<p>Well, if your parents want you to go to Chicago, then they could and should pay for it. It is unreasonable for “high income” parents to put all the burden of paying for an expensive college education on their children, IMHO.
Chicago is a wonderful college but it is NOT worth that kind of debt… You have an alternative.</p>
<p>^ Yeah, I just talked to them about it again. I was asking if we could make some sacrifices as a family, cut back on some things, etc. I was essentially told that they already have a second mortgage, my brother’s remaining school loans, a car loan, and something else that I’m forgetting. But the main point is that they apparently have too many loans, and if we’re going to make any sacrifices as a family, it’ll be to pay off their pre-existing loans. How can FAFSA not account for this?</p>
<p>as I am not a Fafsa pro, maybe you should post that question on the financial aid/ scholarships forum. Swimcatsmom, a CC poster, is the Fafsa guru there.
the problem, however, is that Chicago pays more attention to the Profile information, and makes their FA decisions in a very opaque manner. Sorry to say, but when we appealed the original $1K FA loan that chicago offered us, we got nowhere. I believe it was because we were self employed, and even though we have lots of equity in our home, we could not afford to tap it, because with our income we could not qualify for a Home Equity loan. This fell on deaf ears at Chicago. So don’t get your hopes up.</p>
<p>insomniac159: You should really contact the financial aid office about this. I think you deserve more aid. Mention your family circumstances, and express how much you really want to go there. I think they’ll be accommodating.</p>
<p>
if you have some family in San Fransisco, it’s possible</p>
<p>menloparkmom: I posted on the FA forum, so we’ll see what they say. Thanks for your help.</p>
<p>compaq10: Could you be more specific? I’m really interested in learning more about qualifying for residency if it’s a possibility at Berkeley. My aunt, uncle, and cousins all live there, and they supposedly live close enough to the school to commute.</p>
<p>Divine Comedy: We have contaced the FA office at both schools. Berkeley was no help, and Chicago told us to file an appeal. My parents still haven’t done so, but I’m pushing them to work with me on an appeal before we meet with a financial aid advisor at the admitted students weekend. I really do hope that they will be accomodating as well, seeing as it’s my top choice school.</p>
<p>I’ve taken 2 years of classes at CU-Boulder.</p>
<p>I don’t see how you could be unhappy there. yes, socially it is a bit limited, but it’s really an excellent institution. The only reason I’m not going there is because the finances worked out at Chicago. All the sciences are incredible, and if you do well there, you can get into an ivy grad school no problem. everyone respects CU-Boulder. A lot of Princeton/MIT/Harvard grads teach there, and for good reason.</p>
<p>What part of the state do you live in? Feel free to PM me. I actually might be a good person to talk to about this, considering as I’ve actually taken classes there and had to make a similar decision about finances.</p>
<p>Personally, if I were in your position, I would go to CU. Especially since you’re looking at med school. Getting a good GPA at CU would be slightly easier, and med schools really care more about how well you do than where you do it. And, CU is a very highly regarded school in terms of research and med schools really do respect it. Then again, I did choose Chicago. But, I’m not going to be putting myself in crippling debt, and for my chosen major, going to a prestigious school is a bit more important than it is for pre med.</p>
<p>idk what major you’re considering, but I’ve got a lot of connections into several departments and can offer some perspectives, but I don’t really want out myself here <em>too</em> much. </p>
<p>CU hands down, especially for pre med. You can always go to a prestigious med school. It’s not like going to CU will keep you from that. Also, consider the scholarships available to you. I know that the engineering department has ridiculous amounts of money for scholarships (I got offered 16k without filling out any special applications). Even if you end up paying full price for the first year, there are TONS of scholarships you can apply for as a freshman. There’s a lot of money at that school, and you can get your hands on it if you talk to a couple advisors. Especially if you commit to a department. You can get departmental funding. Lots of it. You can really do a lot there in the sciences. The only thing that keeps CU from being in the top schools is its terrible humanities programs. The science is truly world class, and med schools know that.</p>
<p>Oh, I definitely wouldn’t go to a california state school with the state’s finances how it is. Especially out of state. It’ll end up costing you more than going to Chicago because of all the tuition increases and extra fees for “arts” and “construction.” I think it comes down to a choice between CU and Chicago. And really, CU isn’t that bad. Not bad at all. You just have to find a good group of people and live off campus asap. There are some nice apartments nearby for cheap (I’ve been in quite a few-- they are pretty decent). I hope you aren’t “fairly certain you’ll be unhappy there” because a lot of my friends are planning on having a great time. A lot of people have fun there and love it. You could easily be one of these people.</p>
<p>Good luck! And do let me know where you decide to go.</p>
