This is the time in the semester when students receive their acceptance letters from the various universities they applied to. And while many Los Medanos College students choose to stay in state, others take the out-of-state route.

When deciding which path to take, each has its own pros and cons, which students must consider when choosing where to go.

According to collegeboard.org, the average out of state tuition at a public university is $22,958, whereas the average California in-state tuition is $6,759. Students can try to establish residency to receive the residency fee rate, but each state has its own requirements.

But going out of state may be worth the added financial burden for some.

Transfer Programs & Services Coordinator Adé Orígúnwá explained that many students choose to go out of state because it’s a new experience for them.

“Some students have a great sense of adventure and are able to entertain the idea of living somewhere new,” she said. “Going out of state means one will have to learn new weather patterns, local culture and the cheapest way to get home for the holidays.”

According to www. datamart.cccco.edu/, 111 students from LMC transferred out of state during the 2013-14 academic school year. In addition, a total of 14,247 California community college students transferred out of state during the same year.

Transfer Programs & Services counselor David Reyes said students may decide to go out of state for a “variety of different reasons.” California schools may not offer their ideal major or an out-of-state school may have a better reputation.

In addition, he said students may want to move out of state to “be close to family” or because they enjoy the “location of the transfer school and would like to move away from the Bay Area/California and explore another city/state.”

Student Ambassador Chloé Cooper has decided to transfer out of state so she can be close to her family and partake in a new experience.

“I decided to transfer out of state because my family was moving across country and I wanted to be near them,” said Cooper. “However, even before they made their decision, I was considering transferring out of state. For that moment in time I wanted to learn what it was like to be completely on my own.”

Reyes also said students might be interested in the “student life and campus life of that school” or “they were offered scholarships/financial aid to attend.”

In addition, he said the student may want to pursue the “athletic/sports programs offered at the school” or “admissions/application requirements might be different/more viable than UCs or CSUs, and other personal reasons that can vary from student to student.”

Out of state schools also have different requirements than California schools. Basic California transfer requirements include 60 transferable units, completion of CSU General Education, or Intersegmental General Education Transfer Curriculum course requirements, a minimum 2.0 GPA for CSUs and a minimum 3.0 GPA for UCs.

But this can be a problem as well as a benefit.

“Since California is a big state some out-of-state schools will honor our IGETC course pattern,” said Orígúnwá. “Students need to research and talk with the admissions departments of the out-of-state schools they are considering.”