<p>mmboys07 is right. Assuming you are 18, you are an adult. your parents could literally ditch you right now and you can't do anythin. Your parents i assume saved a million dollars over many years. Obviously they had dreams i bet to like travel the world and live a life they dreamed as kids. I don't think its fair to ask your parents to sacrifice a huge chunk of their money on an UNDERGRADUATE education. if this was graduate school, i would understand...but please, undergraduate isn't worth 30k+ dollars a year. OH, but if you REALLY wanna go to a overpriced college, get a scholarship? That what most people do if they don't have money for college.</p>
<p>I don't think they are being selfish, but do understand she/ he is in a bind because they wont be eligible for financial aid. They are willing to pay instate, which is cool</p>
<p>Parents don't owe their kids a college education. You should be appreciative that they have offered to pay for a UC school. You're complaining that they won't spend 10%-20% of their retirement savings to send you to a private school because you think they owe it to you? yeah, you're a spoiled rich kid. As others have said, start looking at schools you like that will give merit aid/loans to offset the difference between the UCs and your school of choice. Compare the pros and cons of each and make your choice. A lot of people would love to be in that position.</p>
<p>$1,000,000 is not a lot of money if it has to last two people the rest of their lives. Be happy that you live in California and have all the options available to you.</p>
<p>hi ebonyphoenix. I understand both sides of this situation. </p>
<p>Numerous times on CC I have said that I hope to send my kids to their first choice school (hopefully both a great fit and an excellent school) and this will probably be a lot more expensive than if they went to our State U ... so I understand your desire. That said, I absolutely want them to feel the pride and commitment of paying part of their way through school ... bottom line, if they go to an expensive school they are going to work during school and get (small) student loans (which I will pay off when they graduate but they don't know that) ... so I understand your parent's point of view also.</p>
<p>Somewhere in CC there is a thread discussing the obligation (or not) parents have to pay for their kids college ... there are as many opinions on this as there are posters ... and you need to deal with your parents approach (which is far from unique). As others have mentioned it's time to get creative ... look at schools with merit, apply for local scholarships, etc ... they are ways to possibly attend an EXCELLENT LAC in about the same financial range as the UCs</p>
<p>PS - while I want my kids to work and take loans ... not too much of either ... I would not recommend more than 8-10 hours of work per week during the school year (work during breaks if possible and get a job that pays bucks during the summer instead of hanging out) ... and loans above maybe $25k for an undergrad sound steep to me.</p>
<p>No you are not being selfish. But, a one million retirement fund is not that much. They are probably hoping to give you some of that money but not for college...I don't really know. Keep in mind that money in a retirement fund (if that is where their money is invested) does not factor into the financial aid formula the same way as one million in cash. You should apply to your Maine dream schools and see what kind of financial aid they give you. maybe they can give you a preliminary estimate of need based aid. The difference might not be as great as you think. Maybe your parents can be pursuaded. As others have said, your fallback schools in the UC system are very good, fortunately.</p>
<p>The interest on one million dollars will provide a roof and food for a family, but won't provide many luxuries. It certainly won't pay for a $160,000+ college education. In fact, your parents may have to cut back their expenses just to pay for an in-state college education. </p>
<p>Your parents are likely looking at that money as their retirement fund. You shouldn't expect them to dip into it to fund your college education.</p>
<p>ebonyphoenix, you're not being selfish, you simply haven't had enough experience in life to know just how lucky you are. It's human nature to try to get all that you can so you're testing for your limits. There are millions of qualified, college-bound students who would be thrilled to have your opportunites. There are far, far fewer students who will do any better than a UC school.</p>
<p>One of the most successful self made young men I know (who incidentally wrote a book on parenting) told me this story:
When he was applying to colleges, he was offered a full scholarship to his state university. He mentioned to his wealthy dad that he would rather go to an ivy league school. His dad replied "You can go wherever you want, you just have to figure out how you're going to pay for it".</p>
<p>PS-He went to the state U</p>
<p>Thank you for your responses. I know the UCs are highly respected and I'm lucky to have such a good state university system. Others would kill to be me- I know. Though it would be a slight reach for me to expect to get into UCLA or Berkeley, I could probably go to UCSD. The thing is I really want to attend a small LAC on the east coast.</p>
<p>So, seeing as I don't want to go into debt, could anyone suggest some good schools in which I might receive merit based aid? My SAT scores (based on the old SAT) will be around 690 verbal and 690 math... and I definitely expect a 750+ on writing. My GPA is 4.2 (3.9) and I will have taken 4 honors and 3 APs by graduation (though note I'm not taking the most rigorous course load at my school... my school offers many other AP classes I've opted not to take). Top 10% of class at a nationally recognized public school- La Canada, if anyone knows of it. Any suggestions?</p>
<p>post on the parent's forum... there are several parents who have a lot of info on LACs</p>