<p>Hey everyone. I was wondering if I could get some help. My parents are dead set on me applying to schools only in Texas. And I understanding their reasoning, considering the the economy and the increasing debt my parents have. If I I were to go to a state school such as UT Austin (which is a great school btw but just not for me) I could possibly pay less for college and have almost no debt. But the problem is that I have no desire whatsover to go to college in Texas. My family moved here a couple of years ago from New England and over time I still have not been able to actually like Texas that much and settle with what I have got. I have had my heart set on going to Smith College in Massachusetts. I had sent in the application and all of the supplementary materials need for Early Decision. And when it came time to sign the Early Decision agreement form they just flat out refused. They say that a state school will always be cheaper and they think that there is no possibility of an out of state college offering more aid. I'm not trying to be just a rebellious teen or anything but I do not want to go to college in Texas (not trying to sound petty but the weather to me is just atrocious). I'm not trying to sound like an ignorant kid, but I need help trying to convince my parents into letting me apply at least. I have researched Smith College for some time now and I think that this is the college I would be the most happiest at. Can anyone give advice on how to say to my parents that I am not trying to be rude or foolish, it is just that I have a different college choice for myself than they do.</p>
<p>Unless you intend on paying for school yourself you need to have a long talk with your parents. How is your family set financially? Are you needy? Will you qualify for merit scholarships at some schools? Just because you would be most happy at Smith is not a reason to go. There are many schools which would make you happy.</p>
<p>Thanks for your advice Erin's Dad. Allow me to rephrase what a typed. When I wrote that I would be most happy at Smith, I meant to say that it is my first choice and will definately not be the only college I would be happy at. Sorry for my mistake.</p>
<p>I suggest that you apply RD to Smith and to schools in Texas and elsewhere--perhaps a combination of need-only and merit aid schools--and see how it shakes out in the spring. You might also diligently apply for scholarships.</p>
<p>State schools are not <em>always</em> cheaper. Kids can go to an Ivy for less than their state U depending on income--if they can get in.</p>
<p>Your parents are almost certain to have a more realistic view of your family finances than you do, and these are frightening times, financially. They also have a good idea of what major debt really means. Rather than fighting them over an EA application, take the longer view. When spring rolls around, you can compare your choices. You may find that the prospect of huge student debt makes Austin look a lot more attractive. I hear it's a nice town. <g> Or your parents might be pleasantly surprised by the FA you are offered elsewhere.</g></p>
<p>Your best bet is to convince them to let you apply for out of state schools, mostly privates that give lots of AID, and tell them that you will only go out of state if they offer you enough merit/need based aid. If your grades are good enough, lots of out of state private schools will end up costing you only marginally more than in state public schools, if not less.
Of course, the amount of aid depends on your academic record and your family's income. It is possible that your best bet is really to stay in state, if you can't get enough aid to go elsewhere and your family isn't that well off. It's not worth taking out huge loans to go to a more prestigious school. If you would need to end up more than 60 or 70 thousand in debt, it's in no way worth it to go out of state and have a loan following you around for the next ten years of your life.</p>
<p>Out of curiosity, I went to the Smith College website. Tuition/Room/Board is $50,000/yr.
