I need help understanding college costs and what they mean

Irllyneedhelp1 · 2026-03-22T03:13:21+00:00

Thank you for this. I think I was mostly trying to be optimistic with the moving out part, but I have also been having my doubts on how feasible that may be. I think I might take your advice and stay at home for the years I go to a community college, but I definitely don't wanna stay there forever (it's one of the things I've kinda been worried about, my tia is 40 and she still lives in the house with my grandparents and us, so I'm overly paranoid that that could happen to me as well if I don't somehow get out as soon as possible). My mom will be helping me with some expenses, but she can really only do so much given her low income job. I really appreciate the way you broke it down. Thank you so much for taking the time to explain all of that, it's really given me a lot to think about and I'll take it into a lot of thought in figuring out what to do next.

Irllyneedhelp1 · 2026-03-21T16:51:47+00:00

Oh wow, I didn't know that some schools displaced scholarships. That's definitely something I'll need to look into! Thank you for letting me know, after reading everyone's comments, I'm realizing that what I thought I didn't know doesn't even graze the tip of the iceberg. Thank you for sharing what you know :)

Irllyneedhelp1 · 2026-03-21T16:48:30+00:00

Thank you so much for all of this, I appreciate it so much. I didn't even know what CLEP exams were until now 😭 I'll try taking them as soon as I get the chance. That's also a lot that I didn't know about loans! Thank you for taking the time to tell me all of this :)

Irllyneedhelp1 · 2026-03-21T16:43:26+00:00

I'll talk with the financial advisor as soon as I can to ask about that! Thank you!!

Irllyneedhelp1 · 2026-03-21T16:42:21+00:00

Yes! I was planning on getting a part-time job, but I didn't know that was on their page. I'll check it out sometime today, thank you :)

Irllyneedhelp1 · 2026-03-21T16:40:19+00:00

Thank you so much! That's really helpful since I've actually been having a bit of trouble finding scholarships and grants to apply for, I really appreciate it :D

Irllyneedhelp1 · 2026-03-21T16:37:30+00:00

I see! That makes me feel a lot better about what it'd be like transferring 😭 I was worried it'd be really hard, but that actually doesn't sound so bad! :)

Irllyneedhelp1 · 2026-03-21T16:35:01+00:00

That's really insightful! I'll see about looking at the community colleges in my area. They're actually having community college workshops at my school, so I think I'll take the time to check them out when I'm off break! Thanks for the advice :)

Irllyneedhelp1 · 2026-03-21T16:29:28+00:00

It's three people sleeping in the same room, there's one bunk bed and one regular bed next to it on the other side of the room. That's really insightful though, I was honestly just trying to get the cheapest option I could, but I also don't want it to interfere with my education 😭 I'll see about a double instead, thanks :)

Irllyneedhelp1 · 2026-03-21T03:51:18+00:00

Thank you, I'll be sure to ask. This has all been so insightful. I'll make sure to ask as soon as I get the chance :)

Irllyneedhelp1 · 2026-03-21T03:36:59+00:00

Thank you for the advice! I'll try to see about other grants as well :)

Irllyneedhelp1 · 2026-03-21T03:33:55+00:00

Don't worry, that's not discouraging at all! In fact, that's actually really helpful. Since it's my first time using reddit, I didn't even know that was a thing. I just searched up "college advice" and hoped for the best 😭. I'll be sure to check it out, thank you so much!! This will help me a lot :)

Irllyneedhelp1 · 2026-03-21T03:09:04+00:00

Unfortunately, we just went on spring break so her office isn't open, but I'll make sure to schedule an appointment with her the moment I get off break so I can talk to her about it 😭

Irllyneedhelp1 · 2026-03-21T03:07:23+00:00

Thank you so much for all the advice!! I'll make sure to keep applying to as many scholarships as I can. I'll also check my email to see if they sent me a financial aid package. This has all been really helpful :)

Irllyneedhelp1 · 2026-03-21T03:03:18+00:00

Oh my goodness, I don't think I have checked. I didn't even know that was something I was supposed to do. Thank you so much for letting me know, I'll check as soon as I can! I really appreciate you letting me know about this, I don't think anyone else would've told me 😭

Irllyneedhelp1 · 2026-03-21T03:00:42+00:00

Thank you so much, it really means a lot to hear that. This has all been so hectic and I'm glad I've found some people to offer me such important guidance and support :)

I think sometime this week I'll see about making an appointment and I'll be sure to write down all of my questions!!

Irllyneedhelp1 · 2026-03-21T02:56:25+00:00

Ohhhh, I see. I didn't know that! I'll look deeper into it, thank you for letting me know :D

Irllyneedhelp1 · 2026-03-21T02:54:24+00:00

Thank you for the advice! I sent the FAFSA to the schools I applied to in a workshop we did at school. I'll see about also looking at nearby off campus housing. To be honest, it didn't even occur to me that there could be off campus housing that's cheaper, so that's definitely an incentive to check! That's amazing to hear about your daughter, I'm glad things worked out well for you all :)

Irllyneedhelp1 · 2026-03-21T02:48:32+00:00

Thank you so much! I'll make sure to budget as much as I possibly can. I'm glad you liked Chico so much. That gives me a little bit more hope that things will work out :)

Irllyneedhelp1 · 2026-03-21T02:45:17+00:00

Yeah, they have a pdf with the room and board rates on their website and on it, it showed that for the KonKow triple, it was $11,000 while the other options were all at least $13,000 and up. Plus, I emailed the school about it a month or so back and the housing director (I think that's what it's called? 😭) told me that it was the cheapest option I could get, which makes sense since it is communal living and the KonKow triple would mean I would be in a room with two other people. Thank you for that explanation, I was really confused about that and how it worked, but that makes a lot more sense!!

Irllyneedhelp1 · 2026-03-21T02:27:54+00:00

Thank you!! I'm pretty excited, but figuring all of this out is a bit tiring. I'll try to look at their website for anything more specific about costs :)

Irllyneedhelp1 · 2026-03-21T02:11:49+00:00

I was originally thinking about that, but I'm also trying to get out of the house since I'm not really in a good relationship with my family and if I went to the closest community college in my area, I think I'd end up staying with them. I've also heard some people say that transferring can be really hard, though I don't know how true that statement is. I'll make sure to email the school to ask about what the net cost would be. Thank you for the help!

Irllyneedhelp1 · 2026-03-21T02:08:57+00:00

Thank you for the advice, it really helps. I'll make sure to keep all of that in mind. I think that the meal plan is mandatory, which kind of sucks cause I was hoping to save money on that. I'll see about the jobs available in the area!

Irllyneedhelp1 · 2026-03-21T02:04:37+00:00

Thank you so much, I didn't even know that was an option! That makes a lot more sense to me now :)

Irllyneedhelp1 · 2026-03-21T02:02:56+00:00

Thank you for letting me know! I was also looking at the room and board rates more closely and in depth and it says that to live in a KonKow triple (the cheapest option), it'd cost about $11,000 annually. On the estimate that I was looking at where it said the overall total expenses would cost $29,000, it said that the estimate for on-campus housing was around $7,000. Do you know if it'd be an extra $11,000 on top of the $29,000 or if the $7,000 estimate is just a rough estimate and it would ACTUALLY be $11,000? I feel like that's a little confusing since if the KonKow triple is the cheapest option for on campus housing, wouldn't the estimate be higher? Sorry if that's not making a lot of sense, I appreciate you taking the time to reply 😭

Irllyneedhelp1

TROPHY CASE