Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:This post is very judgmental. College is our top priority for our family and we don’t want cost to prevent our kids from attending any particular school. We have made choices that align with that value. Other people have different values and that is fine too.

Even if I started saving when my kid was born, I still couldn’t afford even 4 years of a public college. I’m a teacher. Great benefits but they won’t pay for college.

I can see how my own post is judgmental and I apologize. I guess my point was that the OP is judging how other people choose to spend money and how much they are able and willing to spend on college. It’s fine if the OP chooses not to do so (and from her posts it seems that she makes more money than you do) but she doesn’t need to judge others.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Actual skills are more important in today’s job market than a college degree. There are ways to get valuable industry certifications and credentials without paying for an expensive diploma.

You are gonna have to back that BS claim up with some facts, please.

Because ALL the data says otherwise:

Your graph shows looks at a 30-year career. Sure, college degrees were financially lucrative for someone who graduated 30 years ago when college costs were much lower. I’m not so sure college means a great payoff for today’s grads.

You're "not sure"? So then let's go with what the data says, and I mean all the data, and not some armchair nostrada-musing.

FYI the data shown has NOTHING to do with college costs, so that is a strawman argument. College grads earn more. LOTS more. Around double. End period.

Anonymous wrote:This post is very judgmental. College is our top priority for our family and we don’t want cost to prevent our kids from attending any particular school. We have made choices that align with that value. Other people have different values and that is fine too.

Even if I started saving when my kid was born, I still couldn’t afford even 4 years of a public college. I’m a teacher. Great benefits but they won’t pay for college.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP here-- I know my initial post sounded naive "golly gee college is pricey." We have saved, and we've saved enough that our kid could go to a high priced college if that was the right decision-- but a lot of this stuff is a little crazy sounding to me:

No, I wouldn't "mortgage myself to the teeth" to pay for Stanford. My husband is 52 and the chances of him getting laid off aren't small.

No, I wouldn't sacrifice critical retirement savings for college savings-there's middle ground there, and if there's not, I would be putting away for retirement.

Yes, I value education for its own sake and yes, I judge the college value (not solely to a large degree) on future earning power and employability.

Yes, I expect people to save if they can and compromise.

I do think state universities are also expensive and it should be a major priority for states to fund, improve, and make a much higher priority consideration for in-state applicants. Which is political, but is a core issue imo.

OP, sounds like you have a clear head and got what you need. Don't feed the beast with these people, next they'll be telling you you should move your family to a cheaper neighborhood and shut up...oh wait, they already did.

Thanks-- it was interesting to hear all of the perspectives-- we're just starting the college journey. People do have different values and priorities and that's okay.

I'm the PP, know that a high priced college isn't the be all end all. Your child's education is what they make of it, plenty of great cost efficient options out there, grad school is more important than undergrad. If they work hard wherever they are they will be successful. Good luck to your family on this journey.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Actual skills are more important in today’s job market than a college degree. There are ways to get valuable industry certifications and credentials without paying for an expensive diploma.

You are gonna have to back that BS claim up with some facts, please.

Because ALL the data says otherwise:

Your graph shows looks at a 30-year career. Sure, college degrees were financially lucrative for someone who graduated 30 years ago when college costs were much lower. I’m not so sure college means a great payoff for today’s grads.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP here-- I know my initial post sounded naive "golly gee college is pricey." We have saved, and we've saved enough that our kid could go to a high priced college if that was the right decision-- but a lot of this stuff is a little crazy sounding to me:

No, I wouldn't "mortgage myself to the teeth" to pay for Stanford. My husband is 52 and the chances of him getting laid off aren't small.

No, I wouldn't sacrifice critical retirement savings for college savings-there's middle ground there, and if there's not, I would be putting away for retirement.

Yes, I value education for its own sake and yes, I judge the college value (not solely to a large degree) on future earning power and employability.

Yes, I expect people to save if they can and compromise.

I do think state universities are also expensive and it should be a major priority for states to fund, improve, and make a much higher priority consideration for in-state applicants. Which is political, but is a core issue imo.

OP, sounds like you have a clear head and got what you need. Don't feed the beast with these people, next they'll be telling you you should move your family to a cheaper neighborhood and shut up...oh wait, they already did.

Thanks-- it was interesting to hear all of the perspectives-- we're just starting the college journey. People do have different values and priorities and that's okay.

