<p>Ah! I got a 40,000 scholarship (annually) and grants from LMU, so its a full ride (at least for the first year). I also have a 1,000 over the estimated expense cost that they are giving me. I don't even think they included for CAL Grant that I received yet either. LMU was my safety and I've always said its an OK school, not really my style.</p>
<p>I also was just recently accepted to USC. I am expecting to get good aid, but my dad is pushing me into LMU. I know I would love USC, but it's kind of hard to pass up LMU financial aid. To add insult to injury, my dad hates the neighborhood USC in and keeps complaining about it. I am waiting for my aid offer from USC. </p>
<p>I still haven't heard back from a lot of schools also. At this point in time, I want to attend USC. I will most likely receive good financial aid, but my dad's income will increase in the coming years.</p>
<p>Is it insane for me to go to USC over LMU? Or am I justified?</p>
<p>LMU is a good school. But not knowing what you intend to study, it’s hard to know if it fits you academically.</p>
<p>It’s not insane to eschew $40K a year in aid, but it’s close when there isn’t a material difference in the schools. Debt is a big enemy to graduates and if you have the possibility of avoiding it, you have a huge leg up starting your post-education life.</p>
<p>Neighborhood is a factor at USC because, as I understand things there, on-campus housing is in short supply after freshman year. So your dad isn’t completely out of line in mentioning the neighborhood.</p>
<p>Congrats on your scholarship. You need more information, but it’s not a bad time to start thinking about it. Since you haven’t seen USC’s package you might want to determine how much you would be willing to spend and/or borrow to attend USC for 4 years. Then compare the actual package to your threshold amount. If you want to go on to grad school, limit loans as much as possible.</p>
<p>I am still waiting to hear back from the ivy leagues/ other top notch schools. </p>
<p>I’m just really confused on what I should do given the current situation. LMU was always EH to me. I never really liked or disliked it, but with this offer, is it really worth passing up?</p>
<p>Wowie - I’m going to show a bias now - undecided/liberal arts and you have an option for a Jesuit education? Loving LMU here. </p>
<p>Standrews advice is good here. And it sounds like you’ll have a few other options. Keep the $$ in mind, especially if yo think grad school might be in your future.</p>
<p>Was your lmu offer based on stats or need? What are your stats? If you have big need, won’t your usc package be good, too? Or do you have a high efc? Can your dad pay the efc?</p>
<p>40,0000 scholarship for merit, awarded 13,000 in grants. (excluding cal grant that hasn’t even been added yet)</p>
<p>USC, I’m awaiting my offer. My dilemma isn’t so much the cost 1st year. It is going to the cost supplement years. My dad’s income will rise. I don’t want to be able to afford it 1st year and not be able to afford sophomore- senior year.</p>
<p>I definitely prefer USC over LMU, but right now I am paying nothing at LMU. They are giving me an extra 1,000 over cost plus they haven’t even included my cal grant in the offer. </p>
<p>Everyone is pushing me into LMU, but USC is the type of school I want. I highly doubt USC will cover ALL costs.</p>
<p>USC will meet need 100% without loans…However, your problem will be in future years when your dad earns more money, your EFC increases, and you lose Pell, Cal Grant, other aid. That may be your dad’s concern. He may feel that he won’t be able to meet EFC in future years. And, if your USC aid is all need (and not merit) that will be a problem.</p>
<p>What are your stats?</p>
<p>Why do you think your dad’s income will increase significantly in the next few years?</p>
<p>You have to think about this: Will the value of attending USC over the long-term be equal to the value of what you would save by going to LMU instead? Not just monetarily (like will the elevated income people expect to get, but doesn’t always come, from a top-tier school like USC be more than the debt plus interest you’d have to borrow to equal the exceptional value you’re getting from LMU) but also in terms of enjoyment. But I will tell you that once you get more than a few years out that enjoyment that you had at your college becomes a warm fuzzy feeling and not much more. I went to a second-tier SLAC for undergrad and I’m only two years out from my BA, and while I loved my college experience it in itself socially is not really important to my personal life. The academic preparation was superior, but like I said, it was a second-tier college and it was virtually free of cost to me. (I turned down Emory, which would’ve been very expensive and would’ve saddled me with debt, for Spelman College, a second-tier SLAC in the same city that I had a full scholarship to. I was much in the same position as you, actually, except that I loved Spelman just as much as I loved Emory when I was choosing.)</p>
<p>If I had to do it all over again I’d make the same choice - choosing a second-tier SLAC at greatly reduced cost instead of a top university with great debt. I graduated from undergrad with only $9K in debt, which will take me very little time to pay off.</p>
<p>But it’s a personal decision. Some people don’t mind having the extra debt to pay off for the pride of saying they went to this place or that. In my case it also didn’t matter because I was going to graduate school anyway, and I ended up at Columbia (which was my dream school in high school - but I knew I wasn’t going to afford that. I applied to Emory in the hopes of their Callaway or Woodruff Scholarships). You also have access to better resources at top schools. The undergrads here do some things I couldn’t even dream of in Spelman, and they have exposure to more - more companies, more classes, more top-notch professors. It’s a very personal decision.</p>
<p>Hmmm…i may be wrong…Hopefully someone can weigh in on this. I know that USC meets need, but now I’m not sure if they do it without any loans.</p>
<p>However, if you think your dad will be earning more money after he changes jobs, that will affect your EFC (if the income increase will be significant.). What do you think the difference will be in his income.</p>
<p>You also need to ask your dad if the problem is that he won’t be able to afford a higher EFC? If so, that is probably why he wants you to go to LMU.</p>
<p>I wanted to clarify USC’s guarantee to meet need a bit:</p>
<p>-USC will meet 100% of **USC-determined **need. They will determine need using both the FAFSA and the CSS/Profile, so the amount you are expected to pay may differ from your FAFSA EFC.</p>
<p>-USC uses Stafford loans and/or federal work study as part of their need-based packages. They do not meet need without loans. Freshman year, students should expect $3,500 in subs Stafford, $2,000 in unsubs, and work/study of about $2,000.</p>
<p>Oh - one other note - this time on the Cal Grant. It is unlikely that it would be “added” to the (wonderful) package you have been offered. It will most likely replace part of your need-based grant.</p>