<p>So I got into Bard College with an Excellence & Equal Cost Scholarship which reduces my tuition to SUNY tuition (Only pay $5000 a year), I also got into the Macaulay Program at Hunter College in NYC which provides full tuition, room for 2 years, $7500 for study abroad, and a computer.</p>
<p>Bard, as far as I can tell, is a better college.... small classes and exceptional professors. I plan on being a bio major and eventually doing research (bard has semester programs to do research in the cities), but I also liked the artsy element of the college and the ability for even science majors to really branch out into creative classes. Bard is like 40min away from my house so its a little closer than I wanted, but that's really not a big issue for me. Between $5000 tuition and room and board and expenses I would be paying something like $18000-20000 per year. I could probably commute because I am relatively close, but I prefer not to my first year.</p>
<p>Hunter has all the perks of living in the city, their honor classes look interesting, and since Macaulay students get priority registration and special attention (supposedly) from professors they get the very best of a huge university. My issues with this college are 1. I am not sure if hunter's academics even compare to bard, 2. There is no campus, 3. I don't know how hard it will be to get into a good grad school from hunter. It would cost me like $6000 for my first 2 years between food and transport and probably about the same as bard for my last two. So I would save something like $25000 going to hunter.</p>
<p>I can swing the cost of Bard probably, but is the debt worth it. And how hard will it be for me to go straight into grad school if I have $40,000 in debt from bard (my parents will take half). Also, what do you guys think of living at home and commuting 40min each day to bard after my first year?</p>
<p>If you couldn't tell, I really want to go to Bard and I loved it when I visited. Also I have a friend taking classes there who loves it and I respect her opinion on these things. I actually know a professor there and the head of publicity. I just feel extremely guilty and wasteful turning down all that Macaulay is offering me, it's an amazing package.</p>
<p>i am very hesitent to comment, but I would say to please not listen to those who will advise a strictly financial decision. Obviously, that is important (and that’s why I wouldn’t presume to advise), but there are indeed (as you note) other factors. One that occurrs to me is that undergrad is important (you are learning, after all, not just getting a degree) and so ‘save your money for graduate school’ is not a comprehensive approach. Why waste 4 years, no matter how cheap? Also, a very important aspect of learning is your peers – the people you will discuss ideas wtih inside and outside the classroom. Make sure you feel those you will share your learning with are going to help and inspire you. I truly understand the imperative of finance, but more than price separates schools.</p>
<p>Im pretty excited about bard, but its a potential $80000 in debt. Macaulay will be like $30000 maybe. I don’t know if I can justify $50000 to myself even if I want to</p>
<p>We face similar choices with our daughter (Macaulay Honors Hunter vs. other schools)…no, it is not just money…there are other factors. My daughter has concerns about Macaulay Honors–lack of campus. However, money is a concern…maybe more for us than for you (my husband and are both city employees).</p>
<p>One thing to think about is if you know the kind of career you want. My daughter may want to be a teacher…she will need grad school but going to U of Rochester or Syracuse or even Geneseo at a bigger price tag wouldn’t matter with that so the debt is an issue.</p>
<p>Grad schools do know Macaulay honors and from what I have heard, it is a great program academically. It is true that there is no campus. On the other hand it does have the cultural benefits of NYC. The principal of the school I teach at went to Bard and he loved it but he said it was isolated…</p>
<p>Well, I’ve lived in the Bard area most of my life, so while I dislike the isolation, I am used to it and 100% positive I can handle it. Money is a huge factor, my mom is also a city employee (yes they even have them all the way up here) and my dad is currently out of a job. Since bard gave me SUNY tuition I am thinking of dorming my first year to make friends and commuting from home for the other 3 and maybe eventually renting a cheap apartment. This would bring my education costs to basically even or maybe even less than at hunter (minus the travel fund and laptop of course). I think I can handle living at home, but if anyone has any advice about the pros and cons of that i would love to hear it. I want to go to grad school to become a scientific researcher (in bio or neuroscience) so that is a consideration as well.</p>
<p>I don’t think that $80,000 is worth it. I know people who go to both colleges and they’re learning pretty much the same things (they have the same major-- math), I don’t think one school is significantly more comprehensive in its coursework than the other, and they’re both about equally happy. The one who goes to Bard wasn’t very happy her first year because she said Bard is very clique-ish, but since then she’s been fine. I’m sure there are some social issues with both schools. My friend who goes to Bard said she definitely would not choose Bard over schools of similar academic merit if Bard had charged her more. (Haha I’ve talked to both of them about Bard and Hunter a lot) She’s the kid of a professor so she gets to go there for free.</p>
<p>I really don’t think that $50,000 more is justifiable. If it were “only” $5,000 more or something, then that’s a more difficult decision, but as is… Eh. If you are able to cut the costs like you plan on doing, that’s great though. Good luck with whatever you do.</p>
<p>You should not take on more than the debt allowable by the Stafford Loan maximum. Especially if you are headed into grad school. Here is a nifty tool that will let you look at all of the costs (and some other factors) side-by-side [FinAid</a> | Calculators | Advanced Award Letter Comparison Tool](<a href=“Your Guide for College Financial Aid - Finaid”>Your Guide for College Financial Aid - Finaid) </p>
<p>Some people like commuting, some don’t. If you can do it by train, you can sleep or get some homework done. If you have to do it in a car, it will get very old very fast. Since you are thinking of the biological sciences, I would advise you to live closer to wherever it is that your lab is. Going in to flip over a petri dish or feed the rats at 2 am will not be fun at all if that entails an 80 minute round trip.</p>
<p>I’m also considering finding a cheap place to rent with a friend. I could just get myself a van and camp out in it when I really needed to be in the lab, though that might prove slightly problematic. </p>
<p>I’ve heard various comments on Bards degree of clique-ishness, if anyone has anything to say about it firsthand I would be very interested to hear about it. I don’t mind a hipster or crazy liberal element, I come from a town where that is basically the norm and I can be a bit of one myself at times.</p>