@nyuhopeful44 It would be a long shot to get any merit from PITT, you will need a lot of loans to pay each year. If you want to go to University of Alabama, talk to your parents about the COA and how you plan to handle it. It shouldn’t be a surprise each year you’ll have to pay a lot of money for college so anticipate how you’ll pay for it.
You right, you deserve it! No lecture from this parent, everyone has already said it and they are right, but if you want to play the fantasy college game I’ll play!
I Say Go Big Or Go Home! My order…
- NYU - who wouldn’t want to live in NYC?
- Pitt -You are smack dab in the middle of a fantastic medical complex, it’s a great school, beautiful campus, and absolutely will prepare you for med school. Pittsburgh is in a Renaissance, great town!
- U of Alabama - I say nope to 'Bama. I just don’t like it. No real tangible reason, just don’t care for it, it’s not my cup of sweet tea! As a northern transplant to the south myself, it’s a big culture shock. Although one plus - you could probably preserve a good gpa for med school admissions at 'Bama. don’t know anyone who hasn’t visted or attended that didn’t LOVE it.
Seriously dude, listen to what these experienced adults are saying, at some point you are gonna have to face reality.
I do feel bad for you. You worked hard and you had a lot of expectations. I honestly don’t understand how your parents and high school counselors didn’t have this conversation with you earlier. All of that being said, you have to focus on what’s best for you. The other posters who say how debt will dictate your life are right. Don’t do that to yourself. Go to the counselors and let them know that you just found out that your college choices aren’t going to work because you can’t pay the tuition, and if they don’t give you an exemption for applying after 12/1, you’re going to have to take a gap year. They should make an exception. And if they don’t, do consider a gap year. If you go to community college, you might not qualify for some of the scholarships that are otherwise available to incoming freshmen.
On many other threads, people have mentioned that high school counselors often say little or nothing about affording college. Also, if the OP’s parents are high income but have little savings, they may not be the best at financial planning, so they may not have set the best example. It could be that college choice is the first significantly-cost-constrained choice that the OP may be encountering.
@ucbalumnus I believe you, but maybe after OP has this discussion with the counselors they will have this discussion with future kids. Doesn’t help OP, though, and I feel sorry for him for the reality check. Hopefully he’ll take the advice about limiting debt.
@labegg thanks for the advice!
I feel like no one else on this thread is listening to me
- I don’t mind being part of the population that doesn’t graduate debt-free, that’s not my goal
- My parents have money and will help as the year goes on, but they’re STARTING me with 20K
- I’m not going to a cc or a college that I don’t want to go to
- There are other factors that I posted about the pros and cons of these schools and I’m trying to figure out which one is the best fit for me, money plays a role but there are other factors as well
" I want to go off and live on campus and have the time of my life, not go to a crappy cc or tiny four-year college. I know that I’m going to graduate with debt, I’m not trying to graduate debt free."
…these are not the words of a mature and responsible person.
I am certain that if your parents were to contact your guidance counselor—>director of guidance—>principal—>superintendent of schools, they can process applications after Dec. 1. What about kids who get rejected from everywhere they apply? As a high school administrator, this “rule” doesn’t hold water. At all.
But I don’t think you want to hear the truth, and people on this thread are giving you the truth.
If you wind up with $75,000 in student loan debt, do you know you will actually pay back about $110,000? So that’s like an extra $35K in interest. This will take OVER 20 YEARS TO PAY BACK if you pay $750/month. Do you know that 20 years after you graduate, you will likely have your own kids who are approaching college? (In addition to a mortgage, and a LOT of other expenses.)
So you can poo-poo the whole affordable college thing, but at least be a grownup and research what it will cost you on the back end.
@CValle no, the OP has NO IDEA what the financial implications are. Hopefully the parents do.
