No money saved for college

[Anonymous]

I don't mean to hijack the thread but this is a pet peeve of mine. Kids are in a rush to do super advanced classes like calc as a sophomore. The downside risk of a bad grade in this class is worse than the upside benefit of impressing schools by taking a class early.

In this case what's done is done but parents (and schools) should really be smarter about this.

Back to the primary topic, good luck to the OP. I'm sure there are plenty of schools that will be a good fit. It might not be his dream school, but tell him to do his best academically and be flexible.

[Anonymous]

ASU or University of AZ may get your son really close to your 34K a year goal. For ASU, going to the Tempe campus may be closer to $37K per year, but still super close to your goal.

[Anonymous]

BYU is $30,000 all in (tuition, room and board, books, etc.) per year for non-LDS students. The Wall Street Journal ranks BYU at #20, Forbes has it at 36 overall, and #1 best value. BYU has a strong network for new graduates in IB. The only downside is that your kid has to abide by the honor code.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I don't mean to hijack the thread but this is a pet peeve of mine. Kids are in a rush to do super advanced classes like calc as a sophomore. The downside risk of a bad grade in this class is worse than the upside benefit of impressing schools by taking a class early.

In this case what's done is done but parents (and schools) should really be smarter about this.

Back to the primary topic, good luck to the OP. I'm sure there are plenty of schools that will be a good fit. It might not be his dream school, but tell him to do his best academically and be flexible.

In my country France kids are divided into sections in HS: scientific, economic, social etc.

Those in the scientific section have no choice but take very hard math courses. I did bad, I got Bs and Cs and that prevented me from getting into great colleges in the US

Nevertheless I got admitted to a top 30 public university that was probably familiar with our system and took it into account. calculus 1 to 3, linear Algebra, diff equations, physics 1-2 were a breeze I was so bored the courses were so easy.

It's unfortunate that kids get penalized for not having done well in those advanced courses because those courses do prepare them for college

But of course the systems are different. In France a B average student is considered a really good student.

[Anonymous]

Is your child open to ROTC? My brother did army ROTC and loved it and has had a wonderful, well-paying career after retiring from active service.

[Anonymous]

He can qualify for schools scholarships offered by college to close the gap, it just depends on the college. Privates have much more to offer, though state schools have some.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Can you and his mom put away 12k/year his junior and senior year in preparation for college? That would give you $47k/year to spend each of the four college years, including the planned cash flow.

OP here. Unfortunately the problem is that he took interest in fencing at a young age and we put a lot of money into it and still do. If he quit we could have extra to save. The problem is despite great athletics genetics 6'4 etc he is just not a competitive kid by nature. He is bright, but he is not the kind to push himself. And fencing scholarships are extremely rare. But he likes it and we feel that it gave me him a refuge from our divorce.

You and your ex are each spending $1k a month ($2k total) on fencing instead of saving anything for college?

If you both aren't already socking away ANYTHING to save for this, than I am also suspicious that you'll be contributing $1k a month during his time in school. Even $200 a month in a 529 plan for the next years will be way better than saving nothing, though it doesn't have much time to grow.

[Anonymous]

OP here. Wow. Thanks so much folks. A wealth of info here.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Can you and his mom put away 12k/year his junior and senior year in preparation for college? That would give you $47k/year to spend each of the four college years, including the planned cash flow.

OP here. Unfortunately the problem is that he took interest in fencing at a young age and we put a lot of money into it and still do. If he quit we could have extra to save. The problem is despite great athletics genetics 6'4 etc he is just not a competitive kid by nature. He is bright, but he is not the kind to push himself. And fencing scholarships are extremely rare. But he likes it and we feel that it gave me him a refuge from our divorce.

You and your ex are each spending $1k a month ($2k total) on fencing instead of saving anything for college?

If you both aren't already socking away ANYTHING to save for this, than I am also suspicious that you'll be contributing $1k a month during his time in school. Even $200 a month in a 529 plan for the next years will be way better than saving nothing, though it doesn't have much time to grow.

OP here. I am the one paying for his fencing. And basically what I am paying for fencing now I'll just divert to college. And further starting next fall I am making changes to reduce his fencing cost by 40% by switching him to a more local program and put the rest in his 529. I do have a 529 for him but it has a balance of only $3k and I put $100/month in it. The balance is so small and that's why I consider it as "no money saved for college".

But you are correct though I need to find ways to start saving more NOW even if I need to cut fencing completely especially since he is unlikely to get a scholarship for it.

[Anonymous]

I would limit him to 35k year schools.

[Anonymous]

Ask him to prepare for PSAT and if he qualifies as a National Merit semi finalist, University of Alabama and few other schools might be free for him. Also, two years CC and then transfering is also an option.

[Anonymous]

OP since your son wants to be an engineer, there are at least 50 descent colleges where he can get a good engineering education and come out debt free. Look at colleges in the south. They have descent engineering programs.

[Anonymous]

Some of the less selective Midwestern LAC’s may offer great merit aid.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Some of the less selective Midwestern LAC’s may offer great merit aid.

They won’t have an accredited civil engineering program.

[Anonymous]

This is drastic, but I suggest it in case either parent is able and interested in moving...if either OP or his ex-wife are interested in moving (and willing to part with their portion of custody for the remainder of high school) establish residency in a state where a state university with a good civil engineering program exists. Then claim in-state tuition? Of course that's a simplistic suggestion and you should read up on what's required to claim in-state. You'd need to decide if the kid stays put with the parent who doesn't move, or if the kid is interested in moving.