They like us to start our careers deeply in debt, and work the rest of our lives paying it off. Keeps our mind`s on our business! :P

"How does your college/ uni sstem work anyway? I don`t quite get it."

Free public education is in place for kindergarten through 12th grade (about agees 5-18). Of course, you can choose to pay for private (many are church affiliated).

There are community college systems (tax subsidized)that offer either the first two years(of a four year bachelor degree)then you can transfer to a university, or "associate" degrees (2 year)for specific areas (legal assistant, paramedic, etc etc). These cost approximately $75 per credit hour (30-40 credit hours per year), plus book/materials costs, plus your living expenses.

There are state universities that offer the bachelor, masters, doctoral degrees. These are subsidized with tax money. They cost about $200 (if you live in-state)per credit hour (120-130 hours for bachelor degree), plus books/materials (about $1000 per year), plus living expenses. Graduate school costs more.

Private colleges and universities cost exponentially more. They are not subsidized by tax money. They cost a lot, such as the example of Embry-Riddle for Aeronautics, $35,000 per year.]

There are also private, technical colleges/programs that focus specifically on a skill such as computer related stuff.

If your family is low income, you can possibly qualify for financial aid that will decrease your cost. There are a lot of academic scholarships available also. These may be through the government or through corporate sources.

There are also programs that allow you to work off your government loans. I personally took advantage of this by teaching in a designated place for five years to pay off my government loans. If you default on a government college loan, it will haunt you FOREVER!!

(costs vary from state to state)

I liked my explanation better :P

You did make a nice comment!

umm i am not sure about the whole college thing but i like the head crown. it is soooo pretty!

I am not sure how college came about on this post either, but thanks picc_queen.

wow, thats some flute, its gorgous!!!

Thanks. That is my baby! I had to work my butt off for it, but was all worth it in the end.

"I had to work my butt off for it, but was all worth it in the end."

Some how, I wonder about that. It looks to me like you have everything handed to you. From the ridiculous "jeweled crown" down to the frivolous case.

aaawww I LOVE cats! I`ve got 5 too and the dog with them eating is like my house too they`re adorable and the bunnies too. But the best was the cat in your flute case cover awwww!

I went to a state system college after highschool purposely because it was close to home and only $5,000 per year. As a result not bragging but all my schooling is paid off. i`ve paid as I went to school, got some reimbursement/bonuses from my new job and finished in 2 years after what I had left in loans. I did get help from my parents and uncle but had to pay most of it.

What I`m getting at was that was hard enough let alone my first choice school costing $35,000 a year! And that`s when I wanted to be a veterinarian and a flutist. I`d have to go to one of only 8 veterinarian schools after 4 years of prevet and live in the state a year JUST to get the discount for living in that college`s state plus I`d be in loads of debt...how did I get into this here....well anyway it was way too time consuming and I only liked cats so I ended up with a cheaper school in 4 years. Lucky for me.

As someone stated above just wanted to ad the stafford loans is what I used to get through college as well although it was unsubsidized. Don`t know what that really meant all I know is I had to pay it all back and I think the subsidized only had to pay a certain portion. It was based on your family`s income which drove me bonkers b/c in our finacial aide packet it would state how much expected the parents to contribut and it was way more than the family could afford and let alone what really happened. And that`s with a supportive family unlike some of my friends I know who had a horrific time paying things.

Hi mysticalwaters1! I haven`t seen you here in a while. We talked a while back via email.

You wouldn`t know me as Kara though, because I used my real name when talking to you.

Thanks for all the nice comments about my kids. Your cat`s are really cute too. I did see a picture of them. I like the one with the nurses hat on. Too cute!!!

I have got about a million more pictures too.
Can you believe that I have 11 animals in all! Lucky for me I own a big house and a husband with a big heart.

It seems like every year I adopt some poor stray kitty in the neighbor hood. I try to find them homes...really...I do. Lol!

If anymore decide to come to my door step, I have to find them a home though. 11 is all I can take! I have five cats in all and I don`t believe in getting any of them de clawed. Ugghhh!!

My dog acts like their second mama though and disciplines them if they start using their claws on anything. She is the best babysitter!

I have five bunnies which are all litter trained and don`t chew. Yes... believe it or not, they can be trained. Well...some of them at least. I have gotten lucky with mine. They do all know their names and have their favorite toys too.

The website I used it free and easy to sign up, so if you get a chance to post some of your pictures, I would love to see them.

Nice to hear from you again!

Oh I know about declawing! Mine are outdoors and even if they are indoor and they get out no defenses. However the carpet and leather...well you make sacrifices for your animals! Yep I need all new carpeting. Training rabits??? Wow!

All recent posts by Arak in this forum were written by an imposter.

Obviously, in this relatively out-of-control forum, there can NEVER be a post written again by the real Arak, whose integrity has been destroyed by a mishief-maker/troll. Regard ALL future Arak poss as mischief-making, and do believe ANYTHING written in this name again.