Help, please? Stuck on college decision....

College Search & Selection
1

<p>Hi, all.</p>

<p>Like so many students right now, I'm stuck on where to go to college and would like some outside opinions. </p>

<p>My list includes these schools, although I don't actually want to go to all of these -- some of them my parents made me put on the list and won't let me take off.</p>

<p>McDaniel College
University of Maryland - College Park
St. Mary's College of Maryland
Knox College
Grinnell College
Tulane University</p>

<p>Right now I want to study English and music and also do a minor. I like to be involved with the community in any way that I can. I want a small school that has great academics. I also would prefer to go out of state. </p>

<p>I'll go down the list with my reasons for each school.</p>

<p>McDaniel:
Pros: Cheapest school on my list (lots of scholarship money -- down to about $17k for total cost); Honors Program
Cons: It's only an hour away from home, academics aren't as good as some of the other schools that I am considering; seems to be much more conservative than I would like</p>

<p>University of Maryland - College Park
Pros: College Park Scholars program; 3rd cheapest on my list (almost exactly $20k); access to DC
Cons: WAY TOO BIG; in-state and really close to home; Everyone at my school either goes there or the local community college..... ; no merit money (really, really confused on that one....)</p>

<p>St. Mary's College of Maryland
Pros: Honors College, scholarship; About $22k after scholarship; further than YCP is; small school; good academics; nice water-front campus
Cons: In-state; other schools have better academics; rural area (rural's fine -- it's just, like, at least 1.5 hours from anywhere)</p>

<p>Knox College
Pros: Out of state!; Good academics; 3hrs from Chicago (okay, so, that's actually really far....); good academics; seem to be pretty socially active; FB community seems pretty great
Cons: Price is okay, but not as cheap as the others (~$27k after scholarships/aid); A lot of local kids seem to go there</p>

<p>Grinnell College
Pros: out of state!; great academics; social activism!; (This is a really terrible reason) my best friend is a Posse Scholar and going there next year
Cons: I was a Posse finalist for this school but didn't get it, so there are still some hard feelings, especially because of the way it was handled by the college afterward; super expensive!! (~$37k after aid)</p>

<p>Tulane University
Pros: Out of state!; good academics; New Orleans; Jazz/Blues scene
Cons: Really expensive (but cheaper than Grinnell!) at ~$33k after scholarship/aid</p>

<p>My parents won't let me take the MD schools off of my list. My dad wants me to go to UMD because of the opportunities there, while my step-mom thinks SMCM is a better fit (actually, I think she wants me to go there because it's on the water haha). I don't talk to mom about college stuff, as she isn't paying for it and I barely see her anyway.</p>

<p>As far as paying for college goes, my parents and I are splitting it. However, $20k a year (for the more expensive schools) is a lot to put on my parents, and I feel bad about it. I also don't want a ton of debt after college since I want to get my Ph.D. in the future. The logical choice is to go to McDaniel because it's the least expensive, and I got into the Honors Program, but I'd rather go to Grinnell - it's just far too expensive for me.</p>

<p>What are your all's thoughts? Any input would be greatly appreciated.</p>

<p>Thanks,</p>

<p>Frayedpages</p>

2

<p>Yes, Grinnell is far too expensive, as is Tulane. How are you splitting the costs? You can’t take out that much in loans without a cosigner - will they cosign or is the expectation just that you’ll pay them back?</p>

<p>Your con for McDaniel that it’s only an hour away from home is no good - you don’t have to go home. An hour is plenty far enough to be independent.</p>

3

<p>Sorry, I’m with your dad on this. University of Maryland would give you lots of opportunities, and being in the Scholars program is a plus. It’s a big school, so even though many kids from your HS will attend, you most likely won’t see them unless you make a concerted effort.</p>

<p>Scratch your out of state options from your list. They’re too expensive.</p>

4

<p>My parents are willing to pay for half of my total costs up to $20k, meaning that if total cost exceeds $40k, then they will put forth $20k, while I foot the rest of the bill. </p>

<p>I’m fairly certain that my parents will co-sign for me; they want me to take out as much as I can under my name.</p>

<p>As for the McDaniel con - It’s not an independence thing for me. I want a change of culture, a change of scene. But I understand your point. </p>

<p>I think I forgot to mention that a lot of Marylanders also seem to go to McDaniel; I sat in on one of their classes during an honors event that they were having, and at least half of the people there (it was a class of maybe 20 students) were from MD, with a good portion being from the area I live in.</p>

5

<p>FlyMe, your points are valid - they are points my dad has also brought up. But the thing is, I’m the kind of learner that does better in small classes. The campus is also very sports-oriented, and I’m not. I feel like I’m going to get swallowed up there.</p>

<p>Also, I didn’t pass the music audition for UMD (I think my nerves got the best of me), so I wouldn’t be able to major in music there - unless I made it into the program next year, which I’m not sure will happen.</p>

6

<p>Bump</p>

<p>Sent from my DROID RAZR using CC</p>

7

<p>Can anyone else give me their opinion, please? I’m still stuck…</p>

8

<p>UMD-CP and Tulane are the most prestigious. Remove McDaniel and Grinnel. Choose from the rest.</p>

9

<p>If you like small, then St Mary’s or McDaniel. If you can cope with big, then UMCP. St. Mary’s is terrific, and the kids I know there are super happy. The McDaniel students and grads I’ve met were happy with that choice. I agree with you about UMCP - the size can be overwhelming. Happykid refused to even look at it. She’s at Towson.</p>

<p>From your description Grinnell and Tulane are unaffordable. Knox might or might not be affordable depending on what exactly is in your aid package. If federal loans and workstudy are already included, you would be hard-pressed to come up with the approximately $7k that you’d need over what your dad will kick in. You probably need to drop Knox as well.</p>

<p>Here’s a handy tool for evaluating the numbers. Pay attention to the analyses of how much you will need to be making in order to pay off any potential loans. [FinAid</a> | Calculators | Award Letter Comparison Tool](<a href=“Your Guide for College Financial Aid - Finaid”>Award Letter Requirements - Finaid)</p>