my parents cant afford to send me to a good university?

Question

my parents never completed school and got a degree so they have jobs where they dont earn much, and I'm 18 and ready to go to college(electrical engineering). they want to send me to a local college which is good and cheap but I'm scared becuz I heard that when you look for a job, they usually hire people who went to good schools and stuff. I have been given scholarships but its barely enough for the school i'll be going to. so yeah I dont wanna end up like my parents but I'm afraid I will(sucks to feel this way). basically what i'm wondering is am I doomed if I dont attend a good school and get my degree from a local state university?

im in Florida and i graduated with a 3.8 gpa but my SAT score is 1030

Answer 1

It doesn't sound like you or your parents have considered financial aid beyond scholarships. If you're confident in your abilities, you can do what many students do, which is take out student loans that you will pay back once you're earning money as an electrical engineer.

If your parents can't afford to send you to a university but you have the credentials to do so, you will almost certainly qualify for loans, and it is absolutely worth it to attend the best school that will accept you and worry about paying off the loans later. Not only is this the wisest investment you'll ever make, but the fact that you know you will have loans to pay off will help keep you focused on your professional endeavors.

Answer 2

First off What State are you in??? I need to know that, before i can help you. Most SUNY (New York) are cheap and a lot of them are ranked in the top 100 best values in Public education. If your GPA is above a 90 and your SAT is above a 1300 you can get into most. (Binghamton and Geneseo are the thoughest) There are technical schools and many with engineering programs.

Also State colleges are great unless they are low end or two year community colleges. Most states have a good college system.

I know this off hand beacuse im from New York but what your state has to offer could be different so we need to know what state your in so just "add details" then we can be more help, also GPa and SAT will help so we know which ones you can get into(you sound smart so getting in shouldnt be a huge problem)

EDIT-Your GPA is good but you may want to take the SAT again in the fall. The ones in Flordia that i see that are cheap, University of Flordia, New College of Flordia, Flordia St, Univ of Central Flordia and Flordia International Univ. Your GPA will get you into most if not all of these. However you should improve your SAT score or try the ACT. The average tution cost for these schools is around 3000-4000 a year. So its cheap and affordable.

Heres a website w/ all the Universities (not community colleges) in Flordia that are apart of the state system. http://www.flbog.org/univ_info/univlist.asp
You could get into some lower level schools within the system, that are still universities with your SAT possibly.

Answer 3

Usually, the deal with need-based financial aid is that it's always just barely enough for whatever school you will go to - if you go to a more expensive school, they give you more money. If you have a degree in electrical engineering, though, then you will get a good job when you graduate. A degree from an unknown state university won't get you quite as good a job as a degree from Caltech or MIT or RPI, but it will get you something.

Answer 4

a local university may not be so bad and it won't doom you to a low paying job. you'll still get a job if you work hard to build up your resume and you get good grades in school. if you really need to go to an out of state school, you can take out loans to pay for it since they don't make much (YOU--not your parents) are qualified for a stafford loan from the government with low interest and they pay all the interest on the loan until you graduate. talk to a college counselor at school and see what they can recommend. don't give up!

Answer 5

Try
http://www.thebigwww.com/scholarship.html

Answer 6

Apply to some places just to see what they'll give you for financial aid. I managed to get my first year of college almost completely paid for at a private college through college and state and federal funding. Ask around to see who gives good financial aid; if you're below a certain income level it's sometimes actually cheaper to go to a more expensive school because they give more need based aid.

If not, maybe you could consider going to community college for your first year or two and then transfering to a decent state uni. That's what a lot of my friends are doing to save $.

Answer 7

If you are a good student, don't just go to the cheapest and closest place; you will likely be eligible for financial aid at other places as well. Most scholarships come from the school you are going to or are dependent upon the gap between the individual school's tuition and your ability to pay, so you can't judge what will be available to you at other schools based upon the one you have already been admitted to.

Answer 8

a community college is a great place to start if you do very well there you can go to a bigger better school after. if you do well enough you can get grants scholarships and loans to pay for the bigger better school later. besides you get the advantage of learning the college way and getting some base courses out of the way. things like speech, history and some electives.

Answer 9

You should first focus on what you want to do with your future.
If you are undecided that is fine and the community college is a great way to start. Its not about the school you went to its about the skills you bring to the plate. You will be fine but try to remember to enjoy what you do whatever that may be.
It will never feel like work if you enjoy it.
Good Luck