And the most valuable out of classroom experiences don’t always come from “tippy-top” schools. S1 graduated from a fourth-tier no-name with a pocket of excellence in his major. He had opportunities to participate, travel and learn hands-on that he never would have had at a larger, better known school. He had a great experience and graduated on time with a job waiting for him in his major.
Fit was a huge factor in my D’s decision. But not everybody will be in tremendous stress to have incredibly high college GPA while participating in lots of ECs and lots of other non-class related but “must” activities. D. witnessed lots of very high caliber students watching TV on the regular basis, something that she could not afford, not that she would prefer spending her time on it. So, under this constraints, “fit” removed additional stress of feeling that you do not belong there and was a big factor. It definitely may not be such a factor for many others, got to consider the specifics of the program and the personality of the student.
@fontana- The scholarship that was added to her original merit award may not necessarily mean she is the top of the freshman class. My DS (a h.s. 2010 grad) received two great merit awards initially and then the same thing happened, the college invited him to apply to this special scholarship. He applied, won and was able to stack all three awards for a full ride (I only had to pay for plane tickets and spending money). I came to learn that the college that particular year was looking to increase enrollment of male students from our state (which was OOS) and from a particular major (where there was a female majority). The college wanted to go up the U.S. News rankings and needed to show students like my DS enrolled. At the time the college was around #4 on my DS’s college list, but shot to the top after the full-ride. My DD had an incredible experience and told us many times he was thankful he didn’t go to the other colleges on his list. As previously mentioned, the college was vested in my DS having a positive experience and made sure he had extra advisors and opportunities.
The other added benefit is the scholarship allowed us to have the funds for other things my DS wanted to do in college (compete in a crazy sport) and summer study-abroad/travel. As a college graduate with no loans, my DS is thankful for his scholarship because it has allowed him to different things now.
Agree @Mom2aphysicsgeek, the fit part that was important in our family had to do primarily with major and opportunity along with cost to set the final OK list. After that, the elements of fit like size, location, what the kids are like and others were up to the kid. But all of my kids ended up at not their top choice due to cost. But they also probably did not take the least expensive choice either, as it is likely they could have gotten a full ride somewhere, just not somewhere that would meet their academic needs.
@TomSrOfBoston
Not concerned that the academics won’t be rigorous enough or lack of opportunity. Quite frankly just the opposite. That she will pass on what I see as the proverbial golden ticket and may regret it.
As we all know, Malcolm Gladwell argues for the benefits of big fish/small pond.
He argues that the small pond all-stars get better outcomes than the Harvard also-rans. Even though the Harvard also-rans are as talented or more talented.
Worked for me, although my choice of a small pond for college was driven by money not strategy.
Also, just thought of this: The less money she spends (or debt she takes on) for undergrad, the more is left to pay for grad school, should she wish to attend.
My daughter has a full fellowship from a state university in the South and is THE BEST decision she ever made. She had been accepted to several Ivies and really did not want to go the state school. One and half years in she has said repeatedly that she is so glad she didn’t go to the other schools. The mentoring, alumni connections, travel and internship opportunities have been UNBELIEVABLE. The caliber of the students she calls friends are phenomenal. They all turned downed Ivies and are the most accomplished, smart, motivated young people I have ever met. The fellows are also respected by the administration and have great, personal relationships with their professors. Again, BEST DECISION ever!!
@pleasantbay Our ds’s experience is very similar. Zero regrets.
We are still waiting on the all the college decisions/financial aid packages, but if the financial safety to due a huge merit scholarship school ends up the most logical choice, I have this video about the big fish/small pond phenomenon brought up by @northwesty to share my D:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ow1-uj0ToVY
I also plan to emphasize if she picks a school that is a financial stretch she will miss out on a lot of extras she/we cannot afford like @itsv mentioned.
But which state university in the South? There is a big difference between Ole Miss and UVA.
@dolemite In terms of the “South,” my ds turned down GA Tech for Alabama. :). Seriously, absolutely zero regrets. The opportunities he has at Bama are as fabulous as what at @pleasantbay describes for her student receiving at whatever school it is. Great opportunities are not restricted to the top schools.
Why does a school offer merit money to a particular student? They are buying the student’s academic prowess. They wish to attract such student so they could get a higher caliber of students to apply to their school. The question is what kind of environment do you want your kid to spend next 4 years of his/her life, a big fish in a little pond or a small fish in a big pond. This has been discussed quite a bit on CC. I personally wanted my kids to be at a place where they could afford top facilities, best professors, and peer students who could offer interesting discussions in and outside of class. If you feel the merit school can offer the right kind (productive) of learning environment for your kid then take the money, but if you feel your kid is settling on his/her learning opportunity then there is no money in the world that is worth it to waste 4 most important years of his/her life. Not everyone agrees with me on CC, but not all colleges provide same level of education.
