<p>Smorgasbord, thanks ,i had no idea one could go to UT for 10k a year, even if living a home</p>
<p>tough choice, but you should be figuring on closer to 250K rather than 200K. Our D is OOS at UMich and is graduating in 3 years. She passed out of her language requirement and got the 11 or 12 credits as I recall when she completed her first upper division French class (with a grade of B or higher). She had some AP credits going in, took a few classes during the summer following her first year at our local CC which UM credited (you must check first and be absolutely sure they will accept the credits, and it could only be done after the first year not the second since they were CC courses) and had a couple semesters where she carried 5 classes. She has a double major. So there are ways for motivated students to cut down the price, if you can get all the required classes. She saved us about 50K, and was a little heartsick about leaving her cadre of classmates behind a year early. She is now so involved w/her job search that she has put that behind her. So there are pluses and minuses to whatever strategy one chooses, but there is a way to go to you âdream schoolâ and still compromise on the cost of doing so. Itâs not for everybody, and takes a pretty tough-minded kid to do so at that age IMO. We have banked the money saved for any further education she might pursue, a down payment on a condo, or other legitimate expense. Fair is fair. We will offer our second child the same deal when he starts in September.</p>
<p>that strategy is pretty college specific. At some universities it is very difficult to impossible to get all of oneâs required classes completed for even one major in 3 years. Such was the case for our niece at UC Davis who took 5 years to graduate. Similar stories abound at other UC campuses, incl. UCLA, and it is only bound to get worse with the stateâs budget constraints. Ironically, our Dâs final college choice came down to UCLA and Michigan (both as an OOS). I doubt she could have graduated in 3 years at UCLA.</p>
<p>If one plans to live in Texas after graduation, a degree from UT is highly regarded. If he wants to work in the NE or in a highly specific field in which pedigree is very important, Georgetown may be the better choice.</p>
<p>Before you make your decision, donât forget to factor in your sonâs âsocial fitâ and also take a peak at the cost of grad school tuition.</p>
<p>S2 wanted to stay in the Midwest and we decided against WashU for our state flagship honors program (engineering). When we add in the spring semester freshman research grant to the multitude of merit scholarships, our annual out of pocket is less than $2000. We know he will go on to grad school and for OUR family, we felt S2 would be better off having his grad school paid versus $56,000 per year at WashU. But then we didnât have the specialized foreign services program to considerâŠ</p>
<p>Georgetown is a great school, butâŠ</p>
<p>If he was an easy (i.e. EA) admit at Georgetown, heâd likely get $80k-$100k in merit money at American over the same period. Now Iâm not going to compare academics (Georgetownâs are really good; at American, itâs much easier to double major between the School of International Service - which is substantially larger than Georgetownâs undergrad - and their school of business or public affairs); the Honors students or students in Global Scholars Program at AU have virtually the same SATs/GPAs as students at Georgetown; they share DC locations; and recent surveys suggest that AU actually facilitates more internships. (In other words, even assuming Georgetown is âbetterâ, is it really $80k-$100k better?)</p>
<p>If itâs the school of foreign service, I see the case for Georgetown over UT (especially if you can afford it, though itâs still a tough call). I happen to think there is likely a better choice between GT no aid, and UT, but that might be water over the dam. Well, letâs just say Iâm glad it isnât my money.</p>
<p>speaking of money, M.I.T. is offering most or nearly all of its classes online for free. I think they are even establishing a Certificate program for it. No, you wonât get a B.S. degree or a sheepskin, and I donât even know if the name M.I.T. would appear on any certificate of completion. Still if anybody, parent or child, is simply in it for the intrinsic value of learning something (new), it might be worth checking out. Itâs open course ware and includes lecture notes, assignments, exams, solutions etc. Okay, I know the actual on campus experience of going to college has numerous benefits, but it kind of makes you wonder whether the old sheepskin is really worth $200-250K. I mean, if you could interview for a job just as articulately, show a broad grasp of knowledge across multidisciplinary fields, etcâŠ</p>
<p>itâs kind of a real world updated take on that line in Good Will Hunting: you dropped $150,000 on an education you could have gotten for $1.50 in late charges at the public library.</p>
<p>Have we entirely lost the OP. I wonder what he/she is thinking about it now.</p>
<p>Having worked with two of my own through the college acceptance process in the last two years:</p>
<p>Unless you are absolutely positively certain you wonât get financial aid, I recommend going through the hassle of FAFSA and CSS, because you may be pleasantly surprised at the packages you are offered.</p>
<p>And as much as you can, Iâd encourage your son not trying to wrestle with options too much until he gets the financial letters from all institutions and attends as many Accepted Student events as he can. </p>
<p>Sitting here in January, he is missing a lot of information that will come in March-April and help the family make that final decision in April.</p>
<p>Sidenote to post #87 - DS had some time on his hands this summer (translation - no job), so he did some online MIT courses for âjust learningâ. He did courses in different formats (videos, notes) and seemed to like them. They were an interesting supplement to his live classes.</p>
