<p>I do not qualify for need-based financial aid. But I'm generally just a pretty frugal person. Does the COA at NYU significantly exceed the COA at other top privates and ivies?</p>
<p>The big thing about NYU is not the tuition. Many other schools have broken the $55,000 a year barrier. The killer is housing + living expenses. Housing you really don’t have much room to negotiate. You either sack up and pay NYU for dorming, or you find your own place (highly don’t recommend it frosh year) where you either live alone (far too expensive typically) or to save money, too far away or in a crummy room, a sacrifice you make for the almighty dollay.</p>
<p>“Living expenses” is the real thing. Some people manage to get by on $100 a month discretionary. Others spend 10 times that or more. If you have a meal plan, you probably won’t need to eat out much. If you don’t, your dining costs can spiral out of control, especially your first year because you won’t have a kitchen unless you’re in 3N. My frosh year I had no money, so I spent no money. Sophomore fall, pretty much the same thing. Then I went abroad, spent a summer on Wall Street, and things changed. It is New York; there are always so many things to do. The Ivies and other schools can’t really compare (save Columbia) simply because of where they’re situated. I would probably have a hard time blowing $2,000 in a month at a state school. I can do that in a night here, haha.</p>
<p>NYU is estimating the total cost of tuition, room and board at just under $60,000 on my d’s financial aid statement for the class of 2016. In general I would guess the cost of room and board is about 3 to 5k above many (but not all) private schools.</p>
<p>I’m saying the nightlife isn’t as vibrant, i.e. you don’t get the kids dropping $1,000 nightly in a club on table service.</p>