<p>alrighty parents, i'm in kind of a bind. i'm sure there's a similar thread here somewhere and if you could direct me to that one in your response i'd love it.</p>
<p>short and sweet as possible:</p>
<p>UVa is my dream school. No questions asked I've never liked anywhere more. I feel like it will definitely be a challenge but one I'm willing to work for. In order to go to UVa, I will personally have to take out nearly $130,000 in loans. </p>
<p>Mizzou was my safety school. My parents told me from the beginning that based solely on finances I would be going there. I protested and rebelled but recently gave up and tried, and reluctantly succeeded, to begin liking Mizzou. I know that I would survive going there and will make the best out of any situation, but am seriously worried about regretting my college career by knowing that I turned down my top choice dream in order to save money.</p>
<p>Perhaps it's naive of me to think that there's no better investment than my own education and future and I really should be realistic and consider those things. </p>
<p>Here's my question: What would you do if you were me? If you were in a similar situation a few years back, what did you do and how do you presently feel about it? </p>
<p>Yes, I know it's my and my family's decision...but I would DEFINITELY appreciate some sage advice from the wonderful CC Parents.</p>
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there's no better investment than my own education and future
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</p>
<p>This is not put quite right for your situation. You'll invest in education either way. The question though, is: "Is UVa's education $130,000 (plus interest) better than Missouri's?" </p>
<p>To me, the answer is "no", since imo the most important part of an education is the student, not the school. Obviously you are a very good student, so you can get a good education at many many places, including Missouri.</p>
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seriously worried about regretting my college career by knowing that I turned down my top choice dream in order to save money
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<p>Well, there's money and there's money. I would have regretted turning down my dream school for a few thousand dollars. But I wouldn't have regretted turning it down for $130,000. In my opinion, that is just far too much debt to burden oneself with for the sake of "dream college".</p>
<p>You are going to have other dreams in your life. But you will have a very much harder time reaching those dreams with that $130,000 millstone around your neck.</p>
<p>D turned down U of Chicago becasue she would have had around 50K in debts, and she will have none at her current school. She loves it there, and can't think why she ever thought of going anywhere else.</p>
<p>Well, I'm going to be the contrarian here. LY S turned down many great colleges for a full tuition scholarship at Big U, and he is now in the process of reapplying to 2 of those same colleges- U of C and Darthouth, because big U was not a good fit for the kind of student he is. We knew that in the back of our minds, but were hopeful anyway. Just did not work out. Had we to do it over again he would have gone to one of those 2 colleges in the first place. Just my 2 cents.</p>
<p>There is no way I would counsel my sons to start their adult lives saddled with $130,000 in debt. My advice, FWIW, is to learn to love Missouri. Good luck.</p>
<p>There are some things money can't buy. For everything else...</p>
<p>I'll probably be turning down 20k in loans for at least 80k in loans. You only get to go to college once. You can pay back the loans for the rest of your life. Not a big deal to me.</p>
<p>Since you asked ... NO WAY would I support a young person taking on that much debt (which is likely to become more, due to tuition increases along the way). Here is my advice: Go to Mizzou. Get to know your profs --- be their best friend. Do all the research you can do. Intern. Travel. Watch for opportunities for enrichment and take advantage of them. Find a mentor. When you decide on a grad school or professional program, take full advantage of your faculty connections --- you will most likely get into a top-notch school/program, maybe even with a fellowship. If you decide to work first, keep in touch with your profs so that you can get great recommendations is you decide to go back to grad school. The point is, there are great opportunities for great students no matter where you go. Life is full of trade-offs, but the most successful people are those who find a way to turn their disappointments into positive experiences. Attitude is everything (when you can't afford your first choice, anyway!).</p>
<p>Well, I'm generally in the "spending" camp when it comes to this kind of decision making but imo $130K is just too much debt. I'm easily comfortable with a student graduating with $20K. I think "crush depth" for me is around $50K in student debt.</p>
<p>Kristin, I could be wrong, but I didn't think it was possible for a student to take on this much school-related debt. If your parents are not helping with the loan burden, I don't think you even have this option. (Please parents, tell me if I am wrong about this.)</p>
