I did that. Not quite Harvard, but turned down Duke, Cornell, and Dartmouth engineering to go to UMD. It was the decision between graduating debt free or $100k+ in debt.

Ironically at my first job my cube mate came from Yale, so I'm not sure it made much of a difference in the end. Part of me still wonders "what if?" 20 years later, but I'm not sad with how my life turned out.

Anonymous wrote:It isn’t always worth it for a family to put a huge stress on their finances for an impressive school. UVA produces very successful students and was likely much cheaper. I get it. The Ivy brand isn’t necessarily a good purchase if you, say, hurt your retirement.

UVA is barely top 25 and they are very weak in STEM and CS. It doesn’t attract top students.

It isn’t always worth it for a family to put a huge stress on their finances for an impressive school. UVA produces very successful students and was likely much cheaper. I get it. The Ivy brand isn’t necessarily a good purchase if you, say, hurt your retirement.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Harvard is expensive
Not everyone likes Harvard or feel it is a fit for them
UVA is a great school
One data point does not make a trend or norm

Then why did this person apply to Harvard ?

Parental pressure, a dare, the reasons are endless.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:People make bad decisions all the time.

Or smart ones…..for them

Thanks for the laugh. Imagine the regret.

Anonymous wrote:Harvard is expensive
Not everyone likes Harvard or feel it is a fit for them
UVA is a great school
One data point does not make a trend or norm

Then why did this person apply to Harvard ?

For my family, if we were choosing between in-state UVA with some aid and Harvard full-pay or close to it, it would be very hard to turn down UVA.

Luckily, we will never face that dilemma. 😂

Anonymous wrote:Fall in the donut group, money could be an issue especially with multiple kids in college

They probably do fall into the donut group. Both parents are professionals but I don’t think they make $$$.

Anonymous wrote:People make bad decisions all the time.

Or smart ones…..for them

They are VERY different schools. In almost every way - climate, student body, social life, athletics, location, type of surrounding environment… I can absolutely see someone making that decision.

Fall in the donut group, money could be an issue especially with multiple kids in college

People make bad decisions all the time.

Money issue?

I doubt it.

Harvard is expensive
Not everyone likes Harvard or feel it is a fit for them
UVA is a great school
One data point does not make a trend or norm

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???