That doesn't include your travel expenses (airfare, etc.), books, or personal expenses. Unless your family is in a financial position to either qualify for need based aid or be able to come up with that amount of money, I would seriously consider being open to suggestions of other schools. From what I saw, Smith isn't very generous with their Merit Aid and I'm not sure if that equates with not being generous with need based financial aid.</p>
<p>See what type of need based aid they offer you. In the meantime, be open to other schools and be sure to apply to a couple of schools that are not only academic safeties but also financial safeties. Often times, kids end up loving their safeties schools. Have you visited many colleges? My advice is to be open to other colleges and to plan a few college visits/tours soon. What you like now may not be the same thing that you like in the Spring. Apply to enough colleges so that you will have options when the time comes to make your final decision.</p>
<p>I wouldn't sign an ED Application either for such an expensive school. In my opinion, EA is a better way to go.</p>
<p>I agree. Definitely apply to Smith, but do it in RD, and make sure to apply for financial aid at the same time so you can (hopefully) get a FA award from them too. Then you and your parents will be looking at real numbers and can make more informed decisions. Also apply to the least-objectionable in-state schools, and some other privates in the NE if that's where you want to end up. Research them for the merit and/or need-based aid that might benefit you most.</p>
<p>Good luck. It may work out yet, but it's important to have back-up choices. Big debt upon graduation is really something to avoid if possible, although I do understand your desire go away to college somewhere that you actually want to be, too.</p>
<p>I think that it was not wise to prepare the application materials for Early Decision when your parents were not on board with that idea. It sounds like you went on ahead without them. You and your parents each have roles to play; imo, don't go off on your own again.</p>
<p>I agree with the others who say that it would be advisable to apply RD to Smith and to other colleges, in and out of Texas. As a dad I'm not impressed with the concept that I potentially should pay tens of thousands of extra dollars because you don't like the weather in Texas. I'd advise you to have better reasons than that to present to your parents.</p>
<p>I hope that you'll be able to go to Smith or another of your high-choice colleges. At the same time, though, I'd advise you to be open to UT. It is a great school and, if you end up there for whatever reason, you'll be able to get an excellent education at a good price. Being debt-free after college is an immense blessing if it can be arranged. After college you'll be able to go back to New England or wherever you want. I realize it's not your first-choice and I respect that; I also realize, as I hope you do, that it's an excellent backup arrangement that you would do well to consider seriously. </p>
<p>If your parents don't have the $200,000 plus to send you to Smith (do you have any idea just how much that is?) then you need to do your homework, seach the CC site for links to the website that help you figure out how much you would owe and what your monthly payments would be if you take out loans for this much money. They don't "owe" you a $200,000 education, and its more than just about it being your favorite place. It is about whether it is worth the price, and if there is even money to pay for it.</p>
<p>I am a physician and my favorite car, one I really would like to drive is nice to think about. But I drive a VW bug, and my D is a freshman at FSU. It's what makes sense for our family. </p>
<p>ED is binding, and if Smith has you obligated via a contract, and you don't like the aid they offer-- if they offer any--you are still obligated to attend. You may get a better aid offer applying RD, and if accepted elsewhere with a better package, sometimes you can get a college like Smith to consider you for more. </p>
<p>We are looking at some tough times economically over the next few years. And this country is in the financial state it is in due to folks wanting to buy cars, houses, and college educations that they could not afford. But yeah, they really, really wanted to have that car/house or Ivy/Top Tier education. But it was more than they could realistically afford. And now families everywhere are over-extended. Some owe more on their house than it is worth. </p>
<p>I don't know your situation, but attending Smith may be affordable because your EFC is 0. Or it may be affordable because your parents really have $1 million dollars in an education account for you and your 3 siblings. (Just supposition here--I have no idea your situation.) But most-likely, it just might not be something your folks can afford.</p>
<p>I am from the northeast but currently live in Texas. Have you been to Austin yet? I've had a lot of friends and family from Massachusetts meet me there for visits and they love it. </p>
<p>Smith is a fantastic college and Northampton is beautiful. But it is also 30K more per year than UT Austin. At the end of a four year program that ads up to $120,000. You would have to get a massive amount of financial aid to make up that difference. That does not include plane tickets, which is no small expense. The most expensive schools in the country are the dream school of tens of thousands of students who go on to have wonderful college experiences elsewhere.</p>
<p>Have you considered UMASS Amherst? It is part of the five college system meaning you could take a few classes at Smith. Your parents might be more open to talking about out-of-state schools if you were willing to show that you understand how serious and, frankly, realistic their financial concerns are. Or it may be that flying you back and forth is simply not an option financially. </p>
<p>Best of luck to you in your search for a college that will work for you and your family.</p>
