Cost of attendance? Wow

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:For those reading this and freaking out, use the college Net Price Calculators for an estimate of need-based aid. If that's not going to cut it for your family, the earlier you understand that, the better you can begin to look for lower priced options and places that offer merit scholarships. Realistic expectations.

What if those colleges are not a good fit for your kid?

Then they go to a school that isn’t a great fit.

+ 1
great fit is so overrated, it is not worth an extra 50K per year/ per kid

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I just had the first “we can’t afford that” moment with DD who was starting to get excited about a school that touted it was usually $30k after FA. We can afford instate public or she can get a scholarship to fill the gap.

?? But most instates are in the $30s...

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:For those reading this and freaking out, use the college Net Price Calculators for an estimate of need-based aid. If that's not going to cut it for your family, the earlier you understand that, the better you can begin to look for lower priced options and places that offer merit scholarships. Realistic expectations.

What if those colleges are not a good fit for your kid?

Then they go to a school that isn’t a great fit.

+ 1
great fit is so overrated, it is not worth an extra 50K per year/ per kid

Sure it is, if you can afford it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:For those reading this and freaking out, use the college Net Price Calculators for an estimate of need-based aid. If that's not going to cut it for your family, the earlier you understand that, the better you can begin to look for lower priced options and places that offer merit scholarships. Realistic expectations.

What if those colleges are not a good fit for your kid?

This isn't a goldilocks moment. Get over the idea that there is a perfect fit college out there. If you can't afford any car on the lot, you don't start by looking at the expensive ones. Start by finding what might be financially possible and go visit those. Then you make it work.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:For those reading this and freaking out, use the college Net Price Calculators for an estimate of need-based aid. If that's not going to cut it for your family, the earlier you understand that, the better you can begin to look for lower priced options and places that offer merit scholarships. Realistic expectations.

What if those colleges are not a good fit for your kid?

Then they go to a school that isn’t a great fit.

+ 1
great fit is so overrated, it is not worth an extra 50K per year/ per kid

Sure it is, if you can afford it.

If the fit is Harvard, yes. If Its Elon, not so much.

[Anonymous]

OP here-- yes, I get the families save, we save too-- and that compromises have to be made, that's part of life. To be honest, I think these colleges are too expensive.
Several fellow students in my grad school who went to small, selective, private undergraduate schools. I went to a big, in state affordable university. We all ended up in the same kind of jobs, in the same city.
I think that unless these schools are showing great student outcomes (i.e. better than they would get without the 300K price tag), they cost too much...but that is only my opinion and I'll act accordingly.

[Anonymous]

agreed, either top 10-15 or find your best fit among the in state choices

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I’m not the least bit surprised after paying for private school. My nephew’s preschool (4 hours) is $24,000 an academic year. My DD’s high school is $42,600. My alma mater is now $58,195 and DH’s is $72,200.

Private schools are extremely expensive.

+1. After 12 plus years of “free” education in public school, lots of public school parents are shocked.

+2. This is so true. Plus OP and others are determining worth of a college based on future earning potential. There is so much more involved than how much your kid will earn after graduation.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP here-- yes, I get the families save, we save too-- and that compromises have to be made, that's part of life. To be honest, I think these colleges are too expensive.
Several fellow students in my grad school who went to small, selective, private undergraduate schools. I went to a big, in state affordable university. We all ended up in the same kind of jobs, in the same city.
I think that unless these schools are showing great student outcomes (i.e. better than they would get without the 300K price tag), they cost too much...but that is only my opinion and I'll act accordingly.

It doesn't matter what you or we think. Its the price tag. You pay it, you get aid or loans or your kids go where you can afford.

Reality is like you said, it doesn't matter where you go to college except a few professions like medicine or big law. Looking back, there was the public vs. private school fights as well when we were kids. All of us ended up at similar colleges and professions so the most important thing is where you can afford and where you child will be happy. My goal is no loans or debt so if that means a state school, that's where they are going. There are multiple options for the state schools.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I’m not the least bit surprised after paying for private school. My nephew’s preschool (4 hours) is $24,000 an academic year. My DD’s high school is $42,600. My alma mater is now $58,195 and DH’s is $72,200.

