<p>S is an art student and has been accepted to Wash U (his dream school), but Kenyon is offering lots of aid. We have yet to hear from several other places, so the decision is not yet upon us. We are, however, already having a heated discussion at home. Thoughts, anyone?</p>
<p>can you comfortably pay full freight at Wash U without debt?</p>
<p>Are other kids coming down the pike that you will have to put through college?</p>
<p>smythic, My son (an art/art history major) was very interested in Kenyon. They have an excellent studio art program within the context of an excellent liberal arts education.</p>
<p>Have you visited Kenyon? We were all enchanted by the campus, but it is somewhat isolated and not much is within walking distance. The art department appeared to have good facilities. The curriculum is on traditional media – drawing, painting, sculpture, photography – and like most LACs is thin on graphic arts, illustration and technology based media.</p>
<p>WUSTL wasn’t on my son’s undergrad list but he did consider it for graduate school. The atmosphere and physical environment is so different from Kenyon that it’s difficult to compare. There’s also a big difference between Kenyon’s BA and WUSTL’s BFA. The first would provide a rounded liberal arts education; the latter a more art specific focus.</p>
<p>As sybbie said, the real determining factor is your family’s financial situation. Needing merit aid and just wanting it are two different things. These are emotional times but try to present a factual case to your son so that he can make a responsible decision. </p>
<p>I’d also tlak about what his career goals are (though these are subject to change). Does he plan to teach, go into design or architecture, or try to make it as a practicing artist? In any case, the money would come in handy later too.</p>
<p>Good luck and let us know the outcome.</p>
<p>He visited both places without us, which makes it hard for H and I to feel like we know what we’re talking about. S thought Kenyon was on the quiet side; he said Wash U had a better vibe - livelier and friendlier. Even though he’s a talented artist, he’s not necessarily committed to an art career, but he could switch into liberal arts at Wash U. He might also do a dual degree.</p>
<p>The money is an issue. We could get loans, and grandparents have indicated a willingness to help (though we haven’t had a dollars and cents conversation yet).</p>
<p>Congratulations on your S getting accepted to WashU but I woudln’t rack up lots of debt and/or overly burden grandparents. Unless he had a bad experience at Kenyon, I’d opt for Kenyon… or one of the schools he’s yet to hear from that would also give him a good financial aid package.</p>
<p>Congratulations, smythic, on your son being accepted into these two outstanding schools. Kenyon is a terrific school, no question. But as momrath said, it is isolated, notably so. Look at the location on Google Maps and you’ll see just how isolated. Gambier doesn’t have much going on other than Kenyon. This is not a knock on the school. There are kids who love the school so much they’d go there if it were on the moon. It’s just that Kenyon’s ambience is drastically different from that of Wash. U. If your son is looking for a lively, more urban environment, Kenyon is the exact opposite of that. Independent of financing, I’d be wary of sending a kid to Kenyon who wasn’t thrilled about the school because there are no distractions for miles around. Only you know how real an issue that would be for your son (i.e., whether he’d get over it once he got into the life of the campus or go stir crazy).</p>
<p>Good luck and best wishes.</p>
<p>My impression of Kenyon is definitely one of friendly, social and upbeat kids and nurturing accessible professors. It seems to have kind of a split personality: the artsy/sensitive crowd and the sporty/Greek crowd. After all the acceptances come in if Kenyon is still the best financial option, I’d do an overnight.</p>
<p>Only your family can judge how far out on a financial limb you’re willing to go. Ten years ago we were willing and able to pay for our son’s undergraduate choice. In today’s economy I’d be less willing to take out loan for upward to $150K or to jeopardise anyone’s retirement nestegg.</p>
<p>Perhaps remind him to think about the reasons why he applied to Kenyon. Something must have appealed to him as it is a distinctly different sort of college than Wash U.</p>
<p>Do any of the other places your S applied to have a vibe like WashU? Large, lively? There may be an option, with aid, that fills your son’s needs both for art and for a possible other major.</p>
<p>Another option is for your son to go to Kenyon for his liberal arts education and art and apply to Washington University for an MFA. Washington University funds ALL graduate students 100%.</p>
<p>Kenyon is an excellent school. I cannot think of one objective reason to take on debt for WashU over good aid at Kenyon. Unfortunately, high school seniors can be less than objective when it coems to college decisions. The risk of you pushing Kenyon as a good choice is that he will see it as a bad choice. The trick is to get him to see it as a good choice.</p>
<p>Not overly familiar with either school, but the question on my mind is: after graduating, does the student want to be able to pursue a career without having to think about loan payments, or would the student prefer to attend a relatively equivalent school but have to pursue job opportunities/second jobs in order to pay for that experience?</p>
<p>The money is an issue. We could get loans, and grandparents have indicated a willingness to help (though we haven’t had a dollars and cents conversation yet).</p>
<p>Loans? how much each year? And who would be paying them back? The parents or the student?</p>
<p>I wouldn’t burden an art major with loans, since salaries after graduation often aren’t that high. </p>
<p>If parents taking on debt will cause family issues, retirement issues, etc, I don’t think it’s a good idea for them to take on debt either. </p>
<p>find out how much grandparents will pay. </p>
<p>I think I would choose Kenyon unless money was no object in my household.</p>
<p>I love Kenyon, so the answer would be easy for me. But it’s your S who is going and if the air is getting hot, you should sit and listen to what he has to say. Is this doable? What will it cost you, not just in the money, but in worries, sweat equity, lack of security,etc? And how important is it to your son? Does he have good reason to want to go there? What is the cost differential and what is he prepared to give and give up to go there?</p>
<p>Kenyon is a great school, but there is a very big difference between a professional art school and an art major at LAC. Wash U has a professional art school offering rigorous art program. He can comfortably double major in something unrelated to art, or switch into school of A&S if he decides that art is not for him. But if he wants to be an artist, Wash U Art school and Kenyon are not in the same league.
That said, money matters…</p>
<p>All good advice above.</p>
<p>I would also suggest that grandparents may have NO IDEA of how much tuition is these days. When they say they will help, they may have in mind a thousand dollars or so…</p>
<p>Avoid loans! I haven’t come across a single thread wherein someone admits that incurring loans (when having the option not to, somewhere else) was a good choice for undergrad.</p>
<p>Ditto on the grandparents comment. D’s grandparent offered to help and it meant exactly that. A much appreciated thousand bucks.</p>
<p>Yes, avoid loans. But don’t send your kid to a school just because of the money if it’s not where he wants to be. I’d be interested to hear what other options there are besides Wash. U. and Kenyon.</p>
<p>I agree with mommusic. Most Grandparents have no idea how much college cost these days. Now is the time to sit down with them to clarify how much they will contribute. I am with others who suggest avoiding loans. After the other decisions come in and if Kenyon is stil the most afordable, have S do an overnight with art students, go to classes, hang out with them and then regroup.</p>
<p>I’m also still curious what the other options are. Kenyon with rural and 1600 and an LAC known for a strong English program is so very different that Washington University with 8000 and urban and the individual colleges. Most kids settle on big or large or urban or rural. I agree with Mamom, perhaps sending him to Kenyon for an overnight will remind him of why he chose to apply there. It’s not known for art so perhaps it was the opportunity to explore other areas…the liberal arts environment. Is Kenyon too close to your home?</p>