My parents just recently moved to Ohio. I’m choosing between Ohio State and Ohio University. Ohio State is my dream school and I’ve wanted to go there for years. They have better professors as well as more opportunities to strive and find a job. However, I would be paying about 30k out of pocket this year. Next year won’t be so bad since i’ll be an in state student. On the other hand, I’m paying about 14k for Ohio University. Financially, I think i’ll be fine after college since I’m studying to be an engineer. However, my family just is not in a position to be spending so much money. We’re still making payments on the house back home until it sells as well as up here. My parents want my to go to Ohio State but I just don’t want to burden them
It is Aug 4! You were supposed to commit to a college on May 1…
How is that you think you can still choose between 2 colleges 3 months later??
I committed to OSU. But OU is still offering me admission
You could take a gap year. Otherwise I don’t know how we can make the decision for you. If you don’t have the money it seems like the decision is already made for you.
I’m a Ohio Universoty alumnus…and you couldn’t have paid me to go to OSU. It was just too darn big.
The professors at OU that I had were fabulous. How do you know that the profs at OSU are so much better?
I recently visited OU for the first time in many years. The campus has really grown. Lots of new buildings, and renovations. The facilities look wonderful.
If the OU engineering program is ABET accredited, you will get the same training as the ABET accredited program at OSU.
But really, only you and your parents can decide if it’s worth an extra $16,000 a year to OSU.
The town’s are very different. Columbus is a small city. Athens is a small town. Columbus is a city with lots of other things going on. Athens really is still a college town.
You can have opportunities and strive at any college.
Take a gap year.
You may need to ANYWAY…some schools will not change your “resident” status after you’ve enrolled.
You don’t want to start at OSU and then find out that you won’t get instate rates next year, either.
edit…
http://registrar.osu.edu/Residency/dependent_students.asp#1
Dependent on Parent or Legal Guardian:
- A student who has been claimed by a parent or legal guardian on his or her Federal Income Tax Return for the most recent tax year; AND
- A student whose parent or legal guardian has accepted full time/self-sustaining employment prior to the start of the term in which applying; AND
- A student who their parent or legal guardian has not lived in Ohio for the previous twelve consecutive months and has all of their state specific documents from Ohio, including but not limited to; driver’s license or state ID, voter registration, vehicle registration.
^^^
I’m not sure if I’m understanding the above. Is it saying that if your parent moved here for a job prior to the first day of class, then a dependent can get instate rates?? ( I’m not good at reading these things, so please others chime in).
Yes I would double check and maybe take a gap year and work. Give your parents time to sell their house before paying tuition, you would have lived in OH at least a year by then.
@mom2collegekids i think your interpretation is correct for category C-3 but i have a few observations: the parent of the dependent has the burden of providing documentation of accepting full time employment (not part-time jobs) prior to start of the term and also the parent must prove that domicile was established (for a period of 12 months) for reasons other than gaining the benefit of favorable tuition. This is where the devil is in the details. What constitutes full-time employment? What are sufficient reasons for establishing domicile other than to benefit from in-state tuition?? Proving intent is subjective and leaves discretion to the university as to whether the reasons and documentations are sufficient. Also the parent must provide specific documents from Ohio—including but not limited to—the use of that phrase gives broad discretion to the university again as to what constitutes sufficient proof. Is vehicle registration, driver’s license, voter registration enough of proof? What other kinds of documentation could the university require? And the Online Residency Form must be completed each term until the full 12 month period of residency is covered. I haven’t seen that Form. What additional info and documentation, if any, is required? In-state residency cannot be approved until after the Online Residency Form submissions have covered the full 12 months. It would be helpful to hear from someone who has been successful at establishing in-state residency, to shed light on this issue.
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What constitutes full-time employment?
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Unless the parent has some irregular or part-time job, any traditional full time job would be “full time”. If the parent works a 40 hour week, or is employed in a job that is considered “full time”, then I doubt the school would argue with that.
@ewilkes97 Do you have a parent that is working full time in Ohio now? Was this a job transfer (not that that seems to be a req’t, but it would strengthen the argument that the family didn’t just move to OH for instate tuition).
If the previous house was sold, maybe that would help? Making the move more permanent?
Also the parents would have moved into Ohio during the year so they would file their first OH state return in January, would need to change over registration on vehicle and get OH drivers license within a few months of moving and might be able to register to vote this year.
So investigate if deferring for a semester or year might be beneficial, especially since you said your parents are financially strapped right now. You could work and save up some money too.
An extra $16K is a lot of money. I’d rethink IMHO
Don’t let your dreams be dreams!!
So…let them be nightmares of debt?!
The key thing is determining how you can get in-state tuition at OSU.