<p>Pennylane: They’re fine with whatever I do, though like I said, this is all operating under the assumption that I’ll be paying the difference. If I’m prepared for that, they are 100% fine with my going to A+. They actually have reservations about B (different ones than I’ve got). They like X for some reasons that I’d rather not get into (though obviously including $), but they accept all of my problems with it.</p>
<p>How will YOU “pay the difference”? You will be able to take a $5500 direct loan your freshman year…but any additional loans will require a cosigner…your parents. Will they be willing to cosign college loans for you if necessary?</p>
<p>Why are you applying to college X? You need a sure thing safety school that is affordable AND that you would be happy to attend. You do NOT need a school that you would rather not attend.</p>
<p>As a premed potential, you need to keep any debt to a bare minimum. Med school costs are very high and there is precious little aid for med school beside loans.</p>
<p>You are a resident of NY. That being the case you have a whole menu of SUNY and CUNY colleges from which to choose. Lots of options for premed majors.</p>
<p>How did you arrive at this application list…with one ED school you really like…and two other schools, neither of which is a slam dunk…and one which you don’t want to attend at all?</p>
<p>If you don’t accept the ED for Yeshiva, there is still time to apply to some other worthy choices.</p>
<p>This is a difficult problem- and it’s good that you have some time to think about it (albeit not a lot)
If you got into college B, would that be the one you accept?
While it is your decision, I would talk to them more about what they like about college X and what reservations they have about college B. Parents often have a longer term perspective on things than high school students do.
While there is a cost difference, there is a certain value to YU, the same reason that parents pay for Jewish day school over public schools- for the unique experience and religious support that isn’t found elsewhere. However, I am sure there are large Jewish communities at the schools you applied to as well.
It isn’t easy to carry the expense- and your parents will pay room and board. Is there anyway to reduce some of those costs and put the money towards tuition? Live at home, with a relative, or some other option?
The cost of med school is significant. Taking on debt is a serious consideration and may tip the scales in the direction of cost free.
Lots of questions to think about.</p>
<p>Thumper- Since the OP doesn’t qualify for FA, I don’t think there are many colleges that would bring tuition significantly below about 7K a year ( the cost of YU minus the scholarship) for the OP. This scholarship is a generous one (30K a year)
The NY public colleges charge about 5-6 K a year, but that’s not a big difference over YU. The choice of YU is being compared to no costs.</p>
<p>Thumper:
College B is CUNY Macaulay. If I get in I will probably go, though not as my first choice. There are obviously other honors colleges in the CUNY system, but they are not my first choice either.
For various reasons, the SUNYs (except possibly Stony Brook) aren’t really options. I need to stay close to home.
I applied to College X because my parents wanted me to.
One thing that YU has is a full medical school scholarship for women who continue on to Einstein. Obviously that only applies if I get into Einstein, but as about 15 women got in last year, assuming that they still have this scholarship at that point, that is a point in its favor. Obviously this is NOT enough to really tip the scales- trust me, I know that. Not even close, but it’s there.
This is all stuff that’s being considered. If I were going for a degree where I could get a job right out of undergrad I’d be a lot less worried about the 20k or so of debt.
My parents are willing to cosign my loans. If I default on them, they’ll pay for them, but I’ll obviously pay my parents back…
Pennylane: College B for free vs College A+ with the 20k total… I’d probably take College B. But that’s not 100% certain, and either way, College B’s acceptance rate is in the high teens. While my stats are competitive, they’re not competitive enough that I’m confident I’d get in.
The Jewish factor is big in my decision to have YU be my first choice. I visited twice and both times sat in on amazing Jewish studies classes that I’d love to take. The Jewish environment is also a wonderful thing to have. That’s 100% a part of my decision. Macaulay does not have a very big Jewish atmosphere (I picked, as my first choice CUNY, one of the CUNYs that doesn’t have a big Jewish community), and while X does, like I said, no.
Oh, and one major plus to a Jewish environment? Many times Jewish holidays coincide with school, which means that students have to skip school in order to prevent the conflict. Going to YU would mean that those days are automatically off days- which, from what I hear from my friends in college, is nothing to sneeze at.
Living at home is also expensive and time consuming, and part of the reason I want to go is to be part of the community. Taking the bus, by far the cheapest option, would save me about $1500 tops- nothing to sneeze at, but not necessarily enough to be worth the 3.5 hours a day it would cost me to do it. Possibly, but I don’t know. I don’t have any relatives in the area who live any closer than I do, and honestly, if I have to commute, I’d rather go home than to a random cousin.<br>
Right now, my reasonably safe options:
- Taking the scholarship at a cost of about 7k a year.
