That was my situation when I was a senior in high school. You know what I did? Went with the money at my public, in-state option in my low COL state.
Stop giving the OP false information and false hope.
When you’re poor, you do what you have to do and go where the opportunities are guaranteed. You don’t go somewhere like NY and just hope you don’t starve.
You got a MERIT award. Those are NOT NOT NOT based on in state residency for tuition purposes. Merit awards are based on academic merit…or some kind merit. But that was for grad school anyway.
You didn’t ask for funding for undergrad. Did you pay instate rates? If so…what year was this, how old were you?
I’m going to stand behind my advice in post 5.
Once again, the daughter is a model in NYC. She has work there that is not available to most people (-99%?) Work/career value that is not in the immediate experience of most of the CC reaponders to this OP’s question, apparently.
It may be feasible for her to increase her professional income in modeling while taking classes at a SUNY or CUNY or other school parttime. That was my suggestion, based on her current dire financial situation, of which I too have personal experience.
I graduated from a SUNY after taking classes as a PT student before matriculating.
My advice is also based on my recent college experience: BA in late 80s, graduate degrees from top universities in mid 90s and mid 2000s.
Education is important, for a lifetime learner: It keeps one mentally sharp and socially flexible.
Surprised at the aggression of some of you responders, which have been accusatory and insulting. Yet I haven’t called into question your own motives or “qualifications.”
Just some if the weirdest responders I’ve seen on this site.
A BA in late 80s is not recent. It might feel to you like only yesterday, but that was 30 years ago.
No one has insulted you here. They are simply trying to explain the reality of college admissions and financial aid TODAY.
I’m a NYS resident who lives in Downstate NY, and I have family living in Manhattan. Under no circumstances would I suggest to an 18-year-old from a low income family (who has no financial safety net) that they should move to NY on their own, much less move here and and pay OOS fees to attend college part-time. Low income students need to get a degree so they can become financially stable.
@Ivygrad09, where would this student live? Part-time students don’t live on campus. How would she pay for an apartment in an area close enough to the City so she could work? How would she pay her expenses if she couldn’t find work? Last year her net was $4k for 6 months of work. That won’t get you far here.
OP, I was a low income student too. I commuted to school in my home state and paid to dorm a semester as a junior. The degree is the part that matters. You don’t have to pay for residential college. I’d suggest starting your search by finding schools your daughter could commute to (financial safeties), then start branching out to schools that offer merit and need based aid. If she can get her ACT up a little she may qualify for more aid. But plan only on money that’s a reasonable certainty. Planning for $2-3k/year from summer work income is reasonable. Counting on $20k/year or more from modeling is too risky.
@rmason I am going to look at the big picture. I imagine It is hard to get past the daily bills and feeding your children to think long term, but I hope you can.
BTW, I think you are handling yourself well under your circumstances.
Does the modeling agency recommend working and going to college at the same time? If they do, ask them how that works. I don’t see how a student can be gone from campus for multiple long periods of time and it not affect their studies. So even if college is close to NYC/LA, there will be hours and hours of potential study time lost. Labwork is hard to skip, and professors in general will not give makeup exams.
Does the modeling agency tell your daughter she has a short “shelf life” with her modeling work, could she work full time for one year after high school before starting college, or are they pressuring her for a long term contract? Would they still give her work if she only has summers free during her college years?
This is such a unique situation for a family who is in poverty. It should be considered as part of the overall financial situation you and your children are struggling with. Modeling for the sake of modeling instead of getting a college degree is not the best choice for most families, but sometimes we are given blessings that arrive in odd packages.
Does your child like modeling work? Has she been treated well so far, and do you trust the industry to send her to far away jobs?
Research the implications of her income on financial aid. If, as others have suggested, she can earn $ without losing her low income status, it could be that enrolling in college but deferring for one year could be a good option.
You never want to “sell out” your core principles for money, so you have to weigh what matters most to you and your children.
I think you should focus on getting test scores up to give more options for scholarships. And discuss how modeling can fit into your child’s life alongside college.
UAH is a great school, especially for STEM majors. Smaller Public U in a Medium size town full of transplants from across the country and around the world, so it doesn’t have the
Stereotypical Southern Culture dominating daily life. Flights are expensive in and out of Huntsville, Alabama though. And direct flights to major cities might be harder to come by.
Tuition in the 80s was coverable with a part time job.
I worked full time at nearly double minimum wage and still couldn’t afford my public U out of pocket.
@IvyGrad09 I’m not sorry but your experience is simply not at all relevant here. It’s just not. I graduated college in 2013 and even my experience is getting out of date.
We’re in California @IvyGrad09, and our dd was admitted to SUNY Buffalo with scholarships and graduated from there in 2013. We were obviously not residents of NY.
Our tuition and fees were very real when our dd could not maintain her 3.75 GPA. So, we paid $~30K per year OOS rates. It’s not cheap nor is it “easy”. Now I think it is closer to $40K
I doubt that the OP’s child can make that amount of money to cover her OOS tuition and then cover her living expenses, while attending school PT no matter what kind of modeling she does.
@rmason NAU (Northern Arizona University) may be able fund your daughter; check the requirements.
rmason -
When is your D graduating HS? 2018?
Good for you for dusting yourself off and getting back up and taking care of business.
From what I know, as far as the publics go…the home states give the FA to thier own residents first and that this comes on a first come first come basis. Since they now base FAFSA on the income picture from the two years past… it may be that you will need to call and make an appointment with the FA folks at the university to update the current info. Best of luck for you and your DD. Updates are appreciated.
rmason- edit- I just read through the thread and know your D is a senior. You must be busy trying to sort out the options since its about that time to apply- options which there are still plenty, even for your son.
ivygrad09 `~ The only insults have been you referring to the others as " weird responders". Those responders have helped many on CC and continue to do so. I as well as countless others appreciate their knowledge, wisdom and insight. Ivygrad~ sorry but they have much better info than you to contribute.