Middle class family being bamboozled with large "scholarships" from tier 5 LACs

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Which schools do you mean? I'm not familiar with this and am curious if tier 5 LACs are names we'd know

Non-selective, middle of nowhere, mediocre graduation rates, around 2,000 students

Examples?

[Anonymous]

Odd piece of concern trolling, this.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Leave it alone, if their kids want to go to Rollins or Randolph-macon, let them.

I actually think those colleges have a lot to offer.

Is Rollins that bad? The campus is lit.

[Anonymous]

Whoever else may have posted before about this subject, I feel it IS important to remind prospective families that some aid is to be expected, in order to entice applicants who might otherwise go elsewhere. Most colleges are in a highly competitive field because they're not top tier - they have to do *something* to get the students they want.

And it works, for my kid included. It's nice to feel wanted.

[Anonymous]

Stop commenting until someone posts an actual web page.

BTW, all "scholarships" are a lie. It's just marketing BS for "price negotiation". Meaningful conversation is about the price, not the "scholarship" "markdown" from a made up price. Did you get a "scholarship" at Best Buy on Black Friday?

[Anonymous]

I think these colleges are great for donut hole kids who don't want State U for whatever reason. If you are academically well above average for a particular school, you can get a big discount. Makes all the sense in the world. Meanwhile, you go, you are a big fish in a small pond, get all the attention from professors you need, graduate with a 4.0. It's not that bad. It's the free market at work. God bless!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP:

Two reasons it might make sense:

1. Scholarship brings the cost down equivalent to in-state public options.

2. If the kid needs a really small environment and lots of hand-holding. Think: a kid with ADHD, mildly ASD, executive functioning issues, or has some mental health issues. Such a kid will fall through the cracks in a large public college or university and can probably cope a bit more easily in a small LAC setting.

I understand but how does Option 2 in this example look like a "deal" to any family? We are not talking about Williams or Amherst.

Option 1: Globally-recognized UVA or UMD are $30K before any scholarships, merit or means-based aid.

Option 2: No-name LAC is $60K minus $30K "scholarship" makes it $30K out of pocket (read student and parent loans, refi house, sell assets).

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Stop commenting until someone posts an actual web page.

BTW, all "scholarships" are a lie. It's just marketing BS for "price negotiation". Meaningful conversation is about the price, not the "scholarship" "markdown" from a made up price. Did you get a "scholarship" at Best Buy on Black Friday?

Exactly! But I don't know how to tell them this without sounding rude.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP:

Two reasons it might make sense:

1. Scholarship brings the cost down equivalent to in-state public options.

2. If the kid needs a really small environment and lots of hand-holding. Think: a kid with ADHD, mildly ASD, executive functioning issues, or has some mental health issues. Such a kid will fall through the cracks in a large public college or university and can probably cope a bit more easily in a small LAC setting.

I understand but how does Option 2 in this example look like a "deal" to any family? We are not talking about Williams or Amherst.

Option 1: Globally-recognized UVA or UMD are $30K before any scholarships, merit or means-based aid.

Option 2: No-name LAC is $60K minus $30K "scholarship" makes it $30K out of pocket (read student and parent loans, refi house, sell assets).

UVA is 40k.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP:

Two reasons it might make sense:

1. Scholarship brings the cost down equivalent to in-state public options.

2. If the kid needs a really small environment and lots of hand-holding. Think: a kid with ADHD, mildly ASD, executive functioning issues, or has some mental health issues. Such a kid will fall through the cracks in a large public college or university and can probably cope a bit more easily in a small LAC setting.

I understand but how does Option 2 in this example look like a "deal" to any family? We are not talking about Williams or Amherst.

Option 1: Globally-recognized UVA or UMD are $30K before any scholarships, merit or means-based aid.

Option 2: No-name LAC is $60K minus $30K "scholarship" makes it $30K out of pocket (read student and parent loans, refi house, sell assets).

A lot of kids getting these mailers are not getting into UVA or UMD. Maybe JMU or St Marys or UMBC. So a regional public college vs. small no-name LAC. Small environment will usually win out for kids who needs extra hand-holding.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Which schools do you mean? I'm not familiar with this and am curious if tier 5 LACs are names we'd know

Non-selective, middle of nowhere, mediocre graduation rates, around 2,000 students

Examples?

Delaware Valley University?

Albright College?

Carlow University?

Susquehanna University?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Real middle class get financial aid. DCUM middle class are generally not real MC and can save and choose not to.

+1

It doesn’t take a genius to have known if you make more than 200k you will likely be full pay. We knew that 20+ years ago. We used estimates to assume college would be 30k per year for many in states and the elite would be 75-80k. Those calculators were spot on

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Which schools do you mean? I'm not familiar with this and am curious if tier 5 LACs are names we'd know

Non-selective, middle of nowhere, mediocre graduation rates, around 2,000 students

Examples?

Delaware Valley University?

Albright College?

Carlow University?

Susquehanna University?

Haven't heard of any of those.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Why is scholarships in scare quotes? Are these families being offered money or not?

Is it that these are schools that offer scholarship money to get kids to come, and then make it hard to keep the scholarships so families wind up having to switch schools or bother to stay?

Or are you just talking about schools that offer a lot of merit aid to kids with good stats in order to induce them to come to the school and boost their numbers? I do not feel middle class families get "bamboozled" by this because generally if a kid has good stats, the family is with it enough to be able to evaluate options, since the kid will have some with high numbers, including in state options.

In any case, of all the things about higher education to be worried about right now, this seems far down the list unless you are talking about actual fraud.

I wondered that as well.

A scholarship is $ you don’t have to pay back or do work to receive. Whether $500 or $50,000, it’s a scholarship.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Why is scholarships in scare quotes? Are these families being offered money or not?

Is it that these are schools that offer scholarship money to get kids to come, and then make it hard to keep the scholarships so families wind up having to switch schools or bother to stay?

Or are you just talking about schools that offer a lot of merit aid to kids with good stats in order to induce them to come to the school and boost their numbers? I do not feel middle class families get "bamboozled" by this because generally if a kid has good stats, the family is with it enough to be able to evaluate options, since the kid will have some with high numbers, including in state options.

In any case, of all the things about higher education to be worried about right now, this seems far down the list unless you are talking about actual fraud.

I wondered that as well.

A scholarship is $ you don’t have to pay back or do work to receive. Whether $500 or $50,000, it’s a scholarship.

It's like shopping at an outlet mall, all the b-grade merch is discounted from fake ticket prices to give an illusion you're getting an amazing deal. The discount isn't real, just like "scholarships" offered to everyone aren't real.