<p>In my case, no. Their only donations were their taxes for me to file the FAFSA.</p>
<p>Northstarmom,
Great post. My son could have attended many 2nd tiers full scholarship as well, but he himself wanted to push the envelope and we vowed during the process we’d help him make it happen wherever he was accepted. 7 accepted schools later, all private, some Ivy, he had to choose the school that felt like it was the right fit for him. Fortunately for us, it was also the one with the best package, though offered zero for merit. </p>
<p>We are helping our son as much as we can, though by junior year he will have 20k in Stafford Loans, which some may find ridiculous, hopefully it won’t be 40K at graduation!! His school’s tuition/room/board is roughly 53K, plus travel, etc. Our FASFA EFC is in our opinion way too high, as we have a tough time just making ends meet, but we do feel it is worth it to help him get his education in a place where he will thrive.</p>
<p>Every family has to make their own decisions. Interestingly, I think that sometimes kids that do have to pay for some or all of their college costs appreciate it alot more. It’s quite shocking that some kids think it is just a big party for four years, on mom and dad. Learning responsibility early on builds character, just like getting part time jobs, etc. Every bit helps. I’m very proud of my son for his maturity. We just paid the fall tuition bill a week ago, and all sat down together deciding how to pool our resources to make it work. </p>
<p>As for my husband and myself, we both went to state schools, his parents paid for him, and he only had 3K in loans. I paid my own way, and had a part-time job, and ended up with 10k in loans. Kids nowadays have to deal with the sky-rocketing prices…there is no question it’s much harder for them.</p>
<p>[ps: There definitely are appreciative kids out there, so no offense meant about kids whose parents pay for their colleges, it’s just that so many kids in our suburban region are so incredibly ‘me’ centered and spoiled. I don’t mean to paint anyone with a broad brush, though…well, maybe the ones who get fancy cars for graduation…jk ;]</p>
<p>I have absolutely no support from my parents in any aspect of life (except for when I visit them). I pay for my college, living, car insurance, health insurance, cell phone, bills, ect.</p>
<p>I think I’d personally be less responsible and mature as a person if my parents were the ones that paid my bills.</p>
<p>^^thanks vehicle
that’s what i think</p>
<p>Yeah, my parents pay for my tuition and part of my living expenses. We get nothing in terms of aid from the University or the State. In turn, I try to reduce what they pay by graduating early, living very frugally, and applying for outside scholarships.</p>
<p>My parents are paying for my college. My college requires parents or whoever else in the family to pay the EFC and then the rest will be provided by the college. It’s pretty nice</p>
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<p>Well, yes, financial institutions certainly do offer a variety of savings plans to parents - at a profit to themselves! We participated, being earnest responsible parents and saved through these vehicles and then discovered that this sort of parental behavior is very much penalized by the system.</p>
<p>I looked at 529 plans when our kids were young and the lack of control and disclosure were a big problem for me. Events like market crashes can destroy 529s not giving the ability to react to adverse market conditions.</p>
<p>Cost is the real issue.</p>
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<p>I think it’s asinine for people to spend $50K+ on a Mercedes, so I buy cheaper cars. I think it’s crazy to buy a TV so big that you don’t need to wear your glasses to see it. So I spend my money on educating my kids…haven’t been sorry yet for the choices we’ve made.</p>
<p>Agree with you, BCEagle about 529 plans. The lack of control (and back when the accounts first came out) the lack of investment choices made us shy away from them.</p>
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<p>This may be specific to a smaller group of people, but my family does not spend big money on anything. There are no sports cars, big screen TVs, gaming computers, stainless steel appliances, or vacation houses. My family doesn’t take any vacations. So really, it’s a bit asinine to spend such a fortune on anything. </p>
<p>However, I do agree with you that education is an important investment. I plan to donate to my university once I start making money, and I would tell any student to go for the best education he or she can get for the money. My parents wanted me to go to community college for free, but I fought them fiercely about it. I think I’ll be much happier at my top 10 university, even if I do have to pay to go there. The discount deal isn’t always the best one, but you don’t always get what you pay for either.</p>
<p>My parents aren’t contributing any finances towards the cost of my higher education. Then again, I’ve never really expected or wanted them to. Luckily, I should qualify for some good need-based aid, and outside scholarships I’ve accumulated will cove a good portion (if not all) of the rest.</p>
<p>My parents agreed to pay their EFC, but nothing more. </p>
<p>EFC this year is 10, next year it will be significantly higher and they might back out of their deal and make me pay the whole thing. Oh well.</p>
<p>I don’t think teens straight out of high school should have the responsibility of handling student loans, jobs, etc. I think as far as undergrad goes, parents should cover most of the costs. Of course, students should prefer those colleges that offered them money, but that usually doesn’t cover EVERYTHING.</p>
<p>Unfortunately, not all parents are very knowledgeable, or in some cases, sensible. One child could have well-off parents that attended high-standard universities and know about the transition from secondary education to higher education, while another child could have somewhat financially stable parents that are immigrants who never even went to a college/school in their lives and are generally ignorant of the college admission processes. Those examples might be a bit extreme, but they should be enough to illustrate that a gifted student could be doomed from the beginning. Knowledge does not necessarily equate to parental willingness to use or manage money for school tuition, but it does contribute as an important factor.</p>
<p>My father agreed to pay the first four years of tuition that I was billed, meaning either undergrad or (if I found a way not to get billed for undergrad) medical school. Poor bugger didn’t expect me to get a full ride in undergrad and then have to pay the big bucks for med school. Parents, beware the deals you make with your children, they never go well for you :D.</p>
<p>Just something to consider - For every student who gets need-based grants, subsidised loans or merit aid from their college, <em>somebodys</em> parents are paying for you to go to college even if it’s not your parents. Full pay families are paying their kid’s costs and part of yours as well. Federal or state aid is thanks to taxpayers (including most of your parents and your classmate’s parents). Money from a school’s large endowment came in part from money donated by parents as well as alumni (who are frequently parents themselves).</p>
<p>To R124687 </p>
<p>You may not be COLLEGE educated; but you appear to be more learned than most college educated folks that I work with!</p>
<p>
WOW. Deferring the blame, much (not saying the blame should be wholly on you or your son, but blaming the tier of school…wow!)? As someone who chose to attend a tier 3 state school, primarily for merit aid, and has “blossomed” as a researcher and person while here… just wow.</p>
<p>IIRC, your S2 attends a school known for partying as well, so… WOW.</p>
<p>My agreement with my children is that because of our financial situation, I will work with them to find them a great match with great financial aid. I will also help provide them with off-to-college stuff, and pay for one trip home per year. In exchange, they are tasked with actively working to meet their college admission goals, doing well enough in school to maintain their financial aid, and supporting themselves during the summer. </p>
<p>In my son’s case, we worked as a team and the result was a full ride at his dream school. I don’t pay anything to the school, but I do buy him things sometimes, as I’m able to afford them. (Snacks, clothes he needs, new shoes, etc.) I <em>hope</em> that my daughter is able to have the same thing. If she ends up with a subsidized loan as part of her package, I will find the money to replace that part, so that she does not have loans. However, that’s the most loans she can have. The one control I do exert over my children’s educational choice is that aid packages with loans are not okay. </p>
<p>My children have known for years that they would be EFC=0, and that we would have to work together to find schools that met 100% of need. I guess that’s different from parents who are unwilling/unable to pay a bigger EFC, but that does make me a parent who is not paying for college.</p>