Sustaining a living at college?

[txrandom]

Be like the guy in my CPSC class and be homeless. He saves a lot of money, and the only downside is smelling like you haven't showered in ages.

 

[ArmchairAthlete]

co-op

 

[LongCoolMother]

he's right. I'm at UC Berkeley and my first year I lived in the crappiest/cheapest/shittiest student housing. It was a 4 person dorm suite, with communal bathrooms, etc. $13,000+ for the year (9 months). The other, more typical dorms that most students live in are more... ~$13,000-$15,000 for a small double, and sometimes single You could go cheaper with triples, but those were horribly cramped to live in, and it wasn't even offered as an option to me.

I forgot to mention that I've since moved off campus to some apts. I'm splitting the rent at $1700/month, 2BR, not including utilities/internet with a roommate. Luckily for me, my parents are footing the bill for all things related to my education. I try to work to help with the cost, but if they didn't pitch in, I'd be in deep sh!t.

 

[Special K]

Originally posted by: txrandom
Be like the guy in my CPSC class and be homeless. He saves a lot of money, and the only downside is smelling like you haven't showered in ages.

There was a grad student who lived in our engineering student lounge for quite awhile before the police escorted him off campus. There was a refrigerator and microwave in there, along with lots of sofas. There were also showers in certain bathrooms in the engineering building, so I suppose someone could conceivably live there.

He probably didn't draw any attention to himself at first because lots of students would take naps in that lounge after pulling all-nighters.

 

[txrandom]

Originally posted by: Special K

Originally posted by: txrandom
Be like the guy in my CPSC class and be homeless. He saves a lot of money, and the only downside is smelling like you haven't showered in ages.

There was a grad student who lived in our engineering student lounge for quite awhile before the police escorted him off campus. There was a refrigerator and microwave in there, along with lots of sofas. There were also showers in certain bathrooms in the engineering building, so I suppose someone could conceivably live there.

He probably didn't draw any attention to himself at first because lots of students would take naps in that lounge after pulling all-nighters.

I think this guy is just weird. You can easily go take a shower in the Rec Center for free. He stinks up the whole classroom.

 

[MasonLuke]

get really good at poker and host poker nights/days. $$$

 

[mrSHEiK124]

Originally posted by: Gibson486

Originally posted by: moshquerade
snip

It's too bad my gf's sister in FL was stupid and did not even try. She had a 3.9 GPA in high school and a 1400 SAT but she claimed it was not good enough for college because she "knew it wouldn't be". She did not even bother to apply to colleges and decided to get high and drunk instead. She ended up going to the army because they would pay for school, but she then got kicked out. She got married, then divorced in one year. She is a dumb smart ass that thinks she knows the world. She is now stuck in Birmingham, AL making $9/hr and working 60 hours a week. Why she is there? "Oh, they have a tuition reimburement program...I am gonna go to community college". At 21...she has not changed one bit....oh well...it is her life, not mine.

Not trying to brag here, but comparing to that story I "only" got a 3.7 weighted GPA and a 1370 SAT, "only." I'm enjoying my free ride at USF.

Granted, I'm being kinda lazy and could use a few more As on that transcript, but really, she thought it was "not good enough"? Those are fucking good scores right there, 1400 SAT 3.9 GPA.

And now I realize that state funded tuition is NOT common; down here, unless you're retarded you're either getting a free ride to a community college or a university, or have to pony up 75% for a university. Not a single person in my graduating class gave paying for college a second thought, I think 30%-ish got 100% and the rest got 75% or went to a CC and got the 100%. The only $ I worry about is rent and gas. I want to say I feel your pain but I can't imagine the ass-suckage of paying $12,000/year rent (I pay half that) and tuition out of pocket.

 

[HaiBiss]

Originally posted by: princess ida
Work more and find higher paying jobs.

You can always do gay porn, I hear they really pay well.....

 

[Suspicious-Teach8788]

Originally posted by: Gibson486

Originally posted by: moshquerade

Originally posted by: Anubis

Originally posted by: mrSHEiK124

Originally posted by: Anubis

Originally posted by: DLeRium

Originally posted by: akubi
find roommates. $720/mo rent for a college student is utter stupidity. move into the student dorms if that's an option.

Uh do you KNOW what you're talking about? I lived in Berkeley and 2 BRs were going for 1900+ last year. My apartment was listed for 1990 /mo when I moved out. Guess what I moved in at? 1490. Split 2 way that's PRETTY DAMN GOOD in Berkeley. I tell anyone what I paid for rent and they were amazed. Yeah. I have friends at Davis paying sub $500 for their own room, but tough. People who go to Cal or UCLA pay top dollar for rent.

I paid $1010 / month in the dorms for a TRIPLE. Screw that. It's like 12k or something for a double per year, and divide that for 10 months and you're paying 1200+. I can get a studio for less than that.

this is why cali sucks

for 1500-2k a month you could buy a 3000+ sqft house where i went to college

Jesus, California sucks ASS. You pay as one person what me and 4 other guys were about to on a house, COMBINED. Course, that didn't work out, and now me and my roommate are paying $510/ea for a 1100 sq. ft. apt. 3 miles away from campus. And we're moving farther away from campus to newer, nicer apartments for cheaper, $400/ea and slightly larger. The drive is 10 miles vs. 3 miles, but I'm kind of sick of being everyone's party place and hangout. Now I'll only be seeing people at home when I actually want them there.

Oh, and in Florida, get a 3.5 weighted GPA in high school and a 1270 SAT/28 ACT and you get a 100% scholarship to any university in the state, plus some cash for books. 3.0 weighted and 970 SAT/20 ACT gets you 75% at a university, 100% at a community college. Hooray for lotto money.

wow thats a pretty kickass deal,

yeh, Florida college students can also thank the tourist dollars that are pumped into the state for that one.

