Has anyone made this difficult decision?
The Notre Dame education might be quite valuable for a student that loves it. But is it worth 150k+ more than an education from the big publics that offer big scholarships?
How do you feel about the decision?
Can your family afford the price differential with no loans/no hardship?
Some real belt tightening would definitely be required but our family could probably afford to limit loans to the $5500/yr. variety.
@EPallazzo Weighing admission decisions between a Private University, i.e. Notre Dame and In-State/OOS Publics, i.e. University of Florida/University of Alabama etc. is a decision process many families and their students will go through every admission cycle. Normally our recommendation would entail visiting Notre Dame and to get a close feel for the campus, ND students and faculty, yet this year families are at a comparative disadvantage, of course. Have you had the opportunity to visit campus already? Ultimately, this important decision will involve many factors, some of them financial (depending on family circumstances of varying importance), as Notre Dame tends to provide a positive ROI, yet there are many other factors to be considered and therefore the ultimate decision will always depend on individual circumstances. Best of luck and success in your decision!
We visited ND and I was not impressed. DS found a similar sized school at half the price that he is thriving at.
@threebeans Does your DS son not attend another private university, which Notre Dame would regard as a peer school? This threat created by OP focuses on large public universities that offered merit scholarship money, not a decision between similar sized privates with meet need-based FA policies, which is a different discussion.
@hpcsa he attends another private university on par with ND that gives merit money. Either way we would not qualify for any sort of need based aid. He received a generous merit scholarship to bring his COA to about $40K/year which is about what our large public flagship costs.
@threebeans Congratulations to your son and the family! Tulane is a very fine university, we recently visited their law school. Merit money in lieu of need-based FA certainly is an attractive draw. All success to your son!
Thank you @hpcsa. He is in his third year there and really, really found his tribe! I’m sure he misses it now that he’s stuck at home with us.
@EPallazzo Don Bishop, Notre Dame’s admissions director has said consistently that of the 40% of admitted students who choose not to attend ND, half of them attend ND peer schools and half attend their state flagship (which is lower cost, often excellent programs and sometimes an Honors College). So this is a pretty common dilemna, and one where there can be good choices either way. To some extent, it may depend on what you want to study and how you value the non-academic experience of each choice. And which state flagship you might be considering.
@threebeans Tulane is an excellent school and, while private, does fall into the category of being a financially attractive option to Notre Dame - though I would hesitate to call it a peer school for a variety of reasons. Tulane gives out a lot of merit aid for a reason - to attract excellent students who might otherwise enroll elsewhere and, in doing so, improving their student body. Having said that, it sounds completely like Tulane was the right school for your son and Notre Dame would not have been a good fit. So congratulations on ending up at the right school for him … and at a lower cost!
There is no one right answer to these things.
If finances are a concern, then the answer is easy.
If finances are not an issue, then it is purely a personal decision.
There is a lot of value in 4 years of exposure to high caliber students such as those at Notre Dame & its peer schools.
P.S. As written above: There is no universally right answer with respect to this type of issue.
I think at this point in the process the answer needs to be more clear in order to continue weighing this option on your list. “Probably” and “belt tightening” are not words that would make me comfortable enough to turn down significant financial offers elsewhere. So first thing I would suggest is talking with your parents to shore that up to a firm “yes” or “no.”
Once the financial discussion is settled and if ND continues to be a viable option to pursue, then I would say compare the programs of study and the course offerings next and come up with a gut feel of your own on the value of the education. Also consider the amount of help offered to you by way of securing research opportunities/internships/co-ops/jobs, etc which plays into the value of an education too.
In addition to what @hokiemama24 wrote, one of the biggest differences between a large public flagship and Notre Dame will be the universal quality of your peers. While there are undoubtedly large numbers of excellent students at public flagships, students of “Notre Dame” quality will remain a minority of the student body (Berkeley, UCLA, Michigan and UVA aside). That may or may not matter depending on who you hang out with and the academic and living arrangements (Honors College, Honors Residence Halls, etc.). The next four years of your life will be shaped strongly by the environment you will be in - and your fellow students are a huge part of that. Whether it is academic interaction, social relations or just hanging out and discussing the state of world at midnight in your residence hall, you will be learning a lot outside of the classroom in determining who the person is that you want to be. The peers that my son has at Notre Dame were a huge reason for his choosing to attend, and it is amazing to watch the personal growth that derives from that.
Only if you can afford it. We have 2 kids home from college doing online classes. A junior civil engineer from ND and a freshman attending another catholic private university. They are having vastly different experiences. ND student is continually engaged with residence staff, clubs & teachers. She spends all day doing homework and all evening engaged with peers at ND. Her sister is a mechanical engineering major ( only a freshman) but she spends more time playing xbox than on school work. Many of her classes have changes from lecture/zoom to read a book and write a reflection or video a speech and send it in. I realize that she is only a freshman and her classes are not as intense has her sisters but Notre Dame has done an unbelievable job with online instructions and making the kids feel like they are still part of ND. Dorm rector has weekly Zoom meeting with dorm, RA are checking in weekly, all events such as hall meeting, etc are happening. Younger daughter has not had any contact from dorm since she left. I honestly never fully appreciated the ND dorm system until now.
my first question would be: how many kids are in the family?
spending that much more on just one kid is different than if that kid is the first of four to go to college . . . .
3 kids total, younger two will not overlap for college years.
Make sure ND is affordable with belt tightening (ie., cutting on take out/restaurants - but not essentials, ie., fiing leaky roof).
If it is, then it sounds like ND is your favorite and it’s such a distinctive experience that if affordable and the right fit, it’s worth it.
But, if it’s not affordable, have no regrets: many flagships offer an excellent education.
What are your other choices?
Think of it this way - if that $150k is going to be a big difference in your parents’ lives, maybe choose the cheaper option. How would you feel forcing them to work an extra 3 years before retirement? Because of FA our instate options were about the same cost as ND.
Just make sure you do super at the state school if you go. I have seen too many highly capable kids, like my oldest, feel they don’t have to work hard and get caught up in the party culture. S1 did turn it around but was nearly kicked out. Others were not so successful.
@EPallazzo - another question to ask - what is the 4 yr graduation rate at each school? The trap many fall into is the ‘less expensive’ state school can routinely take 5 or 6 years to get all the credits. The UC system has an issue with this. ND really tries to get everyone through in 4 years. Adding a year or two of expense at the state school can level the overall cost when comparing.
Lots of good info on here @EPallazzo . I’ll just throw my 2 cents in here as an ND student. ND is a great school, well ranked and a lot of good things here. There are also cons—weather, location, isolation, hard academics (for some is a con). My point is this decision if finances are truly not a huge issue is a FEELING and a GUT thing. You know deep down if ND is the place for you. The best and worst thing about Notre Dame compared to top schools is how unique and distinct it is. It is an amazing place for the ones who fit and drink the cool aid and a horrible fit for top students who don’t fit. I would trust your instincts and decide what is most important. To me, when I think of people at ND who don’t like it there are generally 2 main reasons: weather/location and party scene/no greek life. If you are OK with both of those then I think choosing ND is a good choice. If you know coming in that you want those two things and think you can survive without them… I would not choose to come here. My 2 cents. Good luck and keep us posted!!