DCtag -- is it a good deal?

Parents Forum
1

<p>I'm curious what most people think about the DCtag program, the program is designed to make up for the fact that instate options in DC are limited to one school, UDC, which is open admissions and has limited offerings and no on campus housing. </p>

<p>I'd love thoughts both from the perspective of a kid like mine (middle class, will have family resources to help with college) and the low income kids I work with.</p>

<p>Here's how DC works:</p>

<p>Students who are residents of DC for the last year of high school, under a certain age, and have a DC HS diploma or GED can receive one of the following:</p>

<p>a) Up to $10,000 a year to be used towards the difference between instate and OOS tuition at a state school (note: students are still not "instate". They don't get instate admissions privileges or financial aid that is reserved for instate students).</p>

<p>b) $2,500 a year to be used for tuition at any school in the metro area</p>

<p>c) $2,500 a year to be used at an HBCU. </p>

<p>My gut feeling is that for my students this isn't a great deal. $10,000 is a lot of money, but most of my kids will need far more aid than that, and not being instate means they won't get it. </p>

<p>On the other hand, I think for my kid it might be a great deal, letting him choose between a wider range of colleges than just those in one state.</p>

<p>Thoughts?</p>

2

<p>I think it’s a good deal also, especially for someone in your situation. For many I’m DC it won’t be nearly enough to get them into college. If the money provided impacts financial aid, then it’s not doing too much good. Many of the colleges I looked at for my son were well over 10K more for out of state vs in state.</p>

3

<p>Can that amount be “stacked” with merit money? For example, if a student from DC with good grades and test scores applies to a school like Alabama or Indiana, that bases awards for out of state students on certain combinations of grades and test scores, Could that $10,000 be used in addition to the merit award? That could be a really good deal. For example, if a student qualifies for free tuition at Alabama, that $10,000 could be used for room and board?</p>

4

<p>I have been looking for an answer about stacking. I think the answer is yes, but I’m not sure the money could go towards something other than tuition. </p>

<p>For us the question is real, in that we may be making a choice to move to DC or stay in MD. I worry about giving up the instate admissions advantage at MD schools, but the option to save tuition if he chooses elsewhere is tempting.</p>