Anonymous wrote:OP here-- I know my initial post sounded naive "golly gee college is pricey." We have saved, and we've saved enough that our kid could go to a high priced college if that was the right decision-- but a lot of this stuff is a little crazy sounding to me:

No, I wouldn't "mortgage myself to the teeth" to pay for Stanford. My husband is 52 and the chances of him getting laid off aren't small.

No, I wouldn't sacrifice critical retirement savings for college savings-there's middle ground there, and if there's not, I would be putting away for retirement.

Yes, I value education for its own sake and yes, I judge the college value (not solely to a large degree) on future earning power and employability.

Yes, I expect people to save if they can and compromise.

I do think state universities are also expensive and it should be a major priority for states to fund, improve, and make a much higher priority consideration for in-state applicants. Which is political, but is a core issue imo.

OP, sounds like you have a clear head and got what you need. Don't feed the beast with these people, next they'll be telling you you should move your family to a cheaper neighborhood and shut up...oh wait, they already did.

OP here-- I know my initial post sounded naive "golly gee college is pricey." We have saved, and we've saved enough that our kid could go to a high priced college if that was the right decision-- but a lot of this stuff is a little crazy sounding to me:

No, I wouldn't "mortgage myself to the teeth" to pay for Stanford. My husband is 52 and the chances of him getting laid off aren't small.

No, I wouldn't sacrifice critical retirement savings for college savings-there's middle ground there, and if there's not, I would be putting away for retirement.

Yes, I value education for its own sake and yes, I judge the college value (not solely to a large degree) on future earning power and employability.

Yes, I expect people to save if they can and compromise.

I do think state universities are also expensive and it should be a major priority for states to fund, improve, and make a much higher priority consideration for in-state applicants. Which is political, but is a core issue imo.

My parents could easily cashflow college because they made more in relative terms and college was less expensive back then. I found myself in a predicament because DH got a full ride to a very good school because he came from a middle class family, so he originally was much less interested in paying full freight for college for our kids. He just couldn't process the fact that our kids would not qualify for the same scholarships that he got because we earn too much. I decided not to take any time off work when our kids were young and make automatic contributions to their 529 plans from my paychecks, even though DH protested. Now our 10-year old's 529 plan is close to fully funded, and DH is grateful, but too proud to admit it (for example, he casually drops comments about how we can retire earlier since college is already paid for, but we literally never speak of their 529 plans because it is still a soar topic). In my opinion, the easiest way for UMC folks who aren't quite wealthy to afford $80k per year cost of attendance is to save consistently from birth. I have friends who are so wealthy that they can cash flow college, or who set aside a chunk of money when they had a liquidity event, but neither of those would have worked for our family.

Anonymous wrote:Actual skills are more important in today’s job market than a college degree. There are ways to get valuable industry certifications and credentials without paying for an expensive diploma.

You are gonna have to back that BS claim up with some facts, please.

Because ALL the data says otherwise:

As has been explained on many other threads, if you are considering schools ranked 40-100 (rather than, say T20),your child could well get merit aid that cuts the price dramatically (sometimes to the cost of an in-state public).

My own child got about half price scholarships for 5 schools ranked 40-80. And she is strong but not tippy top by any means.

This does not work for schools that are academic reaches for your child. But my point is, the sticker price is not the real price for most kids.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We told our kids very early on that it was a public instate college or they paid the difference. Even if I could afford $80,000a year, I wouldn’t pay that for an undergrad degree.

Why did you have kids if you're not prepared to pay for college? We saved the money and paid every cent (full pay) for the costs and all expenses at top 10 schools for each of our kids.

You can be prepared to pay for college but not prepared to pay $80k per year for college. Just like I'm prepared to buy a car but not a top of the line luxury car. Paying for your kid to go to an $80k college is purely a luxury. They can get a good education and solid start in life for half that price. Fine to pay more if you want to and can afford it but it's hardly a parental failing to not to do that.

You’re going to tell you child they can’t go to MIT, Stanford or an Ivy League college because it’s too expensive? I’d mortgage my teeth and take out loans for my kid if I haven’t saved enough.

And sometimes an expensive but less competitive LAC can turn a mediocre student’s life around. Happened to my little brother. He’s forever grateful our parents really sacrificed to pay for his private college.

That is exactly what we told our high-performing kid. He had/has the stats and the profile, but did not apply because we can't pay for it.

I would not mortgage my teeth or take out loans, unless the loans were very modest (they would not have been).

