What did you pay last year (tuition+living) for DC college?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I'm a teacher who currently makes around $60K but my DD is 10 yrs old right now. I'm wondering how I'll ever afford even a state school. In the next few years, I can start saving maybe $100/month for college but that's it. The fact that some of you pay more than I gross in a year for college makes me wonder what to do. I know there are a lot of schools that would give a lot of FA but what if my DD doesn't get into them? I am not against student loans because I had them myself but if she doesn't get into the schools with who give out lots of FA, what is left to do?

Np. One option is for DC to go to community college for 2 years, knock out all of the course requirements for the state school of her choice, and then transfer and do her major for the last two years. It's not ideal if what you value is a traditional 4 year liberal arts experience but it will significantly cut down on your costs.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I hope the ROI is in line with the cost.

hahaha. It's not. At least for the vast majority (assuming you are talking about the expensive private schools - 65-72k a year at the moment). There is no way unless you have a DC who goes into a very lucrative profession like finance. But even then they have to be good at it. I guess at the end of the day, you have to put value into the "intangibles." A traditional 4 year liberal arts experience can expand one's horizons if undertaken seriously.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It's scandalous what's happened to tuition, but people shouldn't be surprised because this is the way it's been heading for years. This is what income inequality looks like. Did you know there are actually a lot of people out there who really can write a check for $65k without batting an eye? Many of them in this area have been writing checks for $35k for 13 years for private school already. And if universities run out of these full-pay parents, they can and do import the wealthiest kids from China to fill the rest of the spots. The world has changed, and our kids probably won't go to the caliber of schools that we went to, because it's so much more expensive now and, paradoxically, much more challenging to get in now as well.

+1

I am shocked by the pricetag of private colleges. The price went up outrageously, far, far faster than inflation, because of the availability of student loans. It's fine for the very poor, who will get financial aid, and for the very wealthy, who won't notice the $65K tuition. But for people in the middle, it's a disaster. I've told my kids we will not borrow to send them to college, nor will we allow them to borrow.

More kids are going to in-state schools purely because of cost. I know three excellent students from DD's class who chose public colleges over privates (Haverford, Tufts, NYU) purely because of price. The private schools are likely better, but they are not worth the $160,000 difference in price. They are not that much better.

We pay $18K for DD. She got scholarships that cut the price. It's affordable to us, but $65K is absolutely out of the question. Crazy that people will continue to pay, but they do....

We pay for our DD because we can afford. If people carefully planned when their kid(s) are young, most people in this area can afford the $65K per year.

This is just patently not true. The median income in the country is close to 65k a year. Schools like NYU are now up to 72k.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It's scandalous what's happened to tuition, but people shouldn't be surprised because this is the way it's been heading for years. This is what income inequality looks like. Did you know there are actually a lot of people out there who really can write a check for $65k without batting an eye? Many of them in this area have been writing checks for $35k for 13 years for private school already. And if universities run out of these full-pay parents, they can and do import the wealthiest kids from China to fill the rest of the spots. The world has changed, and our kids probably won't go to the caliber of schools that we went to, because it's so much more expensive now and, paradoxically, much more challenging to get in now as well.

+1

I am shocked by the pricetag of private colleges. The price went up outrageously, far, far faster than inflation, because of the availability of student loans. It's fine for the very poor, who will get financial aid, and for the very wealthy, who won't notice the $65K tuition. But for people in the middle, it's a disaster. I've told my kids we will not borrow to send them to college, nor will we allow them to borrow.

More kids are going to in-state schools purely because of cost. I know three excellent students from DD's class who chose public colleges over privates (Haverford, Tufts, NYU) purely because of price. The private schools are likely better, but they are not worth the $160,000 difference in price. They are not that much better.

We pay $18K for DD. She got scholarships that cut the price. It's affordable to us, but $65K is absolutely out of the question. Crazy that people will continue to pay, but they do....

We pay for our DD because we can afford. If people carefully planned when their kid(s) are young, most people in this area can afford the $65K per year.

This is just patently not true. The median income in the country is close to 65k a year. Schools like NYU are now up to 72k.

