Anonymous wrote:OP, I'm the 18:00 poster again.

I just read that you are an immigrant family.

The US military is very, very diverse.

The following would be free: Naval Academy, Air Force Academy, Coast Guard Academy and West Point (for the Army)

Or you child can enlist and get free college options.

The Academies are incredibly selective. I understand students also need a letter of recommendation from an elected representative?
For both academies and enlisting, students need to fulfill a few basic requirements, which my son could not fulfill: he's medicated for ADHD, and has anaphylactic nut allergies, for example.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Here is for example a statement from Harvard

We are pleased to announce that beginning in the 2023-24 academic year, families with annual incomes of up to $85,000 (up from $75,000) will be expected to contribute nothing to the cost of their child's education

All you have to do is make sure kid is accepted at Harvard. Problem solved.

That is not the point. The issue is that a lot of low income parents assume they can’t afford to pay for college while in reality many colleges, including the most famous and expensive ones are free to them.

I find it’s actually that wealthy parents naively think there are lots of doors open to low income students when in reality that’s only true for extremely strong students and not great or good students.

I agree. Some clueless, wealthy, parents like to think the grass is greener, but actually it isn't. Colleges who can afford to offer full rides are very selective and OP's child might not get in, or receive that much aid, even if he's a very strong student. I know people from this year's high school graduate cohort that were rejected from their in-state flagship (UMD) with weighted GPAs of 4.3, several AP courses and strong tests scores. If you haven't lived through college admissions of the past 3 years, you can't even being to imagine how insane it is.

But first and foremost, you need to get your financial house in order, OP, for YOURSELF and your retirement. College is optional, retirement is not. Get the debt under control. Save for retirement.

Second, your child's future. There are thousands of colleges in the US. It's possibly one of them will take him, with lots of aid. But getting there will require a ton of willpower and hard work, because he needs to be a very strong student to receive that much aid -colleges like to spread it out, so every student receives a little dribble. Your kid needs a large chunk of it. Otherwise it will have to be 2 years of community college then a transfer to the state school. State schools cost about 30K these days, total cost of attendance (tuition, room& board, fees).

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Here is for example a statement from Harvard

We are pleased to announce that beginning in the 2023-24 academic year, families with annual incomes of up to $85,000 (up from $75,000) will be expected to contribute nothing to the cost of their child's education

All you have to do is make sure kid is accepted at Harvard. Problem solved.

That is not the point. The issue is that a lot of low income parents assume they can’t afford to pay for college while in reality many colleges, including the most famous and expensive ones are free to them.

I find it’s actually that wealthy parents naively think there are lots of doors open to low income students when in reality that’s only true for extremely strong students and not great or good students.

This.

OP, I'm the 18:00 poster again.

I just read that you are an immigrant family.

The US military is very, very diverse.

The following would be free: Naval Academy, Air Force Academy, Coast Guard Academy and West Point (for the Army)

Or you child can enlist and get free college options.

OP, I'm the 18:00 poster.

My brother in law got his bachelors degree paid for by the US Army and my sister got an MBA paid for by the Marines.

OP, I have not read the entire thread but the military
is a great way to get free college.

The young person has to check with each branch of service to find out the best deal.

The service academies are also free.

Anonymous wrote:Loans are not a death sentence, especially if you keep them under 50k, graduate, and major in a field that will guarantee you a job after college. Ask me how I know!

This is the key. Your kids cannot afford to go to college for a major that would pay slightly more than minimum wage. They'd have to take subjects that would give them skills employer are looking for. The best bet since job markets keep changing is to go to college with the thought of future employment and seeking out opportunities and maximizing classes that would get you closer to internships and job offers.

