I’m two months from move in and I’m seriously regretting my college choice - not because of the school itself, but because of the tuition. When I was searching for a college, my parents told me to not worry about the debt, and I seriously regret listening to them - I originally was supposed to pay $18000 for this school year (even with the best scholarship offered and grants) but the price shot up last minute and now it’s $24000 for the year (on-campus tuition, btw. The school is too far to commute). I don’t want to be in debt for life because I made a stupid decision, especially when I could have gotten a free ride at a nearby public school. Is there anything I can do at this point? I’ve expressed my regret to my parents but they continue to tell me everything will be fine … I just can’t see how ‘everything will be fine’ when I end up nearly $40000-50000 in debt, though. I’m seriously stressing out over this!!
YOU can’t borrow $50k for college. You can only borrow ~$5500/year. What’s the public school? Have you contacted them to find out if you’ll still qualify for a free ride if you take a gap year? What are your GPA and test scores? If you can tell us those and your parents’ budget we may be able to help you find more affordable options.
As above-- if someone is taking out loans above the student loan limit, it is your parents. If they cannot afford the school (and it sounds like they say they can) you can take a gap year and reapply to the nearby public. Or maybe they have a spring admit option.
@austinmshauri @jym626 Not sure about 50k, but a high need student could definitely be offered 40k (over 4 years) in direct Perkins and Stafford loans.
And if the parents don’t qualify for plus. But in those circumstances it’s unlikely the parents at the outset would have told the student not to worry about the college cost/debt. That would make no sense.
Is it too late to go to the public? If they don’t have the space right now, perhaps they could offer you a deferral on your admission. I would check into that first thing this morning.
Contact the admissions office at the public school today! Don’t send an email! Just be brave and call and ask to talk to a supervisor, not a student helper!
Let us know how it goes.
You say you “could have gotten a free ride at a nearby public”. Did you actually apply and get it offered to you, or is it an automatic full scholarship (full ride means tuition, room, board, etc, not just tuition) or are you saying for comparison there were cheaper options at the nearby public? Please clarify.
I don’t agree with your parents unless THEY can easily afford to pay all of that debt back. No one should be telling a young person “not to worry about big debt” when it’s the young person who’ll be stuck with the debt. That isn’t a responsible parent. That is parents feeling guilty that they can’t pay.
If the debt really wasn’t a big deal THEY would be taking on the debt.
Are you an incoming freshman? If so, then it sounds like you’d have $50k-100k of debt by the time you graduate.
Your financial aid might have been based on estimated income and then after your parents filed their tax return it was updated to reflect actual income.
I agree with the others, find out right now if going to the state school and the generous scholarship are still an option!
What’s the school? What’s your major?
How much do your parents make per year and how much do they pay ‘out of pocket’?
What loans are we talking about (their names/backers)?
How much of the 24k a year is in loans?
Looking forward to starting my adult life being $40K+ in debt would stress me out also. Line up your next best option whatever it is and cancel out of your current obligation asap
Who is taking out those loans?
Sorry, to clarify some things -
My parents tell me that they will try and take on the loans, however, I know for a fact there is absolutely no way they can afford it. I’m pretty sure they told me not to worry simply because the felt bad about limiting my choices. For the record, we haven’t taken any loans out yet, and I doubt we qualify for any special need grants and scholarship. Technically, my father makes 110k a year, however, our credit rating is pretty bad - we had to file bankruptcy once when I was younger. We aren’t ridiculously poor or anything, but we are still struggling. And unfortunately, I’m pretty sure it’s too late for me to switch to the public school at this point in time. But there are a couple of other private schools I was accepted to that I think I can still turn to, but I’m not quite sure - Fall term for those schools start in less than a month. My intended major is Biology, and my h.s test scores and grades are pretty decent - 30 ACT, 4-year honor roll student and the top 10-15% of my class. I’ve tried for a number of scholarships but things never seem to work out. I do have 13k in the bank saved, but that won’t even cover my first year. I was hoping it would be possible to discuss my family situation with the school, as I really do love it there, but I highly doubt they’ll do anything.
Call the public school and ask. You have nothing to lose. They may really want you.
It may be too late to switch to the public school this year, but if you don’t enroll anywhere this fall you can apply to a whole new list of colleges next year. Redo your list and find some schools that will be affordable for your family.
It’s too late to start at basically any school, especially if you wanted a scholarship (it was given to someone else in April-May).
And the time to discuss your family’s situation was during the weeks before the May 1s reply date. Even if they could have done something, they can’t anymore.
The college is unaffordable if your parents would need to take loans on top of debt they already have - and, unlike all other loans, college loans can’t be discharged in bankruptcy, they even follow you after death.
If the school is unaffordable, your choices are to attend a CC or take a gap year& work, and apply to more affordable schools. Due to your very good stats, I’d suggest the gap year. There are lots of colleges that wouldn’t cost you much, where in fact you’d get full tuition.
Have you used the Net Price Calculator before?
What’s your college budget?
Taking a gap year will also give you 12 months of savings to apply towards college. That may not seem like a lot but assuming you’ll be living at home, virtually everything you earn can go into your college savings. Your parents will also both have 12 more months to put aside money.
Sit down now and calculate how much you could have this time next year. Get a commitment from your parents on how much they will provide each year. Add in any existing savings. This gives you a baseline of what you can afford if you want to get out of college debt free. (Be sure to factor in books, incidentals, and travel expenses.)
We don’t know what the cost is for the school you were hoping to attend so I don’t want to speculate as to whether this plan would make it affordable (maybe with a lighter loan burden?). Regardless, your stats give you good options.
It’s heartbreaking that you didn’t really get the full picture until now but please don’t despair. The fact that you’re figuring it out now means that you will avoid the infinitely worse situation of getting a year or two in and then having to leave with no degree and a big loan debt. Most people your age, heck even most adults, don’t have the foresight to recognize these kinds of problems before it’s too late. You’re gonna do well.
Had you applied to the full ride public?
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Technically, my father makes 110k a year, however, our credit rating is pretty bad -
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Are your parents aware that they probably won’t qualify to cosign those loans? Did they think you, alone, could borrow the money?
Did you apply to that state school and get a merit award? If so, please contact them. If it was a merit award that they give for certain stats, then it could still be available.
How could you afford the other schools? What are their net costs?