And with that income, the most expensive schools will cost significantly less than that...even free, in the cases of Harvard, Yale, Princeton, etc. Surely you understand that?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It's scandalous what's happened to tuition, but people shouldn't be surprised because this is the way it's been heading for years. This is what income inequality looks like. Did you know there are actually a lot of people out there who really can write a check for $65k without batting an eye? Many of them in this area have been writing checks for $35k for 13 years for private school already. And if universities run out of these full-pay parents, they can and do import the wealthiest kids from China to fill the rest of the spots. The world has changed, and our kids probably won't go to the caliber of schools that we went to, because it's so much more expensive now and, paradoxically, much more challenging to get in now as well.

+1

I am shocked by the pricetag of private colleges. The price went up outrageously, far, far faster than inflation, because of the availability of student loans. It's fine for the very poor, who will get financial aid, and for the very wealthy, who won't notice the $65K tuition. But for people in the middle, it's a disaster. I've told my kids we will not borrow to send them to college, nor will we allow them to borrow.

More kids are going to in-state schools purely because of cost. I know three excellent students from DD's class who chose public colleges over privates (Haverford, Tufts, NYU) purely because of price. The private schools are likely better, but they are not worth the $160,000 difference in price. They are not that much better.

We pay $18K for DD. She got scholarships that cut the price. It's affordable to us, but $65K is absolutely out of the question. Crazy that people will continue to pay, but they do....

We pay for our DD because we can afford. If people carefully planned when their kid(s) are young, most people in this area can afford the $65K per year.

This is just patently not true. The median income in the country is close to 65k a year. Schools like NYU are now up to 72k.

And with that income, the most expensive schools will cost significantly less than that...even free, in the cases of Harvard, Yale, Princeton, etc. Surely you understand that?

So for the select few, going to Ivy League schools is a good idea. But what about the masses who couldn't save that kind of money even if they tried?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It's scandalous what's happened to tuition, but people shouldn't be surprised because this is the way it's been heading for years. This is what income inequality looks like. Did you know there are actually a lot of people out there who really can write a check for $65k without batting an eye? Many of them in this area have been writing checks for $35k for 13 years for private school already. And if universities run out of these full-pay parents, they can and do import the wealthiest kids from China to fill the rest of the spots. The world has changed, and our kids probably won't go to the caliber of schools that we went to, because it's so much more expensive now and, paradoxically, much more challenging to get in now as well.

+1

I am shocked by the pricetag of private colleges. The price went up outrageously, far, far faster than inflation, because of the availability of student loans. It's fine for the very poor, who will get financial aid, and for the very wealthy, who won't notice the $65K tuition. But for people in the middle, it's a disaster. I've told my kids we will not borrow to send them to college, nor will we allow them to borrow.

More kids are going to in-state schools purely because of cost. I know three excellent students from DD's class who chose public colleges over privates (Haverford, Tufts, NYU) purely because of price. The private schools are likely better, but they are not worth the $160,000 difference in price. They are not that much better.

We pay $18K for DD. She got scholarships that cut the price. It's affordable to us, but $65K is absolutely out of the question. Crazy that people will continue to pay, but they do....

We pay for our DD because we can afford. If people carefully planned when their kid(s) are young, most people in this area can afford the $65K per year.

This is just patently not true. The median income in the country is close to 65k a year. Schools like NYU are now up to 72k.

And with that income, the most expensive schools will cost significantly less than that...even free, in the cases of Harvard, Yale, Princeton, etc. Surely you understand that?

So for the select few, going to Ivy League schools is a good idea. But what about the masses who couldn't save that kind of money even if they tried?

http://www.usnews.com/education/best-colleges/paying-for-college/articles/2015/09/14/colleges-that-report-meeting-full-financial-need

At an income of $65K your EFC will be about $8000/year. That means that if you go to a school that meets 100% demonstrated need (see list) you will pay $8000 a year of what the school's sticker price is.

[Anonymous]

*regardless of what the school's sticker price is

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It's scandalous what's happened to tuition, but people shouldn't be surprised because this is the way it's been heading for years. This is what income inequality looks like. Did you know there are actually a lot of people out there who really can write a check for $65k without batting an eye? Many of them in this area have been writing checks for $35k for 13 years for private school already. And if universities run out of these full-pay parents, they can and do import the wealthiest kids from China to fill the rest of the spots. The world has changed, and our kids probably won't go to the caliber of schools that we went to, because it's so much more expensive now and, paradoxically, much more challenging to get in now as well.

