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Is it better to take a 4 year college or take a 2 year then transfer to a university
#college #university
6 answers
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Jamie’s Answer
The answer to this question really dependent upon each individual student and their needs. Things to keep in mind as you are making the decision: Is there a transfer agreement between the 2 institutions you plan to attend? Do you have adequate information as to how courses would transfer? Is your major of choice one that can be adequately completed at the 4-year institution within the 2 years you plan to attend?
Updated
Shelby’s Answer
Hi Victor!
This depends! Do you know what you want to go to school for? Is it specific? If yes, it may be better to go straight to a university.
BUT - if you're going to have gen eds you need to take or you're not sure exactly what you want to do, community college can be a great option!
You can save so much money at a CC. just make sure to take classes that will for sure transfer to your university so you don't end up having to retake classes over again!
This depends! Do you know what you want to go to school for? Is it specific? If yes, it may be better to go straight to a university.
BUT - if you're going to have gen eds you need to take or you're not sure exactly what you want to do, community college can be a great option!
You can save so much money at a CC. just make sure to take classes that will for sure transfer to your university so you don't end up having to retake classes over again!
Updated
Gloria’s Answer
Hi Victor,
Like most things, I think it depends. On the whole, I think that it is cheaper to get your basic credits at a 2-year school and then transfer to a 4-year for the major classes of your chosen degree. Your challenge here is that some credits may not transfer so you will need to do your research ahead of time to make sure all of your credits transfer. Also consider the challenge of transferring to out of state schools. I lost a lot of money when I transferred out of state since the credits didn't transfer. For example, I went to college in Nevada and my Nevada History credits didn't transfer. I might as well have burned the money since it ended up being a waste.
Gloria
Like most things, I think it depends. On the whole, I think that it is cheaper to get your basic credits at a 2-year school and then transfer to a 4-year for the major classes of your chosen degree. Your challenge here is that some credits may not transfer so you will need to do your research ahead of time to make sure all of your credits transfer. Also consider the challenge of transferring to out of state schools. I lost a lot of money when I transferred out of state since the credits didn't transfer. For example, I went to college in Nevada and my Nevada History credits didn't transfer. I might as well have burned the money since it ended up being a waste.
Gloria
Updated
Umesh’s Answer
If you can get into the university of your choice, then you should go for it and do a four year term. It is also likely that you will take longer than 4 years to complete your degree, due to availability of classes and the pace at which you learn.
Since you are in SF, you would probably like to get into UC Berkeley or Stanford. These are extremely competitive universities to get into.
There are many feeder community colleges like De Anza that have links to these premier universities. Though not guaranteed, you may be able to get into the premier universities thru this route.
And as many have pointed out, the community colleges are much cheaper to attend.
Depending on what you want to get a degree in, there are many state schools in California that are really good.
In the Bay Area, San Jose State is a great school for engineering. Our son got a degree in Mechnical Engineering from SJSU and has been working for the US Navy for over 12 years. Cal Poly San Luis Obispo is a great state school for engineering, but hard to get into.
In SF itself, you have SFSU, which is also a good school to go to.
Since you are in SF, you would probably like to get into UC Berkeley or Stanford. These are extremely competitive universities to get into.
There are many feeder community colleges like De Anza that have links to these premier universities. Though not guaranteed, you may be able to get into the premier universities thru this route.
And as many have pointed out, the community colleges are much cheaper to attend.
Depending on what you want to get a degree in, there are many state schools in California that are really good.
In the Bay Area, San Jose State is a great school for engineering. Our son got a degree in Mechnical Engineering from SJSU and has been working for the US Navy for over 12 years. Cal Poly San Luis Obispo is a great state school for engineering, but hard to get into.
In SF itself, you have SFSU, which is also a good school to go to.
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David’s Answer
It really depends on your individual situation such as what you can afford, your high school grades, your career goals, are you ready for a 4-year college. Depending othe state where you live, some of the state 4-year colleges will allow you to finish your last two years at the state 4-year college once you have completed your studies at the 2-year college.
If you career goals can be accomplished by attending a 2-year college then that is fine.
I always recommend against the for profit universities and colleges.
If you career goals can be accomplished by attending a 2-year college then that is fine.
I always recommend against the for profit universities and colleges.
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Casey’s Answer
Yes, I completely agree with the other responses: It depends and most of the time it would be cheaper to start at a community college and then transfer to a university. I definitely second that it is so important to fully understand each school's transfer agreements.
Something else to keep in mind and a point in the pro column for attending a university that you plan on staying at for 4 years -- Typically as a Freshman you will have a lighter class load than any other year, which means you'll have more time on your hands to make connections, attend orientations, welcome parties, find clubs or groups that you're interested in. This is especially helpful if you are planning on attending a school away from home or at a university where you don't know anyone just yet. There are absolutely opportunities for you to connect after your Freshman and Sophomore year and each school should have some sort of orientation for transferring students but you will be introduced to a smaller pool of people. There is nothing like showing up with a big group of people where it is everyone's first day at college and knowing that most of you will be spending 4 full years together and you all get to figure it out together.
Something else to keep in mind and a point in the pro column for attending a university that you plan on staying at for 4 years -- Typically as a Freshman you will have a lighter class load than any other year, which means you'll have more time on your hands to make connections, attend orientations, welcome parties, find clubs or groups that you're interested in. This is especially helpful if you are planning on attending a school away from home or at a university where you don't know anyone just yet. There are absolutely opportunities for you to connect after your Freshman and Sophomore year and each school should have some sort of orientation for transferring students but you will be introduced to a smaller pool of people. There is nothing like showing up with a big group of people where it is everyone's first day at college and knowing that most of you will be spending 4 full years together and you all get to figure it out together.
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