Money is a factor when it comes to college selection. If merit is needed to make going to college affordable then that’s the choice, but if the money is available then I would always go with the best education opportunity I could afford for my kid.
@oldfort The assumption is that they can’t find that at merit money schools. We have not found that to be reality. Ds has great peers in CBH and his physics classes. He has wonderful mentors in his professors. And he has all the opportunities he wants.
The scholarships have been nothing but a blessing.
I also believe in going where you are wanted versus just accepted and it is more than just the money. I know of a CS major that turned down UT (6th ranked) for Trinity in SA (nonranked) because of the merit money. Three years later, 3 Google internships later (one being in London) she is the star. She is sent to conventions, she is making contacts everywhere. The school promotes her and she promotes the school. She would have just been running in the pack at UT. Trinity was not her first choice but the results have been outstanding.
The key for our family and DD was to look at a lot of merit schools, automatic and competitive, to find the right places (plural as she still hasn’t made a final decision yet). She is an NMF and we visited five different NMF automatic merit schools. At some it seemed as if they were really trying to build something, to advance the school and treated her like they really wanted her, were able to show the University’s commitment in money, funded chairs, expanding biomedical departments (her areas of interest). They were recruiting her and her fellow NMF’s and other high rank/stats kids as a way of advancing the school’s standing and reputation. The honor’s programs were very progressive and really fit her well.
Then at some others her stats and NMF were simply numbers being used to buff up the school’s GPA and test scores, but with no real concerted effort to show her that she really was wanted, which is a very good feeling, or that the school was one that she could grow with. It was similar with the competitive merit schools, some impressed, others did not. I think the key is to cast a wide and well researched net. If your DC has the chance to gain significant merit thanks to their hard work, and no doubt their parent’s emphatic and extensive support of those efforts, then help them find that place where finances and fit are a match.
For our D who wants to go to med school, she knows that completing UG with no loans is a huge bonus for her. She looked at a lot of auto or likely merit schools and said no, and I found her reasons very valid and had already formed similar opinions myself, but like any school search, she also found several that really appealed to her and now she is going back for final visits with a bunch of great and very affordable options on the table. I don’t see this question as a ‘this or that’ query, but more of a ‘how to’ process.
There must be lots of valid reasons to turn down full-tuition offers, honors programs. There are an awful lot of NMS kids who don’t even apply to 'Bama. Even after we exclude the kids who know they have a fighting shot at being accepted at great aid, need-based schools like Stanford, MIT or the Ivies, there are plenty more who exclude 'Bama for geographic reasons. And if they choose this, good for them. (I don’t mean to pick on 'Bama here, it just pops into mind as a really really good choice for some, but there are multiple reasons it doesn’t work for others.)
There is no one-size-fits-all answer to OP’s question, because fit means different things to different people.
We like to help our kids make decisions, especially when we are paying a portion. But we need to recognize that kids who qualify for this type of merit are generally pretty smart at figuring out solutions to problems.
Lots of us value getting out of UG with little or no debt, or even to be left with something afterwards - but perhaps too few of us recognize how special that really is, how few kids, as a percentage of all students, will find themselves in that luxury.
When a family is expected to be full pay but can’t afford full pay, then seeking merit is the only option for a discount. The full tuition offer is huge, often making the COA less than the EFC. The debt free possibility is greatly reduced for students who are living in families with this scenario. This is very appealing and also makes good financial sense. And sometimes this kind of offer does make people change their originally laid out plan. How could it not? And how could that possibly be wrong? If the student applied to the school in the first place by choice, it had to have been considered good enough, even if it is a “safety.”
There will always be people who believe the expense is worth the extra sacrifices required and/or the debt load for a perceived or real prestige and quality difference.
One huge problem I see that I dislike is posted “graduation rates” because I wonder how many CHANGED schools, perhaps for financial reasons but still graduated elsewhere in a reasonable time frame? Or perhaps changed from a more to less elite school while those at the average school may simply have dropped out and end up with no degree. I imagine one’s educational goals matter as well. Just about any college will do for medical school. Most students expect to get a job and not go on to a PhD. For those students expecting to go on to an advanced degree- PhD- I would want the best available academics. I would rather have the norm meet my expectations than need specialness to get that.
One question I would have is if the school wasn’t perceived as a “fit” why would it it be applied to in the first place? I suspect there may be other schools one might prefer, however, affordability is a function of fit. This may not be a deal maker but it would definitely put the school under greater consideration when all is said and done.