<p>*The real issue is the outlandish costs themselves, and the unrealistic EFC formulas that assume a family can somehow live on $25K per year while simultaneously paying more than that for tuition!
*</p>
<p>In reality, an EFC is only meaningful at schools that meet full need. Having a reasonable EFC means nothing if the school costs Big Bucks, yet the aid package consists of a Stafford loan and big ol’ gap. The family still has to come up with the gap.</p>
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<p>Plenty of poor families get by on less than that, with no money left over to pay tuition with.</p>
<p>Look, the problem here isn’t what low-income families do or don’t get. For that matter, I agree wholeheartedly with Northstarmom. If it’s so frustrating, feel free to change places with a poor family. Since that’s obviously not a viable option, stop scapegoating or complaining about low-income families and start focusing on what you can do to improve YOUR situation.</p>
<p>"Sorry, Northstarmom, but anyone who’s speaking in the past tense about their college graduate’s experience is not faced with the same economic dynamics that exist today. Things are getting exponentially more difficult, with costs skyrocketing and public schools not only more selective as a result, but also more impacted with state budget crises. "</p>
<p>Younger S is in a private that is giving S no need-based financial aid. He has a relatively small merit scholarship. We are paying through the nose, sacrificing a great deal to send him there. Our income is far less than is the OP’s.</p>
<p>We all still feel lucky because our S was able to have a choice about colleges. He could have gone to public universities at far less cost to us. I also know that due to being in an educated, middle class family, he benefited from enrichment, support, sophisticated parental help throughout his life. I know very well that poor kids have it far worse, and I don’t envy them any help they get from the government.</p>
<p>I still am in touch with some of my former college students who were first gen college, poor, and who had to get large loans to attend the 2nd tier public where I taught. They weren’t able to get family support for college, for setting up a household after college, etc. I had some students who had loans, were working to send themselves through college and also were sending money home to help their families. My kids have it far easier.</p>
<p>The state budget cuts are impacting poor students even more than middle class students. The middle class may have the luxury of using the state colleges as fallbacks if they can’t afford private colleges anymore. For low income students, they may not be able to afford even community colleges.</p>
<p>I assume we are already paying housing and food while they are under our roof- college just extends the time period
We have a small house- so we can’t downsize to save money while they are off at college- but others might want to look at other strategies.
So assume at least half of housing costs to be transfered to the college.</p>
<p>Stafford loans
All students can assume maximum Stafford loans to " have some skin in thegame" of their own costs toward college expenses. Not sure what it is now, but I do not think it is out of line for students to have $15,000 - $20,000 of debt upon recieving their degree- after all some of them will have cars that cost more than that
;)</p>
<p>Students also should be expected to earn money each summer to pay toward tuition, and to get a job during the school year to pay toward expenses like personal supplies and books.</p>
<p>Merit scholarships that can reduce loans are available, as are opportunities with Americorps and similar organizations that pay education awards upon completion of service that can be used to pay tuition or loans.</p>
<p>I don’t think too much of someone who has a goal- but all they can do is whinge about all the obstacles in their way.</p>
<p>Guess it isn’t that important afterall- or else all that energy would go toward finding a way to make it work.
:)</p>
<p>“Are there really schools that are charging $80,000 as mdwest mom quotes for tuition?
that is frigging ridiculous”</p>
<p>That was an estimate borrowed from an earlier post about the cost 6 to 10 years from now. The most expensive now is about $55,000 per year.</p>
<p>Even in this economic climate, even in colleges not supported with diminishing tax dollars, the yearly increase outstrips inflation (as usual).</p>
<p>I’m going to add a different POV here</p>
<p>I think kids should pay for college themselves. My parents did, and I will be expected to do so as well. Where I live, no one pays for their kid’s education. It simply isn’t done.
