Paying for College tuition and expenses

[Anonymous]

I would apply to more schools that are sliding admissions. Your financial plan sounds like a really bad one from the start. You either sell the house to pay for it or figure it out. I just don't get why you didn't apply to more schools that she could get in that were affordable.

[Anonymous]

When you’re dealing with a kid (high schooler) you really need to be stern ahead of time on cost constraints.

I had to transfer colleges due to cost.

[Anonymous]

Wait...we are headed into extremely uncertain economic times and depending on who you listen to, possibly very scary times and you think this is a good idea?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:This is just dumb.

My son had his heart set on UVA and despite and unweighted 3.9 and a full college semester of APs under his belt, he didn’t get in. He instead went to NOVA and due to his APs only had to do 3 semesters to get his AA for which he got a 4.0. He then used the 4th semester to move and work at a ski resort in Utah. He will head to UVA this fall (guaranteed admissions).

He has saved so much money not only will he graduate debt free, we will be able to use the the money he didn’t touch in his 529 for his younger brother . We paid NOVA out of pocket, so that gave us more growth, plus another 2 years of contributions. Plus his work in Utah came with free employee housing, some free meals, and a free ski pass to multiple resorts. Wayyy smarter than insane amounts of debt or plundering retirement


You are allowing your daughter to make an extremely stupid move. Have you always made poor financial decisions or just when it involves your kids?

Please listen to this person!!!

[Anonymous]

OMG OP -- do not pay 80k. This is nuts. You can get a CS degree just about anywhere and once you graduate, your experience or your graduate school will matter so much more than where you got your undergrad. Your kid could go to your state's non-flagship or do community college for 2 years and then transfer to the flagship. Doing this will save you over $50k per year. You can then give your kid a $200k gift to buy a house or start a business. This will make a bigger difference in her life than sending her to an OOS college.

[Anonymous]

Michelle Singletary weighs in: https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/2022/04/27/may-1-college-decision-day/