General core classes are garbage your kids should cover in HS if they are smart and fast or Community college, no need to pay for this at a 4yr university. Then transfer to a state school that would have lower tuition for in-state students. Then go to job fares, learn what's in demand what what employers are looking for, network with other like-minded students and get into the field that pays the most with the minimum of schooling required that you have some acumen for and don't entirely hate. Don't fall for graduate degrees unless you truly have a passion for medicine or law. And academic graduate degrees are luxury for rich kids.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Here is for example a statement from Harvard

We are pleased to announce that beginning in the 2023-24 academic year, families with annual incomes of up to $85,000 (up from $75,000) will be expected to contribute nothing to the cost of their child's education

All you have to do is make sure kid is accepted at Harvard. Problem solved.

And a year before this quit your jobs, extra bonus Be poor income wise and you too can send your offspring to Harvard, so easy

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Student loans are not the end of the world. It took me 20 years to pay them off but I have a very nice life now thanks to them. Student loans, working (I had an on-campus job and off-campus), and just chipping away at them regularly are fine.

The federal loan limit will be below OP's EFC. The kid can either commute to college or OP can take out parent plus loans.

Or get into certain Ivy League schools.

Anonymous wrote:Student loans are not the end of the world. It took me 20 years to pay them off but I have a very nice life now thanks to them. Student loans, working (I had an on-campus job and off-campus), and just chipping away at them regularly are fine.

The federal loan limit will be below OP's EFC. The kid can either commute to college or OP can take out parent plus loans.

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Anonymous wrote:Honestly your life just isn’t working. It’s time for a big come-to-Jesus and probably relocation to a lower COL area.

Georgia has an amazing program for qualified in-state students to attend for free. Something to consider.

I always snort at these types of responses. F those teachers, nurses, professors, social workers, admins, etc. Just move to LOC areas (where you will get paid even less) already!

Yes, and those poor people living in that LOC area will send their kids to UGA for almost nothing. Promise you they're grateful for it.

Student loans are not the end of the world. It took me 20 years to pay them off but I have a very nice life now thanks to them. Student loans, working (I had an on-campus job and off-campus), and just chipping away at them regularly are fine.

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Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:What about state school? It's cheap in MD and VA. Especially if kid commutes.

At that HHI, state schools will cost more than privates meeting full demonstrated need through grants

This is a careless statement. There's no one-size-fits all situation. Pick your words carefully.

at a 90k hhi, most of the ivy league is literally free and some schools will be free and give you a stipend. What public school is that cheap at a 90k hhi?

But it’s meaningless that Ivy Leagues are free for 90k HHI. You’re talking about a relatively small amount of people who benefit from this each year.

OP's kid has time. If they want to attend a great school, they better do very well, otherwise it's state school and debt. It's a messed up system where they best schools are also the cheapest, but it's the system that we have

Right, Ivy acceptance is easy right? Why not suggest OP buy a winning Lotto ticket too? That will make all of her problems go away. All she has to do is guess 6 (or whatever the numbers) correct. Can't be that hard.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:What is your hhi?

about 90k

Push your kid hard and hope they can get into a school where that HHI means 100% covered by grant aid

Tell us what school that is. My HHI is around $81k and while my son got great aid, I still have a lot to pay OOP.

That pp’s talking with her a$$ the entire thread.

PP's kid needs to buckle down.

https://college.harvard.edu/admissions/why-harvard/affordability

https://paw.princeton.edu/article/princeton-will-be-free-families-earning-under-100000


There are schools that are free at OP's HHI, they are just very hard to get into

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:What about state school? It's cheap in MD and VA. Especially if kid commutes.

At that HHI, state schools will cost more than privates meeting full demonstrated need through grants

This is a careless statement. There's no one-size-fits all situation. Pick your words carefully.

at a 90k hhi, most of the ivy league is literally free and some schools will be free and give you a stipend. What public school is that cheap at a 90k hhi?

Who says OP’s kid can get into ivy?

Right? That can't be plan A. Plan A should be a very hard discussion about living at home, going to community college, possible working part-time, etc. I know it's not the quintessential college experience, but it's practical. I would do anything to go back and re-do my experience and not take out college loans. I was such an idiot.