<p>I am a home-school graduate looking to go through college with little to no debt. I have been accepted to and am considering Gordon College, Northwestern College in Iowa, and Grove City College. I am uncertain as to what I will end up majoring in. I have a few questions should anyone wish to spare some words of wisdom. I received a really good scholarship with acceptance into the honors program at Gordon. It is the closest Christian college to where I live and it has a lot of opportunities. I haven't gotten my whole financial package yet; but if I go off of what I was offered last year (I am in the middle of a gap year), I may have to graduate with $30,000+ in loans. Northwestern College gave me an excellent financial aid award; and they seem to also have some good programs, though I don't think they have as many opportunities as Gordon. I'm still waiting for my financial aid package from Grove City, and although they seem to have a beautiful campus, they don't seem to have as extensive programs or options as the other schools. I could also attend UMass Dartmouth and commute (or attend UMass Amherst assuming I get accepted). Now my question is this: would it be better to (A) go to UMass Dartmouth/Amherst for the first year or two to save a lot of money and then go to a college like Gordon, (B) go to Northwestern or Grove City and not save as much (but be receiving a Christian education) and then attend Gordon the last two years and accumulate some debt, (C) attend Northwestern or Grove City all four years and graduate with very little to no debt, or (D) attend Gordon because it's such a good school and take out loans while trying to find ways to save and combat debt? </p>
<p>I can only speak about Grove City, I have a niece and a nephew who attended and graduated from Grove City. They LOVED their time there, got really involved, and it was refreshing for them to study at a christian institution after attending public schools. Grove City does not accept any federal money, so they can not offer you any financial aid that comes from the federal government. I don’t know what kind of merit aid they might offer, but I do know they are able to keep their tuition costs down since they don’t have all the federal red tape to deal with. I would strongly encourage you to consider Grove City as one of your top choices, depending on how the $$ situation shakes out. I would have wanted my D to attend there also, but she would not consider that area of the country (too cold for her!)</p>
<p>I am a homeschool mom, and I am confident that most homeschoolers can succeed just about anywhere, assuming you have conquered time management skills. Lessening the college debt load for our children is a high priority for our family. Our D will graduate with no more than $20,000 in debt from a small, private LAC. I would also encourage you to run the net price calculator on each college’s website so you can understand the actual cost of attendance at each school. </p>
<p>What are your stats? Could you be eligible for merit aid? What will you study?</p>
<p>Thanks for replying! 
I received a 32 on my ACT. Because of that, I received the highest merit scholarships with honors opportunities at both Gordon College and Northwestern College. With the total financial aid awards minus loans that I have been offered by Northwestern College, I would be able to attend there with no debt or an extremely small amount of debt. I also received my Gordon financial aid package, and I would probably still have to take out some loans. My parents are willing to increase the amount they are willing to pay a little bit, which would help; but I would accumulate between $25,000 and $30,000 in debt by the time I graduate unless I work a lot and/or find other funding options (I’m sure I could find at least some). I am still waiting for Grove City’s financial aid, but I am going down to visit this weekend. Hopefully that will give me a better idea of the school. </p>
<p>I am still very unsure as to what I will be studying. I have considered both music and exercise science/kinesiology; and while I will begin as an exercise science major (or undeclared if at Gordon), I am not sure where I will end up. I may switch into something like missions/intercultural studies, music, or non-profit work. One reason why I am so set on not having much debt is that I may want to move out of the country after college, and at this time I feel called to do non-profit work. That would make it harder to pay off debts. However, I know that Gordon College has a lot of volunteer/community service options, and they are also very globally minded. I know that Northwestern does have study abroad and volunteer work, but I am not sure how much they focus on that. And I really don’t know how much Grove City focuses on volunteer work or whether they are globally minded or not.</p>
<p>The things I have been reading on College Confidential make it clear that a lot of people think Grove City is a great college. But because I may consider any of a wide variety of majors (I am interested in SO many things!), I am doubtful about attending GCC. The other colleges have more study options as well as honors programs; but if GCC is really as good as people say, then it’s worth considering. Hopefully this visit will help!</p>
<p>With a 32 ACT, you are eligible for some full tuition or full ride scholarships are more colleges. There is a thread on cc somewhere (I am not techy and not sure where it is or how to post a link, sorry) but it lists, state by state, where you can attend with automatic scholarships for certain test scores/GPA. Check out Univ of Alabama for great scholarships for out of state students with 32 ACT. And Troy University would give you a full ride (tuition and room and board) for your ACT score.</p>
<p>I do realize that I could have conducted a better college search, but now that it’s already April I do not think it would be good for me to begin applying to more schools. I believe most of them will have given their large scholarships out already as it is. As it is, I have to make my decision this week because I will have to attend Northwestern College’s admitted student day in order to receive a certain scholarship should I decide to attend there. </p>
<p>I did visit Grove City College this week, but I do not think I will be attending there. It seems like a great school with a beautiful campus, great facilities, good food, nice people, rigorous academics (as everyone says!)…however, I just didn’t seem to have a connection for some odd reason. I will still consider GCC as I make my decision, but I think I would have felt more like I was meant to go there should that be the place God wants me to attend.</p>
<p>Congratulations on excellent choices!
25-30,000 in debt is doable - that’s why the federal loans are limited to 27,500 for all 4 years. Make sure your parents approve of Gordon, of course, and will indeed increase their financial contribution to make it possible.
IF they say yes: Since Gordon sounds like your clear first choice and they made it affordable, go there. I honestly believe that it’ll be better for you than attending UDartmouth or UMass-Amherst.
If they won’t: did you get into UMass-Amherst’s Honors College? This would make a big difference. There’s a Christian presence at both UMass-A and UMass-D, being in the Honors College would help you get the type of education you seek at Gordon (academically speaking - you’d have to find Bible Study groups, a church, etc, but that can be done and IS done by many students). If not in Honors, make sure to request the Substance-free dorm. Trust me on this. :)</p>
<p>Thanks! I did get accepted into UMass Amherst’s Honors College, which was great; however, I will not be attending. </p>
<p>So after much thought, I decided that I would take the step of faith and go to Gordon. I am still going to try to graduate with little to no debt, but I think having to actually work hard to do so will be a good learning experience for me and will help me to appreciate the education a bit more. My parents have also increased their financial contribution somewhat for the first year, and they definitely approve of Gordon. :-)</p>
<p>Thank you both for the advice! I am excited for the fall and all the new experiences that await me!</p>