$80K+ tuition

[Anonymous]

There may be 15-20 non Ivy’s I’d spend the money on and a few Ivy’s I wouldn’t. Some hoity liberal arts school in Mew England wouldn’t make the grade.

[Anonymous]

Not worth it.

--Ivy double grad

[Anonymous]

Honestly it is not helpful if you do not name the school.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Not for a pre-professional program. Save the money for MCAT/LSAT training and tell your kid to stand out on campus at the state U.

What if the state U is, say, one with an 80% admission rate. So ranked not highly at all? The in between option(s) was not one that DC liked (you know, like a 30-50% admit).

Acceptance rate is just a measure of popularity. 30-50% admit rate doesn’t mean it’s a better school than one with 80% acceptance.

That's not really the comparison though, is it?

It's the 30-50% vs. the selective school as compared to 80% vs. the selective school.

Dp. I don’t understand what you're saying. Pp is correct. The acceptance rate reflects the quantity of applicants, not the quality. That’s a poor measure to use when comparing schools.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Not worth it.

--Ivy double grad

Single ivy grad here, from back in the dark ages before tuition started increasing at twice the rate of inflation. I genuinely don’t see how the education is worth the list price anymore, unless you’re swimming in money and can drop $80k a year without noticing it. If you get a pile of aid (not loans!), then great, but otherwise no, not worth it. I’d have done just as well at one of our state schools (SUNY) and maybe even better.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Not worth it.

Did this happen or is the question theoretical? Ideally, you'd not allow student to apply to unaffordable schools. When my child chose to do that, I made sure they knew it was a long shot due to low acceptance rates and then--even if they got in--the tuition was too high.

They did choose to spend their time applying, but at least they knew the chance of being able to attend was very low.

+1

[Anonymous]

I think it matters what your financial situation is. We are in our 50s with over $6M in invested assets in addition to the college fund for our oldest with $400k set aside. We want her to go somewhere she feels good about and cost isn't really the primary consideration. If cost is a consideration, then it's a conversation with your kid and partner as to how to make the decision. I don't think it's as easy as saying it's worth it or not based on the college ranking. Ultimately, we know from the studies that college is what you make of it. But if your kid is happy there, isn't that worth something?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Is it worth it vs. a no name school (like waaaaaaay down the USNWR tiers)? For a name brand school, not ivy (I'm leaving those out of this as people get irrational about ivies). Kid was admitted.

For a pre-grad school track (med or other health path) where you'll likely have $300K plus tuition on the line. 529 won't cover all of that, not even close. Does the school matter? Does the "Brand" help grad admissions? What is it I'm buying for that $50K delta in tuition?

I hate to have kid say no b/c of money but . . . posting in money b/c it's about the money. But the college name is relevant too, I guess.

It is ironic that you acknowledge the relevance of the college name, yet fail to post it on an anonymous forum while seeking advice on its perceived or likely value.

[Anonymous]

Our 2 kids are at SLACs that are 82-84k/yr and we wouldn’t change a thing. Saved and sacrificed and funded 529s so they could have the same incredible education we had. IYKYK. If you don’t, you will surely think it’s not worth it.

[Anonymous]

Depends on the school and the kid but yes, can definitely be worth it. DH and I met at MIT. For two regular middle class kids, the education, network and brand of the school profoundly changed our lives. I had full ride opportunities at other good schools so it was a huge sacrifice for my parents (who have never made more than 200K HHI in a very expensive California coastal region) to pay out of pocket for at the time. But now 15 years later, we all agree it was worth it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Our 2 kids are at SLACs that are 82-84k/yr and we wouldn’t change a thing. Saved and sacrificed and funded 529s so they could have the same incredible education we had. IYKYK. If you don’t, you will surely think it’s not worth it.

This is not relevant to OP’s post, though. OP is talking about an academically rigorous T20 national university as opposed to a snobby liberal arts college whose only existence is to provide a soft landing for wealthy and otherwise incapable and unintelligent high school students. It’s really apples and oranges.

Quite frankly, SLACs charge what they do, because they’re targeting students that are unable to get accepted into T20 research institutions yet come from families that are desperate to avoid the stigma of having a child that couldn’t get a bachelor’s degree. Financial privilege at its finest.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Depends on the school and the kid but yes, can definitely be worth it. DH and I met at MIT. For two regular middle class kids, the education, network and brand of the school profoundly changed our lives. I had full ride opportunities at other good schools so it was a huge sacrifice for my parents (who have never made more than 200K HHI in a very expensive California coastal region) to pay out of pocket for at the time. But now 15 years later, we all agree it was worth it.

Why wouldn’t you just take the full ride at another good school, pocket and invest the tuition savings, and then get a Ph.D., S.M., or other graduate degree from MIT? This is what most smart people do. If you’re good enough to get accepted as an undergraduate, you should be good enough to get a fully covered graduate degree as well. Then, you have a more useful and prestigious degree from MIT as well as hundreds of thousands in tuition savings.

Anyone smart enough to get into MIT would be smart enough to perform this very straightforward analysis.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Depends on the school and the kid but yes, can definitely be worth it. DH and I met at MIT. For two regular middle class kids, the education, network and brand of the school profoundly changed our lives. I had full ride opportunities at other good schools so it was a huge sacrifice for my parents (who have never made more than 200K HHI in a very expensive California coastal region) to pay out of pocket for at the time. But now 15 years later, we all agree it was worth it.

Why wouldn’t you just take the full ride at another good school, pocket and invest the tuition savings, and then get a Ph.D., S.M., or other graduate degree from MIT? This is what most smart people do. If you’re good enough to get accepted as an undergraduate, you should be good enough to get a fully covered graduate degree as well. Then, you have a more useful and prestigious degree from MIT as well as hundreds of thousands in tuition savings.

Anyone smart enough to get into MIT would be smart enough to perform this very straightforward analysis.

Especially since PP lived in coastal California and could have easily gone to Berkeley for a fraction of the cost of MIT. And then still gone to MIT for free as a grad student. What a dummy.

[Anonymous]

I teach at an $80k/year school. No one pays the sticker price. It is worth it in some respects, it's a small SLAC and some students get to collaborate closely with professors, attend conferences, and publish before they get their Bachelor's. The alumni network is excellent. Class size is smaller, which is a good fit for some, but not all students. Is the education worth that amount of money compared to other schools? Probably not. You're paying for some amenities and networks.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Depends on the school and the kid but yes, can definitely be worth it. DH and I met at MIT. For two regular middle class kids, the education, network and brand of the school profoundly changed our lives. I had full ride opportunities at other good schools so it was a huge sacrifice for my parents (who have never made more than 200K HHI in a very expensive California coastal region) to pay out of pocket for at the time. But now 15 years later, we all agree it was worth it.

Why wouldn’t you just take the full ride at another good school, pocket and invest the tuition savings, and then get a Ph.D., S.M., or other graduate degree from MIT? This is what most smart people do. If you’re good enough to get accepted as an undergraduate, you should be good enough to get a fully covered graduate degree as well. Then, you have a more useful and prestigious degree from MIT as well as hundreds of thousands in tuition savings.

Anyone smart enough to get into MIT would be smart enough to perform this very straightforward analysis.

Especially since PP lived in coastal California and could have easily gone to Berkeley for a fraction of the cost of MIT. And then still gone to MIT for free as a grad student. What a dummy.

I don't agree with this statement obviously the poster is sharing real life experience and where you go to college matters and give you opportunity that is not available in other colleges. Paying the difference tuition might be worth.