What was your strategy for making college more affordable? Live in VA vs. MD?

[Anonymous]

The options of UVA and William and Mary are superior to any state’s college options other than CA. I can’t think of any other states with two excellent state school options. I view it as an easy choice to live in MD over VA. My wife and I can’t understand why anyone here would choose MD.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The options of UVA and William and Mary are superior to any state’s college options other than CA. I can’t think of any other states with two excellent state school options. I view it as an easy choice to live in MD over VA. My wife and I can’t understand why anyone here would choose MD.

^ live in VA over MD

[Anonymous]

We live in VA , bought the prepaid when it was dirt cheap. Both kids went out of state. So, it did not really help. We saved enough to pay $40-$50k a year and that is about what it’s costs. One is at a state school that is around $43 k all in and one got a scholarship to a private that makes it about $45k a year all in.

One is an engineering major and is a math/physics major. Both are at schools that are higher ranked for their majors than any state school in VA.

[Anonymous]

To be sure, uprooting one’s life for a hypothetical shot at UVA is very risky and borders on fantasy. The same with W&M if you have a daughter. Male applicants to W&M who apply early decisión do seem to gain a meaningful admissions advantage, however.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:We live in VA , bought the prepaid when it was dirt cheap. Both kids went out of state. So, it did not really help. We saved enough to pay $40-$50k a year and that is about what it’s costs. One is at a state school that is around $43 k all in and one got a scholarship to a private that makes it about $45k a year all in.

One is an engineering major and is a math/physics major. Both are at schools that are higher ranked for their majors than any state school in VA.

So they didn’t get in to UVA?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The options of UVA and William and Mary are superior to any state’s college options other than CA. I can’t think of any other states with two excellent state school options. I view it as an easy choice to live in MD over VA. My wife and I can’t understand why anyone here would choose MD.

Why does this pop up in every thread? Some other people make choices different than you and there is confusion as to why we don't all act like you?

Think about it. And stop assuming you are the smartest people on the planet.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The options of UVA and William and Mary are superior to any state’s college options other than CA. I can’t think of any other states with two excellent state school options. I view it as an easy choice to live in MD over VA. My wife and I can’t understand why anyone here would choose MD.

Perhaps because their jobs are in MD and I would not choose my state based on hypothetical college acceptances either way.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We live in VA , bought the prepaid when it was dirt cheap. Both kids went out of state. So, it did not really help. We saved enough to pay $40-$50k a year and that is about what it’s costs. One is at a state school that is around $43 k all in and one got a scholarship to a private that makes it about $45k a year all in.

One is an engineering major and is a math/physics major. Both are at schools that are higher ranked for their majors than any state school in VA.

So they didn’t get in to UVA?

Neither applied. The engineer applied to VATech and got into engineering, liked his school better. The math/physics major did not see a great physics department there, so declined to apply. He did get into UMDCP Honors program, but chose to go elsewhere.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The options of UVA and William and Mary are superior to any state’s college options other than CA. I can’t think of any other states with two excellent state school options. I view it as an easy choice to live in MD over VA. My wife and I can’t understand why anyone here would choose MD.

If they want to major in physics, UMD-CP is far superior.-

[Anonymous]

OP we are in the same boat as you. Two kids aged 10-12 in public schools in MD. Saving in 529s. Shocked that college costs 500% more than it did in the mid-late 80s when we were looking at colleges.

We seriously considered moving to VA for the HS years, to cover the 2 years required residency requirement of the colleges there, and to find some kind of short-term school stability for the kids.

However, I then remembered how my own parents relocated me in those years to gain a similar advantage and how it back-fired spectacularly because of the disruption to all our lives. I floundered academically for a while and it took a lot of effort to bring things back up again.

I think if we moved our kids at that stage, they'd probably have similar issues. There is a lot to be said for continuity and our kids have moved a lot already.

I don't know what the answer is, and I would like at least one of ours to go to W&M and think both are probably capable of that.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The options of UVA and William and Mary are superior to any state’s college options other than CA. I can’t think of any other states with two excellent state school options. I view it as an easy choice to live in MD over VA. My wife and I can’t understand why anyone here would choose MD.

Why does this pop up in every thread? Some other people make choices different than you and there is confusion as to why we don't all act like you?

Think about it. And stop assuming you are the smartest people on the planet.

Jobs are in DC, and all things being equal.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The options of UVA and William and Mary are superior to any state’s college options other than CA. I can’t think of any other states with two excellent state school options. I view it as an easy choice to live in MD over VA. My wife and I can’t understand why anyone here would choose MD.

because there is more to life than attending state colleges?

[Anonymous]

The options of UVA and William and Mary are superior to any state’s college options other than CA. I can’t think of any other states with two excellent state school options. I view it as an easy choice to live in MD over VA. My wife and I can’t understand why anyone here would choose MD.

Yes, it's a known fact that UVA and W&M accept 100% of applicants from VA. 10% of the Class of 2017 at my DC's school enrolled at these two schools. About half of the class of 500 went OOS.

We moved from MD to VA when older DC was starting K - mainly for a shorter commute, but I remember thinking at the time that the kids would have great choices for college. Fast forward 12 years and older DC applied to zero in-state schools and moved out west. Younger DC has mostly As and high test scores but still isn't very competitive for UVA or W&M. Based on his interests, he wouldn't want to go to either school anyway. He just visited UMD-CP and is looking at other OOS publics (focusing on ones that offer merit), along with VA Tech and a couple of private schools..

[Anonymous]

We too have been surprised at the amount of merit aid our not top 10% DC has received this year.

DC has gotten 40% off of directional universities. 25% off of cut rate privates. 25% off of 2nd tier OOS schools.

50% off of expensive privates in undesirable locations. 25% off inexpensive instate schools.

Even DC's expensive private reach school managed 15% off.

All this without filing a financial aid form or any scholarship applications.

[Anonymous]

Why don't you look at the realtor + moving costs from house 1 in MD to house 2 in VA? Don't forget about the commuting costs. Place that $$ in your college savings plan. Sorry, but your plan doesn't seem that well thought out.