Use this website’s student loan calculator to see the impact of debt on the rest of your life. Pay particular attention to income needed to sustain the debt and remember to add in the cost of medical school debt.
http://www.finaid.org/calculators/loanpayments.phtml
Call admissions counselors where you want to apply to and ask if you can get conditionally admitted on an unofficial transcript that you are able to provide and have your high school send in the official one after graduation.
Add University of Toledo to your list, they are affordable, close to Michigan and their pre-med students do very well.
CoA $28,000
Auto Merit $15,000
plus they allow you to stack outside scholarships
http://www.utoledo.edu/admission/freshman/scholarships/2018/out-of-state.html
If you plan to enjoy your college experience you will probably want to be able to travel with friends on breaks, go out to eat/bars, see concerts, etc. - all these things require money beyond CoA. What is your “enjoy budget” with your other options?
@nyuhopeful44 one point that many others have alluded to but which apparently needs to be spelled out is that freshmen are only allowed to borrow $5500 in loans in their own name for that first year of college and only a little more in subsequent years. That’s it, and $5500 will not make any of those schools affordable with your budget. Any additional loans (Parent Plus, etc) would have to be taken out or cosigned by your parents, and they would be financially on the hook for those loans. Are they willing to borrow significant amounts of money in their names every year for your college expenses? Most parents are not willing or able to do this. You need to know the answer to that question ASAP. If they are not, then you have no affordable options because you will not be able to borrow the large sums you need by yourself, even if you are willing to do so.
OP, I know you feel like people aren’t being helpful in answering your question. (My choice would be Alabama solely for the weather. I hate being cold.)
Talk to your parents TODAY about how much debt they are willing to take on. Remember, you can only take out $5500 your freshman year. The total you can take out in your name is only $27,000 over four years. Make sure your parents have the credit rating and the willingness to take on any addidtional debt. Remind them that the interest on the loans they take out will start accruing immediately. Ask them how they are going to be able to afford to pay back those loans if they can only afford to provide you with a couple thousand dollars a year in help for college? How will they pay for your sister to go to college if they’re going into debt for you?
Educate yourself on a parent PLUS loan: https://www.edvisors.com/college-loans/federal/parent-plus/introduction-to-federal-parent-plus-loans/
Then ask yourself whether you are willingn to place this burden on your parents.
What you will do to help them in the future. Don’t assume you’ll be making lots of money as a doctor and can easily pay them back, because you’ll be up to your eyeballs in med school debt.
OP, no one is telling you to graduate debt free. That isn’t a realistic possibility for you. What they are telling you is that your maximum borrowing capacity is $27,000 over 4 years. No bank will lend you more without your parents or another credit-worthy person co-signing those additional loans. Do you have someone willing to take on that kind of oppressive financial responsibility? Most students do not.
OP, please take the advise above so that you don’t end up as one of the many kids who come back to CC in May, upset that they don’t have a school choice their family can afford. Yes, you will have debt but you have to be sure now that you parents are willing and able to take on outside debt or pony up much more than $20,000.
@nyuhopeful44 I think it’s very legitimate to take on debt to fund your college education. The question is whether you have the ability to, and if so, how much is reasonable? And another question is, what are the alternatives?
@itsgettingreal17 comment is really the first step, because if no adult is willing or able to sign for any debt over the $27,000 you are entitled to take out in government loans by yourself, the rest of the conversation is moot.
So the next question is, if your parents can’t GIVE you more, will they co-sign a loan for you? AND, do they have the ability to? You said they do, but did you confirm that with your parents? Once they see the numbers, they might not be willing to cosign. The worst is if they stop co-signing while you are part-way into college, and then what do you do? You need to make sure they are aware of the total number and won’t balk part-way through. Even if they commit, life still can throw a curve ball and they might not have the ability to part way through. AND, don’t forget that by co-signing the loan, your parents’ ability to borrow for a car or a house or anything else is adversely impacted, let alone what happens if you default (you can’t get a job, you become disabled, etc). Just ask some of the parents of kids who graduated in 2008, even hard-working kids who went to great schools couldn’t get jobs.
So the next question is the cost/benefit analysis of taking on this debt. If you are a CS major who can get a high paying job upon graduation, your cost-benefit analysis is going to look a lot different than if you are a major in a field that has poor job prospects/pays poorly or requires additional education at additional cost. Part of the pushback you are reading about on your thread is that you want to go on to med school, so your total debt will be astronomical. You will see a ton of threads here on CC that advises kids that if they want to go to med school, do everything possible to have as little undergraduate debt as possible. Use the calculator in the link provided by @BuckeyeMWDSG,. Then look at how much someone with just a bio undergrad degree makes. Then you can run the numbers again including in your med school debt, and look at what a the average internist makes. Don’t forget that you can’t count on getting into med school and becoming a doctor.
Moving onto what are the alternatives?
- You could always ignore all of our advice and go to one of the 3 schools you've identified provided your parents are willing and able to sign loans. I don't think that there's much of a cost difference between Pitt and NYU because of your parents' EFC, but I've heard that NYU's financial aid office is difficult to deal with, and you really can't minimize that your everyday costs in NYC is going to be substantially higher than your everyday costs in Pittsburgh. Comparing Alabama's cost of $23k/year to NYU's EFC of $37k/year and multiplying that by 4 years, it's $56,000 more in ADDITIONAL debt ($72,000 debt vs $128,000 debt....I already took into account the $20k your parents are giving you). For me, that's a no-brainer, but run the numbers so you can see the monthly cost for yourself, then you decide.
- You could apply to more schools that would cost less for you. I can't believe that your HS won't bend the 12/1 rule for you in this circumstance, and if you get pushback, I'd have my parent's get heavily involved with this. Time is running out on this option for this year, and for many schools the deadline to get the best merit is already passed.
- You could take a gap year and work to save money, and during that time apply to some additional schools early enough to get their merit, like Michigan State. This is not a "crappy CC or tiny four year college".
Honestly, I do feel bad for you because you’ve worked hard and achieved, and your expectations were so different than what you’re being told here. Try to change your thinking from “you’ve worked hard the past 4 years to get into a great school” to “you’ve worked hard the past 4 years so you could get a great merit award and make the next 20 years of your life easier”. I think you’ll be glad you did.
The decision has been made that I will go to one of the three schools, work through college to pay bills, and take on some debt. My parents will help me pay tuition as well. I appreciate everyone’s help, but numbers will not change my mind at this point. Can anyone answer my original question about which school is a better fit for me?
The OP’s remarks are painful to read. He or she has no clue just how destructive un-payable, non-dischargeable student loan debt can be to one’s chances of life satisfaction and future success. The OP should focus on choosing between Michigan, MSU, EMU, and U of Toledo, and getting a BA or BS with a minimum of debt.
OK, I’ll play. Go to Pitt. It is closer to home and you like it.
It’s probably easier to live in your car in Alabama where it doesn’t get as cold.
Wow. Some of these answers are really harsh. The OP came on here to ask a question between 3 schools. I really feel for him. He is in a tough situation, and to tell him to live in his car doesn’t seem helpful at all.
He and his parents have decided together to take on debt to go to school. He is not the first, nor will be the last. I think he understands the situation Remember - his is 17 or 18 years old. And sure, he might come off as flippant at times. He’s young. My D1 did this as well, so I am seeing that pattern. But ultimately it’s the parent’s decision. You all gave great advice about how to look at the finances - that is huge. But we are past that now - he told us in post #54.
OP - I think you should go to Alabama - at least visit since you don’t seem to have done that yet. It’s a good school. It may not be your dream school, but it really does have a lot to offer. My friend’s S1 from OOS is in the Honors College there and is very happy (and paying full price I might add). Everyone is right about the finances - and they are giving you a lot of money. It’s not as if you all have an “extra” $80k sitting around, so be smart about this part.
@3mamagirls No, the OP has not said his parents will take on the loans. His parents have not said they will. He is assuming that they will. This is likely to end very badly. We see it on CC every April.