For those with kids in college, give me the real scoop on the “perks”

[Anonymous]

Seconding others who have said that schools really vary on this point. If it matters to you, find out more about it because it can really make a difference in the experience of being a student if you're not scrambling to pay for the "extras."

At one extreme, I was so impressed with Grinnell, where there are basically no hidden costs for anything. No fees to attend events on campus of any kind. No fees for travel associated with a class (whether a student receives financial aid or not). No extra costs for a semester or year abroad, and they make sure ahead of time that your credits will transfer so you're not doing an extra year to graduate. They will even fund an unpaid summer internship if the student applies for the money and makes a case for doing it.

That's the most generous school I encountered, but others may come close, or may not talk about it as much.

[Anonymous]

It's been helpful to ask tour guides about year abroad programs. They know how much it's actually utilized and often have made a decision about whether or not they're going to do it. Felt it was one point where we got some info that wasn't written by the admissions office.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Seconding others who have said that schools really vary on this point. If it matters to you, find out more about it because it can really make a difference in the experience of being a student if you're not scrambling to pay for the "extras."

At one extreme, I was so impressed with Grinnell, where there are basically no hidden costs for anything. No fees to attend events on campus of any kind. No fees for travel associated with a class (whether a student receives financial aid or not). No extra costs for a semester or year abroad, and they make sure ahead of time that your credits will transfer so you're not doing an extra year to graduate. They will even fund an unpaid summer internship if the student applies for the money and makes a case for doing it.

That's the most generous school I encountered, but others may come close, or may not talk about it as much.

Yale is ridiculously generous. Pomona too.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:1. My DD has a ton of money in the bank from all her internships, and I mean some serious cash. 2. No one at my DD’s school lives on campus after freshman year. 3. Any program that lets you go abroad will cost you something in time and money but that’s the trade off for experience. It’s basically a safe way to travel in a controlled environment. There are no classes abroad that are not offered at your home institution, that’s not why you do these trips. 4. College is about building a skill set that helps you successfully navigate the rest of your life. It doesn’t have to be on a four year plan. These are opportunities, you can select whichever ones you feel are helpful. 5. The only problem is making them available to those who don’t have the means. The ones who would most benefit from these programs are the least likely to be able to make that financial decision.

Sounds like UMD

[Anonymous]

Lol.

[Anonymous]

To be fair, there's not much school "provided" perks at UMD. Kids have to find the opportunities themselves - particularly when it comes to research opportunities. But I don't this is a bad thing. It forces kids to grow up, be more assertive, and be more accountable for their college years.

[Anonymous]

At my alma mater, beyond the usual faculty mentorship, research, and grad school arrangements, there are things like the secret senior leadership societies that meant regular consultations with university administrators and trustees and well-placed alumni. These might lead to rare/unusual special assistant/adviser jobs with senior government officials, think tanks, foundations, businesses, etc. Might not be a big deal for the econ major headed to a two year analyst slot at Goldman, but it could get a dancer or a lit major in the CEO's office at a PE or hedge fund or a historian on a presidential campaign plane.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:To be fair, there's not much school "provided" perks at UMD. Kids have to find the opportunities themselves - particularly when it comes to research opportunities. But I don't this is a bad thing. It forces kids to grow up, be more assertive, and be more accountable for their college years.

I actually wasn't kidding about UMD. Their engineering students make bank on paid summer internships and most graduate in 4 years. The companies come to them all of the time. Same with research positions all over the school. Pretty easy to find.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:To be fair, there's not much school "provided" perks at UMD. Kids have to find the opportunities themselves - particularly when it comes to research opportunities. But I don't this is a bad thing. It forces kids to grow up, be more assertive, and be more accountable for their college years.

I actually wasn't kidding about UMD. Their engineering students make bank on paid summer internships and most graduate in 4 years. The companies come to them all of the time. Same with research positions all over the school. Pretty easy to find.

You are talking about top performing kids, yes? UMD engineering dept is huge. I know plenty of kids who were unable to find internships/research positions. Top kids, yes, definitely.