can you please share her stats?
94.7 W (no U/W)
~ 5 AP, 6 Honors
Test optional
4 yr Varsity Cheer (1 year captain)
1 yr Varsity Competitive Cheer
2 years Interact (volunteer) Club
3 years work at local pizzeria ~ 20-25 hrs/wk
Military move between Fresh and Soph year
My son applied to ASU in October and was accepted 2 weeks later. (He also got accepted into San Marcos already……small world!) I’d recommend your daughter contact ASU admissions office to ensure they received everything they needed.
To All - I am a huge advocate for ASU. I am also puzzled by the changes in FA this year. The Barrett staff member I spoke with was very upset by it. I make no excuses for them.
The question to ask is “Is the price worth it?” The answer will be different for everyone. I have two sons who have graduated from ASU - Barrett. The degree has served them well. If you can get a top (insert ranking here - varies by major) education for a better price - go for it. The key strength of ASU for our family were flexibility. Other schools my DS considered were more prestigious, but much harder to complete a BS in 4 years. That was the key selling point for us. With the AP credits and breadth of majors, it was easy for them to make it in 4 years. I just attended graduation of my CS major son last week. He graduated in 3 1/2 years. Is school B cheaper if you have to pay for 4 full years or more?
Food for thought. Best of luck to all of you.
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Thanks, this is helpful. We probably shouldn’t think about it as ASU merit this year vs. ASU merit last year, but ASU merit this year vs. other school’s offers.
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I understand what you’re saying about the value of ASU and Barrett, but the reality is that when my S22 can get a comparable education for $40-50K less over four years (and that’s not including the general costs of having him go far away from home) it becomes difficult to justify the additional cost.
If we were going to spend that extra money, we’d look at schools a notch or two above ASU. It’s a great campus and a great program for my son’s major, but the last-minute decision to eliminate full-tuition scholarships for NMF’s has left a pretty sour taste.
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Looks like ASU Barrett decisions are out today. Check the portal if you haven’t done so.
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@jpgiro - I completely understand. For many, it may not be the same financial construct. When my oldest went, he was not a NMS. We did get some aid, but we made it work. His alternatives were Cal Poly and UOP. Cal Poly was cheaper, but how realistic was graduating in 4 years? We felt it was unlikely. UOP was more expensive.
The Barrett staff member I spoke with is pretty ticked about the NMF change. The timing made it even worse, in my opinion.
Best of luck to your S22.
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Agree with what usma87 is trying to convey here:
College costs are a function of (coa, merit scholarship, 4-year graduation rate, …). Consider all three in your calculations. Both ASU and UofA are aware of the situation in UCs/CSUs regarding 4-year graduation rate and positioning themselves are viable options in terms of cost for in-state CA students.
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The issue for my S22, admitted to ASU and Barrett, is that as a NMSF, he has better guaranteed options elsewhere that are cheaper. ASU is not T30. It is borderline T50, if that. Iowa State guarantees a four year path to graduation. It is significantly cheaper. Bama offers, not just four years of a full ride, but a fifth year of tuition. So, ASU is no longer competitive for value seeking OOS students. It just isn’t. It’s cost is now comparable to Purdue but it isn’t Purdue.
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I was making a more general statement. Seems like you are more focused on engineering schools.
I think my statement is fair across the board. ASU is now overpriced for the quality for OOS regardless of major.
The way it was changed this year is just salt in the wound. S22 never would have applied had ASU been honest about its merit aid at the time of his application in August. Oh well, $75 wasted. Nothing in the grand scheme of things.
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Just one example. ASU is one of the top 2 schools in the nation for Supply Chain management with very good outcomes. A premium in tuition might be worth it in this case. I am sure there are other majors, i am not knowledgeable on all the other majors they offer.
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@Peruna1998 - I don’t disagree. Every case will be different. My intent was to provide some broader context to possibly help others.
As to, “overpriced…regardless of major”, I do disagree. If you find better value, go for it. My sons did not want to go to Tuscaloosa or Ames. As stated earlier - my son graduated in 3 1/2 yrs and will have a Masters in Computer Science in 12 months. Look up some of the companies in the “Price Corridor” in the greater Phoenix area. It is a good place to be a CS major.
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Our current price at ASU is $37k/yr. Purdue would be $44k/yr for engineering. Which is the better value? For my son, Bama is effectively free. He can also get a Masters for free. He can then use savings on another graduate degree. Which is better? Texas A&M in the Texaplex with Austin is $25k/yr cheaper. Which is better? Admittedly, this is all subjective, but ASU did itself no favors with the merit scholarship changes. Without the changes, it would have been a top choice. With? Not at all.
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Reading the various back and forth, I’d like to provide my family’s perspective, because at the end of the day, money does not grow on trees, whether you are talking about Harvard or your local community college.
Using some real dollar merit #s that are rolling in for our D’s other options, if you care about college debt at all, I can confirm it is not cost-justifiable for a highly ranked OOS to attend Barrett at this point. There are other “same or higher tier options” at a notably lower price point for OOS candidates. (And no, I do not want to get into debates about specific majors, etc. I am talking degree completion COST. Math is math.)
Barrett was hands-down our D’s top choice prior to the changes. She applied to ASU in July, it was such a done deal in her mind, and as parents we were 100% on board to fully fund at the levels that had been promoted for years. Then the four-year price spiked by +$60k mid-Fall. Not a hard decision to make: Get into debt for Barrett, or go with one of the other generous options we had carefully researched as a family, with no debt.
It’s simple math. We can debate all day whether ASU/Barrett is a Kia or a Toyota. But it should be clear to all that it is not a Lexus.
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I agree. Math is math. I would readily tell anyone that no college degree is worth major debt. I have a work colleague who recently graduated with $154k in loans! That is crazy in my opinion. Our situation was manageable. That decision will vary for every family. I have said before, someone or some committee at ASU really overestimates the value of their #1 in innovation ranking. If they think they will garner the same level of interest by top students, like NMF, they just priced themselves out of the market for many.
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If price is your only metric, you have answered your own question. I made a comment to @joelatte above(?) I think. ASU is going to feel it for a few years until they come up with a better answer for OOS students.
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Agreed.
This evening my D received a generous FA package from Syracuse. The offer makes it significantly cheaper than ASU. I think ASU has overestimated its appeal to OOS applicants at their current price.
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