It's too bad my gf's sister in FL was stupid and did not even try. She had a 3.9 GPA in high school and a 1400 SAT but she claimed it was not good enough for college because she "knew it wouldn't be". She did not even bother to apply to colleges and decided to get high and drunk instead. She ended up going to the army because they would pay for school, but she then got kicked out. She got married, then divorced in one year. She is a dumb smart ass that thinks she knows the world. She is now stuck in Birmingham, AL making $9/hr and working 60 hours a week. Why she is there? "Oh, they have a tuition reimburement program...I am gonna go to community college". At 21...she has not changed one bit....oh well...it is her life, not mine.

Ok, any state university in FL is not anywhere NEAR a UC system. Yes we pay top dollar for our education, but when you take the top 3 UC schools out there, you will see that they stand out ahead of many other state schools.

Originally posted by: LongCoolMother
he's right. I'm at UC Berkeley and my first year I lived in the crappiest/cheapest/shittiest student housing. It was a 4 person dorm suite, with communal bathrooms, etc. $13,000+ for the year (9 months). The other, more typical dorms that most students live in are more... ~$13,000-$15,000 for a small double, and sometimes single You could go cheaper with triples, but those were horribly cramped to live in, and it wasn't even offered as an option to me.

I forgot to mention that I've since moved off campus to some apts. I'm splitting the rent at $1700/month, 2BR, not including utilities/internet with a roommate. Luckily for me, my parents are footing the bill for all things related to my education. I try to work to help with the cost, but if they didn't pitch in, I'd be in deep sh!t.

Yup, my friends from UCSD said my apartment was a piece of sh!t. Totally correct, and paying $1500 for it is not fun. Which dorm did you live in anyways? Clark Kerr Triple FTW for $10k. Hahaha, glad I'm outta there.

 

[wiredspider]

Got a full time job.

 

[thomsbrain]

Rule # 1: Do not use school-sponsored housing. Get out of the dorms as soon as possible. Don't use school apartments. They are rip-offs. You pay for the convenience, and you can't afford convenience.

Rule # 2: You'll need more housemates. 3 or 4 people per apartment is the norm, usually. We paid about $450 each for a decent place when I was in school at UC Santa Cruz a few years ago. If you are paying $720/month, you're either living in too nice of a place, or you don't have enough housemates. You may need an actual roommate, too. And the best bang for the buck is usually found in bigger apartments with more rooms filled by more people, rather than fewer rooms with fewer people. I only recently crossed the $700 mark for rent in Santa Cruz (extremely high rental market), and I've been working a decent full-time job for several years.

Rule # 3: Plan on holding down two part-time jobs, not just one. You'll need to work roughly 40 hours a week and you'll need flexibility for classes. That means you'll be working weekends and at least some evenings. Anything you can do to minimize your accumulation of debt is good. This means you will not be able to be a big party animal. It's worth it.

Rule # 4: Get a Costco membership and use it.

Rule # 5: Weigh various options in terms of living farther away (even in a different city) versus gas costs. You might save money if you're willing to be just another 10 minutes from campus.

Rule # 6: Most universities give you free unlimited bus usage with your student ID. Make use of it when you can.

 

[Chaotic42]

I worked full time when I went to community college in 2004 and had a free ride when I went to college in 1998. I never actually went to class that time, but the room was free.

 

[yhelothar]

I'm at UC Riverside btw.
I signed up for the work study program. I'd love to work as a math/science SI(supplemental instructor), tutor, or TA.
What are some other job options I have?
My apartments are within walking distance, and I'm only bringing my car since my parking spot is only $20/mo. I'm going to sell it when my credit card 0% introductory period runs out though.

 

[Kyteland]

Originally posted by: akubi
pasta and beans, good bang for the buck.

or if you have weak taste buds you can try http://www.costco.com/Browse/P...browse=<=en-US&s=1

I wonder what the nutritional information is like. That can't be healthy to eat long term.

 

[Bateluer]

6 years of military service and MGIB payments.

 

[EagleKeeper]

Get a full time job. Allows one to support oneself and a family.

Why be leach?

 

[erub]

I had academic scholarships (yay for being national merit), and I studied my ass off to keep the 3.5 required to keep them (EE major). My advisor even helped me pick up another $4500 for 3 semesters, without even asking..from the company that I am now employed with full time (they gave me an internship as a requirement for taking their money, damn well paying one too). My parents paid for room and board, and I got to keep the excess money from the scholarship for fun. Texas A&M was really reasonably priced, and so was the housing in that area (most of my friends were paying ~$400 for split apt or house with roomates). Never worked during the semester until my last semester of grad school (when I was working for the experience, not the cash)..thanks mom and dad!

I went to grad school at GT in Atlanta, and they gave me a TA, free tuition and some cashola, too..Georgia also has something similar to FL's program, just not as generous..HOPE scholarship, keep above a 3.0 in HS & college, and you get it for free (don't think that they give you rent money, but you do get some book money). GT also hooks their students up with great coops

 

[zerocool84]

Originally posted by: Kyteland

Originally posted by: akubi
pasta and beans, good bang for the buck.

or if you have weak taste buds you can try http://www.costco.com/Browse/P...browse=<=en-US&s=1

I wonder what the nutritional information is like. That can't be healthy to eat long term.

It says vitamin fortified and there's a variety of foods in there so it can't be that bad,

 

[RaistlinZ]

If you can, I'd suggest a part time job delivering pizzas. I was doing this a few months ago for extra cash and averaged around $14/hr on a moderately busy day with decent tips. Even if you only work 20 hours a week that is $280/wk or $1,120/month for driving around town in your car listening to music. The good thing about it is that you can easily work the shifts around your class schedule.

Seriously, consider it. :thumbsup: