I know I can’t be the only one with this issue. What creative ways have you come up with to pay your child’s tuition? I know we all have to sacrifice…drive the 15 year old cars that make funny noises for awhile longer. But have you done anything really wild to make some extra money? (I may be looking for ideas…) I have taken to eBay, and cleaning out my vast amounts of accumulated treasures. While it certainly won’t cover everything, it is a nice little help. Did you know there is a market for empty toilet paper tubes and cat whiskers?
Cat whiskers???!!! My fortune is made!
We’ve definitely done our share of cutting back expenses in various ways but if things were REALLY tight, I’d probably look for a second job.
Do you live in an area that attracts visitors at all? You could do the AirBnB thing.
Well, there was that one thread with the alarming title:
If you have extraneous children, I’m sure there is a market for them (solves multiple problems).
I was joking to my kids that maybe it was time to go do a Breaking Bad type side biz and the older kid was “Do you know the minimum mandatory sentences!” while the younger kid was “oh, I can be partner!”
LOL
I’ve been suggesting unloading boys’ “vintage” Lego collections that are gathering dust.
Takanuva any one?
I’d clean out closets for unused sports equipments, except I’m a hoarder…
ROFL @ChoatieMom - if I hadn’t read the post I never would have thought the title “alarming”. Thanks for that start to my day.
Hmmm…maybe I can charge neighborhood kids to use our pool in the summer. And sell snacks & drinks on the side…
I’m new to both prep school admissions and this forum and have a few questions about FA if anyone can answer them for me:
In the Official Prep School Decisions Thread - is it assumed that all of the acceptances include FA?
Is it tougher to get FA for 11th grade than 9th?
We have one acceptance with no financial aid and 2 rejections. I see from this forum that there may be spots available in schools with rolling admissions after April 10 - would there be any possibility of FA as well, or is it just for FP?
Since I didn’t find this forum until after applying to only 3 schools I know that I didn’t apply to enough schools with my FA needs, but since we have a rising 11th grader next year is probably not an option for us.
Thanks in advance for answering.
Welcome@corrales90, there’s a helpful crew in this forum, but your questions will hijack this particular thread. Try reposting it as a thread with “FA Questions for 11th Grade” or something similar – you might get more helpful replies that way! 
Sell plasma - I believe you can go a few times a week at $75/each
Thanks, sorry…
Our local private day school suggested taking out a LOC on your home which is actually a not bad idea for those who have enough equity - interests rates are low and the 8 year term is long enough to get you through BS and college. Unfortunately, we had to take out a LOC to keep the house from falling down before BS was in the picture. 8-|
Welcome@ corrales90!! Is your student accepted at a traditional girls or boys school? An earlier post mentioned (different thread) that some of these schools have scholarships & awards that may be more frequent, or some awards that are unique. Some are listed on sites as merit based so you can search there. One school we know has a generous award but it may be for incoming 9th with high test scores & one of the girls schools has awards based on a variety of criteria-- this is different from FA. Feel free to PM me, but I will try to find link for you. Wishing you well – it’s always a good topic$$!
Are fees - like medical retainer, activity fee, sports fees etc. - included in tuition amounts? Or are those extra? Anyone know?
^those are extra and not included in tuition amount.
thanks @Golfgr8, I appreciate the suggestions! It is a co-ed school but I will check for the scholarships and awards.
Sometimes scholarships and financial aids are used as same meaning, only differentiated if they are merit-based or needs-based. Then, sometimes the scholarship/FA letter doesn’t specify how much of it was merit-based or needs-based. So it’s not always clear.
Would borrowing against a 401K be a bad idea to pay for prep school?