Question: those who send their kids to slac or oos schools..

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Save in 529, have cash, have kid do work study/get a job to help pay.

Op here..
we did too. Could pay for Michigan but still couldn’t justify the cost of attendance as an out of state student. So i guess my question is how do you justify paying 50-70k for a slightly more prestigious school.

Listen, some people just have more money than you and don’t have to justify the cost.

PP I agree with you but I see a lot of people UMC chasing top tier schools because they think they are buying themselves a better life. In my family that’s not the case. I went to a flagship u and am making more than cousins who graduated from top tier.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Save in 529, have cash, have kid do work study/get a job to help pay.

Op here..
we did too. Could pay for Michigan but still couldn’t justify the cost of attendance as an out of state student. So i guess my question is how do you justify paying 50-70k for a slightly more prestigious school.

Listen, some people just have more money than you and don’t have to justify the cost.

PP I agree with you but I see a lot of people UMC chasing top tier schools because they think they are buying themselves a better life. In my family that’s not the case. I went to a flagship u and am making more than cousins who graduated from top tier.

Do you also wonder why everyone doesn’t like your favorite flavor of ice cream? This is just as dumb.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Save in 529, have cash, have kid do work study/get a job to help pay.

Op here..
we did too. Could pay for Michigan but still couldn’t justify the cost of attendance as an out of state student. So i guess my question is how do you justify paying 50-70k for a slightly more prestigious school.

Listen, some people just have more money than you and don’t have to justify the cost.

PP I agree with you but I see a lot of people UMC chasing top tier schools because they think they are buying themselves a better life. In my family that’s not the case. I went to a flagship u and am making more than cousins who graduated from top tier.

Do you also wonder why everyone doesn’t like your favorite flavor of ice cream? This is just as dumb.

I just see money burned in my family that would have been better used elsewhere. Hypothetically if the kids had gone to state school, parents could have given them 100k extra for a house. I don’t think the 4 years were worth it. Yes - if you make 500k per year it’s probably no big deal but it’s the middle class folks that have saved. I just feel like they are being sold a bill of good not real.

[Anonymous]

You can make the same argument about college itself. Silly thread

[Anonymous]

We were full pay for one kid at a SLAC and one at Michigan OOS. Neither applied to UMD - just wasn’t a fit for either. We paid with a combination of savings and current income. No regrets at all - both kids have great jobs and had excellent college experiences.

This may come as a surprise to you but lots of kids go to SLACs or OOS state schools. Michigan is ~50% OOS, UVA is ~33%.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:pp again, and because she went into a 2+4 (medical) program the merit package paid for 2 years of graduate school

we would never have known that going in

Can you share the name ?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Save in 529, have cash, have kid do work study/get a job to help pay.

Op here..
we did too. Could pay for Michigan but still couldn’t justify the cost of attendance as an out of state student. So i guess my question is how do you justify paying 50-70k for a slightly more prestigious school.

Listen, some people just have more money than you and don’t have to justify the cost.

+100

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Save in 529, have cash, have kid do work study/get a job to help pay.

Op here..
we did too. Could pay for Michigan but still couldn’t justify the cost of attendance as an out of state student. So i guess my question is how do you justify paying 50-70k for a slightly more prestigious school.

Listen, some people just have more money than you and don’t have to justify the cost.

PP I agree with you but I see a lot of people UMC chasing top tier schools because they think they are buying themselves a better life. In my family that’s not the case. I went to a flagship u and am making more than cousins who graduated from top tier.

Do you also wonder why everyone doesn’t like your favorite flavor of ice cream? This is just as dumb.

I just see money burned in my family that would have been better used elsewhere. Hypothetically if the kids had gone to state school, parents could have given them 100k extra for a house. I don’t think the 4 years were worth it. Yes - if you make 500k per year it’s probably no big deal but it’s the middle class folks that have saved. I just feel like they are being sold a bill of good not real.

Do you critique every purchase they make that you would not? Cars? Maybe the house they bought? Their clothes? Vacations? You should remember this: It’s not your money.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Save in 529, have cash, have kid do work study/get a job to help pay.

Op here..
we did too. Could pay for Michigan but still couldn’t justify the cost of attendance as an out of state student. So i guess my question is how do you justify paying 50-70k for a slightly more prestigious school.

