My son got accepted ED , he got 60k grant and CoA is 75k, shall I make him apply for loans and pay the rest of the money? I am new so I don’t know how much can he get in loans?
Thank you for any inputs
He can get $5500 for freshman year.
How much can you pay?
I am willing to pay the 15k minus the loans, how much loans can he get in 4 years? Is it bad or good to make him have a loan every year for 4 years?
Thank you
Some families believe as a matter of principle that the student should have loans and a job and contribute as much as possible to their own education before the parents pay in. Other families are happy to provide what they can comfortably pay first, and then the student contributes the rest.
It really depends on your financial situation and your family dynamics. There is no single right answer. Sometimes it changes as circumstances dictate. My daughter has suffered some misfortunes and because of that we encouraged her to take fewer hours at her student job. We sent her an allowance again for a while to give her a chance to recover even though she was responsible for earning her own spending money and book money last year.
That is my thinking too, i want him to be little responsible by working at college and get the loans necessary to help his education.
@phenix2022 He can get $5500 the first year, $6500 the second, $7500 third, $7500 fourth. It is normal to expect the student to take loans. Also expect the student to earn 2-3 K in the summer. So you would be responsible for about $7500 a year.
Good to know, thank you.
By the way my son got accepted to university of Chicago , i am so happy and proud of him like any parents in this situation.
i am new to this forum, how to use the @name for a specific person?
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I think , i just figure it out by writing that
@phenix2022 That is great news for him and your family. Hope he enjoys U of Chicago. I would have him earn his money in the summer and/or winter break and not work the first year at school if you can swing it.
@gearmom thank you for your kind word, i was thinking the same , because i am reading a lot in this forum about uchicago from current and alum, is not that easy specially first year, i may let him concentrate on his study and don’t worry about money.
@phenix2022 Yes. No work during school the first year if you can.
The University of Chicago is a great school. However, you should keep in mind that it is very challenging, and will require a LOT of work on the part of any student who attends there. As such, the amount that your son should work while classes are in session should be limited. Some have suggested 10 hours a week maximum, although what each student is comfortable with may vary. Only working (other than academics) during the summer is another option.
During the workshop on how to pay for college organized by my kid’s HS, the financial advisor told us he got his kid to took out loan even the kid did not need it. He had his kid paid it back after graduation so as to build the credit. He then said how quick his kid could buy a house because of good credit (obviously with the appropriate down payment and other thing). I am not there yet, if he is right, I think there is a good reason to take out loans
Building a credit rating is done by time and amount and type of credit. If the student paid the loan back right after graduation, it is not going to build a great deal of credit. He’d have the 4 years of school with the loan in a ‘current’ status, but no payments.
A student could get as much mileage by having a credit card and paying it off every month, or having a car loan and paying on time. IMO, taking the loan and accruing interest just to pay it off is not good credit management.
the financial advisor<<<
That is hilarious. Some FA that is.
@twoinanddone Isn’t it there is a portion of the student loan does not accrue interest until graduation? I just asked my kid to take out as well and, in addition, to her discover card. I prepare to help her pay off.
@Sybylla I considered him a “financial advisor” because he was someone the school arranged to come to talk to us on how to pay for college. He told us about FAFSA etc and advised us to consider in-state.
Yeah, I think you are a tad misguided on his actual title.
I don’t think I was misguided by his title, as I may have misused “financial advisor” here (it was the year before my kid took her gap year), but I found his talk quite helpful. I also found some of what he said on CC.
Oh please…don’t expect your kid to be able to buy a house because they were able to pay off a student loan.
Income and job history matter more when seeking a mortgage.
But getting back to the topic. The OP’s kid can take out $5500 in federally funded loans for freshman year. Only $3000 can be subsidized…the rest will start accruing interest immediately.