@Theatrical - we were one of those families who didn’t get any merit aid at all, and we refused to take out loans or allow our D to take them out. What made it possible for us to let her go, was the fact that we have lived below our means & socked away money for years and years; some for college, but mostly not (we never really thought she or our S would go to an out of state school, much less a school w/the pricetag of NYU). We initially told her that she was auditioning just to see…but that she would never go there b/c we weren’t going to spend that kind of money on a BFA. Then she got in, and we really had to rethink it. In the end, we tightened our belts even more, and decided that one way or the other, we would eventually be paying for her to live in NYC (at least for a few years), so why not during college, going to a school that would also be great from a networking standpoint? Her first year is not even over, and the learning opportunities she’s had, and the amount of growth she’s experienced already has been fairly astonishing to us. We are glad we did it, even though it means no name brand groceries or vacations for me for the next 3 years. 
If we had not had that money in the bank one way or the other, we would not have taken out loans in order for her to go there. That’s our personal stance - I think if she’d ended up at UAB, she’d still be growing as an actress and pursuing performance & learning opportunities…and I told someone yesterday via PM - the kids I know at WTAMU are getting the same caliber training & putting on similar caliber productions to some of the big name programs that are prevalent on CC…so at the end of the day, all that matters is pursuing their dreams and working hard - even if that means not college. You can’t make a bad decision, but I’ll say a little prayer that you will be able to make your choice & be at peace with it! There’s a reason this is a tough decision…
Everyone’s situation is different…some people want their child to take out the student loans if they are necessary and some people do not want to saddle their child with the loan so they take out the Parent Plus loan. I have known people who have done both scenarios. We just decided that if my daughter wanted to attend a school that she was accepted at , that would involve a financial gap between what we could contribute and what the cost was , that she would have to take out the loan. Now, we would never let her take out a HUGE amount. I mean I am the adult here and in having way more experience in understanding debt in general , which I feel a 17 yr old really has no clue, we would limit her loans to what we would consider a reasonable amount…hoping we don’t end up going that route as she has been lucky to have some reasonably priced acceptances at this point. I also did not want another loan for myself and my husband. We need to think about retirement, etc and not take on more debt ourselves. I also caution parents that feel guilty about not wanting to take out the Parent Plus loan because they dont want saddled with the debt themselves, but feel guilty not offering to do it. I felt guilty about that for awhile but decided not to .My friend is going through this now and her child is sorta pressuring her to take out the parent loan and i find that completely unfair.
As for a BFA in MT not being “worth that much money” …I dont think the degree itself isn’t worth the money. I just think that in this field, it would be SO much better to not have a payment looming in 6 months after graduation. Finding work and getting yourself established will be hard enough without the added pressure of that on top of it. So imho if you are going to have to incur LARGE amounts of debt as the student, to attend a school like NYU that is mega bucks…it may not be the best idea. Especially if you have other options that would be less expensive. I would caution to teens that are falling into the “name game” to rethink signing that loan paper if that is the only reason you want to go there.
I also have NO clue as to why in school during senior year, there is NO class or workshop or any instruction given to students in financial responsibility. at least there was none at my daughter’s school. I mean the kids really have no clue about loans and debt and how it will bog you down for years on end.
@WTXMom You mentioned UAB, one of my son’s acceptances. He is very hesitant about UAB because it’s so new, but I love what I have learned about it. Do you have any insight you could share? Do you know someone attending there?
@CATenorMom - my daughter was headed to UAB when she came off the NYU waitlist. One of her besties from high school (who we went through the audition process wringer with & had several offers from terrific/established programs) is there now & they are in tech week for their production of “A Little Night Music.” What I’ve seen of those rehearsals (through her snapchat) have been pretty impressive. I cannot say enough wonderful things about Valerie Accetta and Carolyn Violi. Not getting to work with them was the biggest hesitation on my D’s mind when she made the choice to rescind. D’s friend is really loving life, and was cast in a principal role as a freshman, so that’s a bonus for it being a new program… I’m sure her friend would be happy to communicate with your son if he wants a student’s perspective…if so, PM me your son’s name & email or phone (since they text more than anything), and I’ll pass it along to her to reach out.
Birmingham is a terrific place for artists. If you can make a trip, you really should - D was also hesitant about UAB, and didn’t really consider it as a top choice until we insisted she visit…their production of Spring Awakening and the rest of the visit is what sold D and her friend on UAB. The city has a very artsy/music/performance friendly vibe - very similar to Austin. And the campus is beautiful. If you or your son has any questions, I would not hesitate to reach out to Valerie. Really, she is wonderful - when my D told her about her decision, she was so gracious and told her she wanted to D to keep her informed about her experiences & activities beyond school. She’s a class act, and pretty connected w/casting directors from what I understand.
Edited to add: Also? The scholarships offered by UAB for academics were pretty nice…even late in the game (at least for out of state students). Financially, it was an awesome choice.
@CATenorMom my D didn’t audition for UAB because it was too far from us . But she talked to the lady in charge (Valerie?) at SETC last year as they called her back . She loved her and totally would’ve applied there if it were closer. She emailed my D over the summer and touched base with her etc . Really a top notch lady!
@WTXMom thank you for the prayer in my D’s case there is a choice between Tisch or gap year since it’s her only acceptance. Makes it easier on us as she does not want a gap year. We’ll figure out the finances but for now her happy face is priceless!