For us it is not about prestige - it is about fit for a child with a learning difference.

I agree. But so many families send their kids to expensive salc without merit aid or other financial assistance without bringing the cost down to your instate school when they could get petty similar education at the state school. What I don’t understand is how do you justify the ROI for such schools? Especially when kids go to such schools to study history or philosophy. That clearly indicates they will need to go to graduate school as well or law school or medical school. Do people take out loans?

What's wrong with history or philosophy?

From a SLAC, could turn into fully funded Phd program.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Oberlin:

$76k a year, including R and B

Paid as follows:

$24k merit
$4k OSCA (does co-op dining, rather than standard meal plan. Works in the co-op about 6 hours a week, saves $2k a semester)
$25k out of 529 (we saved $110k by May Senior year, cushion because costs will increase each year)
$15k out of income ($1200 a month, which is what we saved during HS)
$8K from my kid (he had $80,000 gifted to him for education between both sets of grandparents and my grandparents)

This year, OSCA isn’t happening because of COVID, so my kid’s portion is $12k.

We are very lucky that we have the only grandkids on both sides, and both sets of grandparents opened a 529 or education IRA when they were born and contributed some each year. Otherwise, my kid would take out a $5500 Stanford and we would make up the difference.

Kid is responsible for books and spending money from summer job.

Realized WM is now $42k w/ R&B and once merit and OSCA are factored in Oberlin is $48k w/ R&B.

Bang for the buck just isn’t there.

Maybe not for your kid. It is for ours.

I can see that. A lot of families prefer slac just like they prefer private schools. To them, private is better, expensive is better. Exclusive is better. Then the cost can be justified

Another Oberlin parent here. For our family, it is not that private/expensive/exclusive is “better.“ It’s that a small liberal arts school offers small classes, undergraduate research, connections with professors, and various other experiences that make it worth it to us. Our DC’s specific academic and other needs make a small school a good fit.

Our DC has a $32,000 merit scholarship. We pay for the rest out of our 529 and other savings. We will have some leftover for graduate school.

Yet another Oberlin parent here. Oberlin gave enough merit/aid so I pretty much paid for R & B. Thank you Oberlin!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Save in 529, have cash, have kid do work study/get a job to help pay.

Op here..
we did too. Could pay for Michigan but still couldn’t justify the cost of attendance as an out of state student. So i guess my question is how do you justify paying 50-70k for a slightly more prestigious school.

For us it is not about prestige - it is about fit for a child with a learning difference.

I agree. But so many families send their kids to expensive salc without merit aid or other financial assistance without bringing the cost down to your instate school when they could get petty similar education at the state school. What I don’t understand is how do you justify the ROI for such schools? Especially when kids go to such schools to study history or philosophy. That clearly indicates they will need to go to graduate school as well or law school or medical school. Do people take out loans?

What's wrong with history or philosophy?

From a SLAC, could turn into fully funded Phd program.

I was a history major at a SLAC. Me and my fellow history majors are doing quite well. Two clerked for SC judges, several are very successful on Wall St., one is a top lobbyist, a couple went into academia. I’m pretty sure we thought it worthwhile.

[Anonymous]

Our eldest went to Purdue (graduated recently). They have not raised tuition in 7 years. It used to be about $5k more than instate, now it is about the same.

Our youngest is at a private school out of state and received a $25k a year scholarship. The costs to send them also are close to instate costs. (UVA and W&M)

Our friends seem to have the same experience for their children.

[Anonymous]

Different families have different price tolerances. Even among families with the same income and assets. It amazes me how "On the money" these schools are. They know exactly who to throw a 1/3 tuition merit bone to and who will pay full tuition. I would be more concerned if my child seriously preferred SLAC's. As for out of state, sure it is more worldly to go out of state. If my child truly needs to go out of state to attend a program of study, I would recommend he live at home and go instate the first two years, then transfer OOS.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Save in 529, have cash, have kid do work study/get a job to help pay.

And again the question. How do families save enough money to pay for their kids to go to OOS colleges?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Save in 529, have cash, have kid do work study/get a job to help pay.

And again the question. How do families save enough money to pay for their kids to go to OOS colleges?

How do parents send kids to independent elementary through high school- the most expensive SLAC for 4 years is cheaper than 13 years of independent school