Can I afford West Coast university??

MiahMSN, MSN, RN · Mar 9, 2010

A Cal State may take longer than you want, but you will be grateful for the minimal debt you will acquire for the same education/degree! Take it from me, someone who got a BA and a MA and am now doing a career change - I still have to pay back my student loans from my previous degrees and while it wasn't nearly as much as 116K, it wasn't cheap. 116K is just way too much to pay for a degree that isn't MD, DDS or JD! Is the school really worth it? For 6 figures, they better gaurantee a job and a certain salary for all graduates!! What I mean is that for 6 figures of debt that you will be responsible for for the rest of your life, it needs to offer more than just a BSN!! I'm sorry!

You are young, take your time, enjoy a regular 4 year college experience, and try to stay as debt free as you possibly can! You will get to where you want to be and believe me, 4 years will fly by!! This is advice that I wish I was given 13 years ago when I left home and headed for UC Berkeley as a freshman!

Good luck to you!

Long. · Mar 9, 2010

Please don't get warped with the idea that because WCU's BSN program is only two years, that it is worth it. I would highly recommend you take the Cal State route and do well with all your general ed and pre-req classes. Sure, it is four years but the financial aid you will be receiving will cover all school expenses and, based on your needs, you will probably receive money (in the thousands) on top of your paid school expenses each semester. Put that into perspective as well. With the circumstances you stated, a 116k debt for any degree is NOT realistic if you're banking on financial aid and loans to pay for tuition, but again, this is just my personal opinion. Unless if your parents are covering the cost of tuition, acquiring that substantial amount of debt, especially at such a young age, and with so many factors with the nursing field that may not even guarantee you a job is not worth the risk. Not only this, but what if you were in debt 116k and happen to fail out (for whatever reason). What now? Be smart and stick it with the safe route and go to a Cal State. The reward outweighs the consequences by far in a situation like this.

caliotter3 · Mar 9, 2010

The cost is now up to $132,000. You can read several posts from current and former students concerning their view of the program and whether you are getting your money's worth. Since that is basically about one quarter the cost of a mortgage for a cheap house, you might find it a little difficult to find the financing based on what you say in your post.

tiramisue · Mar 17, 2010

the school doesnt even help u recieve all of the aid through their school. i think they said something liike htye will help you get up to fifty thousand and you have to go to a private bank and get the rest of the money yourself. the program is three years and they say that u really dont have enough time to have a ft or even pt job. i mean, how do u expect to even start saving money for the 130,000+ loan you are gonna have after u graduate?

findingmyway · Mar 19, 2010

my heart is set on going there and i don't care about paying back the loans i just wana make sure i can actually get them.

Maymie · Mar 19, 2010

my heart is set on going there and i don't care about paying back the loans i just wana make sure i can actually get them.

Then you'll be able to afford it.

TheCommuter, BSN, RN · Mar 19, 2010

Let's look at the cold, hard numbers...

If you obtain a $132,000 student loan at 6.875% interest financed over 10 years, your payment will be a whopping $1524.14 per month! Sorry, but that is a ridiculous amount of student loan debt that will follow you for the rest of your life. My house payment is nowhere near $1500! Student loans cannot be discharged in bankruptcy, and the government will garnish your wages if you fail to pay.

It is time to exercise some deferred gratification. Patient people defer their gratification, while impulsive people are always in need of instant gratification. The degree at the state university might take longer, but it will be worth it in the end.

Cal State = deferred gratification

West Coast = instant gratification

Keep in mind that you might be unable to afford the house, nice car, vacations, and other middle class comforts as an RN with more than $1,500 in monthly student loans saddling you down. It is your choice.

MiahMSN, MSN, RN · Mar 19, 2010

my heart is set on going there and i don't care about paying back the loans i just wana make sure i can actually get them.

How can you not care about making monthly loan payments over $1000/month for more than 10 years? Why is your heart set on going to this school, just curious? Is it the acceleration? It doesn't have the best reputation, nor is it prestigious, nor does it gaurantee you acceptance into a new grad RN program.....so I'm really trying to understand why you would put yourself in that much debt that you cannot discharge, God forbid you fall on hard times, at such a young age, when you have your whole life ahead of you?

MiahMSN, MSN, RN · Mar 19, 2010

Let's look at the cold, hard numbers...
If you obtain a $132,000 student loan at 6.875% interest financed over 10 years, your payment will be a whopping $1524.14 per month! Sorry, but that is a ridiculous amount of student loan debt that will follow you for the rest of your life. My house payment is nowhere near $1500! Student loans cannot be discharged in bankruptcy, and the government will garnish your wages if you fail to pay.
It is time to exercise some deferred gratification. Patient people defer their gratification, while impulsive people are always in need of instant gratification. The degree at the state university might take longer, but it will be worth it in the end.
Cal State = deferred gratification
West Coast = instant gratification
Keep in mind that you might be unable to afford the house, nice car, vacations, and other middle class comforts as an RN with more than $1,500 in monthly student loans saddling you down. It is your choice.

Keep in mind, this is only the interest rate for stafford loans, subsidized and unsubsidized - stafford loans will not cover all of this, so you will more than likely have to take out private loans as well, that will have a much higher interest rate. Also, keep in mind that unsubsidized and private loans interest acrue while your in school....so you will owe much more than the $132K.

I'm not trying to talk you out of it....ok, maybe I am LOL....but I just think that schools like West Coast are not worth it. I went to Berkeley and USC for my degrees in my previous career and those are EXCELLENT, competitive institutions, and I still think USC costs way too much! Think about it long and hard. You say your family is on welfare - here is your opportunity to create a life for yourself where you do not have to be imprisoned by debt or lack of money! Good luck.

findingmyway · Mar 20, 2010

I want to go there so bad because it is not a huge competition for straight A's. im a solid B student and i push myself sooo hard. i know for a fact that i will not make it into those nursing programs at cal states after i complete the prerequsities there. its a huge annoying point system. i mean with west coast all you have to do is pass your hard classes and pass the exam at the end and you graduate. it sounds awsome to me because there is no waiting list on classes and maybe you'll get in and maybe you won't lets just see.. maybe your classes will transfer to other nursing programs of your choice or maybe they wont. all that stuff is soooo stressfull in my opinion. and yess paying back loans for a couple years sounds like a pretty good trade off for all that stress and crying. i know that im kind of ignorant towards it all and you guys probably have better insight than me so thank you for all of your feedback. im not dedicated to the school im just keeping it a high option for now

TheCommuter, BSN, RN · Mar 20, 2010

San Joaquin Valley College is a private trade school with an RN program that costs $36,000. It is cheaper than WCU if you are willing to commute or move to Visalia.