I’ve recently narrowed my college choices down to these three schools. If money weren’t an issue, UNC would be the obvious choice for me. However, my parents are willing to pay up to 30k a year for my schooling, so that’s not the case. i feel like I would be happy at each of the schools. At Fsu, I would have a full ride with a small stipend. At Uga, my parents would cover tuition and board, and I would work to pay for everything else. At UNC, I would have to consign with my parents for about 10k worth of loans annually. Is it worth taking on debt to go to UNC? And also, how much does being a part of the Honors college at Fsu and Uga help once I graduate?
Anyone?
10k a year in loans isn’t bad at all, I’d go UNC. Being part of the honors college at either school won’t do anything for you once you graduate, your resume will say you graduated from either “Florida State University” or “University of Georgia”, not “The Honors College at…” or anything weird like that. Honors programs are vastly overrated in my opinion.
10k is pretty substantial, and I think you want to avoid cosigning.
UGA Honors is one of the top programs in the country - making it at least as valuable for resources, opportunities, and class choices, as UNC-CH, if not better. Access to meaningful research for undergrads is exemplary and it’s extremely prestigious (and hard to get into). In short, congratulations!
Sorry I don’t have any experience with these schools. Hopefully, some more informative replies will follow. Probably a lot depends on your major and whether you have plans for grad school, or med school, etc. For some careers, the quality of the grad school is more important. For others, like engineering, one may not be planning on grad school. Maybe you could use “Rate My Professor” for courses in your major at all three schools to get an idea of how much the teaching quality differs. If you will be going into a career that pays well, then a $40,000 loan might be manageable.
We had the choice of sending our son to colleges that were free or very low cost, but decided to send him to one that costs about $30,000 a year instead because we felt that it would be a more interesting experience, would give him a head start in his career, and would be something he would feel proud of for the rest of his life.
Are there other loans involved annually? The OOS cost of attendance for UNC-CH is ~$50K and with your parents contribution of $30K, you have a gap of about $20K per year. Where is the other $10K coming from? Are you instate for UGA (looks like you are OOS)? Any plans to attend graduate school in the near future? What will be your major?
If you attend UNC-CH it will cost you $120K (parents contribution) +$40K (co-sign loans) =$160K+(interest) total for 4-years. If you attend FSU Honors, it will cost your parents $0 (plus you receive a small stipend)! There is insufficient information provided to estimate the cost impact of UGA. From a financial standpoint, FSU Honors is the best option…
I wouldn’t go full pay at UNC if I had access to UGA Honors and FSU Honors for much less.
Honestly, FSU seems like an incredible deal - you get a full ride, a stipend, and membership in the honors program. That kind of money can help you do things like take an unpaid internship or study abroad. And perhaps your parents can put that $30K aside for you for graduate school or something else down the line. So personally I would take that.