<p>Oh, we cross posted. Please do not feel stupid. Your job in life right now is to try on different futures and see what fits best. Sometimes writing it out and hearing a few different povs is just what you need to see a situation in a new light.</p>
<p>Ejovwo: You are not stupid, You realized you needed some help, and you sought it.</p>
<p>If finances are important (as they are for us), then applying ED with so many unresolved financial issues remain is not a good idea.</p>
<p>You may still find that you receive excellent FA from one or more of your preferred schools, but waiting for RD (or EA) will preserve the most options</p>
<p>I echo the don't apply ED thing. I also worry that if your applications are limited to Texas schools, you might always wonder what you could have gotten with the same net cost after scholarships.</p>
<p>I wonder if you could sit down with your parents and do this:
outline how much they want to spend on college in Texas, and how much UT will cost "all in". Then you will know what they want their contribution to be, and how much your contribution will be for UT. Then ask them if you could apply to schools where you might get scholarships that will make the net cost comparable to those figures. Let's say that's 25k per year, between your parents' contribution and your contribution. You would then need to target schools with either generous merit scholarships that you are competitive for, or generous fin aid. If they agree to this, don't get attached to any school until you see how much the NET costs are after total budget minus any grants or scholarships are given. </p>
<p>There was so much variance in the net costs of my d's acceptances/scholarship awards it was truly stunning, and made incredible sense to consider that (as she did). She did in fact have 2 private college awards that were significant $$ awards so that the cost was comparable to our state uni.</p>
<p>I seldom think that applying ED is a good idea when finances are a concern (and when are they not?) </p>
<p>You lock yourself into a specific school without knowing what it costs - which is something I am always hesitant to do. After all, would you go to the mall and select a pair of jeans and buy them without looking at the price tag? They might be $25 or they might be $250.</p>
<p>Having said that, the cost of applying RD to Smith and other out of state schools is not terribly high. Send in the applications, get back the acceptances and the financial aid packages, and then make an informed decision. I don't think you are stupid to dream about Smith vs UT - you simply need to gather more information and then you can make a decision next April. </p>
<p>Bottom line Don't lock yourself down now by applying ED - but at the same time that does not mean passing up your dream - that means delaying the decision to April when it can be a more informed decision.</p>
<p>Well, you've got to be reasonable and realize what your parents can and can not afford, but on the other hand, if you do your research and apply (RD, RD, RD!) to the right schools, things may not be like they think either. For example, we live in a state with extremely cheap, quite highly rated state schools, but our son got such a great scholarship at a highly rated very expensive private LAC that it was actually thousands of dollars cheaper for him to go there than to our cheap, very good, state school. I was shocked! Your parents may not realize just how good aid and merit scholarships can be at some privates -- help them learn :-) But do <em>not</em> fall in love with a school, any school, until you get the financial package and know you can afford to go there!</p>
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I realize that going to UT would be the best choice after all. I feel kinda stupid right now.
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<p>There are one's dreams and there are practical considerations. Consider both, not one or the other alone. Hopefully, both can work out! You'll never know unless you try.</p>
<p>Ejovwo, you've gotten a lot of good advice on this thread and I think everyone wishes you the best. </p>
<p>One book I'd recommend for you and your parents is "Paying for College Without Going Broke" by Kalman A. Chany. It covers the short-term strategies for receiving more financial aid, the importance of picking a financial safety school, line-by-line instructions on how to fill out standard financial aid forms, how to compare financial aid offers, etc. I'm about halfway through it - it's pretty densely packed with info and quite good.</p>
<p>Also, be sure you know the scholarship deadlines for the schools you're interested in. For example, even though UT's admissions deadline is Jan 15, its scholarship deadline is Dec 1. This can be the case with other schools as well (BU is another example, off the top of my head).</p>
<p>One good thing about having prepared your Smith application for ED is that you have a huge leg up compared to the average procrastinator. Do use this time to look for scholarship possibilities and perhaps find other schools like Smith that offer merit money. UT may be a good choice for you, but you may be surprised come April that some privates will also make competitive offers. (Though don't forget to include transportation costs.) Good luck!</p>
<p>It sounds to me like your parents aren't telling you you HAVE to go to a Texas state school; they're telling you not to apply ED to Smith. I have to say that I agree wholeheartedly with that recommendation - you don't want to obligate yourself to Smith without knowing what the whole financial picture would be. Are your parents willing to allow you to apply to Smith and other colleges RD? You can explain to them that it's possible (depending on your financial position) for a private school to cost less than a public. If you can't/don't get merit or need-based aid, then at least be glad that UT (and TA&M) are great schools and you can get a great education, even if it's not in the geographic area or the school you'd prefer. Good luck!</p>