whomi

I too have an assistantship and I'm not sure of all the ins and outs, but from my understanding it works as you've said. Using your figures: 30k is total cost of attendance, assistant package is worth 20k. The aid office will then reduce your loan (or any other aid/award) by the amount of assistantship. So now instead of being eligible for 30k of loans, you are now eligible for 10k of loans. The forms and sites that I've read say that we are to inform the aid office of any additional internal or external aid so that they may adjust your aid accordingly. And if they find out about aid at a later date that you have not reported, they can and will bill you for what they consider the additional amount they gave you/allowed you to borrow. And yes it's still taxed, so it's both aid and income - the school considers it aid, the government considers it income. Again, I'm still trying to figure this all out myself, but that's how I'm interpreting what I'm reading.

I'd visited the campus once before a few years ago and visited The Bay frequently in the months before submitting my application, including another trip to campus. 1. Program a perfect fit for my interests 2. International Reputation of Cal/School 3. As a current CA resident, in-state "fees" (why don't they just call it tuition?) 4. Location - college town within a short distance of a world-class city 5. Diversity - intellectuals, academics, artists, students, ethnic diversity 6. Public Transportation! BART! 7. Great food! I think that about sums it up... What made everyone else settle on Cal?

Hello All, I'm a "probably/definitely/maybe Berkeley," too. Liz and Carlula, I live in another notoriously expensive place, and I believe that as long as there's a steady income, it's possible to make ends meet on almost any amount as long as you live within or below your means. Also, as a vet of another notoriously expensive place, housing prices in the Bay don't scare me (much). In fact, from my few glimpses at listings on Craigslist, I'm finding plenty of places - 1 and 2 BRs for just moi even - within my imaginary budget. (But I am a frugal singleton w/ almost no debt, so it's literally just the basics for me. If I had to add a kid, cc/loan debt, a shoe fetish into the equation, I might think a little differently.) My thoughts: I read somewhere that student fellowships were taxed at 14%, so $25K would give you $21,500 in take home pay. Over ten months that leaves you with $2,150/month (or about $1,790/month over 12 months). Your biggest expense will likely be housing. The most expensive Cal graduate housing for a single person is about $1200/month I think. So on a 10 month budget, you've got almost $1000/month left for other expenses if you take even the most expensive Cal option and close to $600/month left on the 12 month budget. It looks like you can definitely find a studio, shared apartment or house within BART, bike and even walking distance that you'd pay less for and have even more money left over after rent. Not trying to be a know-it-all, especially on a board full of current and future academics, but I just want you to reassure you that while you may not live in the lap of luxury, you're not necessarily going to be in total poverty, either. If Cal is your first choice and you've already got 25K in hand, come on down, up, over and don't sweat it (too much). Signing off, Who? Mi? (who doesn't know much about The Bay but knows a lot about how to stretch a dollar in an expensive place)