- Tossing the scholarship, and if I don’t get into Macaulay going to a regular CUNY for honors. Possibly a full tuition scholarship, but possibly not, and not necessarily the best classes or best education. Commuting (my only option at this point) would cost me at least $4000 a year. (Either from $22 a day on the bus, plus train fare to get to the bus stop, or from $13 a day for tolls plus gas and parking costs.)
- Going to College X. My parents actually think this is an option, for some reason. I really don’t want it to be one.
By the way, don’t get the wrong idea. I got my letter last night- there hasn’t been TIME for me to talk about a lot of this stuff with my parents. I’m just trying to get on the ball so I know what to discuss. You guys are helping me a lot- thanks again.</p>
<p>Also, as this year they are not offering full scholarships, 30k is the highest possible. It’s not really easy to complain about it.
In addition, since I selected Hunter College as my first choice CUNY (not really a good idea, in retrospect, except that it is closer to my house than Brooklyn, my second choice), there is actually no honors program with a scholarship. So I’d actually be going to CUNY with no tuition assistance. Comparing the costs side by side, 12k for YU (differential plus dorm) and ~10k for CUNY (tuition plus transportation) doesn’t have a big difference- plus, for CUNY I’d need to go for four years and YU I’d only be there for three. In the end, CUNY is more expensive.
Essentially, only Macaulay is actually a better deal.</p>
<p>Penny…that is $7000 PLUS room/board costs. So really more like $19,000 a year.</p>
<p>A stafford loan, work study & a summer job, would permit you to attend school A.</p>
<p>I think we’re comparing tuition, not total cost? Isn’t she paying tuition regardless? I think parents have agreed to pay that.</p>
<p>So essentially you would turn down YU at 7K (+ room and board) a year for a 15% chance of acceptance at Macaulay. Where do your stats sit in comparison to this: </p>
<p>Students accepted into Macaulay Honors College for the class of 2015 had an average GPA of 93.4 and SATs of 1405. </p>
<p>Not that this is predictive, but if your are below this, it would lower your chances probably.</p>
<p>Consider this about college X med school acceptance rates. Some colleges report high rates because they screen applicants. If college X does not screen, then the rate would be lower. </p>
<p>7K tuition for a school the caliber of YU is a bargain in the grand scheme of things. Debt however, is concerning too.</p>
<p>This is really a hard decision.</p>
<p>Penny…I believe her parents said they would pay room and board…see above posts. </p>
<p>So at Yeshiva, they would be paying $7000 not covered for tuition, plus $12k for room and board.</p>
<p>At CUNY she would be payi g about the same…without any aid.</p>
<p>But if she does not maintain her 3.6 GPA at Yeshiva, she will lose that scholarship. The tuition cost to make up at Yeshiva is FAR more than at any CUNY school.</p>
<p>Pennylane: It is… I’m making a kind of appointment to sit down with my parents and talk about this with all of the numbers in front of me. All of the back-and-forth here is definitely helping.
My stats are basically just above the averages (1450 SAT, 94 GPA), which explains why I’m not so confident about that. I don’t have the nerve to sit that out.
College X just doesn’t send so many people to medical school. (Especially girls, but I REALLY don’t want to get into that whole discussion.) Plenty simply don’t apply. They focus their efforts on getting undergrads to go to their own grad schools, which are like the undergrad- not terrible, but not great. It’s also simply not the best education and it doesn’t have a great reputation around here. I feel like if I succeed there, it’s in spite of their education, not because of it.
thumper: You’re right, I forgot to count meal plan in with dorms, so that turns into about 12k for dorms and food. You’re right, it’s 19k total.
CUNY would then cost about 10k a year. (Look above for the rationale- I could be wrong, but that’s how it would seem to me.)
However, it’s also the difference between 12k times three years and 10k times four years, which would make YU cheaper FOR THEM. Not for me, which is obviously a different question.
College X remains the cheapest… 
emeraldkity: Are Stafford loans the $5500 loans? Definitely on my list. Is work-study dependent on fin aid status? If not, I could definitely see myself doing that. Also, my high school is within easy travel distance and I know that this year a current YU student who’s an alumna of my high school works here to tutor. Definitely something I’d like to do.
