Please check out the following report from NBC News, "Applications Soar at UCLA Despite Higher Costs":

State cutbacks have left University of California students paying around $13,200 a year and more increases are expected.

But the high costs have not stopped people from applying to the UC system. At UCLA alone, 91,512 people applied for enrollment for next fall, an 18 percent increase from previous years.

New students, especially freshmen, are apparently looking past the immediate pain to the future benefits and making a calculated decision.

"Going to a place like UCLA increases your chances of getting a better job or getting into a better grad school," said UCLA senior Nan Yang.

Key messages:

1. "At UCLA alone, 91,512 people applied for enrollment for next fall, an 18 percent increase from previous years."

2. "The amount of fall applications to UCLA is approximately the maximum number of seats in UCLA’s home stadium and the Rose Bowl in Pasadena."

For the academically inclined, Southern Cal is, at best, Second Choice. When one runs the costs-benefits ratio, Troy fares even worse.