<p>my parents have a low income (48k), but are able to contribute about 5k a year for my top school, whitman college. However i know that because of this, they will be giving up a lot for me, like my mom attending her niece's wedding in China next fall, or my dad visiting his home country. I want to major in economics and minor in chinese, and maybe become an actuary. No graduate school there. </p>
<p>My mom wants me to go, but I'm sure the reason is because she knows that I really want to.</p>
<p>If I went to my state school, I'd be in half the debt I would be at Whitman, and my parents wouldn't have to contribute anything.</p>
<p>If your parents are willing to give you this gift, let them do it. It’s their decision where they want to spend their funds. Honor that gift by doing well and getting the most out of your college experience. Don’t feel guilty; get busy. </p>
<p>22K in Stafford loans is not that bad (if that’s your total debt for 4 years), especially of you become employed as an actuary and have no plans for graduate school. Whitman must have given you a nice financial aid package.</p>
<p>If you want to be an actuary, I don’t understand why you wouldn’t go to your state college. You would be employed based on how many exams you pass, not by which school you went to. Of course, you could always change your mind to become an actuary. Not sure how Whitman is going to give you an edge over your state school. If my parents were making 48K, I would think hard about having them pay extra 5K for Whitman (nothing against the school). At a small LAC, you would also find more wealthier students, and that could add extra expense and pressure. It is May 1…</p>
<p>I agree with Oldfort. You don’t need to go to a private to become an actuary. Since the issue won’t be huge loans, but will be a contribution burden to modest income parents, I wouldn’t go to Whitman. </p>
<p>And it sounds like you’d have half the debt at the public and your parents won’t have any burden at all. </p>
<p>The problem isn’t really the loans, the problem is the impact to modest income parents. </p>
<p>BTW…when you wrote “top school”, the name Whitman would never have come to mind. I It’s a very good school, not dissing it, but I doubt many have even heard of it. </p>
<p>*I am planning on attending Oregon State University and here is the breakdown of the costs:
Tuition/fees $8,091.00
Books/Supplies $1,908.00
Room and Board $10,074.00
Misc/Personal $2,616.00
Direct Loan fees $57.00
Total: $22,746.00</p>
<p>I am offered:
Pell 4800
OR opportunity grant 1950
Academic Achievement Scholarship 3000
Sub and unsub loans 5500
Parent Plus Loans 7496
Outside scholarships 5000</p>
<p>So I have 14,750 in grants and scholarships. That leaves me with 7,996 to cover. But I know that my personal fees will not even come close to the 2616, probably $500. And books will probably cost 1,000 if I buy used ones. Room and board will probably be about 9000 if I don’t choose the premium for my meal plan (I’m pretty small, I don’t eat that much). </p>
<p>So I have to take out about 4,000 in loans. Do I go ahead and accept all of the sub and unsub loans? I don’t want my parents taking out loans for me. </p>
<p>Also, my parents think I’m stupid that I am not choosing to live in an apartment with my brother to save money, because I wouldn’t have to take out loans my first year if I did that. But I want that dorm experience. Is this reasonable?*</p>
<p>I think OSU sounds fine. You can do the dorm experience for the first year, and then live with your brother after that if you wish.</p>
<p>Whitman is a very small school, I think around 1500 students, which would also mean breadth of course offering would be narrower than a larger Uni. I think many people think all privates are better, and that’s not always the case. In this case, I think OSU would be a better choice, even without taking costs into consideration.</p>
<p>I don’t think privates are always better than publics, but I also don’t automatically think that small schools are not as good as larger ones. The “breadth of offerings” is a hypothetical, not an actual, advantage that only is meaningful if a particular student wants to study something unusual or specific.</p>
<p>I can see why someone would prefer a small LAC to a big state U. If this student loves Whitman and her parents are willing to make a sacrifice to send her there, I don’t think the amount of debt she describes (if it’s accurate) will be unreasonable for the sake of “fit” and happiness. She can always transfer later if the finances are too hard. Most students don’t “need” to go anywhere. If we applied that logic, every kid should go to a CC and transfer to a 4-year state school and live at home. If this student wants something else and it’s achievable without too much debt, more power to her.</p>
<p>Also, Whitman is a respectable nationally ranked LAC. It’s not a “name brand” school in USNWR terms, but it is a very good school.</p>
<p>I agree with NJSue on this one. Your parents are temporarily giving up some luxuries to give you a luxury. They are offering this freely because they want to do so. Personally, I would do the same for my children and I think that the wedding and visits are small sacrifices for college choice.</p>
<p>Where I start getting concerned and where I believe kids are truly selfish is when they expect parents with little or no savings, clear financial problems to sign for loans for them to go to a school that is clearly way out of the price range. This is not such a situation. This is the sort of choice a lot of parents want to give their kids.</p>
<p>I went to a small LAC with full FA. Going to a small LAC is a luxury for many people, very much like a prep school. I personally think OP would have more options at a large state U.</p>
<p>Personally, if it would weigh on you to know your parents are giving up things they really would like to do (go to wedding and see home country) and you could willingly put their interests in having these luxuries and graduating without anyone owing ANY money, it would be good to carefully reflect on your state U & all the advantages it offers you. It is your choice, according to you & your folks.</p>
<p>Another option is to tell your folks that the debts incurred for college are YOUR debt and not theirs and YOU will pay it back fully so they should not forgo what they want on your account.</p>
<p>I agree that Whitman is a strong school, albeit in Walla Walla, which probably impacts it’s popularity.
It does also look like they gave you a generous financial aid package.
But am I remembering correctly? Did you also apply to Reed, but they used a higher EFC?
From what I understand, your dad works for the govt and your family owns several houses, at least one is paid off? I would be concerned that at some point Whitman would assume equity could be tapped for tuition.</p>
<p>What is the appeal for you of Whitman? If you want to be an actuary, Oregon State is probably the better choice. It has courses that cover all topics on the first two exams and a number of hours of topics on the 3rd and 4th exams. I’m not sure what Whitman has by way of actuarial science, but I doubt it’s as much as Oregon State. Of course, you don’t need to major in actuarial science (or even have courses that cover exam topics) to become an actuary, but having those courses will help you with exam preparation (and it’s all about passing the exams). Unless there’s some other compelling reason to choose Whitman, I’d probably go with less debt and the better school for actuarial science.</p>
<p>I’m from Oregon… there is no comparison between Whitman and OSU. The schools are entirely different. If college is just career training,then it may not matter if you’re sure now about future careers, but Whitman is an amazing experience - one of the CTCL - etc. with wonderful small classes. OSU is a fine state school, but there are many legitimate reasons to choose Whitman despite a somewhat higher price. If you can go there for just 5000 more a year - and you want to go there - and your parents are OK with paying that, then I say Go to Whitman. </p>
<p>Also - have you looked into the 4 year graduation rates between the two? I’m pretty sure OSU’s is much lower. If you end up unhappy at OSU you could easily waste the difference in money trying to transfer later.</p>
<p>I just checked - 6 year grad rate for OSU - based on common data set - is about 60%. That’s not impressive. I realize there are many reasons people don’t finish. Whitman’s is 85%.</p>