Turning down top private for state school

[Anonymous]

I would guess there is a medical issue requiring that the kid needs to stay close to home.

[Anonymous]

Very common. Someone I know is turning down Stanford for UCLA.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:It’s a very smart decision. Only suckers pay 60k+ for college. ANY college.

only suckers don't have the money

[Anonymous]

My friend's DD (in New York) is the valedictorian of her class and heading to SUNY Binghamton.

My friend's snobby brother (who went to elite colleges) and SIL (who did not)- have much younger kids and have no idea how college admissions works these days - and have made a ton of rude comments about this to my friend. I feel so bad for her because she's a single mom, she's proud she can make Bing work, she thinks it's a fab school, and her DD is seriously thinking about med school, too. But it's like her family is telling her she's a failure because look, DD worked so hard to be graduating #1 and you are sending her to a state school.

I think Binghamton is a great choice but snobs be snobbin'.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My friend's DD (in New York) is the valedictorian of her class and heading to SUNY Binghamton.

My friend's snobby brother (who went to elite colleges) and SIL (who did not)- have much younger kids and have no idea how college admissions works these days - and have made a ton of rude comments about this to my friend. I feel so bad for her because she's a single mom, she's proud she can make Bing work, she thinks it's a fab school, and her DD is seriously thinking about med school, too. But it's like her family is telling her she's a failure because look, DD worked so hard to be graduating #1 and you are sending her to a state school.

I think Binghamton is a great choice but snobs be snobbin'.

Well...this is one instance where friend's DD should have taken a shot at Harvard or equal. Likely would have been completely free, based on the description of your friend's circumstances.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Very common. Someone I know is turning down Stanford for UCLA.

The girls are prettier at UCLA?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My friend's DD (in New York) is the valedictorian of her class and heading to SUNY Binghamton.

My friend's snobby brother (who went to elite colleges) and SIL (who did not)- have much younger kids and have no idea how college admissions works these days - and have made a ton of rude comments about this to my friend. I feel so bad for her because she's a single mom, she's proud she can make Bing work, she thinks it's a fab school, and her DD is seriously thinking about med school, too. But it's like her family is telling her she's a failure because look, DD worked so hard to be graduating #1 and you are sending her to a state school.

I think Binghamton is a great choice but snobs be snobbin'.

Well...this is one instance where friend's DD should have taken a shot at Harvard or equal. Likely would have been completely free, based on the description of your friend's circumstances.

Not if the dad has a high income and yet won't pay. -PP

[Anonymous]

I have been a Harvard alumni interviewer for many years and, a number of years ago, chaired an interviewing committee. (That just means I saw a few years' worth of data for area admits.)

Harvard regularly loses students to Yale, Stanford, MIT, UVA-Echols or Jefferson, UNC-Morehead etc. Engineering is also its own set of considerations.

That said, the Harvard donut hole is a bit skinnier, with many assets excluded and a fairly generous discount for people not in the top 10 percent of incomes. Some people also have financial circumstances that aren't well captured by the online calculators, especially if you have a small business or support relatives outside the nuclear family. Some people do need to hear from the financial aid office to know what is possible.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It’s a very smart decision. Only suckers pay 60k+ for college. ANY college.

only suckers don't have the money

Sure, everyone making the average income in the US can fork over $240K for a college education ;P

Our SAI seems to think we can afford $70K/year. HAHAHAHAHAHA We currently have enough saved for #1 for a lower priced state school, but we also have a second child that we will need to put through school a few years from now. No, we don't make "average HHI", but we also live in this HCOL area, and don't make near what many others on this board do.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It’s a very smart decision. Only suckers pay 60k+ for college. ANY college.

only suckers don't have the money

Maybe some don’t. We do. And our DD chose the merit scholarship at the state school over the more expensive “better” school. Shes smart, that one.

[Anonymous]

My kid's roommate at a top UC got into Columbia, Brown and Cornell but as a regents scholar was going to college for almost free at the UC. The roommate ended up also getting a $40k per summer internship and seems to be doing fine. My DC said they had met a few UC students whose parents were not willing to pay full tuition unless it was to HYPMS.

[Anonymous]

Some sociologists did a study on this kind of thing 15 or 20 years ago. I'll try to dig up a link. Their research found that those who were accepted at elite institutions but chose state schools instead had statistically indistinguishable career outcomes from those who went to the elite privates.

The reasoning was (in part), that applying and being accepted to an elite institution was a proxy for intelligence+drive+existing support. But the effect of the institution itself was undetectable.

There are other potential positive effects that might be associated with the state school choice, too, like graduating with zero debt (at least back then, before need blind), big fish in a small (or at least less competitive) pond, etc.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Is this fairly common at public schools?

One kid at my child’s public just turned down Harvard for UVA. I can understand not choosing NYU or Georgetown for UVA, but Harvard???

I know students who have recently turned down UVA for each of these. It is a personal decision, OP. Not everyone has UVA as a goal, and that is fine.

[Anonymous]

Happens all the time. Not everyone is ranking and Ivy obsessed and harbor common sense. Shockingly some kids value location and want a learning and social environment that they enjoy. Not sure why this is hard for some people to grasp.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I don't think the same kid coming out of UVA vs Harvard is getting the same job offers. Not even close.

+1

Nota contest, in the least.