Quote from Bob111:
+1. problem is-it's a nearly impossible to avoid that huge pile of debt at current price levels. the system is neatly designed to extract as much money as possible from the student and to keep him as long as possible in the college.
in many fields if you spend first two years in community college (to save money) and then transfer to a better college-many of your credits won't be accepted! you have to start all over again.
in every college you have to go (and pay) for s** that doesn't make any sense or not related to the field you are into. geography,history,english(ok,i can understand this one-you have to know how to properly express yourself)-all that crap. my son(for example) having A+ on those from high school. yet he have to take it again again and again in the college. why he can't just take a test and if he pass-get rid of it? nope..
I have to disagree with you on the community college route. Colin County CC in Dallas is only $900 (in state) a semester for a 12 hour load. I have never heard of anyone who had to retake their core classes when transfering to UT Austin, or any of the other big schools in Texas. I know several kid who in fact took that route. Mostly because they were homeschoolers who had nothing to do anyway so they went to Colin County, when they finished highschool they had already passed a year and a half of freshman course work. Their credits transferred no problem. Perhaps you had a different experience...