TAMU v. TAMIU: Is an Aggie ring worth $25,000+ in student loans

... so I went by TAMIU this week to drop my classes, and the recruitment lady, Shibon got me thinking and in short . . . I think it's more practical to go to TAMIU instead of TAMU.

I mean I know that going out of town is "once in a life time opportunity" and anyone would want to take it, BUT I need to face the fact that I'm not getting a full ride. I have to get loans, a lot of loan actually!

I am probably the LEAST practical person ever! I still DREAM of being a journalist! However, I don't know if I have a stigma of getting loans or of not getting a steady job. I saw my parents get loans for my car, my Quinceanera, etc. and my mom is still laid off.

I would graduate with at least $25,000 in loans at A&M, I'll probably DIE before I finish paying those loans. I just now remind myself of the week after graduation, I had a nervous breakdown as I signed up my first loan, $3,000. I felt like I would be too busy trying to pay off that loan (work study, selling drugs, etc.) that I wouldn't pay attention in class.

If I go to TAMIU I can live at my parent's for free, eat and wash my clothes for free, and Tuition, Books, and Fees isn't more than $10,000. I'll probably get money back from Financial Aid.

Besides I already know how to take care of myself, I don't need to "grow up" at the dorm. I think UT really give you a true "culture shock." I still wouldn't go to UT though. Going to A&M is going from a community that is 99% Hispanic to 99% Caucasian. If I leave all I will truly learn at A&M is how it truely feels to be a "minority."

Going to TAMIU might seem like the easy way out, but this is still an opportunity, and money isn't a battle I feel like fighting right now. Maybe I'll transfer to A&M during sophomore year, who knows. Maybe then I'll be ready for those loans.

I'm still undecided, but I will be practical in my decision. Let's just say a monthly payment at A&M is $100 shy of my family's house payment. I'm not even including my mean plan.

I choose to be undecided until August 20th when I would have to start packing for my dorm or dis-enroll. I'll still keep asking myself if the prestige and that Aggie ring are worth a life time of student loan payments.