I stupidly advised my kid to apply to my need aware undergraduate school and learned that the embarrassing way. 400k undergraduate schools are not for people like us, or so they told us.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:That’s not donut hole. That’s a comfortable family. The rest of our kids go to state schools.

This. If you have sticker shock, but the ability to pay you aren't really a donut hole.

Ability to pay when that ability means constant struggle, isn’t really comfortable.

Families with more than one kid and $250-300k don’t get financial aid. Paying $180-200k/year for kids’ tuition isn’t easy.

With two W2 incomes ($250k+) + small rental income + few thousand 1099 consulting gigs, we are still getting financial aid grant packages from few privates this year for my S24. Not much, but about $12k per year. At least it will make feel better than paying a full sticker price.

Anonymous wrote:That’s not donut hole. That’s a comfortable family. The rest of our kids go to state schools.

But not really. The whole reason people talk about a donut hole is that extraordinary kids from lower middle class families (up to $85k, which is 55th percentile HHI) go to elite private universities for free, and extraordinary kids from true middle class families (up to $150k, which is 80th percentile HHI) go for $15k or less. Those kids are not going to state schools. They’re going to elite private schools, because for them it’s cheaper than going to state schools.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:That’s not donut hole. That’s a comfortable family. The rest of our kids go to state schools.

This. If you have sticker shock, but the ability to pay you aren't really a donut hole.

Ability to pay when that ability means constant struggle, isn’t really comfortable.

Families with more than one kid and $250-300k don’t get financial aid. Paying $180-200k/year for kids’ tuition isn’t easy.

I'm a family with two kids at 130k. We haven't been offered squat. $5500 loan for each.

Whoa you must have some crazy assets.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:That’s not donut hole. That’s a comfortable family. The rest of our kids go to state schools.

This. If you have sticker shock, but the ability to pay you aren't really a donut hole.

Ability to pay when that ability means constant struggle, isn’t really comfortable.

Families with more than one kid and $250-300k don’t get financial aid. Paying $180-200k/year for kids’ tuition isn’t easy.

I'm a family with two kids at 130k. We haven't been offered squat. $5500 loan for each.

Ugh! Sorry

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:That’s not donut hole. That’s a comfortable family. The rest of our kids go to state schools.

This. If you have sticker shock, but the ability to pay you aren't really a donut hole.

Ability to pay when that ability means constant struggle, isn’t really comfortable.

Families with more than one kid and $250-300k don’t get financial aid. Paying $180-200k/year for kids’ tuition isn’t easy.

I'm a family with two kids at 130k. We haven't been offered squat. $5500 loan for each.

Anonymous wrote:That’s not donut hole. That’s a comfortable family. The rest of our kids go to state schools.

College costs makes a comfortable upper middle class family, uncomfortable and middle class.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:That’s not donut hole. That’s a comfortable family. The rest of our kids go to state schools.

This. If you have sticker shock, but the ability to pay you aren't really a donut hole.

Ability to pay when that ability means constant struggle, isn’t really comfortable.

Families with more than one kid and $250-300k don’t get financial aid. Paying $180-200k/year for kids’ tuition isn’t easy.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:That’s not donut hole. That’s a comfortable family. The rest of our kids go to state schools.

This. If you have sticker shock, but the ability to pay you aren't really a donut hole.

Ability to pay is often at the cost of liquidating retirement funds, home equity, life style and nursing home savings.

Anonymous wrote:That’s not donut hole. That’s a comfortable family. The rest of our kids go to state schools.

This. If you have sticker shock, but the ability to pay you aren't really a donut hole.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Yeah, it's ridiculous. Send your kid to a decent public school - there are plenty of them.

Decent public schools are 30k per year. Mind boggling

That’s crazy too.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Yeah, it's ridiculous. Send your kid to a decent public school - there are plenty of them.

Most likely what we are doing- W&M or UVA

I just read all these people fighting over prestige and it’s crazy. My kid got into many of these schools they are raving about, but not worth the $.

Pot, meet kettle

Kid is in a liberal arts major/govt-international relations. Those are the two publics with best programs in his field. The point was—why pay $85-100k for a private university.

The point is pointing to UVA and W&M as the only in stat options wile talking about the craziness of fighting over prestige

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My god— my niece paid $100k freshmen year to attend Boston College.

It’s not very different from Georgetown or any of the SLACs.

My child has been accepted to some very adjective universities (5-6%%) acceptance rate—but paying $70k more per year over the very good VA public university seems ludicrous.

This is the point we have come to in higher education. A $400k undergrad degree?

Yep, we are at this same realization. We've saved a lot and thought it would be enough. It's not. We are foregoing all of those big, fancy schools as it does not make sense. Once out of grad school it will not matter that DC went to Bridgewater vs. Boston College. Sorry, it won't.

These prices are unsustainable and it's absurd we accept them as "normal" now.

Yes. My cousin just received his Master’s at Hopkins (Baltimore campus) after GMU. It’s the last school he attended that employees care about. Landed a great job.

That’s not donut hole. That’s a comfortable family. The rest of our kids go to state schools.

Anonymous wrote:At least 1/4 is room & board, but it's still expensive.

Hope she saved some money attending public K-12. I rather invest in private college over white-flight "elite" private K-12.

Go and start a new topic if you have a compelling need to jeer at families who have their kids in private schools.