Living off Stipends in High Cost-of-Living Areas (cough cough, California

[marXian]

I think you should really PM the people who have lived in Santa Barbara to find out more. I have family and a few friends there (I grew up in Pasadena, near Los Angeles), and it is a different world. People who are comparing the cost of living and the living experience to other places in So Cal I don't think are helping you out all that much. Rent is probably comparable, but groceries and other "every day" items are more expensive. Don't know if this matters to you, but there are also certain stores (such as Target) that aren't in Santa Barbara--you would have to drive about 30 minutes south of UCSB to get to them. Obviously not a huge deal if you never shop at places like Target or Wal-Mart, but it could be surprising if you're used to having certain stores around.

Technically, you'd probably be living in Isla Vista (the small town attached to UCSB) which has all the stuff you'd need (food co-op, etc.), so you definitely could get away without a car. The person who went to UCLA and said you would absolutely need a car of course needed a car since, he/she was living in Los Angeles--COMPLETELY different experience in Santa Barbara. Like I said, talk to someone who lived in Santa Barbara, not just So Cal, because the experience of living in Riverside/LA/SD/SB is going to be totally different.

[see_bella]

I'm having similar concerns with east coast places...

...New York and Maryland are expensive. I lived in both places for years and I can tell you for fact if you decide to go to Maryland, cost of living in Montgomery County is ridiculously high, particularly Rockville, Potomac, and Bethesda; Gaithersburg, Silver Spring, Wheaton/Glemont is cheaper (still kinda expensive). Baltimore is much cheaper but beware that there are a lot of high crime/low income/trashy places in Baltimore so choose carefully (the Towson area is nice). I can give you more tips if you like since I lived both in Baltimore and in Montgomery County/DC area (I go back there often to visit family). New York is reaaaalllly expensive in terms of rent. Food and clothes are dirt cheap I can tell you but a really decent unfurnished apartment in a really decent neighborhood could cost you $900 a month. Worse, if you plan to go to school on Long Island or in Manhattan itself. You may want to live in the Bronx or Brooklyn or Queens and commute by train.

[kaguyahime]

This is only an observation from my experience at UCSB:

Perhaps you don't want to consider student loans, but you will be eligible for loans with this stipend.

For example:

If you look at the Student Financial Aid page, you'll see what they call the "Annual Budget." I haven't checked lately, but it's around $36,000 a year for a grad living off campus.

You are eligible for subsidized loans to make up the difference between your aid and the "Annual Budget."

So if you are getting your tuition and fees paid ($13,000 or so), and getting a stipend of $17,000, you can get loans for around $6,000.

It is also possible to increase your budget for various reasons; for example, if you have to commute you can increase the transportation portion of your budget and therefore increase your loan eligibility.

This isn't a huge increase in funds but it's enough to make a difference!