<p>Recently, I was accepted into both Boston University and Worcester Polytechnic Institute for mechanical engineering. WPI's cost of attendance would be 20k/yr. BU's COA would be 11k/yr. I have an EFC of 0, by the way. I really do love WPI and would have said yes immediately until financial aid came into the picture. The 36k debt difference is what's worrying me the most. One of my parents is saying to go to BU because it's cheaper. The other says that either choice is ok. Is it worth it to pay 9k more every year to attend a college I really like or go somewhere else just because it's cheaper?</p>
<p>One of my parents is saying to go to BU because it’s cheaper. The other says that either choice is ok. Is it worth it to pay 9k more every year to attend a college I really like or go somewhere else just because it’s cheaper?</p>
<p>When you say that you’d have to pay $11k for BU, how would you pay for that?</p>
<p>And are there already loans in your FA pkg? </p>
<p>Will the parent who is saying to go to either school going to pay anything?</p>
<p>(no, it’s not worth it to pay more for WPI when your family is low income. Frankly, you may not be able to afford BU either.)</p>
<p>Hi! I’m sorry about your situation, but one of my teachers had us read a newspaper article recently (sorry I don’t have the link, he made copies we read in class) and it said that you shouldn’t take on more debt in all four years of college than you expect to make in your first year in the workforce. So if the job you’re looking to go into has a starting salary of $50,000 on average, you shouldn’t take more than $50,000 in debtin your entire college career. It’s not exact but it seems like a good guideline to me to make life easier after you graduate. So I would say BU, so you don’t have as much stress about money right off the bat. But if your heart is truly set WPI there are still scholarships out there that you can apply for, it’s just a matter of finding them and winning a lot of them to cover those extra costs. Good luck and I’m sure you’ll do great at either school!</p>
<p>@mom2collegekids:
For both schools we would be taking out some loans (parent PLUS, hopefully) and paying a bit out of our own pockets. When I said that my family was low income, I meant a $30k income, just to clarify. I would have $8500 in student loans from my financial package.</p>
<p>@Charlie87star:
The average starting salary for WPI graduates was about $60,000. One reason I’m leaning towards WPI is because of its high employment rate post graduation (93% -ish).</p>
<p>Will your parents qualify for the parent PLUS loans? And if they qualify this year, will they still qualify next year and for the subsequent years of your education? You wouldn’t want to get a year or two into your schooling and be unable to borrow enough to finish. Personally, in your situation I’d choose the less expensive alternative.</p>
<p>The average starting salary for WPI graduates was about $60,000. One reason I’m leaning towards WPI is because of its high employment rate post graduation (93% -ish).</p>
<p>That’s just because many/most of their students are techies. Techies who graduate from other schools will also find jobs and also get paid the same, but the school averages will be lower since more of their student bodies aren’t techies.</p>
<p>You’re not going to get paid more for graduating from WPI, and you’re still going to find jobs if you go to the cheaper school…do you understand now? So, not worth additional debt. </p>
<p>Who will be paying off this debt? Your family is very low income. And, what if your parents don’t qualify for these loans?</p>
<p>You’re going to have about $30k+ in student loans from your FA pkgs and $80k in loans from private loans??? Waaaayyyyyy toooo much debt.</p>
<p>Thank you for your input everybody! </p>
<p>I’ve decided to attend WPI due to recent circumstances. A few days after I posted this thread, I appealed my financial aid offer to WPI, and they gave me additional resources (not loans, thank goodness!). In addition to this, I also won a 4year renewable scholarship that further lowered the cost, making WPI MUCH more comparable to BU.</p>
<p>Wow. Congratulations, Worriedhopeful. I hope your family and you will therefore not have to take out too much in loans.</p>