My DD got accepted to Blinn Team! I’m slightly confused with the FIXED vs VARIABLE tuition choice since I have to pay tuition to both schools.
Does this mean if I pick FIXED rate, I am paying TAMU $5XXX (fixed rate) + Blinn’s tuition/ fees? DD is planning to do 2-3 classes at Blinn and 2 classes at TAMU for 2 years (to maximize on savings).
Can anyone help clarify if they have experience or knowledge in this?
Thanks!
You only pay fixed or variable if taking minimum of 12-18 hours at Tamu. I don’t think you pick this for team. But there is no way you pay $5k for a semester of taking 6 credits. I
I believe the key word is rate. The rate is fixed or variable. So the rate times the credits is what you pay.
Click on this link:
And we are blinn team and we selected this yesterday. There was a hold on my DD account until it was done.
Do I understand correctly that if choosing fixed, then it’s the past 4 years compounded avg and then it remains the same “rate” for the next 4 years? Therefore tuition will increase by the fixed “rate” going forward?
@Home2Collegex2 : May I ask what you ultimately decided and why?
And thank you!!! Omg the word “rate” makes a big difference- I can’t believe I missed that point. Makes so much more sense!
Lastly, did you DD decide on campus or off? We are struggling to figure out best plan- off campus with car or on campus no car… going pre-med route via Public Health. Thanks!
Just curious as to reason of car or no car. A car is extremely beneficial if available. I only say this since it sounds like it’s an option. Even living on campus it is helpful.
Hi! We are exploring our options are it really comes down to cost as we are paying out of pocket.
Option 1: ON- CAMPUS: There is a shuttle bus 47 to Rellis right outside of N/S dorms. Parking permits at TAMU are $500 but also can be used at Rellis. We are in Austin and she has friends with cars. Plus, there is Uber.
Option 2: OFF CAMPUS: She will need a car and Rellis parking permit is $350. We can either put her in apartment on TAMU bus route (some charge for parking ~$75). She would need to ride shuttle to TAMU or pay $500 for the TAMU parking permit. She also asked for the most basic meal plan because she’s worried she won’t eat right otherwise.
She’s leaning towards Option 1 because she fears she will miss out on the whole ‘college experience’. sigh
Lot 100 is around $350. Parking garages are $500 plus.
And that gets you rellis as well, like you said. And almost all lots are open to any permit holder after 5pm. For studying etc.
So I may be missing something but permit parking is the least cost we have. And yes dorms can be more than off campus but you have everything paid for. Off campus will have WiFi, cable and utilities for most places (not all).
Am I missing something else on the parking? except for gas and upkeep.
Oh and most freshman won’t get a garage anyway. They are low on totem pole.
If your DD/DS is Blinn Team or TEAB, it really makes more sense to go fixed. If you are straight TAMU, it is a toss up because both plans are “supposed” to be basically the same costs given what is known today. In other words if you choose fixed, you are taking what they think the actual total amount for four years will be and then dividing it by 4.
However, when you are Blinn Team/TEAB, you don’t pay all the “extra” in the freshman year because they are going to Blinn for half their classes. (You only pay the extra on half the load because you are paying Blinn rates on the other half). The fixed program is supposed to be more expensive than the actual non fixed rate in the freshman and sophomore years and cheaper than the non fixed rate in the junior and senior years. So… for Blinn TEAM and TEAB, financially it should be cheaper to choose the fixed rate.
Good morning!
We currently have a junior at A&M, and so we have “learned” what works best for us. The first semester he lived on campus with a car. He got into the WCG parking garage. He couldn’t get the parking lot next to his dorm. He would ride his bike to/from the parking garage. I think it was approx $500 for the year. It worked out just fine. The second semester we took his car because he was having too much fun:) That ended up being a big mistake for us. We ended up paying so much in uber fees-more than gas. (outside tutoring, grocery store visits, church, bible study, and haircuts). I was stressed about that…yes, the small things. So we ended up sending his car back with him at spring break. He stayed on campus his sophomore year too (he had his own room). We finally allowed him to live off campus in a house his junior year, and it has been better (cheaper and he is happier because no upperclassmen live on campus…this isn’t true, but it is the perception.)
So…with my daughter…she has a group of friends already there (good girls that make good choices–very important). She is moving into a room in their house. I will still buy a parking pass & a smaller meal plan. The driving factors for us was a good group of girls and it is cheaper. Rent is about 350-500 a month for 11 months.
Our Takeaways: A car is a necessity in College Station and getting connected to positive people is essential. Living on campus was convenient, but not a deal breaker when comparing it to living off campus. My son still goes on campus everyday.
My son was initially a BIMS major. He didn’t like that he had to take chemistry and biology every semester. His friend is a public health major. He wishes that he had gone that route…both people will end up applying to med school.
Hope this helps a little.
Also…we did the fixed rate (in 2017 w/DS and for 2020 W/ DD).
Look at this link: https://sbs.tamu.edu/documents/Locked%20Rate%20and%20Variable%20Rate%20Tuition%20FAQs%20-%20handout%202019-2020.pdf
and
After all your help, my DD (Blinn Team) is selecting the fixed rate! What a decision (of many!)
We also confirmed with TAMU that once she switches from General Studies to her Major in her 3rd year- the fixed rate will be locked at whatever the rate was for that particular college in 2020-21.
