Not paying the Room & board "sticker cost"?

Paying for College
1

<p>I was wondering if anyone out there has any advice about being economical and smart in regards to room and board costs. Any tips, tricks, whatever to help defray room and board costs as I start to worry about that in the coming year. I've got a tuition grant from my fathers employer (a university) so I'm essentially paying $2,000 a year for tuition, wherever I go, but after that $2k deductible and books, there's not much more money from the family to help me out, and I'm looking at loans for the room and board (~$7K-9k a year average to the schools I'm looking at). It may sound whiny only really having to worry about room and board and transportation to school, but I don't really want to be looking at $36k in loans just for living somewhere after I graduate. </p>

<p>My parents are split and I'm my moms dependent, she makes ~30k-35k a year, we haven't done the FASFA yet, so I can't for sure give you a EFC, but I'm fairly sure we could qualify for at least a little pell grant. My "36k in loans" is worst case scenario I guess with no grants/scholarships, but I would love to hear some ideas about being able to cut R&B costs!</p>

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<p>Well, if you’re going to live off campus, find cheap housing. You should try to find students who are in apts who are looking for roommates and rent is low. </p>

<p>If your school doesn’t require you to live on campus or buy a meal plan, you can save a lot of money by cooking your own meals. </p>

<p>Why haven’t you done FAFSA yet? You may miss out on some aid by applying sooooo late. Get that in ASAP. </p>

<p>Is your dad giving you any money for school?</p>

3

<p>I’m a rising senior, sorry, forgot to say that. (I don’t need that in right now then, do I?) And is off campus housing really that much better of a deal? I kind of like the idea of dorm life, or at least want to try it out. </p>

<p>And I’m going to go to an out of state school, I’m fairly sure of that. So between transportation, the $2k, books, and other stuff like my phone bill and basics for clothes and stuff they’re pretty much going to be tapped out.</p>

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<p>If you’re in a lower cost of living area, off campus housing is often much less expensive than dorm housing, especially if you go for pretty basic housing without a lot of amenities or share with a number of people. If you want to live in the dorms and spend the least amount of money, then you should pick the least expensive dorm room (triples are often less expensive than doubles, older and un-airconditioned is often less expensive than newer with amenities) and the mealplan that is most economical for you and the way you eat. Until you’ve chosen a college, it’s hard to know the best route to take.</p>

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<p>Going out of state to a state school may be your most expensive option, since state schools usually don’t offer much merit money to out of state students. Some out of state privates, on the other hand, may offer merit and come out more affordable. How much is the tuition grant going to offer toward other schools? Many schools require freshman to live on campus and have the most expensive meal plan. After the first year, things do get more affordable, with options to live off campus, cheaper meal plans, etc. If you don’t have a job, get one. Working this year and next summer you could put quite a bit toward costs and save yourself a bit in loans. Every little bit helps.</p>

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<p>I’ve got a tuition grant from my fathers employer (a university) so I’m essentially paying $2,000 a year for tuition, wherever I go,</p>

<p>Do you have to choose a school from a list? Are you certain that you’ll only have to pay $2k in tuition no matter where you go?</p>

<p>What are your stats? Maybe you should apply where you can get a merit scholarship as well. </p>

<p>What are your stats and what schools will the tuition benefit work at?</p>

7

<p>In another thread OP stated:</p>

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<p>The operative words here are up to 31k. If the tuition is less than 31k, you will only get the cost of tuition and you will have to make up the balance including room and board.</p>

<p>OP may be ok being an OOS at some other public universities, but the 31k will not cover the entire cost at pretty much any school. for example OOS at UVA is $38,326 and the full COA is 51k.</p>

<p>Please keep in mind that many private schools will cost more than 31k, so you will have to pay not only the tuition difference but the room and board difference.</p>

<p>I think that it is safe to say that your father will not be contributing any additional monies, so you will have to depend on your mom’s income and assets. Even at schools that require the Non-custodial profile, your father will have to fill out the forms for you to get need based aid. Filling out the forms does not obligate him to pay. He would most likely still use his tuition benefit and leave the balance for you and your mom to work out.</p>

<p>I agree with m2k that it is extremely important to you to make sure that you have some financial safeties on the list. You will will probably be eligible for for some Pell and a $5500 stafford loan. So what is your plan regarding working out the rest of the financials?</p>

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<p>On the book cost side, they probably won’t cost $2000/yr unless you buy them from the university book store.</p>

<p>It is a good idea to spend money to stay in the dorms instead of an apt the first year.</p>

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<p>Yeah see this is where people get confused. My tuition benefit will cover tuition only, so if the tuition is less than $31k, it does not roll over into anything else. We have to pay a $2,000 deductible to get the benefit for each year we use it. So like I said, between my parents contributing the deductible, money for transportation, some books and basics like that, I’m on my own.</p>

