<p>I got accepted to Kutztown University, and i filed my FASFA and got 5,500 for fall and spring semester. KU expects my parents to pay around 9,000$ a year, and my parents make a good bit of money, but they can't afford to just give that money to the college. How do i go about handling this?
Thank you!</p>
<p>Are you a PA resident? Will you be living on campus? If you can commute, the 5500 should cover the costs. If you need to live on campus, your parents are essentially transferring the cost of having you at home to having you live elsewhere. The college seems very reasonable to me.</p>
<p>What is the cost breakdown of the school?</p>
<p>What is the breakdown of your FA pkg? </p>
<p>How much CAN your parents pay? </p>
<p>How much can you EARN over the summer by working LOTS of hours?</p>
<p>How much can you EARN during the school year by working part-time hours?</p>
<p>Tuition and fees… $8,596<br>
Room and board …$8,890
Books and supplies… $1,476<br>
Estimated personal expenses $2,600<br>
Transportation expenses – – –
Estimated Total …$21,562 </p>
<p>Depending on: what your aid pkg contains, how much your parents WILL pay, how much YOU can earn, and how economical you can be, your parents wouldn’t have to spend $9k.</p>
<p>Your parents don’t need to be providing for your “personal expenses” and books…you can earn those amounts. And, you don’t need to spend THAT much on books…buy used, online, etc, and spend half that amount. </p>
<p>$2600 for personal expenses is purely a choice. Over a 10 month school year, that’s $260 per month. That’s mostly “fun money” and your parents aren’t likely willing to pay for that. </p>
<p>Can you commute? If so, then you’d save a lot there. Your parents may not be willing to pay for R&B when you have a room at home for free. Many, many parents can’t/won’t pay for the “sleepaway experience” because they really don’t have the money for that. “Going away” to school is often a luxury.</p>
<p>If you can’t commute to this school, did you apply to any publics that you can commute to?</p>
<p>Edited to add…did you say that your FAFSA result indicated that you’d get a $5500 loan…or have you gotten your aid pkg from your school and that’s what it says?</p>
<p>The bulk of your COA at Kutztown is going to be room and board. Do you live close enough to commute? The $5500 Stafford Loan will cover a good chunk of your tuition, and you can earn a few thousand dollars to put toward costs by working full time this summer (maybe two jobs? - that’s what I always did) and part time during the school year. Can your parents pay anything? Do you or they have anything saved for college? I doubt you’re going to get any more money from the school. You could check the school website or call to see if they have a payment plan. Many parents can’t afford to hand over $9,000 at one time, but only half of that will be due for first semester, and you may be able to spread it out even further with a payment plan.</p>
<p>Many parents can’t afford to hand over $9,000 at one time, but only half of that will be due for first semester, and you may be able to spread it out even further with a payment plan.</p>
<p>Good point. Ask your parents how much they can pay in “monthly installments”. Most colleges have a monthly payment plan (and I think Sallie Mae has one as well). Payments sometimes start in July, so check on that. </p>
<p>To make 10 monthly payments of $900 would cover the $9000. </p>
<p>With a $9k EFC, it sounds like your family is in that “gray area” of income. Too much for Pell, not enough to really pay EFC. I’m guessing that your family’s income is around $75k. That’s not usually high enough to pay out $900 per month (essentially 2-3 car payments!). </p>
<p>Keep in mind that the school’s tuition, room and board costs will go up every year, so the amount that your family will be expected to pay will be more each year.</p>
<p>Was your parents’ FAFSA EFC $9,000…or…is that the amount or your EFC plus the amount that you’re expected to pay after aid? (in other words, were you gapped?)</p>
<p>I see that Kutztown is suggesting on their Net Price Calculator that personal expenses and transportation will average $3,400 and change this year. Really??! They must be figuring that the average student has car payments, auto insurance payments, gas & repairs to deal with. I know one way to avoid that.</p>
<p>They must be figuring that the average student has car payments, auto insurance payments, gas & repairs to deal with. I know one way to avoid that.</p>
<p>ha ha! I don’t think the estimate includes car payments and such. I think that they figure about $800 for travel throughout the year (including local/weekly travel, not just RT travel to the school). They figure about $260 a month for personal expenses: clothes, toiletries, pizza night with friends, off campus meals, etc. </p>
<p>There sure is room for trimming, but a lot of college kids spend a whole bunch of money each month. Go to any offcampus hangout on Friday nights or weekends, and they’re packed with paying college customers.</p>
<p>Your parents are not “giving” that money to the college, they are paying the college for a service. How much can your parents afford?</p>
<p>Remind your parents that…
1 They are likely eligible for some tax breaks while you are at college that will translate into cash in thier pocket. They also can continue to use you as a dependent on thier tax form, which saves them money.
2 As McKinster points out, their expenses go down when you leave. Start adding up the cost of cars, cell phones, vacations, etc you are costing them now and explain that this will go away and represent real savings to them (that they can apply to college).
3). If 1 and 2 dont get you there explain to them that the FAFSA determines their contribution. By definition, they can afford it. If they refuse meet thier financial responsiblities that burden passes along to someone who is much less able to afford it (you).<br>
4). If that still doesnt work, you can take out a stafford loan for 5,500 and get a part time job at college. Inform your parents that you will be claiming yourself on your income tax form. Share your story with other family members and encourage them not be behave like your parents.
GL</p>
<p>2 As McKinster points out, their expenses go down when you leave. Start adding up the cost of cars, cell phones, vacations, etc you are costing them now and explain that this will go away and represent real savings to them (that they can apply to college).</p>
<p>??? kids don’t have cell phones in college? Actually many college kids upgrade to smart phones in college because of the various apps that help them stay organized.</p>
<p>“Vacations” might be a savings if the family stops vacations during the college years. Of course, many familes don’t go on pricey vacations regardless. And, some can’t eliminate vacations completely from the budget. </p>
<p>Car expenses can be a savings if the parents has been paying for gas and such, and the student will not be taking the car to campus. Some insurance companies will give the family a discount and some won’t. But, “cars” often aren’t a family savings because often a younger child starts driving the “kid’s car” when the older child goes to college. </p>
<p>Some families might notice some savings when their kids go away, but I know that we really didn’t…at least not enough to make a noticeable difference. </p>
<p>Yes, the tuition tax breaks might be an issue, and the student should politely address that. </p>
<p>The dependent claim on their taxes probably won’t move the parents. They’re already used to getting that and their expenses/bills/budget already assume that exist. </p>
<p>The OP needs to come back and provide more info about what his/her parents are saying. The issue may be that they think commuting to a local univ or CC is good enough and they’re not going to have the whole family “cut corners” to pay for room and board. I see this all the time at my kids’ high school. There is a “good enough” univ in our community that students can go to for about $10k. It’s strong in engineering, business, pre-health majors, nursing, etc. With a student loan, some summer earnings, parents often don’t have to contribute that much at all. Because of that, many aren’t interested in paying $22k+ to send them away to one of the other state schools.</p>
<p>Of course, the OP’s parents may not have the money no matter what they think about the college choice.</p>
<p>I don’t know if this will apply to you, but I read this on another post about Kutztown:</p>
<p>“Students have the chance to participate in the Scholars in Service to Pennsylvania Program where students enroll part-time in AmeriCorp and receive a partial education award.”</p>