<p>It’s really not that I think CU is a bad school. I know it’s a great school. The problem for me is not the academics, it’s the environment. I know SO many people who are going there, and I really want to meet new friends and start life over. If I go there, it’ll just be high school all over again. I love my friends, but I really want to just get out of this place and move on. I’ve been dying to get out since I was 5 years old. And Boulder is a very large school. I don’t want to have to deal with huge classes and anonymity. I want actual relationships with my professors. I don’t want large lectures, but rather small discussions. And the city of Chicago appeals to me much more than Boulder does. And I have ALWAYS wanted to go out of state for school. My brother stayed in state (he chose CO School of Mines after being accepted by MIT because it was closer to home). I’m not like that, I really want to get out in the world and establish myself. Boulder is a 45min drive from my area that my brother and his fiance actually make quite frequently. I don’t want to be that close to home. And while I am a pre-med, I am actually VERY interested in the humanities as well (especially creative writing). I want a truly liberal arts education. I mean, I can’t guarantee that in four years, I’ll still want to go to medical school. What if I end up wanting a job right after college? I bet Chicago would give me more opportunities. All in all, I’ve just never gotten a great vibe from Boulder. Perhaps I only feel so negatively about it because I’m comparing it to the ideal Chicago education, but if I go to Boulder, I know I’m always going to wonder what my life would have been like if I’d just taken the plunge and gone to Chicago.</p>
<p>Trust me, I am very aware of my obvious bias here. I know that what I want most is Chicago, and I know that it’s probably clouding my judgment, but it’s very hard to avoid that.</p>
<p>One thing that got me that I’ll address: as far as having relationships with professors, I’ve been in classes of 20 and classes of 500. Even in the large classes, I was able to have a report with the professor by going to office hours and asking questions after class. It really isn’t all that different from any other school. You just have to make an effort. I have good relationships with professors at CU.</p>
<p>As far as being with all the people you’ve been in HS with… like you said, CU is a big school. And, you’re 45 minutes away. 45 minutes is a long enough drive to be a decent parent buffer space. And, because it’s such a big school, you can easily avoid people. I’ve done it. </p>
<p>I know you’re trying to convince yourself to go to chicago, even if it means taking on all that debt. It’s ultimately your decision. I’m just saying that CU is a good option. A great option, even. It’s your money, but if I were you, I’d think long and hard about taking on that much debt at such a young age, especially as you’ll have four years of medical school tuition (with few scholarships or financial aid) and then another 3 years of residency where you get paid almost nothing, and then more time of being paid almost nothing if you want to do a specialty. That’s a TON of interest… I would want to try to cut down on that as much as possible. But, that’s what I would do, maybe not what you would do.</p>
<p>I know a couple pre-meds at CU. One of them has a great report with his ochem prof and will hang out at his office regularly. It’s not hard to get personal contact and attention. I understand it’s not the solid liberal arts core of chicago. That sucks. I know. But, is that worth all of that debt plus 11+ years of interest?</p>
<p>It’s all up to you. I’m just saying that CU is pretty darn great, and I’m sad that you’re not excited about it.</p>
<p>FAFSA doesn’t take debt into account because debt is a personal choice.</p>
<p>You will find many bright kids at state schools–especially flagships–who turned down top rated schools.</p>
<p>Yes, I’m aware that debt is a personal choice. I just find it disappointing that I should be punished for my parents’ poor decisions despite my own efforts.</p>
<p>^^^^ whoa, whoa, whoa… You could’ve applied for a TON of scholarships… let’s not project and deflect here. I know several kids who made full rides for themselves by getting a lot of smaller scholarships and working really hard. It’s not like it’s your parent’s fault you didn’t get good financial aid, nor is it their responsibility to pay for your college. At least they are willing to co sign your loans. Mine won’t even do that, and I have to move out when I turn 18. I would be a little more appreciative of what you have.</p>
<p>just sayin’ You could have it a lot worse. At least you have a financially viable option that should be relatively palatable.</p>
<p>Boulder is barely financially viable as it is… And I did apply for a ton of scholarships, but I haven’t been having any luck.</p>
<p>I know that it is not my parents responsibility to pay for my college. I just find this entire system really difficult at times. I don’t mean to project or deflect. I’m just getting a bit upset by this entire process… I should probably just give up thinking about it any longer tonight, but it’s hard to. It just upsets me that the cheapest school (and the one I like the least) on my list is still going to leave me in substantial debt. It kind of makes me feel like if I’m going to be in debt, I might as well be happy about the reason for it.</p>
<p>I do apologize for my negative attitude about all of this, though. It’s just getting hard to deal with my parents and the schools while still trying to manage my own schoolwork and job. So, I really am sorry, and I do appreciate all of the help that everyone here on CC is giving me.</p>
<p>How about this - you start at Boulder with a possibility of transfer to Chicago 2 years later.</p>
<p>Unlike the likes of Harvard and Princeton, a transfer route is open for U Chicago. If you keep your academic work at a top shape, it should be possible for you to transfer. In that case, you might want to do some proactive research to see what kind of Boulder credits/courses are accepted/acknowledged by Chicago so that you can still graduate in 4 years total.</p>
<p>This way, if you do transfer to Chicago, the debt will be much less and you still have 2 years of the life of the mind education plus U Chicago diploma. May be even your parents’ financial situation might improve. If you end up liking Boulder, then you have a future with minimal debt.</p>
<p>Yes, I did consider the transfer route, but I was a bit deterred by two things:</p>
<p>1) There’s no certainty that I will get back in to Chicago as a transfer student seeing as admissions are harder for transfers.
2) The things that I dislike most about Boulder (the large gen ed classes, etc.) would be during those first years. So at that point, I’d mostly just have the classes for my major left to complete. As a probable science major, those classes wouldn’t be much different at Chicago vs. Boulder. It’s the liberal arts that I want out of Chciago, not the final two years and the degree.</p>
<p>But yes, I am still considering transferring schools at some point to save money.</p>