<p>I want to study meteorology, and most private schools don’t offer it, so therefore I’m looking at state schools, which is fine with me, because I really prefer a big state school. All of the schools I’m looking at, in this order of desire to attend are:
-Penn State (by far my #1 choice)
-Oklahoma
-NC State
-Mississippi State
-Indiana
-Rutgers
-Kansas
-East Carolina
-UNC Asheville
And two reaches in Florida at Miami and Florida State.</p>

<p>So basically, I really, REALLY, don’t want to stay in state for college.</p>

<p>I’m not counting on getting any merit money because my idiot tests (SAT&ACT) aren’t high. I’ve never taken them well since the third grade when they did placement for accelerated classes. I only have a 23 ACT, and a 1590 SAT. I’m going to take them again September/October, and hopefully I can scrape it up a bit higher, but I’m not expecting a miracle. On the other hand, I have a 3.788 UW GPA, 4.67 W GPA, top 4% in my class, etc. And it’s not necessarily grade inflation, I mean we sent 5 kids to Duke this past year, and 9 to UNC-Chapel Hill, and some more to places I don’t remember. </p>

<p>If any will give me merit aid, it would be ECU and UNC-Asheville. Perhaps MS State for my HS record. I’m probably going to get a job while in school too, federal work study or not. And yes I’ve been working a job since November of last year and I’m going to continue it through next summer saving up.</p>

<p>Edit: To Clarify, The grant is from Duke, so Duke says “Ok, you’re going to pay us $2k/semester (Just found that bit out.) for this grant, and when you do, we’ll pay you UP TO 75% of our tuition of the given year towards any schools tuition in the country” The 31k is 75% of Dukes tuition this year. The whole idea of the grant is to try and keep kids out of the congested NC School system, so it doesn’t make as much sense to go to an in state school, where the grant would only help, say, 4K of tuition, whereas out of state it would knock it out at all of the schools I’m looking at.</p>

<p>Here it is:<a href=“http://www.hr.duke.edu/benefits/education/tuition_grant/[/url]”>http://www.hr.duke.edu/benefits/education/tuition_grant/&lt;/a&gt;
<a href=“http://www.hr.duke.edu/benefits/education/tuition_grant/tuition_examples.pdf[/url]”>http://www.hr.duke.edu/benefits/education/tuition_grant/tuition_examples.pdf&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

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<p>Etuck–</p>

<p>I work with a professional metereologist. (30 years in the business.) According to her, it’s not necessary to have an undergrad degree in metereology since nearly every job requires a minimum of a MS for entry-level employment consideration.</p>

<p>She recommends a general physics undergrad (one with a concentration in atmospheric physics if available) as the most common/most easily accessible preparation for a graduate metereology/atmospheric physics studies.</p>

<p>If you’re willing to consider her advice, then you can look at private schools.</p>

<p>Here’s a list of school that offer atmospheric physics programs:</p>

<p>[Atmospheric</a> Physics](<a href=“http://education-portal.com/directory/category/Physical_Sciences/Physical_and_Environmental_Science/Atmospheric_Physics.html]Atmospheric”>http://education-portal.com/directory/category/Physical_Sciences/Physical_and_Environmental_Science/Atmospheric_Physics.html)</p>

<p>Also if you’re willing to look farther afield of the Mid-Atlantic/SE region, you may find some schools with low R&B costs–like NM Tech or Texas Tech.</p>

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<p>Based on the information you presented the minimum out of pocket cost your family will have to pay is $5824 (a deductible of $2912 per semester).</p>

<p>If you were to attend PSU as an OOS, the tuition is $13,603 per semester. </p>

<p>After your parents paid the $2,912 deductible and it was confirmed that you are in attendance, Duke would pay Penn State $10,691.</p>

<p>You parents would be responsible for the additional direct costs ($430):</p>

<p>Activity Fee $82
Information Technology Fee $240
Facility Fee $108</p>

<p>Their total out of pocket cost would be $3,342 per semester or $6,684 per year. </p>

<p>As I stated in my previous response, this would most likely fall to your mom. </p>

<p>Again, based on your mom’s EFC, you may get a Pell grant and a 5500 k loan. </p>

<p>$6,684-$5,500 (student loan) will leave 1184 (which will hopefully be covered by Pell. </p>

<p>Now the question remains is how are you going to pay for room, board, books and misc. expenses especially since you state that your mom is not in the best position to pay out additional monies?</p>

<p>If your mom does not have the money, despite your dad generous tuition plan from Duke, you may still have to commute from home.</p>

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<p>At some public universities, you can get a free single dorm room if you work as an RA. Sometimes, you get a stipend, too. (I’m not sure about free meals, though.) You wouldn’t be able to do this until your sophomore year, however, but it’s something to keep in mind. Some schools will require that you complete a for-credit course on being an RA and you would have to gain admission to the course.</p>

