Small Block V8 vs. Turbocharged Slant Six

Fellow college student here. I really love the turbo stuff. If I didn't already have a big block getting (slowly) ready to go in mine, I would probably be going that route as well. The big difference here is that I don't daily mine. The small block swap is going to be a lot less troubleshooting, and you can drive your car up until the weekend you decide to do the swap (and then hopefully right after, if your luck is better than mine). On the other hand a turbo setup could almost be a bolt-on, but I feel like for it to really run well you need at least a new cam. Also every time you want to mach something up you'd have to pull your exhaust manifold/intake/etc, which can be a hassle. Small block swap is common enough to know it's going to fit without a whole lot of trouble.

Also worth considering is that you have a higher ceiling with the v8. If you want to add more power later, that's easier to do. If you dream of 700+hp you can do that on a boosted small block.

Just some thoughts. You may be better off just setting aside the money and waiting to see if any great deals come to you. If they don't, then keep waiting until you have enough to do everything. That way you don't end up with half of a setup and wanting to go a different direction.

Keep us posted!