Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Depends on the school and the kid but yes, can definitely be worth it. DH and I met at MIT. For two regular middle class kids, the education, network and brand of the school profoundly changed our lives. I had full ride opportunities at other good schools so it was a huge sacrifice for my parents (who have never made more than 200K HHI in a very expensive California coastal region) to pay out of pocket for at the time. But now 15 years later, we all agree it was worth it.

Why wouldn’t you just take the full ride at another good school, pocket and invest the tuition savings, and then get a Ph.D., S.M., or other graduate degree from MIT? This is what most smart people do. If you’re good enough to get accepted as an undergraduate, you should be good enough to get a fully covered graduate degree as well. Then, you have a more useful and prestigious degree from MIT as well as hundreds of thousands in tuition savings.

Anyone smart enough to get into MIT would be smart enough to perform this very straightforward analysis.

Especially since PP lived in coastal California and could have easily gone to Berkeley for a fraction of the cost of MIT. And then still gone to MIT for free as a grad student. What a dummy.

Spoken like two posters who were not smart enough to get into MIT, as undergrads or grad students.

Anonymous wrote:Not for a pre-professional program. Save the money for MCAT/LSAT training and tell your kid to stand out on campus at the state U.

This. Definitely not worth it if child is continuing beyond undergrad. I don’t know much about engineering - maybe it’s worth it for one of the top programs in that in order to work straight out of college? But I worked in T10 law school admissions for years and it made no difference in the application whether the applicant went to Princeton or UVA or VA Tech.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Name the school.

Not relevant. It's top 20'ish. People are too biased one way or the other when they see any particular school's name.

The solution is to name a different but comparable school.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Depends on the school and the kid but yes, can definitely be worth it. DH and I met at MIT. For two regular middle class kids, the education, network and brand of the school profoundly changed our lives. I had full ride opportunities at other good schools so it was a huge sacrifice for my parents (who have never made more than 200K HHI in a very expensive California coastal region) to pay out of pocket for at the time. But now 15 years later, we all agree it was worth it.

Why wouldn’t you just take the full ride at another good school, pocket and invest the tuition savings, and then get a Ph.D., S.M., or other graduate degree from MIT? This is what most smart people do. If you’re good enough to get accepted as an undergraduate, you should be good enough to get a fully covered graduate degree as well. Then, you have a more useful and prestigious degree from MIT as well as hundreds of thousands in tuition savings.

Anyone smart enough to get into MIT would be smart enough to perform this very straightforward analysis.

As someone who many moons ago did make this exact straightforward analysis and then execute on it, I can agree it’s a good way forward for some. That being said, might I suggest a careful reading of the OP? The OP’s student is going on to medical or related graduate school. Generalizing beyond the OP, MIT grads may not go to STEM grad school. If they do, they may not know that is their path so at the end of their senior year in high school. So your analysis has some huge holes for large parts of the MIT undergrad population.

Also, I am surprised that your post implies the earning and subsequent possession of a graduate degree from MIT, yet you compose thoughts in such an unsophisticated and inarticulate fashion. STEM transcendence and linguistic perfection are in no way mutually exclusive, despite the rogue opinions one extracts amongst the masses.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Depends on the school and the kid but yes, can definitely be worth it. DH and I met at MIT. For two regular middle class kids, the education, network and brand of the school profoundly changed our lives. I had full ride opportunities at other good schools so it was a huge sacrifice for my parents (who have never made more than 200K HHI in a very expensive California coastal region) to pay out of pocket for at the time. But now 15 years later, we all agree it was worth it.

Why wouldn’t you just take the full ride at another good school, pocket and invest the tuition savings, and then get a Ph.D., S.M., or other graduate degree from MIT? This is what most smart people do. If you’re good enough to get accepted as an undergraduate, you should be good enough to get a fully covered graduate degree as well. Then, you have a more useful and prestigious degree from MIT as well as hundreds of thousands in tuition savings.