<p>Now, if in fact you are able to take on this loan load, you need to face some facts of life: for some years after you graduate, you will not be able to get a car loan, because you will have too much debt; you will not be able to buy a house because you won't be able to save enough of your income to make a down-payment due to the student loan obligation; forget about nice vacations; forget about choosing a job you like over one that pays more.... I think you probably get the picture.</p>
<p>I have no idea what field you are planning to study, but most students have a very unrealistic idea of what their income will be after they graduate. Look up the statistics for average starting income in your prospective field, then find a calculator on the internet that will give you an idea of the monthly payment on a huge debt. 130K is close to a mortgage loan on a starter home in Missouri. Payments on a loan of that size will determine every aspect of your life. </p>
<p>If your parents are not willing to take on some of the loan burden, do as most of the posters above have suggested. Make the most of your time at Missouri, definitely impress some professors, and plan for the future. By the way, I am extremely familiar with Mizzou and Columbia, MO. I am not going to claim that every student at Missouri is the sort you dream of spending time with, but there are plenty of very good students there, and many of them do quite well for themselves after they graduate. Columbia is a pretty nice college town, also; lots of inexpensive music, a lively downtown and great parks. </p>
<p>I'm all for getting the best education you can manage, but there is only one reasonable choice here if your parents are not part of the picture.</p>
<p>Kristin, as luck would have it, I just came across another thread in which a student is pondering the debt question. The poster Carolyn suggested the following two sites to that student, and I think they might be good for you to look at also.</p>
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Two online debt calculators that I'd recommend you and your parents run some numbers and scenarios through are:</p>
I've been saying the same thing on these boards since I've been here. What crazy person is loaning them the money? They have no job. They have no assets for collateral. If they have a co-signor , well we know who is really borrowing the cash don't we? LOL. They'd loan Manson $130K if he had a co-signor with great credit. I hope you get some traction on your Q. I've never found a source for all this loan largesse. I must have asked the question 10 times. No one ever said where the "No Credit. No Collateral. No Problem. We Make Dumb@$# Six-figure Loans Store. " was.</p>
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If you were in a similar situation a few years back, what did you do and how do you presently feel about it?
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I had to choose between my top choice and finances. To make it worse, the university with the far better financial aid package didn't even offer the major I wanted, not to mention a student body with a completely different mindset. I was not particularly thrilled about having to make that decision. </p>
<p>Fast forward two years, and I'm much happier and content than I initially thought I would be. I'm cobbling together my own program of study, and I've made far more connections with professors and other students than I expected. I'm incredibly glad I didn't go the expensive route- I plan to go to graduate school, and it's extremely comforting to know that I can choose whichever one I want without having to worry about a huge amount of debt from undergrad.</p>
<p>If UVA is that important to you, why don't you look into what it takes to establish residency in Virginia? I would imagine that you could defer for a couple of years and move to VA to work. That way you could save up some money and get in-state tuition at the same time. It would not be an easy path, especially when your friends were getting excited about heading off to college and all you are getting ready for is a move and a job. However, if your heart truly is set on UVA and you would always regret turning down your chance to go there, this is a very viable option. It all depends on what you are willing to do for your dream school. If you would even think of taking on 130,000 in debt (don't do it; it's WAY too much), you should be able to make this work.</p>
<p>Kristen, both of my kids turned down their #1 choice colleges because of money (or lack thereof). In my kids' cases, they each got lucky with their #2 choices, which were arguably as good or better than their #1 ... so it isn't quite the same: but if the money hadn't been there, then my kids would have been attending the in state U.</p>
<p>$130K worth of debt is simply unconscionable. It is not really a figure that should be reasonably open for discussion. I think $20K debt for undergrad is reasonable -- but I would not want to see my kids take on more than $30-$35K no matter how wonderful the dream school or how weak the alternative. </p>
<p>If the purpose of an education is to lay a good foundation for the future -- and the rest of your life -- then it is simply insane to take on a crushing burden of debt. You will close so many doors on your future it is unbelievable.</p>
<p>I think debt level can be mitigated to some degree by what kind of employment prospects the student faces upon graduation. Engineering? Economics? A little more debt is reasonable. Art history? Not so much. But $130K for undergrad is overreaching, imo, and not by just a little.</p>