Now that classes have transitioned online, transferring to a costly four-year university has lost its worth.

Four-year universities cost a lot of money and most students don’t receive adequate financial aid. A lot of them have to take out student loans to pay for tuition and other fees.

Students pay this price to get the full college experience, living on campus and going to in-person classes. Online learning has made the cost of transferring even steeper.

The on-campus experience is what makes college fun and the tuition worth it. You’re paying heaps of money, so you can get an in-depth education and use the facilities that the school provides.

Since everything transitioned online, you get the same experience at a community college as you would at a four-year university because all classes are being taught through Zoom.

The education is all the same. The only difference is the price tag.

I still plan on transferring to a 4-year university to further my education, but I hesitated about it because of the cost of tuition.

I considered remaining here at community college and completing as many classes as I can, since the price is so low compared to the four-years.

But I also want to finish school as fast as possible, so I decided to apply to more in-state schools and refrained from applying to some out-of-state schools.

Because out-of-state tuition is already significantly higher, it’s only worth it if you get to enjoy your experience on the campus.

Now that everything’s online, the only experience you get is inside your house, in front of a laptop screen.

As things open and campuses begin to have in-person classes, my transfer plans will go back to normal.

I plan to transfer in the fall semester or quarter and my top choices are the University of Oregon, UC Berkeley, and San Jose State because of their excellent journalism programs.