+1

I am shocked by the pricetag of private colleges. The price went up outrageously, far, far faster than inflation, because of the availability of student loans. It's fine for the very poor, who will get financial aid, and for the very wealthy, who won't notice the $65K tuition. But for people in the middle, it's a disaster. I've told my kids we will not borrow to send them to college, nor will we allow them to borrow.

More kids are going to in-state schools purely because of cost. I know three excellent students from DD's class who chose public colleges over privates (Haverford, Tufts, NYU) purely because of price. The private schools are likely better, but they are not worth the $160,000 difference in price. They are not that much better.

We pay $18K for DD. She got scholarships that cut the price. It's affordable to us, but $65K is absolutely out of the question. Crazy that people will continue to pay, but they do....

We pay for our DD because we can afford. If people carefully planned when their kid(s) are young, most people in this area can afford the $65K per year.

This is just patently not true. The median income in the country is close to 65k a year. Schools like NYU are now up to 72k.

And with that income, the most expensive schools will cost significantly less than that...even free, in the cases of Harvard, Yale, Princeton, etc. Surely you understand that?

So for the select few, going to Ivy League schools is a good idea. But what about the masses who couldn't save that kind of money even if they tried?

http://www.usnews.com/education/best-colleges/paying-for-college/articles/2015/09/14/colleges-that-report-meeting-full-financial-need

At an income of $65K your EFC will be about $8000/year. That means that if you go to a school that meets 100% demonstrated need (see list) you will pay $8000 a year of what the school's sticker price is.

That isn't many schools. Be realistic. Very few students will be accepted into these schools.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It's scandalous what's happened to tuition, but people shouldn't be surprised because this is the way it's been heading for years. This is what income inequality looks like. Did you know there are actually a lot of people out there who really can write a check for $65k without batting an eye? Many of them in this area have been writing checks for $35k for 13 years for private school already. And if universities run out of these full-pay parents, they can and do import the wealthiest kids from China to fill the rest of the spots. The world has changed, and our kids probably won't go to the caliber of schools that we went to, because it's so much more expensive now and, paradoxically, much more challenging to get in now as well.

+1

I am shocked by the pricetag of private colleges. The price went up outrageously, far, far faster than inflation, because of the availability of student loans. It's fine for the very poor, who will get financial aid, and for the very wealthy, who won't notice the $65K tuition. But for people in the middle, it's a disaster. I've told my kids we will not borrow to send them to college, nor will we allow them to borrow.

More kids are going to in-state schools purely because of cost. I know three excellent students from DD's class who chose public colleges over privates (Haverford, Tufts, NYU) purely because of price. The private schools are likely better, but they are not worth the $160,000 difference in price. They are not that much better.

We pay $18K for DD. She got scholarships that cut the price. It's affordable to us, but $65K is absolutely out of the question. Crazy that people will continue to pay, but they do....

We pay for our DD because we can afford. If people carefully planned when their kid(s) are young, most people in this area can afford the $65K per year.

This is just patently not true. The median income in the country is close to 65k a year. Schools like NYU are now up to 72k.

And with that income, the most expensive schools will cost significantly less than that...even free, in the cases of Harvard, Yale, Princeton, etc. Surely you understand that?

So for the select few, going to Ivy League schools is a good idea. But what about the masses who couldn't save that kind of money even if they tried?

http://www.usnews.com/education/best-colleges/paying-for-college/articles/2015/09/14/colleges-that-report-meeting-full-financial-need

At an income of $65K your EFC will be about $8000/year. That means that if you go to a school that meets 100% demonstrated need (see list) you will pay $8000 a year of what the school's sticker price is.

