<p>@ucbalumnus the clemson scholarship is over 4 years but still, its something.</p>
<p>Have your parents assured you that $34,000 per year (Clemson out-of-state price minus $10,000 per year scholarship) is comfortably affordable? If not, get some applications into the bigger automatic scholarship schools that you qualify for in order to have certainly affordable choices.</p>
<p>As mentioned above, North Carolina A&T has large scholarships, but they are competitive, not automatic.</p>
<p>Of your parents have been saving for your college education since birth AND your family income is in the $250,000 a year range, it seems to me they can afford to pay for you to attend college. We live in a high cost of living area as well. When our kids were in college, our income didn’t approach this, and we did not have college savings. We managed to pay their college costs.</p>
<p>Can you get any kind of aid…sure. You can get merit aid at schools that art not those tippy top schools. If you want to soften the financial blow…you should have applied to schools with guaranteed merit aid for your stats.</p>
<p>My opinion…if your stats are really in the lower 50% of applicants at competitive schools, your bigger issue will be whether you get accepted at these schools. </p>
<p>I hope you have a well rounded list that includes instate public universities in VA or MD…whichever is your home state.</p>
<p>As often written here at CC, engineering is pretty much the same no matter where you study. Read through the list of institutions that offer your potential major at [Accredited</a> Program Search](<a href=“http://main.abet.org/aps/Accreditedprogramsearch.aspx]Accredited”>http://main.abet.org/aps/Accreditedprogramsearch.aspx) and see if you find any new options for yourself.</p>
<p>@thumper1 like I said before, my parents can afford it I just dont want to be a financial burden. And I have already gotten a merit scholarship from Clemson its just not my top school. And most of the schools im applying Im in the upper quartile for stats its just duke and georgia tech that will be harder to get into and their merit scholarships are extremely competitive.</p>
<p>One alternative scenario (not recommending it on way or the other): Attend an excellent in-state public school for your first two years, rock the heck out of it, then transfer with a transfer scholarship to a “higher tier school” with a great program in your major. Just an idea.</p>
<p>Hey, so I don’t sound like an extra in the Wolves of Wall Street 
I wanted to expand on my statement that “in places like San Francisco and NYC and Boston, a dual income of $200,000 is not a huge amount.” It is huge…I get that (and I don’t make that kind of money…though my friends in big cities do)…but take San Francisco, for example…the average elementary school teacher makes $63,400 annually ([Teacher</a> Elementary School Salaries in San Francisco, CA | Salary.com](<a href=“Browse Executive Salaries, Bonuses, Stock Grants, Stock Options | Salary.com”>Teacher Elementary School Salary in San Francisco, CA | Salary.com)) …two schoolteachers married to each other would bring home almost $130,000 annually. In Boston, those same two average schoolteachers would bring home $160,000 annually. And if they were paralegals…or bankers…or federal employees…and, say, in their 40s, the annual could easily be at $200,000…yet they would not consider themselves rich in any fashion…not with the insane prices there. </p>
<p>Also, back on topic, I respect the LW for being so mature about her parents’ income and outlook…she strikes me as consideration and responsible and aware. She doesn’t want to cause her family (or remaining siblings) hard financial burdens…its good that she’s thinking this through now.</p>
<p>This option might be too late (unless you consider a gap year), but I think Mills College in Oakland, CA, has an interesting program:</p>
<p>“In our 3+2 Engineering Program, you can earn two bachelor’s degrees in just five yearsincreasing your career options after college.”</p>
<p>It’s all-women at the undergrad level, in a great and diverse region, and maybe you could attract merit aid. (Disclosure: I know diddly about financial aid, but am hoping to learn by reading at CC.)</p>
<p>You could also consider George Mason and Old Dominion.</p>
<p>The median household income in NYC is $51,865.
