First Time Post - Several Questions - Take Your Pick!

[ucbalumnus]

@JMS111

Our family has some more info gathering, soul searching, and dialoguing to do from what these calculators tell us. I used net price calculators for an Ivy, a small LAC, an OOS flagship, and our in-state flagship, and the in-state is about half of the others in terms of what they expect from us (the Ivy and OOS flagship expect about the same, the small LAC somewhat less but still substantially more than in-state would cost). Our D really wants to leave the nest and go OOS, which I know is a dilemma shared by many, many parents and families in terms of costs.

Note that some of the Ivy League schools and highly selective LACs have exceptionally good need-based financial aid, so you may want to run net price calculators on a selection of somewhat less selective private schools to avoid the possibility of a nasty financial aid surprise at other schools if you assume that the financial aid from an Ivy League school or highly selective LAC is representative of what private schools offer.

Also, if the out-of-state flagship you tried is in VA, NC, or possibly MI, its financial aid is probably significantly better than that of other out-of-state flagships. However, some out-of-state flagships may have significantly lower list prices than others, or private schools.