Yes, and if you make anything more than $180K/year HHI, you will neither qualify for need-based aid, nor in most cases be able to save enough money to pay full price at the many schools that give no merit-based aid.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It's scandalous what's happened to tuition, but people shouldn't be surprised because this is the way it's been heading for years. This is what income inequality looks like. Did you know there are actually a lot of people out there who really can write a check for $65k without batting an eye? Many of them in this area have been writing checks for $35k for 13 years for private school already. And if universities run out of these full-pay parents, they can and do import the wealthiest kids from China to fill the rest of the spots. The world has changed, and our kids probably won't go to the caliber of schools that we went to, because it's so much more expensive now and, paradoxically, much more challenging to get in now as well.

+1

I am shocked by the pricetag of private colleges. The price went up outrageously, far, far faster than inflation, because of the availability of student loans. It's fine for the very poor, who will get financial aid, and for the very wealthy, who won't notice the $65K tuition. But for people in the middle, it's a disaster. I've told my kids we will not borrow to send them to college, nor will we allow them to borrow.

More kids are going to in-state schools purely because of cost. I know three excellent students from DD's class who chose public colleges over privates (Haverford, Tufts, NYU) purely because of price. The private schools are likely better, but they are not worth the $160,000 difference in price. They are not that much better.

We pay $18K for DD. She got scholarships that cut the price. It's affordable to us, but $65K is absolutely out of the question. Crazy that people will continue to pay, but they do....

We pay for our DD because we can afford. If people carefully planned when their kid(s) are young, most people in this area can afford the $65K per year.

This is just patently not true. The median income in the country is close to 65k a year. Schools like NYU are now up to 72k.

And with that income, the most expensive schools will cost significantly less than that...even free, in the cases of Harvard, Yale, Princeton, etc. Surely you understand that?

So for the select few, going to Ivy League schools is a good idea. But what about the masses who couldn't save that kind of money even if they tried?

http://www.usnews.com/education/best-colleges/paying-for-college/articles/2015/09/14/colleges-that-report-meeting-full-financial-need

At an income of $65K your EFC will be about $8000/year. That means that if you go to a school that meets 100% demonstrated need (see list) you will pay $8000 a year of what the school's sticker price is.

I agree with PP that for people in the middle, it's a disaster. I too have told my kids we will not borrow to send them to college, nor will we allow them to borrow. FAFSA says we can pay $61K/year for DC to go to school next year. We cannot do anything of a kind without jeopardizing our retirement - we can pay up to $45K/year, no more. Therefore DC will either go to an in-state school, or to a school that gives sufficient merit aid so as to enable us to send her.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It's scandalous what's happened to tuition, but people shouldn't be surprised because this is the way it's been heading for years. This is what income inequality looks like. Did you know there are actually a lot of people out there who really can write a check for $65k without batting an eye? Many of them in this area have been writing checks for $35k for 13 years for private school already. And if universities run out of these full-pay parents, they can and do import the wealthiest kids from China to fill the rest of the spots. The world has changed, and our kids probably won't go to the caliber of schools that we went to, because it's so much more expensive now and, paradoxically, much more challenging to get in now as well.

+1

I am shocked by the pricetag of private colleges. The price went up outrageously, far, far faster than inflation, because of the availability of student loans. It's fine for the very poor, who will get financial aid, and for the very wealthy, who won't notice the $65K tuition. But for people in the middle, it's a disaster. I've told my kids we will not borrow to send them to college, nor will we allow them to borrow.

More kids are going to in-state schools purely because of cost. I know three excellent students from DD's class who chose public colleges over privates (Haverford, Tufts, NYU) purely because of price. The private schools are likely better, but they are not worth the $160,000 difference in price. They are not that much better.

We pay $18K for DD. She got scholarships that cut the price. It's affordable to us, but $65K is absolutely out of the question. Crazy that people will continue to pay, but they do....

We pay for our DD because we can afford. If people carefully planned when their kid(s) are young, most people in this area can afford the $65K per year.

This is just patently not true. The median income in the country is close to 65k a year. Schools like NYU are now up to 72k.

And with that income, the most expensive schools will cost significantly less than that...even free, in the cases of Harvard, Yale, Princeton, etc. Surely you understand that?

So for the select few, going to Ivy League schools is a good idea. But what about the masses who couldn't save that kind of money even if they tried?

http://www.usnews.com/education/best-colleges/paying-for-college/articles/2015/09/14/colleges-that-report-meeting-full-financial-need

At an income of $65K your EFC will be about $8000/year. That means that if you go to a school that meets 100% demonstrated need (see list) you will pay $8000 a year of what the school's sticker price is.

