Are you planning to pay for your kids' college fully?
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Anonymous
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No. We'll help.
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Anonymous
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Yes, we will pay as long as he is putting in best efforts and getting decent grades. If not, we will stop paying.
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Anonymous
| Private college tuition for our 2 would be more than my husband's take home salary. Needless to say, our kids will be helping!! |
Anonymous
| It's been my experience that whether a kid appreciates college and works hard is more a function of his/her personality than whether Mom and Dad pay or not. I've seen huge differences in Families among siblings, even though they've been raised the same. It might be best to try to save and intend to pay for college, but adjust support and guidance as needed depending on your child. |
Anonymous
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We would really really like to (and would love to help with grad school too). DH and I both have massive student loans and feel like we'll never get out from under them, and never be able to afford a house. We both make really good salaries but the student loans take out a sizable chunk every month and I feel really trapped in a demanding job as a result (when I'd love something with fewer hours do I could spend more time with DC). I don't wish that on my kids.
Spending money/fun money is a different story. |
Anonymous
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Three in college. One in high school. One in middle school.
No. We help. All three of our college kids are on scholarships. Two ROTC and one academic. Our high schooler has already been approached about a rowing scholorship. We have made it very clear that we expect them to contribute. I've read several studies showing that the vast majority of millionaires contributed to their college costs. |
Anonymous
Agree. My parents paid for my college, and private high school, and I worked hard and appreciated it. My DC also went to private HS, is now in college, and is working very hard despite the fact that we are paying. She knows what she wants to do post college and is working hard on that. |
Anonymous
| We would really like to and are actively saving so that we can. Hopefully we will be able to continue to do save for it. |
Anonymous
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Grades are not the be all and end all in life. When employers are looking to hire, they don't ask for a transcript.
When I hire, I would take someone with job experience over someone who hasn't worked. No job history is worrying and I stay away from anyone who is applying to a post-secondary education job as their first job. Someone who has worked while in school is a positive for me, and I don't care nor check to see what their GPA was. Grades are pretty immaterial. If you got the degree, you obviously met the standard. I can also see on your C.V. if you had scholarships, awards etc. Jobs teach so many skills that school doesn't and I want to hire someone who has proven they have those skills. If I see no job history, the application goes in the round bin regardless of how much of a superstar you were in high school or your GPA. I just can't take the risk that comes with someone who has never proven themselves in a workplace. |
Anonymous
I think this is industry specific. I have been asked for my transcripts (college and law school) for every interview. When I was looking for summer associate job, I was also asked to provide my LSAt score |
Anonymous
| Yes, as long as we see our DC perform genuinely well. I self-paid, as did spouse. But this is a different time -- I would be terrified and feel guilty forever if DC graduated with any undergrad student loan debt. |
Anonymous
That's fine, but most kids these days at least do unpaid internships, summer internshps etc. to get work experience, regardless of whether they pay their own way through college. If you are viewing someone who performed cafeteria work during college to pay their way (as I myself did) more favorably than someone with a high GPA, I suspect you are an outlier, regardless of whether there is a legitimate rationale for that view. |
Anonymous
Not sure which way the PP intended this but I read it as an argument in favor of paying your kids way if you can/shows the unfair advantage kids whose parents can afford to pay have. There is a huge difference in the quality of work experience you can get at an unpaid internship over a work study type job (like working the desk at a library for example) which lets you earn some cash but doesn't really provide any experience. Whether or not your parents pay is not determinative of whether you'll get a summer job but it might impact what kind of summer job you can accept. |
Anonymous
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With what we have in the 529, and what I expect to be able to cash flow, and DCTAG, my kid should have about $30 - 35K a year available to him if he chooses a private school, or $40-45K if he chooses a state school.
This should cover any school that meets full need (since our EFC is below $30K), and many but not all state schools. If he chooses a school that costs more, he'll need to contribute, whether by earning merit, working, or taking out Stafford Loans. I would consider helping pay off Staffords, but I wouldn't take out a Parent Plus or other loan. If he chooses a school that costs less, or earns a merit award that brings the cost below $30/40K, then he'll have the remainder of the money available for grad school. |
Anonymous
| team effort for college and for grad school (unless it is law school or an MBA, in which case he can work it out on his own). |