Anonymous
12/31/2025 09:42
Subject: Which college is worth $90k?
Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:We’re fortunate to be able to afford full tuition anywhere. We told both DCs that money did not need to factor into their school choices, and we meant it.
NP here. We are too but I still get agita wondering if any college is worth that much money. I feel guilty.
I don’t feel guilty at all, but I went to one of those expensive SLACs everyone on here hates and had a fantastic experience there.
Anonymous
12/31/2025 09:41
Subject: Which college is worth $90k?
Anonymous wrote:We’re fortunate to be able to afford full tuition anywhere. We told both DCs that money did not need to factor into their school choices, and we meant it.
The question is not whether you can afford or pay for it, the question is what college is actually worth 90,000 per year. So, if you believe your particular college is/was , state your reasons supporting that.
Anonymous
12/31/2025 09:41
Subject: Which college is worth $90k?
Anonymous wrote:None
Great answer!
Anonymous
12/31/2025 09:40
Subject: Which college is worth $90k?
Anonymous wrote:Don't understand why folks complain about the 90k+ in tuition/room costs for higher education and instead are completely okay with buying an suv/car that is 100k+ that is a depreciating asset
This PP has a point! Room and board (with today’s grocery prices!) has got to be worth at least $10k a year. No need to pay for sports/activities, that’s another $10k. For private school families, tuition plus donations cost another $50k+. In our case, our finance may actually become better once first DC goes off to college b/c we currently pay for her food, expenses, activities, tuition etc out of our monthly pay checks, whereas soon, it will come from 529 that we have not been able to touch.
Anonymous
12/31/2025 09:39
Subject: Which college is worth $90k?
To answer OP's question. To me...none for undergrad. But, that's only my opinion.
Anonymous
12/31/2025 09:38
Subject: Which college is worth $90k?
Anonymous wrote:It’s like anything else you buy in life. Is that house, new phone, car, TV, purse, lessons, etc worth it?
It all depends on what you can easily afford.
Nobody needs most of the stuff they own, tbh.
Same logic for college. How do you define worth it? Dollar for dollar ROI? Then no, none of them are worth it. But then neither is a car that can do more than drive or anything more than a few outfits or a simple $2 bag that can hold things instead of a fancy purse.
The key is to live within your means. You don’t need an expensive college to end up making a decent salary. However future salary isn’t the only value from college just like getting from A to B isn’t the only value from a car or “holding things” isn’t the only value from a purse.
You have to decide for you what is worth it. Crowd sourcing that will give you the full range of opinions as it should.
Very well said.
Anonymous
12/31/2025 09:38
Subject: Which college is worth $90k?
Anonymous wrote:We’re fortunate to be able to afford full tuition anywhere. We told both DCs that money did not need to factor into their school choices, and we meant it.
NP here. We are too but I still get agita wondering if any college is worth that much money. I feel guilty.
Anonymous
12/31/2025 09:33
Subject: Which college is worth $90k?
We’re fortunate to be able to afford full tuition anywhere. We told both DCs that money did not need to factor into their school choices, and we meant it.
Anonymous
12/31/2025 09:30
Subject: Which college is worth $90k?
It’s like anything else you buy in life. Is that house, new phone, car, TV, purse, lessons, etc worth it?
It all depends on what you can easily afford.
Nobody needs most of the stuff they own, tbh.
Same logic for college. How do you define worth it? Dollar for dollar ROI? Then no, none of them are worth it. But then neither is a car that can do more than drive or anything more than a few outfits or a simple $2 bag that can hold things instead of a fancy purse.
The key is to live within your means. You don’t need an expensive college to end up making a decent salary. However future salary isn’t the only value from college just like getting from A to B isn’t the only value from a car or “holding things” isn’t the only value from a purse.
You have to decide for you what is worth it. Crowd sourcing that will give you the full range of opinions as it should.
It all depends on what you can easily afford.
Nobody needs most of the stuff they own, tbh.
Same logic for college. How do you define worth it? Dollar for dollar ROI? Then no, none of them are worth it. But then neither is a car that can do more than drive or anything more than a few outfits or a simple $2 bag that can hold things instead of a fancy purse.
The key is to live within your means. You don’t need an expensive college to end up making a decent salary. However future salary isn’t the only value from college just like getting from A to B isn’t the only value from a car or “holding things” isn’t the only value from a purse.
You have to decide for you what is worth it. Crowd sourcing that will give you the full range of opinions as it should.
Anonymous
12/31/2025 09:22
Subject: Which college is worth $90k?
Don't understand why folks complain about the 90k+ in tuition/room costs for higher education and instead are completely okay with buying an suv/car that is 100k+ that is a depreciating asset
Anonymous
12/31/2025 09:17
Subject: Which college is worth $90k?
With our kid, it came down between full pay at a T-25 and full pay at a Lower ranked OOS public. It’s not always a simple decision.
Anonymous
12/31/2025 09:16
Subject: Which college is worth $90k?
Between merit and/or financial aid, we're NOT paying $90k for any college, regardless of "ranking."
Anonymous
12/31/2025 09:12
Subject: Which college is worth $90k?
Anonymous wrote:From your personal experience or colleges you toured, which are standouts that really impress you to be worth the full tuition? Less interested in HYPMS, rather ones that are not as prestigious but you think are comparable or even better.
Since we had enough saved for our child, any college they wanted to attend that they could get into.
Anonymous
12/31/2025 09:04
Subject: Which college is worth $90k?
Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:I think it’s more a question of what does $90k mean to you. If you have to borrow the money, or if paying that much meaningfully impacts your retirement or life in some way, it’s not worth it no matter the school.
If you can pay that much a year and it doesn’t impact you, then yea, it can be worth it.
OP - yes we can comfortably afford it, but still want to still which is best combination of world class education and campus experience comparable to HYPMS if full tuition is not a barrier and elite prestige is not the goal.
Pretty sure elite prestige is part of what makes the HYPMS cost worth it (at least for those who think it is).
I’m not sure any school is worth over $90k that doesn’t come with a brand name that wows.
Agreed. What you are paying for is the prestige. If that’s not the draw for you, the actual cost of decent room, board, campus and professors is much lower.
Anonymous
12/31/2025 09:00
Subject: Which college is worth $90k?
None beyond top 25.