Is my father unreasonable?

<p>My ACT score is within range of a majority of my schools.</p>

<p>I am paying most of mine. Hers is $800 a month and she is paying $400, while I have a $1,200 bill and have paid $400-600 of the bill already and the bill is due july 25 for the first installment.</p>

<p>It’s summer, so you’re able to work more to contribute towards you half. however, once you’re in college, you won’t be able to work as much. </p>

<p>Your ACT was a 21 and your GPA is below a 3.0? If true, then it’s rather doubtful that you’re going to be able to do well enough in college and on the MCAT to get into med school. The ACT is a good predictor for the MCAT.</p>

<p>I moved to this area 2 years ago. My GPA was above a 3.0 at my old school. The grading scale is different and dropped it. Im terible at math and failed algebra 2 with a paid tutor, student tutor, and after school help from my teacher. My ACT, im not trying to play the race card here but a good majority of African Americans do terrible on standardized tests. The lower score on it was math. I had higher scores in the Reading, Science and Language sections of the test.</p>

<p>You will need to have stronger math skills to do well in the science classes that are required for med school.</p>

<p>And you can develop those in a community college before plunging into college Chemistry and other difficult classes.</p>

<p>You need to work with what you have. You still need to pay off what you owe from last year to even make a break from your current college. You then can start at local school. Do well, and you’ll have the same options. Right now you have your sights in one direction, so you are not looking at this reasonably.</p>

<p>Wait…you say your father “doesn’t want to send me somewhere where there is a high rate of not going to a 4 year institution”…so far it appears you are telling us HE doesn’t want to send you anywhere! This is hard to hear but you have to step up and help plan your future…dreams are great but reality is now and you seem to want to ignore it. You simply can’t afford this school and you certainly can’t force your father to contribute. Go to your CC and prove everyone wrong- be that person that DOES go to a 4 year institution from there. Good luck!</p>

<p>Once again, i am 17 years old. I will be a college FRESHMAN. I have NO loans, no nothing from last year. I took AP Biology, Anatomy and Physiology, as well as Chemistry in High School.</p>

<p>I think there’s a missing “rest of the story,” here.
Without it, not getting anywhere.</p>

<p>AND, you took those classes but have posted on other threads that you did not do well in them.</p>

<p>You need to give yourself a fighting chance. Why are you setting up these obstacles? </p>

<p>“AP Biology (C+), AP English Lit (B), AP Gov’t (B), Anatomy and Physiology (D+), as well as Algebra 2 yet again which I am barely passing(D).”</p>

<p>The Guaranteed Transfer program is made for kids like you who have dreams, but need a chance to pace themselves. Why not take advantage of it. Lower costs. Chance to show your stuff.</p>

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<p>Keep in mind, the “pre-med” courses (bio, chem and organic chem) are weeder courses. Based on your grades C=, D=, D, your chances are very low as far as being successful in a pre-med curriculum. This is really where attending a CC is going to benefit you; smaller classes, more personalized attention where at a 4 year school there is easily going to be 100+ students in these intro classes.</p>

<p>But he is ok about sending you to a 4 year school where 60% of the students do not complete a degree in 4 years?</p>

<p>You would definitely be better served going to CC and taking advantage of the UVA guaranteed admission agreement (3.4 gpa, which you will need any way to have a remote chance of attending med school) with the Virginia Community College system. </p>

<p>Overall, takig the CC route with the transfer to UVA
it would be less expensive (as UVA meets 100% demonstrated need. With your dad making 43K, it would be very low cost or probably less than the CC) </p>

<p>you would receive your bachelors from a top tier 1 university vs. a tier 3 college. </p>

<p>You would graduate from a college with a high graduation rate and a high rate of students attending grad/professional school and far superior pre-med advising </p>

<p>If you were my kid, this would be a no brainer. You need too look at your education and take the long view, not do what you would perceive to be quick and easy.</p>

<p><a href=“http://www.cedarcrest.edu/ca/catalog2011_2012/courses_programs/bio_prehealth.shtm[/url]”>http://www.cedarcrest.edu/ca/catalog2011_2012/courses_programs/bio_prehealth.shtm&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

<p><a href=“http://www.career.virginia.edu/hpa/medical/time-line.php[/url]”>http://www.career.virginia.edu/hpa/medical/time-line.php&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

<p>He is fine with that because once I make up my mind about something I do not change it. I will not change my major unless I add an additional major or minor. If i go to community college, i basically get shunned by my family. They are too prideful for it, so instead they tell you to work your butt and not ask for anything until your prove yourself. My family is dutch caribbean and come from a poor back ground. All my uncles went to college ad worked their butts off, as did my dad. If i dont go to a four year college, i can expect as much as to not even live with them if I did go to CC. So I am saying it is not an option and out of the question. An that is also my father talking.</p>