Anyone smart enough to get into MIT would be smart enough to perform this very straightforward analysis.

As someone who many moons ago did make this exact straightforward analysis and then execute on it, I can agree it’s a good way forward for some. That being said, might I suggest a careful reading of the OP? The OP’s student is going on to medical or related graduate school. Generalizing beyond the OP, MIT grads may not go to STEM grad school. If they do, they may not know that is their path so at the end of their senior year in high school. So your analysis has some huge holes for large parts of the MIT undergrad population.

No, it does not. MIT is not a required foundational institution for any area of graduate study. Quite frankly, MIT is a world-renowned research institution and – as such – is essentially a graduate school with an undergraduate attachment. The exceptionally high demand for undergraduate admissions is driven entirely by misguided overachievers that have yet to understand the true meaning of educational achievement and excellence.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My guess is it's Michigan. That's what I pay for tuition, and I know it's $20K more annually than the lower-ranked publics.

What I know from friends who have kids trying to get to medical school (post-grad) is it's brutal, and several have said it's no guarantee. These kids went to top schools and are dynamite. So, I'm not sure that Michigan, or equivalent, is going to move the needle on med school. If it's a stretch, and you want to pay for medical school, then tell your kid to pick a less expensive school. There are so many excellent schools ranked 50-100, which is where my other kids will go.

Two DC kids I know are trying to establish residency in other states to help with med school admissions. This would significantly lower cost (should they be able to get into public med school in that state).

Finally, I think there's a thread in the college forum that shows which schools med schools draw from.

Ok, but someone else upthread raised a school that is outside the top 100. WHat about a school like that? Do you still have the same opinion?

DP: Yes, plenty of kids go to medical school from schools ranked above 100. Many times, a small LAC is the best choice. Your kid gets smaller class sizes, professors that focus on teaching, profs who you can really get to know so they can write amazing recommendations, sometimes you get to do research (at some smaller schools), and a career team that is focused on helping your kid apply to and get accepted to medical school (or whatever professional school they want)

Here are medical school stats for kids from St Olaf

https://rpubs.com/brinkmankatie/996003#:~:text=Olaf%20applicants%2C%2016%20were%20accepted,acceptance%20rate%20(Table%209b)


Their MCAT average and GPA avg and Med school PRereq GPA averages are all higher than the national average for kids applying to medical school. 16 out of 18 "competitive applicants" got into medical school with competitive defined by gpa and mcat scores.
50% of ALL Allopathic applicants got into at least one School and 72% of ALL DO applicants were accepted into at least 1 school.

That's for a school where the avg SAT is 1350 and gpa is 3.7. So not comparable to the students at Harvard on average, but those that did the hard work do get into medical school.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:not worth it. better for kid to inherit the delta between the middling private school and a public school with interest compounded over time. no one cares about the no name privates. if you are phenomenally wealthy, it's a different story.

I lean this way too. But is it really true that a kid from Roanoke College has the same opportunity to get into med/PA/Law/PT/Dental/Pharm school as a kid from BU/Villanova/Cornell/Colgate/Ivies?
And I'm not trashing Roanoke (which is why I hate the "name the schools" comments on here and the college board) but I think most on here would argue that it is a diff tier school than the others.

You think the grad school AO's REALLY don't care about that????

First, there is a whole 500+ schools in between BU?VIllanova?Cornell/Colgate/Ivies and Roanoke. Someone with the smarts for medical school can likely find 10+ in that range that they can afford.

But do I think there is a difference in getting into medical school from T25 vs Seton Hall or Gonzaga? Not really. The smart kids at Seton Hall or Gonzaga that could have gotten into a T25 will do exceedingly well and will be on a path to medical school just like anyone at a T25.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Depends on the school and the kid but yes, can definitely be worth it. DH and I met at MIT. For two regular middle class kids, the education, network and brand of the school profoundly changed our lives. I had full ride opportunities at other good schools so it was a huge sacrifice for my parents (who have never made more than 200K HHI in a very expensive California coastal region) to pay out of pocket for at the time. But now 15 years later, we all agree it was worth it.

