<p>Mom2collegekids wrote: </p>
<p>"Be sure to look up the breakdown between tuition and fees at that Mass public. At all the publics the fees are high…about $5k-9k per year. The scholarship does not cover those fees. </p>
<p>This cost of several thousand dollars often hits families like a ton of bricks when they think their scholarship will leave them with only room, board and books to pay…and then they get hit with a HUGE fees bill."</p>
<p>I agree with this completely, and the fees are much higher than you quoted. Of the total current cost to live on campus at UMass Amherst of about $23K/yr, the Adams scholarship only gives a student something like $2k/year. It’s a small discount, not what most people think.</p>
<p>I would suggest that your niece add an application to a state university or college that is close enough to her home that she can commute there. This school would probably be a true safety, as she could pay the tuition/fees with a student loan and a part-time job. Hopefully, she’ll get the aid she needs at one of the other places to make it affordable, but I think you want to make sure she has at least one choice come spring.</p>
<p>Best wishes, and congrats to you for helping her through the process.</p>