<p>“For every other service or product we buy, we expect to pay full price, or whatever the best deal is we can negotiate.”</p>
<p>I’ll take “best deal we can negotiate.” 
Full price? Never.</p>
<p>The other day the department where I work held a “prop sale” – selling clothes, jewelry, and shoes worn by models at our photo shoots. I bagged hundreds of dollars’ worth of really cool shoes for $35. </p>
<p>Bargain hunting. The only way to go. :D</p>
<p>“Which do I prefer? My current situation.”</p>
<p>Same here. Our HHI is actually not that hot, but our house is paid for, our cars are paid for, and we have a nest-egg. That’s a LOT better than the situation I grew up in.</p>
<p>When I was in college, it was the blue-collar families that really got the raw deal – and that was what we were, blue-collar. Now, I think, the middle-income families get the raw deal. But I agree that poorer families should get the lion’s share of need-based aid. I just think that the struggling middle class should get a bit, too. The crumbs that fall from the table, so to speak. :)</p>
<p>Catholic University of America in DC offers a scholarship to a member of each parish nominated by the Parish. It’s also very generous with merit money. My D was accepted to Fordham last year with an amazingly generous package. I wouldn’t count out a private school. Cast a wide net, particularly geographically and see what comes back to you. Look for excellent but less well-known schools outside of your area.</p>
<p>“Frankly I believe that before you’re allowed to have children you should have a trust account that would pay for 4 years of college education at a private university.”</p>
<p>Unfortunately for many of us the need to put a roof over our heads and food on our tables has limited our ability to have any sort of “trust” account. I don’t believe in calling people disgusting when they work hard and save what they can. Most people do the absolute best they can for themselves and their children.</p>
<p>
Oh, the suffering! If he’s diligently saving for his kids’ college, then what? He should get an EFC of $5000 so he can spend the rest of that savings on another new Beemer? Who here is willing to help LadyD’s dentist pay for his kids’ college? Show of hands? Anyone?</p>
<p>;)</p>
<p>OP, it is also not a crime to ask your kids to have “skin in the game.” We told our kids in middle school that we’d come up with whatever moeny it took to send them to the college of their choice, but that they’d have to take out Staffords (only to the subsidized limit) and work during the semester and summers to help pay for it. If they got a full merit ride somewhere, and took it, then there would be things we could help them with (i.e., something reliable from Carmax). Both chose the private school.</p>
<p>S1 has been paying for about 40% of COA between scholarships, work and Staffords. S2 doesn’t have scholarship $$, so his piece has been lower, but he works just as hard.</p>
<p>LOL, sylvan. Well, he’s a young guy, and he hasn’t been practicing that long. But I (and my last root-canal bill) see what you’re saying.</p>
<p>@zoosermom-- that’s very interesting about CUA. We will have to look into that. I understand CUA has a good rep with the Newman Guide. I know our priest would nominate DS in a heartbeat…I doubt anyone else at our parish is applying to CUA. (NC kids tend not to want to leave NC. Can’t blame them…it’s an awesome state.)</p>
<p>calmom, just wanted to thank you for some wonderful posts that really laid out the philosophy of FAFSA and EFC beautifully. I don’t know if you’ve posted these bits before and I’ve just not read them, but this time they really made an impact.</p>
<p>I think savers are only possibly penalized at a handful of schools, namely those that meet full need without loans. These are generally the most selective schools in the nation. The vast majority of schools either don’t guarantee to meet full need, or meet need with loans. There are some awfully selective schools in this bunch as well. If a student gets into one of these schools and is given a huge package of loans, then the student from the saver family is going to be in much better shape.</p>
<p>"we’re so pleased with son’s sucess and the christian values being taught at his school we decided to bring both his sisters over from the public school. "</p>
<p>Or … save the money for college.</p>
<p>Our dentist put 3 children through college & they had to start saving from the day they were born, because they knew they would be full pay. I bumped into his wife recently & we were chatting about college tuition. She worked, too, to help save for college. One of them got merit aid, the other two did not. All 3 kids went to private 50k plus schools. </p>
<p>So, is it better to be in their position? Most likely it is!</p>
<p>“I thought in the United States, we are all born equal?”