I’m prepared to live with the debt if I have to- I’m just not sure I’m prepared to take the step yet.</p>
<p>You have to have financial need to receive a work study award. Since we don’t know your family financial situation, it is impossible to say whether you would qualify for this. Also federal work study has limited funds per college and is awarded on a first come, first served basis…so complete your FAFSA ASAP after January 1 to get into the queue.</p>
<p>Keep in mind Macaulay Honors College has a similar requirement to maintain a highish(3.5) GPA to stay in the program along with some other requirements:</p>
<p>[Good</a> Standing and Graduation Requirements | Macaulay Student Handbook](<a href=“http://macaulay.cuny.edu/community/handbook/academics/academic-guidelines/good-standing-and-graduation-requirements/]Good”>Graduation Requirements – Macaulay Student Handbook)</p>
<p>Granted, thumper1’s point about CUNY colleges being much cheaper than Yeshiva is valid.</p>
<p>If you pay for room and board at the other schools- can you eat there? I know that at some schools a Kosher meal plan is available, but at a somewhat higher cost. At least YU doesn’t have to maintain more than one meal plan. Kosher food is usually more expensive so would that add to room and board at the other schools?</p>
<p>You’ve mentioned the other two, but not college X. Maybe letting us know what that is would make a difference. Cost is a consideration, but so is caliber of college.</p>
<p>I have seen this kind of thing go both ways. Families turning down the less expensive school to pay for one considered to be better- and the other way around. I don’t think there is one way to look at this. However, if the difference between YU and college X is huge, then 7K tution may not look so large.</p>
<p>Cobrat: Yes, which is why the GPA part isn’t my BIGGEST concern. The whole concept, of course, means that I need to keep way on top of my game wherever I go, though obviously there are higher stakes at YU.
Pennylane: At CUNY, I would not be dorming, so I’d either go out to eat or pack lunch. College X is also a Jewish college (Touro Lander College for Women Honors) but I believe that they have a pay-as-you-go cafeteria and not a meal plan. Many students commute and those who dorm seem to usually cook on their own so I guess it makes sense to them.
As far as College X is concerned, its caliber is quite complicated. While in general the Touro university system is not well-rated, I’m willing to admit that the segment I’m applying for is better than most. It has some things that make up for others, but not enough that I’m really eager to go there. I’d much prefer YU and CUNY.</p>
<p>Have you already heard from hunter? If not, don’t assume no aid. There are scholarships outside of Macaulay.</p>
<p>It’s really hard to compare 2 things (cost, caliber of education) in 2 different worlds. (religious and secular). Add to that the unknown: college B. </p>
<p>The added value of the religious environment is personal, and so there’s no way to rank it or consider reputation by secular standards. I do see where YU is more recognized than the other college.</p>
<p>College B would be considerably cheaper if you did not live on campus. Even if you did not get into the honors program, your likelihood of being accepted in the regular program is probably good. what would be the cost of attending one, living at home? Are there any more colleges near you that you could still apply to? Living at home is the less expensive option (besides college X).</p>
<p>This is one of those questions that has no one answer. You just found out the info about YU recently, so there is some time to think about it.</p>
<p>zoosermom: Hunter’s honors program does not seem to offer scholarships (I looked it up, but I could easily have missed something). There are possibly other scholarships, but I don’t know about them.
Pennylane: As I calculated above, paying full tuition at CUNY without being on campus would still end up costing me at least 10k plus a lot of travel time (depending on whether I drive or take the bus, that could be 4-5 hours a day commuting).
Even if I had other places to apply, would they really have better financials than what I have in front of me? Neither is that catastrophic at this point.
Of course, I’m going to be discussing this with my parents. Thanks so much everyone for the clarity!</p>
<p>Hannahbanana, I don’t think there is a specific honors college scholarship, but there are admissions scholarships that come to people with excellent statistics, which you have.</p>
<p>OP, I am guessing that college X is Touro?</p>
<p>If I were you, I would probably go to Yeshiva and do whatever possible to minimize the amount of loans you take.</p>
<p>I believe you said it would be three years of loans of about $7000/year? Are there any outside scholarships you could apply for? Could this amount be reduced by summer work, or even some babysitting during the semester? I know some girls attending
Yeshiva, and they are often able to work a few hours a week during the school year, or babysit on occasion.</p>
<p>For an Orthodox person, the ability to not have holiday conflicts is huge. Many people don’t understand just how much class can be missed during the high holiday season–many people know about about Rosh HaShanah or Yom Kippur, but not about Sukkot or Shemini Atzeret, etc.</p>