Can't Afford My Dream School?

[Anonymous]

So I recently started applying to transfer schools. I got accepted to 35+ Uni's but I ended up narrowing down my top ones. I am also waiting on some more schools (including U-Tennessee) and will keep and eye. So far it's 1. Bama 2. Clemson 3. Missouri S&T 4. Ohio State and 5. U Ark are my top 5 right now. I got into Ohio State for engineering (really am still very much surprised). However, I am so far really interested in going to The University of Alabama. I haven't wanted to go for some time now. The only problem is... they didn't give me a scholarship and it is extremely expensive (for me anyways). As an out of state student if I included their tuition (about $31,500) and added expenses, books, housing, and etc... I am looking at about $55,000 a year). I plan on applying for scholarships ASAP or at least current student ones when I start. This is so expensive that as of now I am registered into one class (until orientation) and the bill is about $4100 for me.

I have some friends there already and am very excited. I love the school so much and got directly into my major (Computer Engineering). However, I recently got into Clemson (unexpectedly) 2 days ago for engineering. Clemson is slightly cheaper than Alabama but not by much sadly. Clemson is ranked higher than Bama in Engineering and I wonder if it could help me with grad school applications. However, Clemson doesn't offer transfer scholarships and I would also have to pay out of pocket. U Ark gave me a scholarship that pays a lot of the difference between the in and out of state tuition. I'm not as crazy about U Ark as Clemson or Bama but it is the cheapest as of now.

What would y'all do? Any kinds of resources (especially on scholarships)? Should I say goodbye to my dream school and new friends? Which will help with my job opportunities and grad school applications? What do I do about the cost? Is the price tag worth it? What about the ROI? Please let me know what y'all think. Thank you!

[abc3643]

Avoid all those schools because, if you get pregnant in any of those states, you won't be able to get an abortion.

Good luck with that.

[Asker]

What even does abortion have to do with this question? Like who cares? Lol! This is literally about college options.

[abc3643]

Who cares?
YOU will if you accidentally get knocked-up in those states.
You don't know much about campus / college life, do you?

OK, let's get back on track...
1. Where do you live now? What state and, if you are comfortable doing so, what community or county?
2. It looks like you wish to major in some engineering field. Do you have a particular one in mind?
3. If you were accepted by all 35 schools and given full scholarships, what are the top 3 schools you might attend and why?

All of my questions are important or I would not ask them.

[Onceuponoflove]

Just go to the cheapest school. Most employers don't care about where you get your undergrad at. Just do the cheapest one. Student is debt is not worth it In this economy. Save the fancy school for your masters.

[Asker]

The short answer is none are affordable lol at least on this list except maybe U Ark a bit with the scholarship. I got some others with great scholarships that make it affordable but that’s stuff like Liberty University. I loved University but let’s be honest there would be bias both from grad school and employers. I’m waiting to hear from others right now but yeah it’s U Ark. What about my friends being at Bama? That is very true about the employers thing! That’s fair! I want to try to graduate without debt or as little as possible. The problem with at my age I need to finish quickly lol. Do you think that any of the schools would effect grad school applications (non employers department or standpoint)?