<p>^Why no loans?</p>
<p>There’s nothing wrong with borrowing to secure a better future. The problem is borrowing to major in stuff that doesn’t pay $$$ at graduation.</p>
<p>I’m in pretty much the same boat as alexissss, I’m really counting on a full need-based financial aid package from a top school. I’ve been working in my gap year and I’ve been saving most of my money, but it’s still wouldn’t put a dent in college costs. </p>
<p>But if that doesn’t work, I may or may not have an ad out on Craigslist for one of my kidneys lol.</p>
<p>@mad
I promised myself that I wouldn’t take out loans. I’d rather not go to college than go and take out any loans. I’ve seen my mom’s massive debt. :’(</p>
<p>@ivy
Yeah. Saying this is challenging is a huge understatement.</p>
<p>
In this day and age, it’s a good idea to shy away from student loans.</p>
<p>@alexissss-I think it’s no loans is a wonderful ideal for which to strive but not always practical or best. I wouldn’t let my child go into debt for a degree in social work because I know the $20k she would make at graduation compared to debt would be constricting for years. If she was going for engineering, I’d allow debt because the $60k-$90k she could make vs debt may be worth the risk because the better the school, the better the job and future income.</p>
<p>Ruling out all debt doesn’t give you the flexibility to make those judgment calls.</p>
<p>I’m not all about getting into deep debt though. I just feel that there is a cost benefit analysis that needs to be done. If you want to be a doctor, for example, some colleges are better at preparing students than others. Taking on a little debt may be worth it and necessary to reach your goal.</p>
<p>You’ll see when it’s time to buy a house. Most adults have to get a mortgage to buy it. When done wisely, it’s an investment, when done recklessly, it’s a liability.</p>
<p>@mad
I’m going into Bio myself (maybe Computer Science or both?). Nearly every school I’ve applied to offers amazing aid (no loans in the aid package, I’d only have to contribute 3k or less etc.). I’m thinking only about 3 out of 18 don’t. If I get rejected from all 15 schools…well. Maybe college just isn’t for me. xD But I definitely see where you’re coming from.
As a matter of fact, there were some schools I didn’t bother applying to because I knew they’d be too expensive. :o Not to mention their pre med programs wouldn’t prepare me well enough.
Also, I don’t want any debt in my undergrad years because I’m going to accumulate quite a bit of it in med school most likely (if I even go to med school lolololol).</p>
<p>When me and my family moved to California I got lucky that we moved literally like 2 mins away from a university. So basically 18k for housing and stuff gets cut out so my parents said they’ll pay for the tuition. But if I can get into a UC or some school outside of driving distance ill have to apply for a billion scholarships to knock out like 20K and my parents will pay the rest</p>
<p>Parents will pay in state tuition and as much of Room and Board as possible. Hoping to get merit money from good school and college counselor is helping with that game plan. Otherwise, state school it is. There are some good ones in my state, but still don’t want to HAVE to stay in state. Hoping to avoid loans since they’ll be needed for grad school.</p>
<p>Im hoping for merit scholarships and maybe some outside scholarships if i get them.</p>
<p>I’m going to be debt free 
That was my goal, because I am planning on going to med school.</p>
<p>Yeah that’s the ultimate goal</p>
<p>Im a junior and Im not really sure how im going to pay for college.
Im hoping to get into UNC Chapel Hill and pay instate tuition which is ridiculously cheap in comparison to other schools. Im applying for a load of community scholarships, and I believe I have a very good shot at getting the majority of them.
Can anyone break down the whole need-based scholarships from schools? I really don’t wanna put that much financial burden on my parents since it is MY education. And I definitely want to avoid as much student loans as I can. So im in the market for some big scholarships.
I was also reading that you can go to some schools that aren’t necessarily an intellectual match in hopes to gain more financial aid. That may be a route that I can take?
I want to become a pharmacist. I have even contemplated going into the military and through COT. I heard that they have a program that will even repay some of your loans.
Ugh. Any suggestions?</p>
<p>There’s always the ROTC scholarship.</p>
<p>I suggest looking through [Net</a> Price Calculator | College Board - Net Price Calculator for Students](<a href=“Net Price Calculator (NPC) Participating Schools | Education Professionals – College Board”>http://studentnpc.collegeboard.org/) to see how need-based aid will impact you at the schools you’re interested in.</p>
<p>I did the same last fall and found myself very encouraged, though it was off by a couple thousand dollars (it said I would pay a couple thousand more per year than I actually will).</p>