If you want to play, while going through the pretense of educating yourself, then come to NYC, go into debt, and end up with with a useless CUNY degree.
If your goal is serious education, then stay in your state, focus on studying, do well, get a job that pays and then move to NYC.
BTW, I am not a CUNY basher. I went to Brooklyn College-SUNY Downstate BA-MD program. The BA part was pretty worthless, but my MD is priceless.
Also, as another poster pointed above, don't expect any type of typical college community atmosphere at the CUNYs since the vast majority of students are commuters. They come to study, then they go back home.
Thank you for all the great responses! They are all very helpful in helping me to re-examine what it is I'm looking for.
I did do a little research on dorms prior, and am aware of the difficulty of getting into one. There also seemed to be other additional student housing options seemingly available outside the schools, but they seemed just as expensive as renting/sharing an apartment. Frankly, a dorm setting isn't something I'd probably find very appealing anyway. Apartment sharing is something I've warmed to, the only reluctance being that I will admittedly miss having a private bathroom which doesn't seem obtainable in NYC listings for such.
In regards to the CUNY schools not offering the typical college experience, I can understand that. Ultimately, living in NYC outweighs that experience in my mind. Prior to living where I do now, I lived near a community that had a big traditional college presence. I have a good gist of what I'd potentially be missing out on and it's not something that would hold sway over my decision.
Now...is a CUNY school degree really worth the additional costs and hassle? This is where I'm sitting on the fence.
I know you all are right in the thinking that the in-state school, regardless of whatever reasoning I have to reduce the difference, is going to end up being considerably less costly in the end.
I live in Arizona and have been accepted into all three of the major universities here. None of the schools are necessarily what I would envision my ideal college being nor am I sure a degree from them would be uh...signficantly superior to a CUNY.
I applied to a couple other more competitive out-of-state schools, which I feel I should get into, but between them not being NYC (ahem, my dream location) and out-of-state tuition that's not CUNY-priced I haven't given them too much serious consideration. I feel like if I'm going to go out-of-state, it would be New York, primarily because of the location being somewhere I would enjoy. Perhaps not the most practical thought-process, but there it is
Because I'm acknowledging that CUNYs are probably not all that and a bag of chips, in itself as schools, that probably means that the practical choice is waiting to move to NYC after college after as suggested by some of you. That's probably true, but I can't shake the feeling that this might be the most "practical" period in my life to do it. Coming out of an in-state school, I'm probably still gonna have considerable loans. I'm aware that having a degree these days, doesn't secure you substantial employment also. Moving to New York is no easy thing to do as I'm sure you all could tell me; having financial aid and the trust in some ways cushion the risk and urgency of the transition. I could just see myself a decade from now contemplating a different set of risks and still deeming it unpractical..because really, it seems like living there is rarely practical for anyone honestly lol
Well...as you can see I'm very conflicted. If you've read all this, you're probably literally shaking your head.
Where does this person get information. And the delivery with such confidence.
Hunter College has only three not-so-big residences, and one is a YMCA I seem to recall. This is an issue with Hunter. The residences have always been deemed substandard by the students, granted that I have not lived in one.
City College has dorms but not enough. They are just completing a large-ish dorm complex on upper St. Nicholas Terrace, which might mitigate the problem - that they cannot attract as many out-of-state students as they would like given housing costs here.
I did not deliver any information with any confidence. I suggested that the OP contact the CUNY schools for info about their dorms. The OP has said that he/she has already done so, and that solution isn't ideal for the OP. Its really up to the OP and only the OPto work out whether or not coming to NYC to study at CUNY is viable.
Now...is a CUNY school degree really worth the additional costs and hassle? This is where I'm sitting on the fence.
I know you all are right in the thinking that the in-state school, regardless of whatever reasoning I have to reduce the difference, is going to end up being considerably less costly in the end.
I live in Arizona and have been accepted into all three of the major universities here. None of the schools are necessarily what I would envision my ideal college being nor am I sure a degree from them would be uh...signficantly superior to a CUNY.
I applied to a couple other more competitive out-of-state schools, which I feel I should get into, but between them not being NYC (ahem, my dream location) and out-of-state tuition that's not CUNY-priced I haven't given them too much serious consideration. I feel like if I'm going to go out-of-state, it would be New York, primarily because of the location being somewhere I would enjoy. Perhaps not the most practical thought-process, but there it is
Because I'm acknowledging that CUNYs are probably not all that and a bag of chips, in itself as schools, that probably means that the practical choice is waiting to move to NYC after college after as suggested by some of you.
One posted on this thread has said after getting a CUNY degree, undergrad, he got into medical school and that's worked out for him. I've known people who went to CUNY's undergrad, who got into programs at Columbia, Harvard, and Cornell.
That doesn't mean you should come to NYC and go to one. Are you really willing to put such a major life decision in the hands of perfect strangers (myself included?)
If you look around at other threads on this forum, there will be people claiming NYC is hell on earth and impossibly expensive. Others will claim its the best place in the world. But these are just people's opinions. And as such, an opinion is more of a personal feeling, not a fact or law.
Some people will love NYC. Others will hate it.
As for whether going to university in Arizona or NYC is better, there's no clear answer on that, either . It depends on many different factors, including your field.
I would say as someone who has been a student before and who is applying to grad school now, if you want to relocate, doing so as a college student is one of the EASIEST times to move to a NYC, especially if you have parental support and/or financial aid. So if you really want to go to live in NYC, its your choice and its up to you to find a way to do so.
I'll add this. Now, if you decide you really want to go to school out West, fine, its your choice and your life decision. But if you wanted to go to school in NYC, and you let a bunch of bitter people you don't know talk you out of it, you need to be slapped. If you can get into college, you're an adult, and its time to act like it. Be able to make your own decisions and be responsible for them. Every action you take, will always have consequences, which can be good or bad.
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) choice.
