Renee Untivero

Business & PF A1
College Paper
In just under two more years, I will be on my way to graduating high school and
hopefully entering a college. There are two colleges I am thinking about attending that I am
almost certain to get in to. Both are located in the states; California and Virginia. California State
University San Marcos and Virginia Polytechnic Institute are both places Ive thought about
applying to since I was in middle school.
To start off, I have family members who live in California which makes it easier for me
to choose a college from that area. California State University San Marcos (CSUSM) is quite
close to where my aunt lives and I also have relatives who have attended that university in the
past. This is a medium-sized, 4 year, public university and is located in a San Marcos, California
in a suburban setting. It also offers a bachelors and masters degrees for majors such as social
sciences, business and marketing, family and consumer sciences, etc. There are activities and
sports/clubs you can participate in such as basketball, volleyball, student newspaper, fraternities,
and sororities. This university is also quite diverse having students of all different kinds of ethnic
backgrounds. The in-state cost for tuition is $7,364 while the out-of-state cost is $18,524. For
room and board the cost for living on campus would be $13,240 and the estimated cost of living
off campus is $12,836. These prices do not include whether the student receives any aid or
scholarships beforehand.
On the other hand, the Virginia Polytechnic Institute (Virginia Tech) is a large, 4-year,
public university and is located in Blacksburg, Virginia in a rural setting. This university offers

an associates, bachelors, masters and a doctoral degree for majors such as engineering,
business and marketing, family consumer sciences, etc. Unlike CSUSM, Virginia Tech is not as
diverse. The majority of this universitys students (68%) are white in ethnicity/race. Students of
other ethnicities/races take up just over 30% of the entire student body. However, this university
offers many more activities and clubs than CSUSM. They include activities/clubs such as choral
groups, dance, drama, jazz band, yearbook, radio station, etc. All of the usual sports such as
basketball, volleyball, and swimming, are also things you may take part in. When coming in as a
freshman, you are most likely to live on-campus as well as all the other 99% of freshmen do.
This university permits their freshmen to have a car, so it would be easier to get around to places.
The in-state cost for tuition is $12,852 while the out-of-state cost is $29,975. The cost for room
and board on campus is $8,424 and the estimated cost for living off campus $8,720. Once again,
these prices will vary depending on the students needs and if there is any financial aid given
and/or scholarships.
Although Virginia Tech is one of my dream colleges, if I were given a final choice, I
would most likely choose to attend CSUSM. The reason for this is because of location, cost, and
student life. As Ive mentioned before, I have family living in California as well as friends and I
would like to be able to visit them when I have a little free time without having to worry about
paying hundreds of dollars for traveling. Secondly, the cost to attend this university is quite
cheaper than it costs to attend Virginia Tech and I have three other siblings that my parents would
have to spend money on.