Long time ago so I was able to work part time and pay as I went (at a Cal State), plus I lived at home with my parents. But the weird part was I had an economics prof who was not a lot older than me that said he did the same thing, but a semester's tuition and books was less than a C-Note.
[–] ConceptualMan [S] 0 points 1 point 1 point (+1|-0) ago (edited ago)
Yeah, i heard from someone who went to college in the 80s and they said they were able to work part time for pizza hut and pay, with left over spending money. That still seems crazy to me.
The prof had a good story about utility. He had gone to an all-you-can-eat pizza buffet as a starving student and reported the first couple of slices had a lot of utility. By the eighth slice utility was a lot closer to zero. By the twelfth slice utility went negative since he threw it all up at that point.
[–] 10419523? 0 points 1 point 1 point (+1|-0) ago
That was before government was so involved in paying for it and drove prices up so high.. And notice people lived at home with their parents. Most kids today see it as a rite of passage to live on campus. That easily doubles the cost of attendance, not even counting the travel and such required and the fact that it becomes really hard to get even a part time job if they know you will be going home in 4 months.
[–] individualin1984 ago
Mine was back in the late 80's early 90s. So it was worked 30+ hours from age 16 through college. Took a year off after high school worked full time then joined the reserves. Reserve GI bill + 30 hours per week while in school. Full time during summer. Filled in remaining with small loans. Was activated for first gulf war saved hazardous duty pay. Then I got into an engineering job last year and worked full time and finished up last year part time over 2 years. Paid off the remainder of loans soon after college.
[–] ilikeskittles 0 points 1 point 1 point (+1|-0) ago
Worked full time, went to school at night.
The first time I went was in the mid 90s. I used student loans, but it was only about $1500 a semester then. Of course, I was living at home with my parents during that time as well, so I didn't have the expense of staying on campus. The second time I went, was in the early 2000s. I used student loans once again. It was considerably more than the $1500 a semester, but still not ridiculous. Finally, I went to law school in 2008. I have student loans out the wazoo now. I was working full time during the last two stints. I made way too much money to get grants, although not enough to pay cash, and there are no scholarships for white guys trying to get an education.
However, for somebody starting out now trying to get their undergrad degree, I always recommend to people that they go to community college for the first two years. It is so much cheaper and more convenient. Almost all the classes will transfer to a 4 year University. Plus, the community college seems to have a much more flexible schedule for classes. One can usually work while attending to help with expenses. Then when the two years are up, transfer to where ever it is you want to get your degree from. That way you are only paying the ridiculous prices for 2 years instead of 4.
[–] tendiesonfloor ago
Chipping Playstations, duping Playstation games, programming DirectTV cards, and selling weed.
[–] daskapitalist 0 points 2 points 2 points (+2|-0) ago
For yourself: apply to a college, file a FAFSA, DO NOT MAJOR IN ANYTHING OUTSIDE OF STEM, and work through college. You'll have some loans, but it eont be terrible.
[–] ArchibaldLacey 0 points 1 point 1 point (+1|-0) ago (edited ago)
You can get a college degree for roughly 5k if you apply to one of the big 3, and get the majority of your college credits through CLEP/DSST (formerly known as Dantes). You purchase the test for like 85?, sign up at a local school that allows you to take them, and end up taking an hour test. If you pass, you get the credit. The tests are not that difficult. With the big 3, they will take like 95+% credit from CLEP/DSST.
On top of that, I think you can take FEMA tests for free, and some schools will creatively include those credits into your major.
The big 3 are like: Thomas Edison State University, Excelsior College, and Charter Oaks State College. I know Excelsior tends to be more expensive than the other 2 at like $10k. Regardless, it's the easiest way to get a degree. You can get it in less than a year, and apparently there is some people that have gotten it in a month. If you don't like the bias at schools today, and a degree is just a degree to you, then i'd recommend this method of getting your degree for ease and expense.
Edit: And Dantes/DSST was formerly a test offered to those in the military. I think if you're in the military, you get X amount per year for school studies that you could use on this testing; then after your 4 years of service, you can give the military education to someone else in your family.
[–] ConceptualMan [S] ago
Thank you for the info. I did receive the FEMA certs that I could as I'm extremely interested in emergency management. I did not know about the test out options!
[–] Firevine 0 points 3 points 3 points (+3|-0) ago
Currently going to the local tech college. Paid for with grants and cash. No scholarships because I'm old and a gringo.
[–] ConceptualMan [S] 0 points 1 point 1 point (+1|-0) ago
Thanks. Where did you find grant information if I may ask?
[–] Firevine ago
The financial aid office, but also, they're well known grants because they're (currently) funded by the Georgia Lottery. At least until the corruption within the Lottery committee bankrupts it.