If they really want an education they will work hard enough to get merit scholarships-or they can start at community college. Even if parents contribute, I don’t think parents should have to pay beyond 10-15k/year, which should be more than manageable for the OP</p>
<p>DadII and NSM, sorry for the rant… </p>
<p>Alamemom thanks for the good advice.</p>
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<p>Ha, you’re funny. I work four jobs throughout the year, and I still don’t make 1/4 of the COA for my school. If no one pays for the kid’s tuition, and they’re not getting aid, then they are either going to CCs or they are getting ridiculously large loans cosigned. That’s really the only way one can work their way through school.</p>
<p>When our parents went to school, school COULD be paid for by a student’s salary. However, costs have risen at a FAR greater rate then the cost of living has.</p>
<p>Mysonsdad - you are welcome. You have a great start on all of this - much better than most parents. I forgot to recommend the book “Paying for College Without Going Broke” by Kalman A. Chany from the Princeton Review series. It has lots of great long-term strategies for paying for college.</p>
<p>romani-I strongly disagree. I know quite a few people putting themselves through small state schools completely on their own. You can still put yourself thorugh school, you just have to compromise
Plus, I will be putting myself through school without a penny from my family</p>
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<p>Tell me, what is the COA at this school?</p>
<p>BTW for what it is worth, he is the email I got at school about Harvard…</p>
<p>Harvard University Announcement</p>
<p>Harvard University announced over the weekend that from now on undergraduate students from low-income families will pay no tuition. In making the announcement, Harvard’s president Lawrence H. Summers said, “When only ten percent of the students in elite higher education come from families in the lower half of the income distribution, we are not doing enough. We are not doing enough in bringing elite higher education to the lower half of the income distribution.” </p>
<p>If you know of a family earning less than $60,000 a year with an honor student graduating from high school soon, Harvard University wants to pay the tuition. The prestigious university recently announced that from now on undergraduate students from low-income families can go to Harvard for free… no tuition and no student loans! </p>
<p>To find out more about Harvard offering free tuition for families making less than $60,000 a year, visit Harvard’s financial aid website at: [Financial</a> Aid Office](<a href=“http://www.fao.fas.harvard.edu/]Financial”>http://www.fao.fas.harvard.edu/) or call the school’s financial aid office at (617) 495-1581</p>
<p>I told all my low socioeconomic students about it immediately and encouraged them to apply. Although on my posts I came across as callous, I feel for a lot of these kids. I want so many of them to succeed as much as I want my own kids to succeed. </p>
<p>I feel that Harvard making parents in my income bracket pay only 10% of the yearly cost is extremely fair.</p>
<p>Ok, the average 4-year public school costs $15213 (just for room and board, not books and all that). So let’s give it an extra 1k for books, living expenses, etc. </p>
<p>So $16213. No aid. So, - $5500 (Stafford loan). </p>
<p>That leaves: $10713. Ok, so minimum wage is 7.25. So 10713/7.25 = 1477.66 hours a year. 1477.66/52 weeks a year = 28.4. </p>
<p>Now, with the economy the way it is, most college students are not making very much (if anything) above minimum wage. Plus, those lucky enough to even HAVE jobs, are generally not working over 20 hours a week. </p>
<p>Now, there are variables obviously, but it is VERY, VERY difficult to just work through college.</p>
<p>in PA our average state school is around 5k for tuition. The kids live at home and work for the money. </p>
<p>I’m not attacking those who’s parents do pay for school, I just don’t agree with it. I firmly believe it is still possible to put yourself through school</p>
<p>Re: working through college- work study jobs can pay pretty well and are usually on campus- my older daughter who qualified for work study made enough to pay all her personal expenses and books through college.</p>
<p>However- 8 years later, her sister doesn’t qualify for aid & so doesn’t qualify for work study. Doesn’t have a car, virtually all the campus jobs are work study- still trying to find work off campus that she can get to by bus.
SHe wants to work & I want her to- but hard to find something.</p>
<p>I am one of those whose parents don’t pay for school. And those kids are lucky that their parents allow them to live with them. Most students are not lucky enough to be able to live at home and have parents help them. Therefore, most students cannot just work through school.</p>
<p>romani-seriously. I wasn’t trying to attack anyone. All I was saying was that where I live nearly everyone puts themselves through school. I guess we are lucky that it’s possible
sheesh</p>
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<p>True, but most work-study doesn’t cover nearly enough to even cover tuition let alone room & board, food, etc. </p>
<p>I personally have a pretty nice paying work-study job, but I can only make at most 3k a year though it. My other jobs pay about $10 an hour, but living just outside of Detroit, jobs simply are not open for college students.</p>
<p>rocket, I’m not trying to attack you either. But it is simply ridiculous to believe MOST students can work through college. It is a fallacy that many parents work off of, which is why they won’t pay for their kids, and yet it is mathematically nearly impossible.</p>
<p>“Re: working through college- work study jobs can pay pretty well and are usually on campus- my older daughter who qualified for work study made enough to pay all her personal expenses and books through college.”</p>
<p>Yes, that’s possible. Unless one is living at home and going to a very cheap college such as a community college or is in-state for a public in Calif., though, it’s not possible to pay all of one’s fulltime college expenses by working. Back in the old days, that may have been possible, but no more.</p>