Private schools are extremely expensive.

+1. After 12 plus years of “free” education in public school, lots of public school parents are shocked.

+2. This is so true. Plus OP and others are determining worth of a college based on future earning potential. There is so much more involved than how much your kid will earn after graduation.

My spouse went to a no name college and earns 4-6 times more than me because of the professions we choose.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP here-- yes, I get the families save, we save too-- and that compromises have to be made, that's part of life. To be honest, I think these colleges are too expensive.
Several fellow students in my grad school who went to small, selective, private undergraduate schools. I went to a big, in state affordable university. We all ended up in the same kind of jobs, in the same city.
I think that unless these schools are showing great student outcomes (i.e. better than they would get without the 300K price tag), they cost too much...but that is only my opinion and I'll act accordingly.

It doesn't matter what you or we think. Its the price tag. You pay it, you get aid or loans or your kids go where you can afford.

Reality is like you said, it doesn't matter where you go to college except a few professions like medicine or big law. Looking back, there was the public vs. private school fights as well when we were kids. All of us ended up at similar colleges and professions so the most important thing is where you can afford and where you child will be happy. My goal is no loans or debt so if that means a state school, that's where they are going. There are multiple options for the state schools.

Grad school is much more important than college medecine and big law

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I’m not the least bit surprised after paying for private school. My nephew’s preschool (4 hours) is $24,000 an academic year. My DD’s high school is $42,600. My alma mater is now $58,195 and DH’s is $72,200.

Private schools are extremely expensive.

+1. After 12 plus years of “free” education in public school, lots of public school parents are shocked.

+2. This is so true. Plus OP and others are determining worth of a college based on future earning potential. There is so much more involved than how much your kid will earn after graduation.

My spouse went to a no name college and earns 4-6 times more than me because of the professions we choose.

So? Education and earning are two very separate things. I don’t doubt my plumber earns more than I do but I wouldn’t trade my education for anything.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I’m not the least bit surprised after paying for private school. My nephew’s preschool (4 hours) is $24,000 an academic year. My DD’s high school is $42,600. My alma mater is now $58,195 and DH’s is $72,200.

Private schools are extremely expensive.

+1. After 12 plus years of “free” education in public school, lots of public school parents are shocked.

+2. This is so true. Plus OP and others are determining worth of a college based on future earning potential. There is so much more involved than how much your kid will earn after graduation.

My spouse went to a no name college and earns 4-6 times more than me because of the professions we choose.

Me too. And he went to that no name college because it gave him a full ride, when he also got into Duke and Penn and those schools didn’t offer him anything.

[Anonymous]

I really am tired of the “worth it” argument when the only value involved is earnings/future earnings.

Education is it’s own value. If you can’t afford an expensive school that’s one thing but to deny your child the opportunity to grow and learn in the environment best suited to him/her because “Colby won’t pay off” or “Scripps won’t guarantee her a job” is backward thinking.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My DS is starting to think of colleges (he's fifteen) and I was casually browsing some of the smaller, private schools-- the cost of these places is insane. Yes, we're realistic (529 plan and know that college is expensive). It just struck me that there are so *many* extremely expensive colleges, and most of them I've never heard of or wouldn't think twice about if I saw them on a resume.
I'm not trying to stir a fight-- I know that colleges are a lot about fit, and maybe these places offer something extraordinary, but many seem like rich people schools-- one said they basically cavort in LL Bean and music is a top major-- cost of attendance $80,000. SMH.

I'm middle-aged and one of the SLACs I considered in the early 90s was $26k a year (including room and board), so just over $100K for four years. At the time, it was the second most expensive private college in the country. The exponential rate of college pricing is disgraceful, and tied heavily into the behemoth student loan industry.

Bennington?

No, but similar.