Is Tuition Exchange Really the Best Deal?

My son has been accepted for the TE at Syracuse (35k per year) and still waiting to hear from Gonzaga and DePaul. He also received 10,500 merit per year for Kansas (KU Excellence Scholarship) and 7,500 merit per year from Clemson (Clemon is very expensive for OSS). He has about a 4.3 wighted GPA and 30 ACT. Loves sports, especially basketball and football, but definitely not into the social scene or Greek life but says he wants to live near a big city (odd, I know). Still haven’t heard anything from UNC-Chapel Hill which is his only IS school and I went there but I have a feeling he applied too late and won’t get in. Would love to hear any thoughts on which of these schools would be a good fit for him. No visits yet as I am waiting for him to narrow the choices. Also, does anyone know if any of the TE schools I listed will combine merit with TE? Someone told me Gonzaga does but I’m not sure. And since these TE schools seem to rather expensive just for R & B and expenses, are they really the best way to go financially? Do any TE schools provide merit toward R & B and other expenses?

Tuition exchange is a great deal - is it the best - well that depends on a lot of factors.

Every school sets their own rules. We found most schools our kids applied to did NOT stack merit and TE - our kids were told to choose and in every case TE was the higher amount. The schools where merit did combine with TE still capped the total amount at a cost equal to full tuition. There are a couple of TE schools that offer room and board as well as part of the TE award, but very few and it’s specified on the TE site.

Room and board is wildly variable - D is at a school in the Northeast, S in the midwest - $5,000/year different in the room and board costs. My kids didn’t apply to any of the schools listed so I’m afraid I can’t help with specifics, but you could contact the TE liaison at the schools to find how each school handles the scholarship $$.

Well I’m sure you know how good UNC, Syracuse, Gonzaga, and KU are in basketball (and Clemson in football).
Meanwhile, DePaul is in a great neighborhood in a big city.

For fit, he should visit if possible.