I’ve applied and have been admitted to a college with a full ride, everything down to the books paid for but it’s not the college my heart is at. I’d live at home and I feel like that would make me miss out on important experiences. I have also been accepted into my first choice but they offered less money. I’m afraid of debt even though I know I could pay it off. I don’t know if I should be safe and choose the free education or choose the experience.
It’s not a necessarily an either or decision. Can you choose to dorm at the school with the full ride?
What’s the difference in cost? And would your parents be willing to contribute something for a school you preferred with you not living at home?
You can borrow up to $27,000 total for four years without having to have your parents co-sign anything. (That would result in 10 years of monthly payments of a little under $300.) Maybe you can make a deal with your parents where you can borrow an amount less than that, and they contribute a few thousand a year. They might save money with you not living at home anyway.
If you would have to borrow more than that, and/or you would need an amount from your parents they would have a lot of trouble paying, then it looks like the cheaper option would be the better one.
In addition to the “experience”, what are the benefits of going to your top choice? Programs? Job Placement? etc.
Way too vague to get any really helpful responses…things like…What are the two schools in question? How much debt would you need to take out for your dream college? Could you dorm at the full ride school? Can your parents help you financially? Will both colleges prepare yo equally for your next step in life? Do you have other choices or just these two colleges? Do you plan on going to grad school afterwards?
Can u show ur top Choice school the free-ride offer to see whether they would up the ante? So to speak, to increase their merit aid amount.
Yes, even if you don’t want to share the exact schools (which I’d recommend doing), you should at least share their costs and how much debt you’d need to take on.
And if you got a completely full ride, why couldn’t you live in the residence halls?
Debt is a big problem with college students, and believe me it can add up fast. Large amounts of debt will sabotage your ability to be independent for years! I see students all the time with a degree at prestigious colleges wishing they took a scholarship because they have 150k in student loans. No degree is worth that much debt unless it says M.D. next to it. Sometimes prudence is the right choice. In the end, it won’t matter much. I went to a small state university for my undergraduate and master’s degree. I’m successful in my career and I have average to low student loans (had to pay for all of it). Hope that helps.
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You haven’t given us much additional info but I thought I would add this for your thinking:
Take $ out of the equation for a second. Compare the schools simply on the merits of the actual school relative to your criteria. In other words, “if money was no object, I would go here because x,y,z”. Be mature about it. Have real reasons. It’s OK for one reason to be "I like the vibe or how it feels on campus, etc.). But have most of your reasons be based on meaningful criteria (location, size, LAC like vs. large impersonal, resources, strength of your major, on campus recruiting, career placement, etc.)
At the end of the comparison, which school really sticks out. If it’s not the free ride, can you afford it. It’s not simply one is way less than the other, but rather about value. If you can afford it (without a lot of debt), it’s not a big deal to pay for it. If it would be very difficult to pay for, then take it off the list. That’s reality. Some can and are willing to pay full price for excellent schools. Others can’t or won’t. If you can’t you can’t. That’s pretty simple. If you can, decide what’s most important to you. have a plan. When will you pay off the loans? What impact will it have on your future? Will you have better opportunities for higher paying jobs or in a different part of the country that make debt worthwhile? Only you can answer these questions.
Living at home definitely changes the college experience. This seems very early in the admissions cycle to face a final choice. Do you have more applications pending? If not, why not?