No, some of us are born with parents who have more money than other parents.</p>
<p>my parents save their money. They understand what it means to prepare for the future, and we get punished for it?</p>
<hr>
<p>They saved their money to be prepared for the future. Your education is that future. How does being expected to part with the money they were saving for the future … the money they HAVE … translate to punishment?</p>
<p>This is the second thread this week where someone comments on how they have saved so hard for the future, but somehow feels that paying for things in the future only includes what they feel it should include.</p>
<p>This is the second thread this week where someone comments on how they have saved so hard for the future, but somehow feels that paying for things in the future only includes what they feel it should include.</p>
<p>Perhaps they feel like the family who has added up the hundreds and even thousands of dollars they have paid in insurance- but never needed to file a claim.
While all * that money* is essentially gone, the family who has been able to save money for college is only ahead- not behind.
Having more debt, won’t get them more financial aid, having less savings won’t get them dramatically lower fin aid, only less income * may*.
If they think lower income is better- I don’t think many will stop them from donating half theirs.
;)</p>
<p>“So, is it better to be in their position? Most likely it is!”</p>
<p>Of course it is. Otherwise people would voluntarily go into lower paying jobs, or take cuts in pay. When was the last time you heard someone do that ? No, these people are complaining that the current system forces them to spend <em>some</em> of their extra cash on education. </p>
<p>Whatever.</p>
<p>As a high income family, my criticism is different: I think it is bad social policy that encourages families not to save. Thankfully though, as many posters have pointed out, the savings penalty is mild. I’ll also point out that a GIANT loophole exists for the middle-upper class to shield assets from FASFA: put the money into your primary home.</p>
<p>Anecdotaly, I came close to snagging a huge loophole. The company I work for decided to offer a deferred comp plan, that in total allows me to effectively shield 50% of my gross income during the college years. One year too late.</p>
<p>Instead, we went with plan ‘A’: my son uses merit aid for a free ride to our local flagship, and my daughter uses merit aid to bring down CoA to a private LAC out of state to $17k/year. Excellent educations for a <em>very</em> reasonable price for two kids with good grades and scores from an upper middle class family.</p>
<p>“…but somehow feels that paying for things in the future only includes what they feel it should include…”</p>
<p>@kelsmom – your point would be valid if college costs were not so outrageous that they challenge <em>everybody</em> these days!</p>
<p>College costs have far, far outpaced inflation. That’s the reality we all have to deal with, whether we are poor, middle income, or upper middle. Only the wealthiest can just wave their hands airily and pooh-pooh the high cosst of college. :)</p>
<p>“College costs have far, far outpaced inflation.”
Is that true for public colleges across the nation ? I am skeptical.
