<p>Hi Fellow Parents..What a week it has been!!! I'm glad to be off of this roller coaster ride of acceptances, rejections and wait lists. I'm looking for a little input from everyone. To give you the full picture, we did not ask for financial assistance because we knew we wouldn't qualify. My son was accepted to Trinity, Vassar, Connecticut College, UConn Honors Program with a $5,000 merit scholarship and Fairfield with a $22,000 merit scholarship. He was waitlisted at BC and Wesleyan and denied to Cornell, Brown and Amherst. To give you some background, he wants a smaller school, in a rural setting, trees, grass, etc., he wants to be a neurosurgeon so his major would be neuroscience/biology or pre-med track. UConn is an excellent school, very affordable with a great Pre-Med program and he has no interest in going. He is considering Vassar over Conn Coll and Trinity but not sure of anything. We told him that we can take care of his undergrad whatever he chooses but we cannot pay for Medical School should he decide on the pricey private school. We spoke to him about debt, starting out in life, etc...he starting to get the picture. Here is my question...if he favors Vassar, let's say...is a school like Vassar really worth the price tag in over UConn? I know all of the schools are great and I'm sure he would thrive in any of them but a smaller school is where I think he would be happiest...Any input welcomed.</p>
<p>What is your out of pocket cost for each school? If he plans on any grad/prof school you should consider cost and loans for UG.</p>
<p>Have him look up how much medical school costs and how much debt it would bring (and realize that there won’t likely be any medical school scholarships, and he may have no choice since most pre-meds are lucky to get one medical school acceptance). Have him also consider what medical specialty he aspires to – if it is one of the lower paid ones (e.g. primary care), he may not be able to afford to do it under heavy medical school debt (probably one of the reasons why the primary care specialties are in shortage).</p>
<p>Make the comparison between the heavy debt scenario and the lower debt scenario if he went to the lower cost undergraduate school and took your offer to contribute the difference to his medical school costs. Then he can make a more informed decision.</p>
<p>Congratulations to you and your son. I think it wise to let him make the decision - but make sure he has all the facts. Medicine is a long haul - and if he doesn;t feel motivated to do it because he feels railroaded into a particular school, then it isn’t happening. And remember that well over half of the students who think they are pre-med change during the four years.</p>
<p>Having said that, medical school is so expensive these days. I wonder if he knows what the impacts of the debt he is planning to shoulder by himself. If he absolutely sure (or feels sure) that he is pre-med, he’ll do better as a top dog at UConn than less than top dog at the other schools. He will get more research opportunities, more mentoring, greater possibilities of good internships (assuming he is a top student.) I don’t know whether that has entered into his thinking yet.</p>
<p>Good luck!</p>
<p>Thank you MaterS and Ucbalumnus…he wants to be a neurosurgeon which will take 11 years I believe…OY!!! </p>
<p>Does anyone know anything about programs/hospitals?? that will pay for your medical school costs if you commit to practices in that state for a set amount of time??</p>
<p>Very, very few and far between - usually for primary care only, in rural or underserved areas.</p>
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<p>You really should try posing this question in the Vassar forum . . . but, in a nutshell, yes. The personal attention he’d get at Vassar, particularly in the science departments, is what sets the school apart. And he really would get opportunities that he wouldn’t get as an undergrad at a larger school. (And, yes, there would also be opportunities at UConn that wouldn’t be available to him at Vassar - so it cuts both ways.)</p>
<p>But don’t take my word for it. He should talk to the department chairs at both schools and find out for himself.</p>
<p>My kid is a junior an LAC like Vassar I(Oberlin). </p>
<p>She is on a career path that she had not even conceived of when she applied to college and is absolutely thriving. We had the money to spend, and have no regrets. She has recently gotten a summer internship in her field, and her employer wrote back to one of her references about how pleased he was that all the reference were so personal. He specifically contrasted this to a large state school (Michigan).</p>
<p>If you can afford it, the real question is how badly he wants to be a neurosurgeon. Lots of 17-year-old don’t really have any idea of what career paths there are out there. If that’s his dream from age 1 and if you’re planning on financing the whole MD thing, then send him to Conn. If there’s doubt, or an interest in exploration then I’d send him to Vassar.</p>
<p>While you are comparing prices, be sure to account for expected rise in tuition costs. When we looked at UCONN last year, we ended up going for private w/merit instead given Malloy’s projection for tuition increases. I know that costs were expected to rise 25% during S’s time there, and merit scholarships don’t increase with inflation. Since Storrs is expected to go up by almost $1,000.00 this year, I think the projection could be just about right.</p>
<p>Getting into neurosurgery is way down the pike- it is more like 13-14 years later. many people change their major, their residency choice. for now choose the school he will thrive.the rest will come later. in med school you can get loans, there is indian services, military, etc. there is payment in residency and some loans could be paid in part. pick the best fit and the one you can afford now.</p>
<p>Tuition and fees of medical schools: <a href=“https://services.aamc.org/tsfreports/[/url]”>https://services.aamc.org/tsfreports/</a></p>
<p>Note that most pre-meds are lucky to get into one medical school, so they are unlikely to have a choice to choose a less expensive one.</p>
<p>Have you explicitly said you would pay (or significantly help) with Med School if he goes to a less expensive undergraduate program? I’m sure that some parents do, but it is completely different to our approach with our kids. We will and have paid for undergraduate, but grad or professional school is on their own. So far it is working out fine, with 2 kids in grad school and the youngest with 1 more year to go of undergraduate.</p>
<p>Other countries do not expect med students to pay so much (or anything really) towards their medical school. Med school education in those countries is largely paid for by the government. Doctors in those countries earn much less than in the U.S., which is one reason why medical costs are higher here. I imagine that most doctors who go to med school in the U.S. take out loans for med school. While they will graduate with large amounts of debt, they will also earn very high salaries and should have the ability to pay those debts off.</p>
<p>OP, last spring my D had a similar array of choices as your son has now (not the exact same schools but the same type of choices). She knew for sure that she wanted pre-med. She was very committed to this path, with all kinds of doctor shadowing and hospital work under her belt. She is an EMT. We were full-pay for undergrad but could not afford to pay for med school in addition.</p>
<p>She chose the full-pay LAC. Fast forward a year later and she has changed her mind about her future plans. She no longer wants to be a doctor. Fortunately she is at a school where she can find wonderful alternative opportunities.</p>
<p>I understand the logic of picking the cheapest school possible for pre-med, but keep in mind that your son may change his mind, and he should pick a college that can accommodate alternative plans and dreams.</p>
<p>I really appreciate everyone’s well informed, articulated and educated feedback…what a wonderful community!!! THANK YOU!!!</p>