<p>I am a senior looking to apply early decision to Northwestern U. It's my dream school and I know that it is definitely where I want to go. The only problem is that all my parents see is the price tag. Not only has this shifted my focus from how to get in to how to pay for it, but I can't discuss it with my parents at all without them immediately stressing over the cost. We don't qualify for need based fin. aid, but we have debt (and other kids) so they can't exactly just shell out money for me to go to a $50,000+ per year university. I'm pursuing MANY scholarships and have looked into work study and other such facets of the financial aid at NU, but at this point my parents are making me apply regular decision. I can't emphasize how much I want to apply early decision, but I have no idea how to bring it up to my parents and convince them that it is worth it. </p>
<p>I know this was long, and for that I apologize... any advice would be greatly appreciated! Thank you</p>
<p>unless you can pay for it yourself, unfortuately your parents may be the deciding factor, If you have brothers and sisters, they also have to think about their college costs too.(plus their own debt and retirement) ED is binding and maybe they are just trying to tell you they cant do it…but feel a bit guilty that they cant. Do you want to be burdened with that kind of debt after you graduate…and maybe they cant tell you that they cant handle that debt either. Find some safeties that you like and that they can afford, and what amount of debt they feel they can take on.</p>
<p>As a parent, I would feel terrible if my child wanted to go to a $50K school and I couldn’t afford it. Actually, as a parent, I DO feel terrible that my kids can’t go to private schools.</p>
<p>However, I would not want my child to apply ED. I would encourage you to apply RD and see how things go financially. Once you get your aid package and the results of any scholarships you apply for, you can assess whether or not you can do this school.</p>
<p>You should tell your parents, “Thank you!” for being up-front with you about college costs and their capacity. While you feel the angst about not applying ED at the moment, just think of how you’d feel if you got in ED and then learned that it was unaffordable and you then need to break the ED agreement and scramble. </p>
<p>I wish all families could afford all schools. But your parents are far from alone – most upper middle class families can’t afford $55K a year in out-of-pocket expenses for college, as you will well understand once you’re out in the work force and supporting a family. </p>
<p>Apply to Northwest. But make sure you find some other colleges to fall in like with that your family can afford. Your goal needs to be having viable (educationally and financially) options come April.</p>
<p>Your post strikes me as pretty immature and selfish. While both of my kids have had “dream schools” on their list, they understand the economic realities of schools costing over $50,000 per year. D1 selected a great LAC that also offered her very good merit aid, and has been very happy there. It wasn’t her first choice during the application process, but once she weighed all her admissions, she decided she could be just as happy there and get as good an education as the high ranked “dreamier” schools she was admitted to. And it has turned out to be so, she loves her school and will be graduating near the top of her class in the spring.</p>
<p>D2 is looking a range of schools (cost and academically), and is well aware that she will be applying RD and weighing any merit aid, etc. She is completely on board with this.</p>
<p>It is highly unlikely that you will win enough in scholarships to offset the cost of Northwestern down to that of other less expensive options that your parents can more easily afford. I would suggest you broaden your view of what colleges could work for you. Keep pursuing scholarships, and apply RD to Northwestern. But it sounds like you could be taking on a lot of debt AND risking your parents savings for things like retirement and education for other siblings if you insist on Northwestern. FYI, work study is a need-based type of financial aid.</p>
<p>I was at another expensive college info session this week, and the financial aid officer said flat out, “If you have to take out $50,000 in loans to come here, don’t do it. It isn’t worth it.”. I thought that was refreshing.</p>
<p>The trouble is that it’s probably NOT worth it. The expensive schools are worth it only if you can get through with incurring big debts for your parents and/or yourself. Being 21 years old, a new college graduate, and $50,000 or $150,000 dollars in debt is no way to start your life as an adult.</p>
<p>There are much cheaper options. Leave Northwester aside for now and apply to it and the less expensive schools in RD. That way you won’t be locked into one school and huge debts. You will have a better idea how much in scholarships you’re getting. You’ll have options and can weigh all the pros and cons.</p>
<p>“I can’t emphasize how much I want to apply early decision, but I have no idea how to bring it up to my parents and convince them that it is worth it.”</p>
<p>maybe if we change a few words the OP will understand how she sounds to her parents-</p>
<p>“I can’t emphasize how much I want a new Mercedes each year for the next 4 years, but I have no idea how to bring it up to my parents and convince them that it is worth it.”</p>
<p>Your parents have told you that applying to NW ED is out. I’m sure they wish they were multi millionaires and could say" sure honey, apply ED!"