<p>Another option is get involved in the “residential council” (or whatever it’s called at the school you attend). It’s often fairly easy to get elected since a lot of students don’t want to get involved. So, just show up and ask the people on your floor to vote for you. If you actively participate your freshman, you can use that as a springboard for a higher office, like President or Secretary of the dorm council. The housing office at some schools will give free housing to those officers. This could involve free housing in university apartments as well as dorms. In exchange for free housing, you’re expected to man an office for a certain number of hours each week (not very busy and you can study while sitting there) and to plan some social or recreational events or activities for residents of the dorms (usually once each month). These are not necessarily elective offices. Sometimes, you are selected by the outgoing officers after an interview with them. So, get to know them. There usually aren’t too many applicants.</p>

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<p>Sybbie is RIGHT…</p>

<p>I’m surprised that your dad hadn’t determined what the deductible is for THE YEAR. It is given as “per semester” so you have to multiply it by TWO to get a YEAR…</p>

<p>Duke Children Tuition Grant</p>

<p>Deductible for 12/13 Academic Year:… $2,912 per **semester
**
so, your deductible will be about $6,000 per year… </p>

<p>As Sybbie mentions, if you/your family can’t come up with the $6k in deductible, plus room, board, books, fees, travel, personal expenses, etc…then you may need to find cheaper options.</p>

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<p>Well i do think the per semester is new either this year or the past. I ran a rough financial aid calculator with Oklahoma, and it said my EFC was $0 and I’d most likely be getting a $5500 Pell and an additional $1400 SEOG. I’m not expecting to get through school loan free, but if I’m able to get that ~7k in grants, would it make it more economical? Then I wouldnt have to go over the $27k in subsidized loans at the most. </p>

<p>Sent from my DROID BIONIC using CC</p>

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<p>

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<p>It is a non issue because the policy is in effect now and minimally it will be the amount that your family will have to pay before Duke benefits kick in.</p>

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<p>SEOG is not guaranteed money. It depends on how much the school actually receives in SEOG funds. SEOG funds are very limited with the average award being no where near 1400. Since Oklahoma is a public university, if there are SEOG funds available, it would most likely go to an in-state low income student. You should not count on this money.</p>

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<p>Do not expect to get SEOG. Schools do not have much of that and ration it out. And, an OOS student at a public may be last on list to get that (publics often try to help instate students first).</p>

<p>I realize that the NPC indicated that, but I think that is another example of these NPCs “pushing the envelope” a bit …but not to such an extreme that anyone is going to scream “foul”.</p>

<p>In another thread, an OOS full-Pell student wanted to attend PSU. The NPC suggested that the student would get a couple thousand more than just Pell…but the student only received Pell. </p>

<p>So, do NOT count on SEOG. </p>

<p>When you did the NPC, did you only include your mom’s income? Does your dad pay any child support for you and other children? </p>

<p>if you get the $5500 Pell Grant, then that will just about cover the deductible. How much is the estimate for OU’s room, board, fees, books, personal expenses, and travel? that could be $10k or more.</p>

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<p>I mean of course I’m not going to assume I get free money. </p>

<p>But just breaking it down, Say my parents are able to contribute the deductible for the tuition between them. Tuition is then covered. Then say I get the $5500 Pell since my EFC is “0”. Assuming the cost for R&B is, say, $8000 a year, I’m looking at $2500 for R&B, plus other msc fees like transportation and books. I’m also planning on working in school, be it work study or not. So assuming I get no other type of scholarship or grant, I would only be looking at something like $5000 in loans then, would I not?</p>

<p>The NPC only asked for my mothers income since I’m her dependent, and yes she put child support on there, however when I turn 18 (right after the first week of college) child support stops</p>

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<p>Financial aid for school year 2013-2014 (your freshman year) is based on 2012 income, so the support that she receives this year will be considered for awarding you financial aid freshman year (yes, she does have to include the child support). </p>

<p>Sophomore year’s financial aid will be based on 2013’s income even if the support stops the first week you finish college</p>

<p>use the fafsa4caster to get an idea of what your EFC will be and if you will be pell eligible</p>

<p><a href=“http://www.fafsa.ed.gov/[/url]”>http://www.fafsa.ed.gov/&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

<p>Hopefully Kelsmom will chime in to tell you whether the tuition benefit will have to be included on the FAFSA</p>

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<p>Right, but since I still have an EFC of 0, even with the child support included, wouldn’t that be a non-factor anyway for the most part?</p>

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<p>If your mother makes 35k and she is getting child support payment, you will not have a “0” EFC. Sit with your mom, run your numbers through the FAFSA4caster.<br>
based on what your EFC comes out to, you will be able to determine ~ how much Pell you will be eligible for</p>

<p><a href=“http://www.kirtland.edu/financialaid/documents/2012_2013_Pell_chart.pdf[/url]”>http://www.kirtland.edu/financialaid/documents/2012_2013_Pell_chart.pdf&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;