<p>Gâtown is stingy on $. I think likely fit is important to consider. does he want to be in washington? Is he hell bent on prestige of a school. Kind of hard to change the kid when the resources are there.</p>
<p>If he hits home runs at Gâtown it could line him up for easy $ for grad school. Good thought about American U & scholarship $ but totally not the same school.</p>
<p>Gâtown is the lucky recipient of Ivy hopefuls- that is who his peers would be there.</p>
<p>Is there anything that actually sets Georgetown SFS apart from other schools that have programs in International Relations or International Studies? Just calling your degree a BS in Foreign Service doesnât automatically make it amazing.</p>
<p>Obviously Georgetown is a great school. And itâs in DC. Are there any signs that it actually gives you a leg up into the Foreign Service? I find that unlikely.</p>
<p>The undergraduate program is likely resting on the back of their top quality graduate program. The SFS graduate programs are actually very diverse and offer a lot of options.</p>
<p>I, personally, would be happy to pay for Georgetown, as long as it didnât mean going into significant debt. In my opinion, Georgetown is a good enough school to be worth the extra money. And I donât think anyone would be sorry to have the Georgetown name on their resume for the rest of their lives. (The name-on-the-resume thing seems superficial, I know, but it matters. I have the name of a school of comparable prestige to Georgetown on my resume, and I have seen how much it matters.)</p>
<p>On the other hand, I would think twice if the school in question was GW, American, or Catholic U. These three schools are no more prestigious than a lot of flagship state universities and a lot more expensive. In my opinion, if you want DC and donât get into Georgetown, your best second choice is the University of Maryland at College Park, which is only a short Metro ride away. Itâs at least as good a school as GW or American (and better than Catholic) and considerably cheaper than any of the others (especially if youâre a Maryland resident).</p>
<p>George Mason is also a very good school - it is closer to Georgetown than U. of Maryland.</p>
<p>I am afraid, it doesnât work the way many of us think! I see a plenty of good students from top universities, including Ivy League, not doing as well as they should be doing because, end of the day, the âBrandâ has its limitation:) Georgetown is a great place for undergrad education. Your child will enjoy the 4 years in the company of some of the very bright and intelligent minds of the country. In my opinion, that experience is worth the extra money you would be paying for your child. Since, you have the funds available, go ahead and invest it in your child.</p>
<p>There is this idea that if you are at one of these schools like Georgetown, you are among a better group of students and some how you are also blessed with an elite halo. </p>
<p>Iâm sure some of you say yes, and see nothing wrong with it. You will argue fiercely that this is exactly the way it should be. It is entirely worth it to you to spend the money or go into crazy debt for that. Me, I have a problem with it. I am repelled by the idea of elitism.</p>
<p>I DO want my children to go to college with other smart kids with interesting ideas and a strong work ethic. I dont think it would benefit them to sit in class with a bunch of dummies. They need to be around kids who are having intellectual discussions sometimes in their free time. You will find those kids, definitely, at those hallowed schools. But you will also find a lot of status-seekers, who want to go to a name school for the glowing diploma. And there will be a lot of rich kids there who are able to do and have amazing things that some of us canât have, breeding jealousy and false-pride. If my kids could get a substantial tuition break I probably would send my kids to one of those schools, honestly, but I do find the whole thing questionable and worth debating. And I donât think a status symbol is worth over $100,000 if my kid can get into a good honors program, where the interactions will be just as rich.</p>
<p>Red point is on point.</p>
<p>Rintu said: " Since, you have the funds available, go ahead and invest it in your child."</p>
<p>Iâm sure all of us would give our lives for our children. Thatâs why oft repeated phrases such as invest in your child hit us in our cores. There is an element of guilt there. Itâs as though if we donât let them go to the âbestâ schools we will be a sub par parent. Its also a phrase you can use to help you say, âwhat the hell, lets just do it.â But maybe we need to examine these phrases, and see how they manipulate us. And there are more ways of investing in your child than spending an insane amount of money (which they may need later).</p>
<p>Another side to it is parental pride. Lets just face it: We want to be able to say âmy child goes to Georgetown.â If your childrenâs friends are going to these schools, it makes it extremely difficult to say, my kid is going to the state college, even if it is the honors program.</p>
<p>Iâve been following this thread because ds2 is quite interested in Georgetown. He wonât attend there, or anywhere, without a lot of merit/FA.</p>
<p>The OP has said he/she has the money. Itâs not like OP is asking whether he/she should take out a second mortgage and go heavily into debt to make this happen (Iâd be very opposed to that). People make all kinds of choices that you might not agree with â Why shop at Nordstroms when you could shop at Target? Why drive a Lexus when a Chevy can get you there? â but theyâre not hurting anyone with their more expensive choices, so why such opposition?</p>
<p>The anti-elitism here comes across as if people have a chip on their shoulders. People who are full pay at the college where my ds1 attends obviously live in a different world than I, but I donât begrudge them the ability to make the choice to spend more than $200,000 on their childâs education. In fact, people who are full pay no doubt make it possible for my son to attend that school. :)</p>