Adult Evening Classes in San Antonio?? (Paris, Alamo: loans, transfer, high school)

[sapphire]

I'll sell you a degree for $1000, and it will be absolutely worthless. There is no way you'll get any type of college degree here for $1000. Not even at a community college. Education is expensive! Consider it an investment in your future......if it were that cheap, it wouldn't really mean very much.

[firstclassflyer]

You can get a degree for $1000. It'll be from the "School of Hard Knocks" though.

[wCat]

Originally Posted by Sarah-Jane-Again

To be honest, I'm finding all the courses and costs totall confusing. One of the first responses was about Lakeview College being only $555 per degree course, but when I visited the website for a better look, it appeared that it is actually $555 PER SEMESTER! There's no way on this earth that I could afford that kind of money.
Unfortunately, I doubt I would be entitled to any kind of grant either as I'm only a legal resident, not a citizen.
This really sucks
To be honest, I initially wanted a campus-based course so I could start making new friends (and obviously, further my education), but the more I think about it, the more I think an online-based course would be better for me.
But where on earth do I go just to obtain a BASIC degree... I mean, something basic like English Literature? It seems that all the courses offered both online and on campus are things like, criminal justice, art and technology.
To be blunt, I can probably afford $1,000 at a push to cover my education - do I have a hope in hell of getting a degree for that little amount?

I know the obvious answer is to pick up the phone and call some of the colleges to ask about enrollment and prices, but if any of you have ever called, you'll realise how difficult it is to get them off the telephone.. they're more like salesmen!

Sarah....PM me if you need more help. College is expensive, but there are so many avenues to assist in getting an education. Please don't say you can never afford it....because through FAFSA many students do get financial assistance. I think you may not understand the system. I'll be glad to help if you would like to talk about it privately. I would like to further my own education beyond the BA I already have. To do that full time, would mean I couldn't work a full time job unless I only take a class or two at the time. I have to decide what can work for me. But it is possible.....if people HAD to pay for college without assistance then there would be a lot of people out there without a degree. Please look at the FAFSA website. It's not affiliated with any university or college.

[sapphire]

She doesn't have to be a citizen to get assistance? I know a young man who desperately needed financial aid, but until he became a US citizen, there was no help for him. That kid took 19 credit hours at a time, worked full-time nights at PF Chang's, and part-time during the day on campus. Talk about motivated--he maintained a 3.5 GPA.

[Chaka]

Yup, the school districts offer continuing education courses. I took a French class and DH took a spanish class at Alamo Heights high school. Great fun. I kept coming home wanting white wine, because we kept starting with 'un bon vin blanc' which would have been fine except I was newly pregnant then

I've also taken evening classes at SAC, but those are a lot more structured.

[Chaka]

Originally Posted by wCat

I don't have a clue to how Texas state tuition compares to Cali...but if it's as low as you say, in the long run, however, if grants or scholarships don't apply, then the accumulated loan would be greater.

I'm just trying to understand.

In the past, officially California universities (Cal State and U of Cal) didn't have 'tuition', they had 'fees' and were a lot less than all other states. Grants and scholarships are available as well in California, and many do utilize them, but at least when I was a student, one could conceivably go to university full time, work part time, and pay for it all on that part time job.

When I started in 1987 at UCSB, fees were $400 per term (4 quarters which included the summer term, most people only did 3/year). There were of course additional expenses for books, and if you chose to live away from home, room and board. But a student could easily earn $1200 in a year to cover the fees (no tuition). I don't recall the maximum # of credits, but most people took 16 credits/quarter (a few would take 20, 12 was minimum for full time). Quarters were 12 weeks and pretty intense, so more than 20 hours was unheard of. Summer term was 8 weeks, and it was impossible to take more than 8 credits (2 classes) then.

Now, when I left in 1992, the fees were about to jump to ~$1200/quarter). A substantial increase, but still something someone could conceivably afford by working part time ($3600/year). I realize that was a long time ago, and I don't know what the fees are these days, but at least then,it was cheaper than anywhere else. And the fees were pretty standard across the UC system - so Berkeley and UCLA were the same as the 'lesser' schools.

The Cal State Universities (where Pops went) were even less expensive.

These were all in-state fees, and you could get state residency after one year if you worked and paid taxes - ANY taxes. So most out of state students got residency by their 2nd year.

[Chaka]

Sarah-jane, after reading a bit more of your posts, I think you have to think about what it is you want out of your education. What does the degree mean to you? A lot of later entry or 'non-traditional' programs are aimed at developing specific job skills for a specific market. If you're looking more at a liberal arts type of degree, you're looking at a traditional 4 year university.

You could do this reasonably affordably by taking one course at a time at a community college, then eventually transferring over to a 4 yr uni. It's not free like it is in England, though. The state universities are subsidized so they're cheaper than the private, but there's still tuition.

I gather you're not trying to get a degree for $1000, right? But maybe you can use some of that to take one class, then another, while you work and save money to continue your education. (I presume you'll have a work visa soon, if not already due to your marriage - have you already applied?)

There are indeed MANY programs available out there for financial aid. The non-public/federal ones do not usually require you to be a citizen. You'll need to do some google searches...there used to be books printed on this stuff. You might be able to cobble together a lot of small scholarships to help towards your goal.

But I think you need to decide what your goal is in terms of your education.

Good luck!

[wCat]

Originally Posted by sapphire

She doesn't have to be a citizen to get assistance? I know a young man who desperately needed financial aid, but until he became a US citizen, there was no help for him. That kid took 19 credit hours at a time, worked full-time nights at PF Chang's, and part-time during the day on campus. Talk about motivated--he maintained a 3.5 GPA.

Well..you have a point about this. I understood she was originally from England, but didn't realize she is not yet a citizen. (Sarah...could you clarify that?)

BTW - if you are interested in becoming a citizen, the classes are very interesting and informative. That might be a good starting point for your education and it will pay off with added benefits!

Chaka made some good points. (and thank you for explaining CA vs Texas)...
I don't have a clue to how FAFSA applies to residents that do not have official status....but my guess is that wouldn't work. But as Chaka pointed out, there are privately funded student loans that are affordable. It's still a loan, and the interest rates a higher than a FAFSA loan....but generally reputable private student loans are have lower interest rates than other financing. Again....look up Sallie Mae's 1-2-3 step program. And be sure to go in and talk to the school of your choice and see what options they can suggest. Alamo CCD is a great place to start. If you get a 2 year degree, most of the courses will transfer to a 4 year program should you want to pursue a BA of BS.

[quest51210]

unless they have been residents of texas/san antonio for a year they will have to pay out of district/state tuition. at accd that can be about $2500 per 12 hours

[SanAntoQT]

Since the OP is British, I believe she would be considered an international student, therefore, tuition would be even higher.

I was floored when I learned that tuition at the community college level here in San Diego was $20 per unit! Needless to say, once I became a resident, I took full advantage.