Back in Buisness (Beansness?)

[TheSeedObsesser]

I am aiming for a bachelor's degree. So you're saying that I should start off in a smaller community college and transfer to the University of Prescott later to save money. Wouldn't that college need to be in the state of Ohio? And wouldn't it need to offer the same courses that I want to take in the university, or could it be a closely related course? Prescott is an expensive university, and I'm as poor as the dirt I plant in, so saving money is a priority. Thing is, if I want to take conservation biology, Prescott was one of the few places that I found in which I could apply to anytime soon (none of which were in Ohio, and when it comes to public-not private-colleges you need to be a resident in that state for two years before applying. Prescott is a private university.)

 

[baymule]

Not a community college, a junior college. At a junior college you can take all your basic classes. Like @Ridgerunner said, just make sure your credits will transfer, which they should from a junior college.

 

[TheSeedObsesser]

Thanks for clarifying. So any basic classes that I would take at a junior college could count towards a degree in...lets say botany.

Managed to get nearly ten New bush bean varieties from the local seed library.

 

[Smart Red]

Of course it was back in the dark ages, but I started at a 2 year college and got most of my required liberal arts courses out of the way before transferring to a state college for credits in my major. It does work out to be much less expensive as long as the credits transfer with you. All of mine did, but you will have to check first and GET IT IN WRITING from your destination college of Prescott is possible.

Also know that being a private college doesn't have to mean expensive. Our Beloit College is one of the most expensive colleges. Most of our students are rich kids from the East coast. Still, for the few local students I've known, there were grants, aids, and scholarships available that meant their final costs were actually below state college costs.

Dig for those student aids and dig deep.

 

[Ridgerunner]

Junior or Community College

What is the Difference?


Two-year institutions have historically been known as junior colleges because they were generally lower divisions of private universities. Junior colleges offered general education programs and university transfer programs. Over many years, the name “junior college” has evolved to become “community college.”


http://www.americancommunitycolleges.com/isg_articles/junior-communitycollege-whatsdifferent.php

You have to remember that @baymule is a Texan when talking to her. I often take that into consideration. There can be subtle differences to some people but both Junior Colleges and Community Colleges offer two year programs that can lead to an Associates Degree, either in Arts or Science. Some may have specialist degrees such as certain applied sciences. They usually offer training in trades as well as more traditional college courses but some specialize in college prep work. As in anything else there can be a lot of differences in different Community Colleges or different Junior Colleges. They usually have very low acceptance requirements and costs, but you might want to pay attention to in-state versus out-of-state costs. Several star high school athletes that don't meet the requirements to enter a major four-year university go to Community Colleges to get their grades up so they can enter a four-year university and star in football or basketball. To be a little more fair to Bay (I don't want to overdo that, be fair to Bay), many Community Colleges have nothing to do with private universities and were never junior colleges.

I could not find a "University of Prescott" in Ohio or anywhere else. Are you talking about Prescott College in Arizona? I wanted to get a feel for your required course load in that field, especially the first two years.

A lot of times the first year or two of college the courses consist of basic courses, English, Math, History, Sciences, and some courses that can count as "electives". it's later on that you have to take the more specialized courses for the degree you want. That's where the two-year colleges come in. They generally offer these basic courses at a much less expensive cost. If you can take several of your required courses at one of these less expensive schools you can save a ton of money.

The problem comes in when the four year university does not accept the credits you earn at the two year school or count them toward your required courses, even if that two year school is accredited. A lot of times they don't. Northwest Arkansas Community College and the University of Arkansas in Fayetteville recently made the news as they were working to make it easier for those credits to transfer. A lot of times the UA-F would not accept those credits because the curriculum did not meet their requirements. Sometimes a university will have a special agreement with a certain two year school to make that transfer process easier.

I don't know what specific requirements Prescott have. You'd need to talk to their admissions department about this. Do you have the grades and maybe test scores to get in and do they accept transfer credits. If so which transfer credits do they accept? It will take work on your part, but Bay had a good idea. There is a potential for you to save money. It usually helps your admission if they are familiar with you and see that you are doing your homework before you apply. Being polite helps too. Like Red kind of said. talk to Prescott about scholarships or other forms or student aid, such as student work programs.

 

[Carol Dee]

Good sound advice from @Ridgerunner

 

[TheSeedObsesser]

I am indeed talking about the University of Prescott in Arizona. And the tuition isn't so expensive it's a private school, but more of because the population of Prescott is so small that they need to charge a lot (or at least that's what I'm thinking). I've already done some talking with an admissions officer as far as scholarships/grants/etc go, but talking with you all has given me more questions for them.

More when this all soaks into my head properly.

 

[TheSeedObsesser]

Good sound advice from @Ridgerunner

He definently knows what he's talking about!

 

[TheSeedObsesser]

As for test scores I still need to take my SAT or ACT which I will take Oct. 1st at a local high school. I've also got my letter of recommendation.

 

[Chickie'sMomaInNH]

something i can tell you that may help is if you are within a certain income level you may be able to get some grants or scholarships from the school you are going to. these will usually help so you can lower the amount of financial aid you will need. some will also do that after the 1st year you are with them as long as you are able to to keep certain levels on your grades. most of those grants can be applied to the books/housing & other fees too. i work for a benefits company that processes a tuition reimbursement program for their employees. so look around & ask Prescott if they will do something like a grant/scholarship for income level for you! some scholarships can only be applied to the tuition so watch out for those when sending off to others that can be applied to other items. they may have to take into account the other scholarships when being processed

while you are still in school have you been in any type of honors societies or clubs that may have scholarship programs? if so you may be eligible for some scholarships from them.

also, if you are ever able to get a job with a college/university, especially a large one most will have some nice perks. my DH used to work at UNH & when he was there he could enroll in classes for free. if we had kids they could have gotten some scholarships to take off half the tuition costs at that time, i think even i could have taken a few classes for a lowered price (probably changed this benefit since then or have restrictions on how long you need to be employed).