But most people dont have a magic lamp that they can rub and make all their childrens wishes come true.
There are MANY other great universities in the US where you can get a great education. You dont need to pay the equivalent of buying a new Mercedes C Class each year to go to your DREAM college, especially in light of the fact that there are now MANY recent college graduates , up to their eyeballs in debt , having a hard time finding a job! . Open your eyes. If you have the stats for NW, there are lots of U’s that will offer you free tuition! Move on.</p>
<p>You’re in the wrong here. You don’t qualify for financial aid, but your parents cannot pay for you to go to such an expensive school without compromising either your siblings’ futures or their own. If you apply ED and get in, they will be forced to do just that.</p>
<p>The fact that they want you to apply at all shows that they do care about your wishes and, should you be accepted, will probably try to make things work somehow–but within reason.</p>
<p>Frankly, EDing at a $50,000+/yr school is the dumbest thing a student in your situation could possibly do, and you should be thankful to have parents who are able to recognize that. For every school there’s a particular income bracket–or rather, set of financial circumstances–which you don’t want your family to be in, and you’re smack in the middle of it.</p>
<p>Your parents are right here. Whatever work study and outside scholarships you find will be helpful, but will not make a significant dent in the cost of NU if you don’t qualify for need based FA. Have you noticed that most of the scholarships are for small amounts and only for one year?</p>
<p>Your parents are being realistic, reasonable and candid with you, you should appreciate that even though it’s not what you want to hear.</p>
<p>The only problem is that all my parents see is the price tag. Not only has this shifted my focus from how to get in to how to pay for it, but I can’t discuss it with my parents at all without them immediately stressing over the cost. We don’t qualify for need based fin. aid, but we have debt (and other kids) so they can’t exactly just shell out money for me to go to a $50,000+ per year university. I’m pursuing MANY scholarships and have looked into work study and other such facets of the financial aid at NU,</p>
<p>You won’t get work-study because you don’t qualify for aid. Besides, that’s only for a couple thousand dollars. You won’t get “other facets” of FA at NU because you don’t qualify for aid. FA is for those with need. </p>
<p>Applying for “many scholarships” isn’t going to work either because most of those are for FROSH year only, are for smallish amounts, and have a “need” component. Even if you won a few, the money would be for frosh year only. People can rarely ever pay for $200k of schooling with private scholarships. Too rare to even consider.</p>
<p>Good sized scholarships for all 4 years are offered by some colleges. </p>
<p>Your parents have been very honest with you and you don’t want to hear what they’re saying. Even if they agreed to let you apply ED, if you got accepted then you’d have to decline because your parents won’t pay…so how would that be “worth it”???</p>
<p>You need to face the facts…and thankfully you’re learning this early in the app season…you won’t be able to go to any schools that only provided need-based aid. </p>
<p>Instead of kicking a dead horse, you need a better strategy. You need to find out how much your parents WILL pay. Then use that figure to determine what would be affordable with merit scholarships from schools that give them.</p>
<p>Few years ago there was a story about a mother who let her daughter incur over 200k of student loans to go to her dream school, NYU. Everyone was outraged about how irresponsible the mother was. She should have been the adult in the situation. OP, your parents are acting like the grown ups here. They have your best of interest at heart. They want to make sure you have as little debt as possible when you graduate, and that’s probably the best gift any parent could give to his/her child.</p>
<p>I can’t emphasize how much I want to apply early decision, but I have no idea how to bring it up to my parents and convince them that it is worth it.</p>
<p>Your parents seem to be analyzing the situation very rationally</p>
<p>You’re probably a fairly intelligent student if you’re qualified for NU. After you have this conversation, I expect that you’ll wind up convinced of their point of view.</p>