My local flagship costs $5000/year tuition. Students here can still cover most of the tuition cost with a summer job, and be commuter students from home to save R&B.</p>
<p>Far, far from ideal or plush to be sure; but college education is still within the reach of an amazingly large swath of the US populace without collecting a huge mountain of debt. If you want to see an example of inflation out of control, look no farther than the OP, and general expectations of social subsidy and standard of living.</p>
<p>As a pat on the back to my kid, and one example where hard work is paying off, I offer my offspring:</p>
<p>He has done a couple of things right, in no particular order:
<p>Nothing to do with being poor, or rich. Mostly just working hard, and being frugal and having a modest lifestyle.</p>
<p>EricLG your child should be congradulated. At no point am I trying to get someone else pay for my childs education. I was raised in a very poor inner city home with lots of love and respect for hard work. Two of my meals everyday came from free lunch and breakfast at school. I went to college and paid my whole way without asking for any FA. That was my choice no one elses. After college I went into the military where by not going anywhere on my time off but covering others duties for cash, I paid off all my debt in two years. My DH’s family did not help with tution but did let him live at home until 20yrs old. Now while he went on to secondary school after getting his BS we lived 1000 of miles apart due to my military service. Doing our 20 and 30s we never took vacations or bought new cars or expensive homes. What makes me SAD (this is an emotional feeling that I HAVE) is that If my child does the same as another with concerns to grades, EC, and community service ect… that I will not be able to give my child all the same choices as a family that can qualify for FA. I DO NOT want someone to pay our way and my children know that they are expected to work and maybe get loans to pay for college (no matter where they go). Posting here on CC has given our family some suggestions that we did not know about. One of the best things I have learned is the change in attitude towards state schools and community colleges since I was last in school.</p>
<p>Originally Posted by BigKev
Is it fair that then I get no aid from anyone?</p>
<p>BigKev…</p>
<p>If your EFC is about $90k, then your parents are probably earning well over $250k per year and likely have assets as well.</p>
<p>If you think that your parents can’t afford college and/or that you should get aid, then that’s silly. </p>
<hr>
<p>What makes me a little sad is realizing that while I would love to send D1 to a private Catholic university and that this option will not be possible due to the high costs.</p>
<p>It depends on what your kids’ scores end up being. All the Catholic U’s that my kids applied to offered nice merit packages (such as half tuition scholarships)…however (except for Fordham’s NMF offer), most still required a good chunk from us (about $35k per year). With Fordham’s full tuition NMF offer, the cost would have been about $17k per year…pretty good!</p>
<p>Nice merit offers are all relative. A $15k per year scholarship may sound awesome, but if the cost is $55k per year, then you’ll still pay $40k per year. Yikes, where’d the great scholarship go? LOL</p>
<p>However, a $15k per year scholarship to an OOS public that charges $20k per year for OOS tuition can be a great deal. Your total cost could be less than $15k per year. </p>
<hr>
<p>*Don’t be afraid of AP classes, the schools we have talked to weight GPAs to take them into account. *</p>
<p>This may be in reference to my earlier post.</p>
<p>I wouldn’t be afraid of APs either. Yes, they’re often weighted. I would be concerned and this is why…</p>
<p>I was thinking of my son’s suitemate who also went to high school with him. He took every AP class their private school offered (so did my son). This kid’s parents insisted that he take every one - even ones that he did NOT need to take.</p>
<p>This kid is a smart kid, but not a super strong student. He really needs to study. Taking too many APs overwhelmed him and did negatively affect his GPA. He ended up with a 3.4 weighted GPA and an ACT 32.</p>
<p>Well, guess what? He missed a full tuition scholarship from his instate flagship because of his GPA. He was given some token scholarship (like $2k per year), but not the free tuition (worth at least $8000 per year). And, he missed the $2500 per year from engineering.</p>
<p>So, if he had just taken one less AP class and instead had taken some easy course (like yearbook), he would have had the GPA for full tuition. His parents are kicking themselves knowing that this mistake is going to cost them over $35k over a period of 4 years…the cost of a really nice car. </p>
<p>So…my point is…manage your GPA. You don’t want to mess yourself up by ending up with a lower weighted GPA by taking an extra harder class than necessary.</p>
<p>that’s very interesting about CUA. We will have to look into that. I understand CUA has a good rep with the Newman Guide. I know our priest would nominate DS in a heartbeat.</p>
<p>That’s interesting. I need to tell friends in our parish about that. Didn’t know about that when my kids were seniors. I will also tell the GC at their Catholic high school…at least 6 parishes feed into that high school. I’ll also tell my brothers and sisters whose kids are in Calif parishes.</p>
<hr>
<p>“College costs have far, far outpaced inflation.”</p>
<p>*
Is that true for public colleges across the nation ? I am skeptical.
My local flagship costs $5000/year tuition. Students here can still cover most of the tuition cost with a summer job, and be commuter students from home to save R&B.*</p>
<p>Yes it has…and most college kids can NOT take home $5000 from a summer job to pay tuition. AND…when I was in college, we could earn enough over the summer to pay for tuition, books, and still have a bunch of money left over. </p>
<p>So, yes, the cost has far outpaced inflation.</p>