LACs are a great idea! But paying off loans easily in 3-4 years is not going to happen. Four years of college and four years of med school – that’s a lot of loans. Typically, doctors start out with over $200,000 in loans, and residents don’t make that much. It can take ten years or more to pay that off. And then what? You’re stuck in a career you were never all that excited about to begin with? Again, I think you need to look to people besides your parents for academic and career advice.
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Jobs are a great activity, one that many colleges value in applicants.
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Studying more doesn’t mean you might as well be a doctor. How about an accountant or engineer or marketing or finance or researcher.
Many jobs study more.
You are 17 - and you are not with realistic thoughts.
You should figure out your budget - that is first and foremost.
Your parents make $40K - so it’s likely $0 to $10K - but maybe it’s more. Find out what they can pay.
Run a net price calculator - a college like Franklin & Marshall - find out what it will cost.
It’s pointless to make a list without a budget.
Again, there are many schools that will give you merit aid.
But first we have to understand - not earnings - but what colleges say you will have to pay to go.
Time will run short and if you just apply to schools without understanding cost up front, you run the risk of not being able to attend school next Fall. And perhaps a gap year would be good for you anyway - if you are struggling mentally.
Forget doctor or any career. At this point it’s not relevant. What’s relevant is finding an affordable school for you to attend.
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The issue I think is also that my parents can afford to pay for all four years of undergrad but it’s a matter of whether or not they want to, which they say depends on how well o do at school. This makes me even more confused, and they won’t give me exact numbers.
If they want you to pay for your education, you get a say in this.
Please remember, student loans are real. The money has to be paid somehow, by someone, and it doesn’t just disappear. There was another thread on CC recently about a 62 year old man who just paid off his college debt. I personally know people who didn’t pay off loans until well into their 30’s.
This is YOUR life and your parents think they know what’s best, as all parents do. However, you will soon be a legal adult. You should never incur debt to satisfy anyone else’s vanity.
It’s you who will have to find a way to pay back the money. You won’t live with your parents forever. You’ll have bills and rent to pay, and you want as little student debt as possible, because it seems clear there is no magic money tree to pay for college.
By all means, throw in your apps to Ivy League colleges, but make the rest of your list 100% affordable. It might be hard to imagine right now, as a 17 year old, but in just a few years, this will all be more relevant.
@sc06 , your parents are wrong that volunteering is better than a paid job. That is just totally wrong.
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If your family income is $40,000, you parents cannot afford four years of college. You really need to sit down and get honest answers. You will need this information to apply for financial aid.
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It’s listed as 40k but they can pay for it; I’m not sure exactly how.
I think your dad is uninformed.
Doctors make little at the beginning and many end up paying off loans, thousands of dollars a month, for many many years. There’s a high level of stress and more.
For a physician, I found this on line:
Average student debt: $332,299
You think someone is paying that off in a few years? They’re likely not making close to that.
Anyway, wanting to be a doctor doesn’t make you a doctor. You’d need top grades, top grades in classes like chemistry and a really high MCAT. It doesn’t seem likely based on what you’ve written. There are many medical fields that aren’t doctors - but you’re not even in college, you can’t worry about this now.
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My parents actually do want me to live with them my entire life, which I don’t mind, but I’m not sure about them paying for college.
Will/can your parents pay for room and board at a SUNY?
I am confused by their reported income of $40,000 yet they are able to pay for four years of college. What, exactly, can they pay?
Will you qualify for excelsior? This is free tuition if you meet the income requirements, which are higher than $40,000.
You do not have to answer, but you do need to sit down and discuss costs with your parents.
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I’m really hoping you are here for legitimate reasons.
So what is going on here? Are you guessing? Is this post serious? Because most kids are not happy to say they want to live with their parents for the rest of their lives. You’re saying a lot of stuff that doesn’t really make sense.
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Unless they have $300,000 under a mattress…
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No i’m serious. I do not wish to share all the little details for privacy reasons, but those are the circumstances given to me by my father.
They can buy they say it depends how well I’ll be able to do in school
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I will check out Excelsior, thank you.
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We respect your privacy, but money in the bank will be used to determine financial aid eligibility. It’s pretty hard to hide money.
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I’m not sure how much that will affect my chances for financial aid, I will ask my parents, thank you.
IOW, it’s not just yearly income that determines if you receive financial aid.
Sounds as if you are at one of the specialized HS (can’t believe they still make you take mechanical drawing). Nothing has changed since the time I attended over 40 years ago.
The BTHS diploma is an advanced regents diploma (there is no specialized diploma, just the expectation that you are stretching yourself academically and are not getting a regular regents diploma). BTHS, STUY, BX Science all strongly recommend that you pass all of the exams needed for an advanced regents diploma.
ELA,
3 maths (al, geo, AL2/trig if you got a WA and an 85 on each Regents or 2 WAs and an 85 you will have achieved mastery)
US, Global,
3 science (LE, Chem, Physics- Again, if you have a WA and 2 85s or 2 WAs and an 85- you will have achieved mastery) and
world languages If you have your credits and pass the required 5 regents, you will still graduate).
If you are accepted at Macauley Honors at Hunter, it comes with 2 years of housing.
You have to take a breath. You sound like a wonderful person, you are not defined by the college that you attend. You owe it to yourself to follow your passion, be happy, and live your best life.
You are approaching your 7th semester. You will be applying to college when you get back to school in September. There will not be any significant bump in your GPA. As I stated in my previous post, most of the students there will be targeting the same schools that you are targeting (the Ivies, pre-med track). Again, there will unfortunately be cannibalization, because no college is taking all of you.
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In all honesty, it sounds as if they are trying to motivate you with negative reinforcement. “If you do well, we will pay for college. If you don’t do well, you have to pay us back.”
So if you don’t get into an Ivy League, what happens? Do they refuse to pay? You need to know this because it might be that much more important that you have an alternative plan. You might have to pay for your own education.
You will be adult very soon. You may think living with your parents forever seems okay at the moment, but I suspect you will want your independence at some point.
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