The median household income in Boston is $53,136.</p>
<p>This student lives in VA where there are MANY wonderful public universities that are far more affordable than Duke or GA Tech. Going to OOS public universities is a CHOICE. This student can save significant money for the parents simply by attending an instate public university, it’s not like VA has crummy instate options. And engineering is offered at many of them. </p>
<p>Saving money is something easily done by this student…but NOT at GA Tech or Duke.</p>
<p>And there are also many far less competitive schools this student COULD have applied to where merit aid would have been a realistic option.</p>
<p>Sounds like Duke and GA Tech are “dream schools”. The good thing is that, if accepted, this student’s family can actually afford to send to pay the cost of attending.</p>
<p>@BobWallace george mason is about 15 min from my house which is a little too close for comfort for me. And my sis goes to ODU but she doesnt want me to go there for some reason and my parents would rather me apply to UVA or VT. Although I hear ODU has a great engineering program. The party scene is just a little too much for me. (i spent a few days with my sis on the campus)</p>
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<p>3+2 programs are commonplace, offered by many smaller schools without “native” engineering. However, there are uncertainties of transfer admission and financial aid, and giant merit scholarships that may be available for frosh applicants are much less common for transfer students. At many “3” schools, the number of students starting in 3+2 programs who actually transfer is very low.</p>
<p>This thread is focused on price. My impression is that you desire to be a good steward of your parent’s college savings. Good for you…Consider this…Some people know the price of everything but the value of nothing. I did not originate this quote, but I often reflect on its meaning. The most valuable diploma is the one awarded for your terminal degree. Take home message…do not spend all of your parents college savings on your undergraduate degree if there is a reasonable possibility you will desire post-graduate training.</p>
<p>Posted earlier but it’s not here. :(</p>
<p>UVA is a public Ivy. You’d get an outstanding education there at in-state rates. The biggest hurdle you’d face is that all your NoVa peers are also applying there, so it’s competitive.</p>
<p>That said, I’d not sure I’d pay for Duke if I also had a UVA acceptance in hand. Just not sure it’s worth the extra $$. We have a family friend who took the merit $$ for UG STEM majors at our flagship, got into Duke for a PhD and they threw all kinds of fellowship awards and extra funds at him.</p>
<p>All that said, Clemson with some merit $$ is a good bird in hand and baseline for you to evaluate other offers when the time comes. </p>
<p>ucb makes an excellent point about merit money – it can be darned difficult to maintain a 3.5 in engineering to keep a merit award. Check the requirements carefully – some schools set a high GPA requirement in order to keep the scholarship as a way of controlling their costs over four years.</p>
<p>OP, I am glad to see you care about how much your parents spend. However, it is past time for you all to sit down and discuss money and school choices.</p>
<p>No…Clemson is KNOWN for engineering. USoCarolina is the SC state school that isn’t known for eng’g…and probably is known for nursing and education.</p>
<p>Clemson may not be as famous or has highly ranked as MIT, but it is known for engineering. Englneering was one the reasons the Univ was founded.</p>
<p>You can’t have it both ways…you can’t look for large merit so your parents don’t have to pay much…but expect a name like MIT or Duke. That said, with only a $10k discount at Clemson, you could find similar schools with bigger merit.</p>
<p>Oh wow…does Clemson require a 3.5 to keep their merit? That’s ridiculous.</p>
<p>You are to be commended for your thoughtfulness and consideration! Please ignore the posters who feel obligated to judge your families finances. Seemingly some would rather vent than help.
Unfortunately you are facing a situation that is quite common. Being accepted at a school that is prestigious and being a full pay family or giving consideration to schools that provide merit aid or your in state publics.
I do believe that you are very fortunate in that Virginia’s in state publics are some of the best in the country. Those schools are where my focus would be. Having said this if your parents want to pay for one of your dream schools and they can, the sacrifices they make will pale in comparison to the joy it brings them to provide that opportunity for you. Time to have a very honest conversation with them, your sister may have some valuable perspective on that as well.
Personally I would be looking hard at UVA. It’s an amazing in state public. Best of luck to you!</p>
<p>I’ve worked in very expensive areas before and commuted so I wouldn’t have to pay the high cost of living there. Even now I commute 1 - 1 1/2 hours each way to school simply because I am rooted where I am now and that just happens to be how far the school is. The only other options I can see for you are go to school in a cheaper area or wait to go until you can qualify as an independent student so your parents’ income doesn’t count.</p>
<p>Also… I agree with GreatKid’s post above - Virginia has some excellent state schools. I attend one of them and am thrilled with my decision to come here.</p>
<p>OP,</p>
<p>We also live in Northern Virginia and can attest to the high cost of living. You’re also correct that single family homes under $700k anywhere in the suburbs are tough to find. It sounds crazy to people outside of NYC or LA but it’s true. But your household income is still 5x the national average.</p>
<p>Don’t feel like you are a burden to your parents if they have saved money for your education. When I was a child, I didn’t understand the sacrifices that my parents made for me. As a dad, I joyfully will pull $50k from a 529b if that’s what it takes to cover the tuition to an elite school. We’ve saved since our kids were born so we have years of stock market growth (and decline) that have helped our children. The money has always been for them. Not for my wife and I. For them.</p>
<p>You don’t understand now but you will one day when you have kids. :)</p>
<p>As many have said, however, you live in VA and UVA is the #23 school in the country and the #2 public school. While we may have the means to pay for a private school, I would be very happy if our D chose UVA and applied the rest of the money to grad school.</p>
<p>UVA is a spectacular school that has a lot more diversity than VT. I agree with you about VT. It’s a nonstarter at our house.</p>
<p>As someone posted, another low cost option is the guaranteed admission from community college to UVA. That’s the most economical approach. And when you graduate, nobody is going to care that you took your lower division at a CC. They are just going to see that nice (and very large btw) UVA diploma.</p>
<p>See how much your parents have in their savings set aside for you. Find a great college within that range and avoid like the plague taking out student loan debt if you can. And when you have kids, do the same for them. This is what families do to pass along financial support and wealth from one generation to the next. Embrace your blessings.</p>
<p>Socoengineer, you sound like a very level headed student to me. Congratulations on Clemson. Here is another suggestion where you may be eligible for merit aid:
[Agnes</a> Scott College - Dual-Degree in Engineering](<a href=“http://www.agnesscott.edu/physics/majors-minors/dual-degree-engineering.html]Agnes”>Physics | Majors & Minors | Agnes Scott College)</p>