Ummmmmmm... Penn State Abington (near Philly) charges $12,242 per
year tuition for PA residents. LaSalle charges $17420
per semester.
1 year at LaSalle= 2.8 years at Penn State.
Go to Penn State. Live at home. Work part-time. Really, the problem isn't all that difficult unless they stopped teaching basic arithmetic in Pennsylvania schools.
Go to Penn State. Live at home. Work part-time. Really, the problem isn't all that difficult unless they stopped teaching basic arithmetic in Pennsylvania schools. With a little bit of planning, you can really cut the cost of a college education if you live in a reasonably-sized metropolitan area:
- Go to the community college in your city for 2 years, and live at home.
- Pick the university your freshman year, so you know your target.
- In community college, take all the core classes required for a 4-year degree, like English, history, etc. Plan ahead and only take the classes that will transfer to the university.
- Work your butt off and ace those classes in community college. Your community college grades will largely determine your admission to the university: your SAT scores and high school GPA will not be considered as relevant.
- Earn your associates degree, and THEN transfer to the university your junior year. You'll only have to worry about room and board for 2 years, instead of 4.
If you are fortunate, you'll have a 4-year university in your hometown. You can still live at home. And some of them have a joint program with local community colleges for a 4-year degree program, where you are guaranteed that credits you earn at the community college will transfer. In my area, they even have joint campuses.
This may be difficult for some technical degrees, in which you start taking the "weed-out" classes your freshman year (those classes that are designed to eliminate people that won't be able to make the cut). The class schedule and prerequisite chain don't allow you to cram all the specialized classes in 2 years. But, with a bit of planning, you can spend the first year in community college.