I don’t think all scholarships to NYU/Tisch are solely need based. I could be wrong. When my D applied, yes, we qualified for need based aid and would have 2 kids in college at the same time (a year behind one another). The scholarship part of the NYU D’s FA package was a round number and for four years. Need based aid, I believe, is determined each year based on current finances. The scholarship (which I think at the time was called Trustee Scholarship) was for $20,000/year and from the get go before enrolling, we knew it was for that same amount all four years. In senior year, when MT daughter’s sister was in graduate (not undergrad school), the scholarship amount at NYU/Tisch didn’t go down. In fact, in senior year, without applying for anything, we saw 3 additional smaller named (after people) scholarships on our bill that apparently our D received from NYU in addition to her original larger scholarship for that year. I believe those named scholarships were merit based, as our need did not change. At the time, the full price tag was around $56,000.
Just to reiterate, we didn’t just take out Parent Loans, but took the Student Loans out with the intent that the parents would be paying those loans, but simply the interest rate is better on student loans. I will admit that we came from a cultural background where providing education for one’s children is considered a gift, and not having them pay for any of it, is a strong value. Grandparents on both sides helped, as this is of vital importance in our families. Is my financial life in a good place now? Not really. It was a big financial sacrifice, but my family background is such that no other way would be considered (ie., kids paying loans). Just to say that not everyone who goes to an expensive college like NYU is well off. Everyone approaches paying for their kids’ educations differently and there is no judgement one way or another. I just thought that people were assuming that loans, including official student loans, always mean saddling a kid with debt. Not in our case.
@soozievt thanks for the information about student loans vs parent loans. We just accept an offer and may want to make some small loans…we noticed the student loan rates were much more attractive. I was wondering if parents do that, and you just answered my question. I don’t have any guilt or pressure about having my D be responsible for a small amount of her college education. But, I’m not going to burden her with debt, we are asking her to work on campus and take a summer job etc. I agree, it’s a very personal decision how each family approaches this. We will pay 90% of it and I would like to continue to challenge her to find ways to contribute over the next four years, we are a team!
We did not get need based aid but they did give my son a scholarship of some kind so they do offer money. Not sure why everyone is saying Tisch doesn’t give money. It is clearly on my son’s financial package and it’s not a loan
@milmom2 I think people say that because the amount of scholarship (based on anecdotal info) often seems fairly low vs the overall cost of the school. Doesn’t bring total cost down to a reasonable amount for many people.
I do know kids who got lots of scholarship for NYU and others who got some but not enough. Just depends.
BOCO decision is a NO…(tears) check your portals…
@missnypizza I’m so sorry! 
D got cmu and nyu rejections… Waiting for 3 more decisions In the next couple of days… Whatever happens, glad we can be past this and move on to actually ATTENDING and LOVING her program !!
BoCo is a yes! Really surprised after rejections from Point Park, Carnegie, and NYU. Not sure but this may be a game changer…financially and academically.
@MomofMTBoy congrats! Feel free to message me if you have questions!! We love boco!
Boco is a yes for my S too. Honestly don’t know a lot about this program.
I was putting gas in the car while my daughter clutched her phone. She’s been such a wreck waiting I told her to just sit tight and I would pump the gas. She had just received her no from Syracuse and had to go to work in the state of still not having heard from two of her schools. Suddenly the car started to shake, and I thought, “I know it’s an old car, but what’s going on?” Then I realized my daughter had just gotten some news and was pounding on the car trying to get my attention. A yes from BOCO had just come in. She gamely applied to many, many schools. She stayed strong through many, many rejections. She had begun the work of seeing herself at a very different school and was even getting excited, but I knew her heart was with BOCO. It has been the hardest parenting of my life, and I could not have done it without this community. For those of you still waiting, or unsure, we all send all the power of community and love of all our children your way. These kids are incredible; their commitment to their art form inspiring. Our dreams demand much of us; these kids are just getting started on theirs and will have their struggles. Their paths will vary, but their love of doing good work, telling worthy stories, and connecting with audiences and with one another will see them ALL through.
@milmom2 Financial aid at NYU is often given out as scholarship money. Unless your EFC is above the cost of attendance for NYU ($73,088), you are entitled to some financial aid and it may be called a “Tisch scholarship”, “Dean’s Scholarship”, etc. But regardless of the name given, it is still financial aid. Since Tisch does not give merit money, I imagine that any money your child received is financial aid.
The issue is that schools (not just NYU) often do not meet full need and gap. In NYU’s case, they only meet approximately 69% of people’s expected need. But because of the high cost of attendance of NYU , the 30% that is not covered is still a great deal of money. which is why so many people complain. Plus that 69% of need is an average. If NYU really wants you, they can meet almost all of your need. If they kinda want you, they may meet a lower percentage of need. But even if they really want you, if your EFC is above $74,000 per year–don’t expect any money if you are applying to Tisch. (The only exception is the MLK scholarship program which is awarded to very few students and is based on grades/ leadership across all schools.)
@missnypizza my heart goes out to you. I am so sorry.
@1bamom your story reminded me of ours last year. We had applied broadly and had acceptances and rejections – but when boco came in my D was over the moon . It is a wonderful place, extremely challenging and top training…plus its Boston! @milmom2 congratulations and please IM me if you have questions