<p>If you get weeded by brutal pre-med classes, it doesn’t matter if you generally stick to your guns. I am not sure you are familiar with how college leads to med school. Have you heard of weeding? A huge number of schools admit many more kids with medical aspirations than they intend to support through the whole process. They narrow it down. We don’t know how this college works, but it happens to kids with the grandest intentions and strong records. Including my daughter. </p>

<p>You have a Dad who can’t pay. You are now in charge of decisions. Not him, mom, sister or peers. You have to stop using their roadblocks or mis-advice as your gospel.</p>

<p>It will be your choice. But you have many posters here with broad experience with how college works. When a kid can step back and do better for it.</p>

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<p>You know the saying about pride goeth before the fall…</p>

<p>I don’t mean to be insulting, but has your family been educated in the US. Have any of them attended grad or professional school? Do they have any concept that with the route you are taking, we are talking about over $500k between college and med school (who is going to pay for this). Perhaps they are of the mind set that private or a 4 year school is better. In this case, it is not and you are definitely not getting your money’s worth.</p>

<p>There is no shame in attending CC. I know plenty of people who started out in CC, transferred to 4 year schools, and then attended top schools for law, med and grad school. Remember for Grad school, GPA and test scores are king. IF you feel CC is going to be easy, it could be to your advantage as you will end up with a really high GPA as a cushion for when you transfer junior year. If you don’t do well and get weeded out, there is no med school for you. You need to explain to your parents (and understand for yourself) that there is more than one route that will take you from point A to point B.</p>

<p>My father and Uncle attended Fordham University. My father on a full basketball scholarship. My uncle on a full academic scholarship. My uncle went on to NYU law school. My other uncle ran track at Georgetown University on a full athletic scholarship. They were educated in the US.</p>

<p>Cool, however, you don’t have the luxury of having an academic or an athletic scholarship. You are on the hook for a lot of money. You will have to come up with over 100K to pay for this school over the next 4 years (not counting increases in tuition and your EFC going up and your getting less aid once your sister finishes school).</p>

<p>Then your uncle should be able to tell you first hand the importance of maintaining a good gpa if you want to attend professional school. Also keep in mind that school was a lot less expensive when when they went to school in the 60’s/70’s.</p>

<p>If your dad is helping to take care of his mom (which is most likely their mom), are they willing to help defray some of the cost of you attending this expensive school and take some of the pressure of your dad? if not? then talk is cheap and they need to either put their money where their mouth is or support your decision to attend a more affordable option. Your father and uncles do realize that student loans are not dischargeable through bankruptcy?</p>

<p>Okay, your father insists on a four year college, even a mediocre one, but won’t/can’t help you pay for it. I do agree that his position is totally unreasonable. But what anyone here thinks is irrelevant, isn’t it? So it appears your only option is a gap year and applications to a much more realistic list of colleges–which people here will be more than happy to help you compile. Because no matter how determined you are, when your tuition bill isn’t paid you won’t be allowed to register for classes at Cedar Crest. So, what are your plans? (I also agree with the other posters that your high school performance suggests that absent a phenomenal turnaround, med school will be out of reach, but there are many other health related careers that you could pursue.)</p>

<p>OP is planning to attend a 4-year school that she was accepted. The financial aid does not cover her need. However, her father and her don’t want any cheaper options such as community college. So all they have to do is figure out by themselves how to pay for this 4-year school.</p>

<p>He just said he is willing to pay it. He said after my first semester I should look into coming back to virginia the following 3 years for school or apply for my scholarships at school so that I can stay on the soccer team.</p>

<p>Btw a scholarship that I have covers a majority of my cost and i have to maintain a 2.8 GPA or above in order to keep it and have prevent academic probation. My sister had a lower GPA leaving high school than I did. She maintained a 3.5 average her freshman year while participating in her schools theater program.</p>

<p>No offense but you sort of brought this on yourself. Did you not see this coming? I mean during high school you got under a 3.0 GPA and a poor ACT score which means you CLEARLY weren’t going to qualify for merit aid. You didn’t succeed in school so you could have gotten a job to help pay for college but you decided not to. You knew your dad didn’t make a lot of money and could barely pay for living expenses much less college. What did you think was going to happen? And with less than a 3.0 GPA you want to go to med school? While dreams are nice work is required in order to support them. I think that CC is the best path unless you want to work a whole year at whatever low paying job you could get fresh out of highschool.</p>

<p>He isn’t being unreasonable. You are. You are asking him to pay half his earnings to you for college.</p>