We offered a choice and presented the pros and cons. As a disabled veteran my kid gets free in-state tuition at a great school. They had the choice of us dropping the money we had saved on an undergraduate education or us saving that and the GI bill for what really matters, the graduate degree. They chose wisely turned down the top 10 are thriving and never looked back.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We told our kids very early on that it was a public instate college or they paid the difference. Even if I could afford $80,000a year, I wouldn’t pay that for an undergrad degree.

Why did you have kids if you're not prepared to pay for college? We saved the money and paid every cent (full pay) for the costs and all expenses at top 10 schools for each of our kids.

You can be prepared to pay for college but not prepared to pay $80k per year for college. Just like I'm prepared to buy a car but not a top of the line luxury car. Paying for your kid to go to an $80k college is purely a luxury. They can get a good education and solid start in life for half that price. Fine to pay more if you want to and can afford it but it's hardly a parental failing to not to do that.

You’re going to tell you child they can’t go to MIT, Stanford or an Ivy League college because it’s too expensive? I’d mortgage my teeth and take out loans for my kid if I haven’t saved enough.

And sometimes an expensive but less competitive LAC can turn a mediocre student’s life around. Happened to my little brother. He’s forever grateful our parents really sacrificed to pay for his private college.

Yes, I would. Mine know now we did the state prepaid and have enough for room and board and some for graduate school and we will find the money for the rest of graduate school. They are appreciative for that. We have saved since birth, tiny crappy house and do the best we can to save. No loans.

Yes, I would too. That's what my parents told me and my sister. She got into Penn and they didn't think it was worth the cost. She went to a CA state school. I got into some highly ranked privates but they didn't come with enough aid so I also went to a CA state school. We both had good careers and happy lives and did not start in debt. Also, it was lucky my parents didn't decide to mortgage their lives to pay for it -- my dad got laid off halfway through my college years and never attained a comparable professional job (beware age discrimination).

My DS is at VT and will have $$ left for grad school. DD probably does need a smaller, more supportive environment and is focused on less competitive LACs but with merit aid there are plenty that will fit our state-school budget.

It happened to me too. I got into my dream school and the package wasn't enough. I'm not an only child. I went to the unknown less expensive school and got into a top law school from there and do very well for myself. It wasn't the end of the world. I see kids at our private school making the same choice every year. Do not go into outrageous debt for a name brand. It isn't necessary. There are hundreds of great colleges in this gigantic country, and your child will actually have a better experience at a lot of them than at the few you covet.

Actual skills are more important in today’s job market than a college degree. There are ways to get valuable industry certifications and credentials without paying for an expensive diploma.

Also, fewer men are attending college than women. Women often perform better in the classroom and are going to college in greater numbers, but it will be interesting to see if those numbers result in women earning more than men.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We told our kids very early on that it was a public instate college or they paid the difference. Even if I could afford $80,000a year, I wouldn’t pay that for an undergrad degree.

Why did you have kids if you're not prepared to pay for college? We saved the money and paid every cent (full pay) for the costs and all expenses at top 10 schools for each of our kids.

You can be prepared to pay for college but not prepared to pay $80k per year for college. Just like I'm prepared to buy a car but not a top of the line luxury car. Paying for your kid to go to an $80k college is purely a luxury. They can get a good education and solid start in life for half that price. Fine to pay more if you want to and can afford it but it's hardly a parental failing to not to do that.

You’re going to tell you child they can’t go to MIT, Stanford or an Ivy League college because it’s too expensive? I’d mortgage my teeth and take out loans for my kid if I haven’t saved enough.

And sometimes an expensive but less competitive LAC can turn a mediocre student’s life around. Happened to my little brother. He’s forever grateful our parents really sacrificed to pay for his private college.

That is exactly what we told our high-performing kid. He had/has the stats and the profile, but did not apply because we can't pay for it.

I would not mortgage my teeth or take out loans, unless the loans were very modest (they would not have been).

We've told our kids we'll financially support their decisions when the time comes and they get accepted - but we've been silently grateful that neither have shown an interest in the big-ticket (ivy/high $ private) schools, and both will likely have the stats to get some merit at the schools they are interested in. Plus, we have saved so that we'll be able to pay from our salaries and their 529s. But, that said, we will NOT take out a second mortgage. We'll co-sign a private student loan if needed. Also, 1/2 of their paychecks now from jobs go into savings to help them pay for incidentals when they get to school.