@ucbalumnus I definitely have to talk it over with my parents. I hope they’d be willing to contribute. I’m planning on scheduling a meeting with the financial aid office when I visit UT so they (and I) can weigh their options. My dad will be going with me, and he tends to be more lenient.
I think they tend to be pretty tight with money and their vacations are their splurges, as they’re travel buffs. They plan to spend their retirement travelling the world. The rest goes into savings. They don’t like to spend money on me unnecessarily, which is also understandable (I pay for my phone, other electronics, excursions w/friends, clothing, travel on BART, instruments, etc. with money from my job/savings). I’m not entirely sure of their spending habits, though. I only know their combined income because of FAFSA.
@metalmonk28 I’m really skeptical about the possibility of getting into the major. The advisors scared me to death when I visited. I’d rather not take the risk, if possible. It is very good financially, though, and the chemical engineers I’ve talked to seemed to agree that it’s a great ChemE school!