I agree with PP that for people in the middle, it's a disaster. I too have told my kids we will not borrow to send them to college, nor will we allow them to borrow. FAFSA says we can pay $61K/year for DC to go to school next year. We cannot do anything of a kind without jeopardizing our retirement - we can pay up to $45K/year, no more. Therefore DC will either go to an in-state school, or to a school that gives sufficient merit aid so as to enable us to send her.

Well, if you are qualifying an income of greater than $180K as being in the middle, then that's a whole nother issue, and I'd suggest you get some perspective.

[Anonymous]

Finished my Under Graduation school India for $1000.00(incl all expenses) 1987-1991 Here I am not looking at combined VA In State $100K for my DS Freshman student college expenses!!!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It's scandalous what's happened to tuition, but people shouldn't be surprised because this is the way it's been heading for years. This is what income inequality looks like. Did you know there are actually a lot of people out there who really can write a check for $65k without batting an eye? Many of them in this area have been writing checks for $35k for 13 years for private school already. And if universities run out of these full-pay parents, they can and do import the wealthiest kids from China to fill the rest of the spots. The world has changed, and our kids probably won't go to the caliber of schools that we went to, because it's so much more expensive now and, paradoxically, much more challenging to get in now as well.

+1

I am shocked by the pricetag of private colleges. The price went up outrageously, far, far faster than inflation, because of the availability of student loans. It's fine for the very poor, who will get financial aid, and for the very wealthy, who won't notice the $65K tuition. But for people in the middle, it's a disaster. I've told my kids we will not borrow to send them to college, nor will we allow them to borrow.

More kids are going to in-state schools purely because of cost. I know three excellent students from DD's class who chose public colleges over privates (Haverford, Tufts, NYU) purely because of price. The private schools are likely better, but they are not worth the $160,000 difference in price. They are not that much better.

We pay $18K for DD. She got scholarships that cut the price. It's affordable to us, but $65K is absolutely out of the question. Crazy that people will continue to pay, but they do....

We pay for our DD because we can afford. If people carefully planned when their kid(s) are young, most people in this area can afford the $65K per year.

This is just patently not true. The median income in the country is close to 65k a year. Schools like NYU are now up to 72k.

And with that income, the most expensive schools will cost significantly less than that...even free, in the cases of Harvard, Yale, Princeton, etc. Surely you understand that?

So for the select few, going to Ivy League schools is a good idea. But what about the masses who couldn't save that kind of money even if they tried?

http://www.usnews.com/education/best-colleges/paying-for-college/articles/2015/09/14/colleges-that-report-meeting-full-financial-need

At an income of $65K your EFC will be about $8000/year. That means that if you go to a school that meets 100% demonstrated need (see list) you will pay $8000 a year of what the school's sticker price is.

I agree with PP that for people in the middle, it's a disaster. I too have told my kids we will not borrow to send them to college, nor will we allow them to borrow. FAFSA says we can pay $61K/year for DC to go to school next year. We cannot do anything of a kind without jeopardizing our retirement - we can pay up to $45K/year, no more. Therefore DC will either go to an in-state school, or to a school that gives sufficient merit aid so as to enable us to send her.

Well, if you are qualifying an income of greater than $180K as being in the middle, then that's a whole nother issue, and I'd suggest you get some perspective.

It's not in the middle for life generally. I have no beef with that. The issue is that people in that income range neither qualify for need-based aid, nor can pay the full price.

Not a complaint (although it is frustrating) - just a fact.

[Anonymous]

Our income is in that range (~$180k)and we can afford it (the FAFSA of $60-$70k). It isn't supposed to come out of your cash flow for the year. It is an expected expense since deciding to have children. Almost two decades should be enough time to save for it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Our income is in that range (~$180k)and we can afford it (the FAFSA of $60-$70k). It isn't supposed to come out of your cash flow for the year. It is an expected expense since deciding to have children. Almost two decades should be enough time to save for it.

Oh and our income was half that when our children were born.