<p>hi. im a NJ high school jr. that is beginning to look at colleges..my parents are letting me visit out of state colleges...ex: Lafayette, Colgate, Richmond, etc..however, they also want me to keep my eyes open at the College of NJ b/c it is financially cheaper...i loved lafayette/many LACs out of state b/c students did not go home on weekends and i got a "college feel" out of them. </p>
<p>my question is..is going to a nice LAC worth over going to a good state school? will the extra 15K a year benefit me in the long run?</p>
<p>I'm in no position to advise, but we decided "NO" it is not worth an extra $60K. For us or our son, that would have been more like an extra $70K in loans. I don't know if it was the right decision, but we all feel better not having that huge debt hanging over our heads.</p>
<p>OTOH, you might get some nice grants or scholarships from the LAC that would bring it more in line with the state school, so it would be worth applying to see what you get.</p>