Why wouldn’t you just take the full ride at another good school, pocket and invest the tuition savings, and then get a Ph.D., S.M., or other graduate degree from MIT? This is what most smart people do. If you’re good enough to get accepted as an undergraduate, you should be good enough to get a fully covered graduate degree as well. Then, you have a more useful and prestigious degree from MIT as well as hundreds of thousands in tuition savings.

Anyone smart enough to get into MIT would be smart enough to perform this very straightforward analysis.

As someone who many moons ago did make this exact straightforward analysis and then execute on it, I can agree it’s a good way forward for some. That being said, might I suggest a careful reading of the OP? The OP’s student is going on to medical or related graduate school. Generalizing beyond the OP, MIT grads may not go to STEM grad school. If they do, they may not know that is their path so at the end of their senior year in high school. So your analysis has some huge holes for large parts of the MIT undergrad population.

Worth it if you can comfortably afford it, in my opinion. I went to a top 10 school and 25 years later people still murmur with respect when I name it. So, I feel like a "name" school does enhance your profile over a lifetime. I intend to send my kids to the best schools to which they can gain admittance, regardless of cost, but we are saving a lot and have a high HHI. If it wasn't comfortably in our budget, then cost would factor more into our decision.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My guess is it's Michigan. That's what I pay for tuition, and I know it's $20K more annually than the lower-ranked publics.

What I know from friends who have kids trying to get to medical school (post-grad) is it's brutal, and several have said it's no guarantee. These kids went to top schools and are dynamite. So, I'm not sure that Michigan, or equivalent, is going to move the needle on med school. If it's a stretch, and you want to pay for medical school, then tell your kid to pick a less expensive school. There are so many excellent schools ranked 50-100, which is where my other kids will go.

Two DC kids I know are trying to establish residency in other states to help with med school admissions. This would significantly lower cost (should they be able to get into public med school in that state).

Finally, I think there's a thread in the college forum that shows which schools med schools draw from.

Ok, but someone else upthread raised a school that is outside the top 100. WHat about a school like that? Do you still have the same opinion?

I'm not an expert, and I'm not the one shelling out the cash for OP's kid.

I just looked up two of my doctors. One went to JHU and one went to UT Austin for undergrad.

Is anyone who goes to a school ranked 50 or under doomed? IDK. But, I know going to a top-ranked expensive school is not a guarantee of anything.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My guess is it's Michigan. That's what I pay for tuition, and I know it's $20K more annually than the lower-ranked publics.

What I know from friends who have kids trying to get to medical school (post-grad) is it's brutal, and several have said it's no guarantee. These kids went to top schools and are dynamite. So, I'm not sure that Michigan, or equivalent, is going to move the needle on med school. If it's a stretch, and you want to pay for medical school, then tell your kid to pick a less expensive school. There are so many excellent schools ranked 50-100, which is where my other kids will go.

Two DC kids I know are trying to establish residency in other states to help with med school admissions. This would significantly lower cost (should they be able to get into public med school in that state).

Finally, I think there's a thread in the college forum that shows which schools med schools draw from.

Ok, but someone else upthread raised a school that is outside the top 100. WHat about a school like that? Do you still have the same opinion?

My own opinion (which involves my SLAC, which is not worth the current $86K a year) is that you must do due diligence and figure out what PROGRAM works the best for your child at what cost (allowing for the fact that 80% of all kids change majors). I wound up (no counseling) at a SLAC in California which was just so-so. I was also accepted to Stanford and Pomona College (not then anything important) and others. I made a mistake but my family had no college experience because i was URM. I made a mistake. a BIG mistake. which is why i post here.