Hi, my son is a dual enrolled blinn team engineering Freshman. I read that you all say to choose fixed however when I do the math it doesn’t make sense. I even had a friend of mine who is a Senior Director of Student Financials at a non A&M related university look at my son’s options. She really thought the variable was a better deal. Thanks in advance for your input.
There was another poster who got some numbers from TAMU’s Student Business Services- these numbers are for Engineering program only … but the point is to utilize the past data to study the trend of the increase intervals. Keep in mind the interest increase rates are compounded yearly in variable and your rate is the published rate at 2020 for fixed for next 4.5 years (engineering program, almost all others are 4 years).
There is no crystal ball to determine the future rate trends and each economist will give you a different perspective like the weatherman- so at the end of the day- it could be a difference of few hundreds of dollars. You will need to ask yourself is that worth the risk or for peace of mind.
My kiddo is a Blinn Teamer- she will take 8 hours at Blinn and 6 at TAMU for 2 years (Public Health- pre med track, so science heavy). Since I’m only paying for 6 hours per semester at TAMU for first 2 years, I could potentially save on the fixed rate plan when she goes FT at TAMU on her 3rd/ 4th year. I’m not much of a risk taker (hence why I got a Fixed mortgage vs an ARM). Also, there is a time limit, so if you don’t think your kiddo will finish in the 4 years, that’s something to consider.
Credit: @JediDadHouTx
This is what I found based on the following data:
Rates for a resident, full-time, undergraduate, College Station student in the College of Engineering:
Locked Rate:
2015-2016 - $5,538.70
2016-2017 - $6,015.19
2017-2018 - $6,123.42
2018-2019 - $6,491.12
2019-2020 - $6,646.91
Variable Rate:
2015-2016 - Not introduced as an option
2016-2017 - $5,853.87
2017-2018 - $5,959.20
2018-2019 - $6,182.12
2019-2020 - $6,330.44
Analysis (Sorry, tables don’t paste well)
Entering Engineering Locked Rate
College of Engineering Semester Year
Year Locked Rate % Change % Change 4 years Total tuition
2015-2016 $5,538.70 $11,077.40 $44,309.60
2016-2017 $6,015.19 $12,030.38 8.60% $48,121.52
2017-2018 $6,123.42 $12,246.84 1.80% $48,987.36
2018-2019 $6,491.12 $12,982.24 6.00% 17.20% $51,928.96
2019-2020 $6,646.91 $13,293.82 2.40% 10.50% $53,175.28
Semester Year
Variable Rate Variable Rate % Change % Change 4 years
2015 N/A
2016 $5,853.87 $11,707.74
2017 $5,959.20 $11,918.40 1.80%
2018 $6,182.12 $12,364.24 3.74%
2019 $6,330.44 $12,660.88 2.40% 8.14%
The percentage increases are smaller, BUT if you look at the total 4 year cost of the variable plan,
If you entered in 2016 VARIABLE, you paid: $48,651.26 VS $48,121.52 on locked plan (saving $ 529.74)
If you entered in 2017 VARIABLE, you paid for 3 years to date: $36,943.52, on locked plan x 4 years = $48,987.36
That means, in order for senior year variable to be cheaper than locked, VARIABLE tuition has to be: $12,043.84
BUT we know the last time tuition was less than $12,043.84, it was 2017 at $11918.40.
Variable Tuition will be at least $12,660.88 (This year).
Past Performance Is No Guarantee of Future Results, but at least for the College of Engineering, the Locked plan is the better option.for the entering class of 2016 and 2017.
Thank you @ATXMOM512. I am not a risk taker either and also have a fixed mortgage. You are right, it’s not worth the worry over a few hundred dollars when we are in the hole over 100K for 4 years.
@atxmom512 That was some great analysis. Thank you! My daughter will be entering TAMU as an Engineering Academy student (Rellis-Blinn) where she’ll do 1/2 her hours at Rellis and 1/2 at A&M. Would you think that Fixed might be better since the first full year, she’ll only be taking 5-6 hours at TAMU so we won’t be paying for a full time tuition? Do they just pro-rate the tuition if the student is considered part time?
Correct, they calculate it to the number of hours your DD is taking at the school.
For example:
8 hours at Blinn/Rellis: $1432 (out of district TX 19-20 rate)+
6 hours at TAMU General Studies: $2502.86 (Fixed rate 20-21) =
Total: $3934.86 per semester (FT TAMU is $5777.15)
Same hours/ schools but variable rate TAMU ($2361.80)= $3793.80 per semester<difference $141.06=""> (FT TAMU Variable 20-21 is $5424.50)
Rates above was quoted in General Studies. Your ‘rate’ will carry over if you switch majors to whatever was ‘locked in’ at 20-21. (assuming your DD is an incoming freshman).
But keep in mind variable rate will most likely go up every year, it has never gone down. You will pay a slighter higher rate initially at fixed but it’s offset by the Blinn tuition and you should be paying less than current variable last 2 years. Blinn Team ended up being a blessing in disguise on my pocketbook since my DD didn’t qualify for any financial aid (except loans).
But honestly, the total difference is a few hundred of dollars. Are you a fixed mortgage or ARM mortgage kind of person? I don’t take risks, and I rather ‘risk’ paying a few more hundred for being able to budget and have peace of mind. 
Gig 'em!
Has anyone received their aggie banner, yet? Still waiting over here…
Not yet! DD anxiously waiting and it’s been nice that she volunteers to get the mail daily.