I recently got accepted into Ramapo and TCNJ. I got a full ride to Ramapo (my second choice), but I have always seen myself at TCNJ. I got some financial aid from TCNJ, but I would still end up paying 10k a year out of pocket. My parents are unable to help me with the costs as I live with a single mother and two younger siblings. I really want to go to TCNJ, but I don’t know if it’s possible or worth it. Another option would be driving 1-2 hours to TCNJ, but I have asked the opinions of various teachers and they said it would not be possible.
@naerri You can’t commute. You could work all summer and hopefully earn 3k. Add to that your Stafford loan. Was that included? Did you get work study?
Commuting that distance each way would be a terrible idea. You would be exhausted, you would waste all kinds of time, and you wouldn’t have the time or energy to get involved in campus life. Look at the big picture and choose the best option for you. See if you can make the numbers work for TCNJ as noted above, but if it doesn’t happen a full ride to your second choice school sounds awfully good to me.
How would you come up with the 10k each year? If there is no loan in your aid package, you coukd borrow $5,500 in a student loan, but even with a good summer job you will still come up short. Take the full ride. Do well there. You will have a lot more options after you graduate because you won’t have any debt.
Your life will be less stressful if you take the full ride. Does Ramapao offer your major?
DO NOT commute. That 2 hours will doom your grades and social life.
Take the full ride and be happy. If things are that tight at home, you don’t want to fall short and be a burden on them. They will also be less stressed if you are not stressed. You get to live on campus for Fred right? That is awesome!
I don’t know much about TCNJ. Would it possible to be an RA after freshman year? Would you be interested in that? Do you have the personality to get hired for the job? That might help a lot. Also, besides summer work, you could work 10 hours per week during the school year. You could make approximately $3k per school year doing that (15 weeks per semester x 10 hours per week x $10 per hour. I’ve seen research that students who work 10 hours per week do better academically than students who don’t work and students who work more hours. I think it would be better use of your time than driving about that many hours per week. And I think there can be real pride and satisfaction in earning your education. Good luck, I hope it works out for you!
Take the full ride to Ramapo! It’s a great school, beautiful campus, best dorms in the state hands down, excellent nursing, business, computer science and education programs. Ramapos nursing program is already recognized on par with Rutgers and Tcnj. Sure TCNJ is a great school, but going there makes NO sense if you’re getting a free ride and Ramapo offers you the same major you want to study. Limiting debt and choosing a major where there will be jobs are the MOST important factors you can consider. The added “prestige” of going to Tcnj will wear off quickly as you struggle to pay the bill—— plus Ramapo College is no slouch and state legislators and the administration at the school already have plans underway to get further investment and add programs in engineering and other STEM to make it the north jersey alternative to Tcnj. Ramapo’s beautiful campus and unmatched location near NYC and the upstate border are the reason why it’s being targeted for investment similar to what’s occurring with Rowan albeit at a slower pace without the generous private donations.
If you can’t afford it, there is a simple decision.
Here is an idea to make TCNJ work. Defer your admission for a year and work all year to save up money. That money plus what you earn in the summers of the following years plus the Federal Direct Student loans could make it work.
Thats a terrible plan! Take a year off just to save money to go tcnj instead of taking a free ride at another very good state college???
I will pay you $10,000 dollars a year to go to school. And all of the school bills will be paid by the school. Or I’ll buy you a 10,000 car each year for four years after you graduate.
Oh you already have that offer. Just an illustration to show you what Ramapo has offered you compared to TCNJ
It’s very simple for someone with a definite career track in mind.
Plus another 2400 in interest if you are lucky to get a 6% rate.
The interest savings alone will buy you 6 $- 400 suits to wear to your new job after you graduate
One of the reasons I keep coming to this site is the amusement I get from parents and students making extremely poor decisions. Choosing a major that affords opportunity for employment and a decent salary AND limiting debt —— should be first and foremost. Another interesting aspect of this site is the pursuit of perceived “prestige” . The troubling thing about “prestige” schools is that they are spitting out young adults with no diversity of thought and opinion as well as an inability to deal with failure and an inability to get along with people who have differing opinions. I’ve seen this at work for the past 20+ years everyday,
TCNJ and Ramapo are in the same regional school category and no difference in the view from general population. Please enjoy the full ride.
Take the full ride! Ramapo is your second choice, which means that there are things you like about it. Focus on what you like.
Taking a year off really won’t help you much, as you are unlikely to be able to save anything close to $40K to offset the costs of TCNJ.
I also wouldn’t head into any school with the expectation that you’d become an RA; at many schools, becoming an RA is competitive (because they pay part of your housing). It’s also stressful if you are required to remain an RA in order to keep your costs affordable. I supervised a couple of RAs who were in that predicament and by their senior year, some of them wanted to quit but they couldn’t. It made for a stressful experience for them.
Please detail your financial aid package- is tht 10k net cost (before any loan)?
TCNJ is a much better, more academic college than Ramapo, on par with Rutgers academically and in terms of outcomes & resources. 10k for TCNJ means you got a lot in scholarships and thus would be an excellent student there so I’m afraid there’d be an academic mismatch at Ramapo. (Ramapo is not bad but it’s not at the same level as TCNJ. It’s roughly below Rowan and NJIT but above Kean, Stockton, WPaterson.)
Did you get into Honors at both?
Ramapo fullride is a great achievement but since TCNJ is your first choice and 10k isn’t the end of the world let’s see if there is a way to make it work.
Btw, commuting would expect a terrible idea so it should not expect on the table,
Maybe mention your dilemna to TCNJ and see what they say. IMO, you will be much happier with zero debt after 4 years.
TCNJ, Ramapo, NJITT, etc. of the range of SAT are all mid 500 to mid 600 for 25%-75%. Differences are only +/- 20. That is essentially the same academic level. (Rutgers has the different low 600 to mid 700, which is typical range for a flagship. I doubt most of us find any academic difference among those regional universities.