Question about financial aid at Ivies

[Anonymous]

The ivy is $50k not private school. The PP is trying to say jumping from private to Ivy is not a big stretch ... That they should be able to afford it, which is not true, it is a big stretch for many.

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Anonymous wrote:

Big difference between private HS (35k on the high end for the DMV area) & Ivy (60k a year).

Well yeah, but you would imagine that there would be at least some savings to tap into. And is some student loan debt the end of the world? I understand that going 200K into debt is really horrible for a young person to be saddled with, but I'm not sure that ~20K or less at a low interest rate is so untenable for a young person (obviously 25K x 4 is 100K, but presuming there might be savings in the picture).

Plus, if you've been paying $35k a year for 12 years what is it about year 13 that suddenly makes it unaffordable?

Just guessing here, but maybe that additional $25k?

Sorry, let me rephrase that. If you've been paying $35k for 16 years, what is it about year 17 that makes it about unaffordable? An 80k loan could be paid off fairly quickly.

Chances are this is all hypothetical anyway.

Not Pp but what they are saying it is not $35k ... It is more like $50k. A

I would also add that 12 years ago private school was not $35 ..more like $20-$25. Also she has one in college already. So instead of $30kx3 it is $50k x 2 + $30k for the last kid. $90k vs $130k

C'mon, it's not as high as $50k unless you're donating $$$ to the auction and DC participates in the most expensive school clubs. Also, I wonder if OP's kids are in parochial schools, which are less expensive.

[Anonymous]

I agree with the catch 22 part completely - if you save for college, then you won't qualify for FA. If you earn more than $100k you aren't going to qualify for even partial FA unless you have extenuating circumstances.

I do disagree with the assumption here, that your kid is going to hate school unless you put him in private school. There are certainly some public schools that are bad, but there are also plenty of great public schools with smart, motivated kids. Conversely, we've had some bad teachers in private school, in fact DC was ready to put needles in his eyes in 4th grade at a well-respected DC-area private school. Parental sacrifice doesn't have to mean foregoing the college and retirement savings ... parental sacrifice can also mean giving up that fun urban house and moving to the burbs for a good public school plus the ability to save for college.

I agree that a good public will work for most. That is why most go there. But there are plenty of kids in private because they were lost in the cracks in public. Mostly you are looking at a B/C student who needs nothing from a public school perspective because the teacher thinks great a B/C. When that child is in a small environment the kid will be more motivated because he is not in the cracks.

Having left private for public then to another private, it is just about where the kid can do their best.

Really, I would forgo the Ivy and find the right fit again and that might mean some merit aid. But I guess I see too many non-Ivy successful people and don't see the big deal.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Big difference between private HS (35k on the high end for the DMV area) & Ivy (60k a year).

Well yeah, but you would imagine that there would be at least some savings to tap into. And is some student loan debt the end of the world? I understand that going 200K into debt is really horrible for a young person to be saddled with, but I'm not sure that ~20K or less at a low interest rate is so untenable for a young person (obviously 25K x 4 is 100K, but presuming there might be savings in the picture).

Plus, if you've been paying $35k a year for 12 years what is it about year 13 that suddenly makes it unaffordable?

Just guessing here, but maybe that additional $25k?

Sorry, let me rephrase that. If you've been paying $35k for 16 years, what is it about year 17 that makes it about unaffordable? An 80k loan could be paid off fairly quickly.

Chances are this is all hypothetical anyway.

Actually an $80k loan is very crippling. Then there may be more debt for grad school.

With $80K, you're paying at about $920 a month in student loans for 10 years, until you're 32 (http://studentaid.ed.gov/repay-loans/understand/plans/standard/comparison-calculator). Not everyone can rely on the happy scenario above where dad paid off his son's loans (although my mom did pay off my loans). Unless you go into finance or something really lucrative, this $920/month payment is going to handicap you in (1) your job choice, because low-income jobs like teaching won't be options unless you do Teach America and get debt forgiveness, (2) entering the housing market and (3) saving for retirement. If you marry and your spouse has a similar amount of debt, this is probably going to slow you down in (4) starting a family. There's actually a lot of news about crushing student loan debt burdens recently, you should read up on it.

But an $80k loan is not crippling for parents who make $250k or more-- they probably will spend that much on their kitchen reno. If they don't want to pay it, that's obviously their choice, but it's not clear that an extra $80k is suddenly unaffordable after paying for private school k-12 with a $250k+ HHI is suddenly unaffordable.

[Anonymous]

But there are 3 kids, so yes $80k plus their other 2 kids, plus graduate school is a lot of money.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

But an $80k loan is not crippling for parents who make $250k or more-- they probably will spend that much on their kitchen reno. If they don't want to pay it, that's obviously their choice, but it's not clear that an extra $80k is suddenly unaffordable after paying for private school k-12 with a $250k+ HHI is suddenly unaffordable.

What planet do you live on? And why do you assume that everybody could drop $80k just as easily on a kitchen reno as on a college? As if dropping $80k is a matter of choice, not budget constraints?

Your assumption that people just "don't want to pay" $80 is ridonkulous. It's like the people who say that the only reason families don't do private is because they bought a Mercedes.

I guess I'm here to inform you that many DMV families struggle to get by in this really expensive area, where a mortgage on a colonial takes up much of that $250k income.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Big difference between private HS (35k on the high end for the DMV area) & Ivy (60k a year).

Well yeah, but you would imagine that there would be at least some savings to tap into. And is some student loan debt the end of the world? I understand that going 200K into debt is really horrible for a young person to be saddled with, but I'm not sure that ~20K or less at a low interest rate is so untenable for a young person (obviously 25K x 4 is 100K, but presuming there might be savings in the picture).

Plus, if you've been paying $35k a year for 12 years what is it about year 13 that suddenly makes it unaffordable?

Just guessing here, but maybe that additional $25k?

Sorry, let me rephrase that. If you've been paying $35k for 16 years, what is it about year 17 that makes it about unaffordable? An 80k loan could be paid off fairly quickly.

Chances are this is all hypothetical anyway.

Actually an $80k loan is very crippling. Then there may be more debt for grad school.

With $80K, you're paying at about $920 a month in student loans for 10 years, until you're 32 (http://studentaid.ed.gov/repay-loans/understand/plans/standard/comparison-calculator). Not everyone can rely on the happy scenario above where dad paid off his son's loans (although my mom did pay off my loans). Unless you go into finance or something really lucrative, this $920/month payment is going to handicap you in (1) your job choice, because low-income jobs like teaching won't be options unless you do Teach America and get debt forgiveness, (2) entering the housing market and (3) saving for retirement. If you marry and your spouse has a similar amount of debt, this is probably going to slow you down in (4) starting a family. There's actually a lot of news about crushing student loan debt burdens recently, you should read up on it.

But an $80k loan is not crippling for parents who make $250k or more-- they probably will spend that much on their kitchen reno. If they don't want to pay it, that's obviously their choice, but it's not clear that an extra $80k is suddenly unaffordable after paying for private school k-12 with a $250k+ HHI is suddenly unaffordable.

weasel words!