READ everything you can. Question everything you can. There is no reason why these SLACs are so expensive except that they can be in the current economic client. you can do better. look at your instate options. look at the honors college they have. save your money for grad school

Anonymous wrote:My guess is it's Michigan. That's what I pay for tuition, and I know it's $20K more annually than the lower-ranked publics.

What I know from friends who have kids trying to get to medical school (post-grad) is it's brutal, and several have said it's no guarantee. These kids went to top schools and are dynamite. So, I'm not sure that Michigan, or equivalent, is going to move the needle on med school. If it's a stretch, and you want to pay for medical school, then tell your kid to pick a less expensive school. There are so many excellent schools ranked 50-100, which is where my other kids will go.

Two DC kids I know are trying to establish residency in other states to help with med school admissions. This would significantly lower cost (should they be able to get into public med school in that state).

Finally, I think there's a thread in the college forum that shows which schools med schools draw from.

Ok, but someone else upthread raised a school that is outside the top 100. WHat about a school like that? Do you still have the same opinion?

My guess is it's Michigan. That's what I pay for tuition, and I know it's $20K more annually than the lower-ranked publics.

What I know from friends who have kids trying to get to medical school (post-grad) is it's brutal, and several have said it's no guarantee. These kids went to top schools and are dynamite. So, I'm not sure that Michigan, or equivalent, is going to move the needle on med school. If it's a stretch, and you want to pay for medical school, then tell your kid to pick a less expensive school. There are so many excellent schools ranked 50-100, which is where my other kids will go.

Two DC kids I know are trying to establish residency in other states to help with med school admissions. This would significantly lower cost (should they be able to get into public med school in that state).

Finally, I think there's a thread in the college forum that shows which schools med schools draw from.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Is it worth it vs. a no name school (like waaaaaaay down the USNWR tiers)? For a name brand school, not ivy (I'm leaving those out of this as people get irrational about ivies). Kid was admitted.

For a pre-grad school track (med or other health path) where you'll likely have $300K plus tuition on the line. 529 won't cover all of that, not even close. Does the school matter? Does the "Brand" help grad admissions? What is it I'm buying for that $50K delta in tuition?

I hate to have kid say no b/c of money but . . . posting in money b/c it's about the money. But the college name is relevant too, I guess.

NO, it's not. My own SLAC (once had a great reputation but no longer - went woke dei and destroyed the college's fiber) is NOT WORTH $86K a year. Be sensible people? Just because a college can ask that figure does not mean that it is a sensible financial decision!

You are raising different, and highly charged, political opinions. And those are not relevant to this discussion. You're opinion is noted but really outside the discussion.

No, I am not. We are talking about making a sensible financial investment for our children, are we not? How is it sensible to pay 80-90K a year for SLACs (or other institutions) for the unknown? Let's say I'm sending a son to a school for pre-med. Would I pick my own SLAC? Hell no! It doesn't produce great candidates for med school or even lawyers. It is what it is. But my slac has decided to go down the DEI trail so no one even cares about it anymore. What is relevant then? Going to the best university or college you can with bang for your buck that will get your kid where they want to go. Is that law? (my field). Is that medicine? What is it? Then figure it out. The DEI stuff won't be here in a year or two. TO is already shifting. Make sensible deicsions about WHAT YOUR KID MAY WANT TO DO, Ignore everything else. And what can you afford?

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:not worth it. better for kid to inherit the delta between the middling private school and a public school with interest compounded over time. no one cares about the no name privates. if you are phenomenally wealthy, it's a different story.

I lean this way too. But is it really true that a kid from Roanoke College has the same opportunity to get into med/PA/Law/PT/Dental/Pharm school as a kid from BU/Villanova/Cornell/Colgate/Ivies?
And I'm not trashing Roanoke (which is why I hate the "name the schools" comments on here and the college board) but I think most on here would argue that it is a diff tier school than the others.

You think the grad school AO's REALLY don't care about that????

Yes.