<p>It’s understandable that you don’t see where your parents are coming from yet, but you will. They are doing you a huge favor and are wisely guiding you to apply to a range of schools, particularly ones that will actually be affordable. I wish more parents would do this so we wouldn’t see so many “crushed dreams” threads when financial aid awards come in. Those kids often have to scramble to find a school that’s still accepting apps in April, which generally won’t include any that they would have considered for a fall app, or take a gap year to reapply to more affordable schools.</p>
<p>There are many other schools similar to Northwestern. You need to expand your view of what you are looking for to include a college more affordable. </p>
<p>It is not right in this economy for you to expect your parents to pay $50k by a year especially when they are honest with you that they can’t afford it. Personally it was one of the hardest things in the world when I told my son I couldn’t pay the price tag for his dream school. Luckily he had a nother alternative school that is less expensive and he is having a blast. </p>
<p>One thing you might want to consider is to go their for graduate school. Do well academically somewhere else and then apply to your dream school after.</p>
<p>realistically,northwestern only offers music merit aid, otherwise it is all need based. (does have nmf of 500-2000 awards)… the reason i thought the parents were “trying” to tell her they cant afford it…is they are still saying apply RD, </p>
<p>if they qualify for no need based aid this is probably still going to out of the realm of possibility. Perhaps it would be kinder for the parents and this student to sit down and have the financial talk, now and get going on a realistic list.</p>
<p>been there, done that, and goofed a bit with one that my son loved, and i kept trying to figure out a way to make it work…wasnt the kindest thing as he still held out hope until the end. (thankfully that story has ended better than we could have imagined at his current school)</p>
<p>I’m sure they are stressing about the cost - but also stressing even more about the fact that they are not financially able to do what would make you happy. As parents, we want to do whatever it takes to make our kids happy…but sometimes it’s just not in the cards. And it hurts to say “No”.</p>
<p>Your parents did not tell you to not apply to NU. They simply said not to apply ED. You have nothing to lose to apply RD and see the options handed to you.</p>
<p>I love my kid, too, but I didn’t think it was smart to pay over $200,000 for her undergraduate degree. Private college tuition probably more like $240,000 at this point for an incoming freshman. That’s really a lot of money- you probably can’t imagine how hard it is to save that much or pay back that much in loans. Your parents are being straightforward with you; maybe it isn’t what you want to hear, but they are giving you a real-life money lesson. Thank them for trying not to burden you or themselves
with loans.
I will also tell you that you never know what might happen to your parents over the next few years financially. One could get sick or lose his or her job, or the economy could completely tank. It’s wise to be fiscally conservative.</p>
<p>OP, my son attends NU and it’s been a wonderful experience. I remember going to one of their info sessions where they clearly told the kids that if you have financial issues, to not apply ED. You should know this before you apply. They were more honest than most other colleges. I suggest you call them and discuss your concerns with someone there before you send in your application. Tell them why NU is your top choice, being aware that the more you know the unique features of the school, the more credible your story.</p>
<p>Shannon2012 I don’t think you are being selfish or anything else-- as a parent myself I know we tend to spend 12 years encouraging kids to work hard so they can get into a good college, without remembering that many good colleges are way beyond affordable. You are the first to go to college at your house (yes?), so your parents are hitting reality themselves here, and it’s hard. </p>
<p>I don’t think you can sensibly apply ED to Northwestern. Why not get your parents and GC together and discuss your realistic options, look for some other schools that offer the things you love at NW and that will be affordable. If you have the stats for Northwestern you might have some pretty sweet merit options at other schools. </p>
<p>“Falling in love” with a college, or a house, a job, or even a person, is always part reality and part fantasy. There are LOTS of others out there, (that, as parent56 notes, might even fit you better) or at least just as well. Good luck in your search, and good for you, for finding the right forum to ask this question, so you can make sense of the financial piece of this.</p>