Prestige v.s Cost-- UT or UTA

State Forums
1

Hi! I’m kinda of stuck in a dilemma (as my screen name shows). I’ve been given the opportunity to attend 3 great universities which I’ve been granted the admission to. These schools include, UT Austin, UT Arlington, and UCLA. Although UCLA would be a great choice and I would love to go, and is my absolute dream school. Due to financial reasons, the possibility of actually going, but drowning in masses of debt, I decided not to dig a hole for myself, regardless of the prestige and opportunities, financially; it is suicide. Especially as a Texas resident.

Now to get into the actual meat of my plead for advice and help. I am now left with the UT Austin and UT Arlington.

I’ve always felt I belonged at UT Austin, it was the only in state school I saw myself going to. UT has given me a full tuition offer in university grants and financial aid. The only cost I have to pay is the cost of living, which puts me in a pickle because my parents are quite poor and they can’t afford to invest the cost of living and books for me, which I completely understand, but I am given the opportunity to take loans, which I don’t want to do at all. UT Austin has the name, the prestige. the opportunities, the experiences and it also has my heart.

Although, the UT Arlington has given me the opportunity to attend my undergraduate years debt free and a full ride with an extra 5k left over to use for living or books or whatever! Although this school is not the ideal school I had in mind for myself. This school isn’t too bad, has a decent reputation, but it is so close to home. My mind says yes to this school because financially it is smart. So my question is, should I attend UT Austin and take the loans for the cost of living (10k amount of loans with interest) or attend the UT Arlington on a full ride with quite a bit of extra money to pocket.

I thought about attending UT Arlington for a year or two to maybe discover myself and my interest and transfer into UT Austin. Oh, and also, I am an undergraduate student who has no clue what to do with my life. My general idea was to pursue a career in medicine or business, but who knows. I’m just afraid of losing the experiences and opportunity a much more prestigious university would give me and if I do decide to transfer. I’m afraid of missing those one to two years at UT Austin. So either UT Austin all four years with loans and debt, UT Arlington full ride with left over money, or transfer! But I want the advice of the public! I would really appreciate anyones two cents! Thanks! My heart says UT Austin, but my mind says UT Arlington.

2

To which school were you admitted at UT Austin?

3

CNS, sorry should of specified my major.

4

You are limited in the amount of money you can borrow. $5,500 freshman year for a total of $31,000 over four years.
Can your parents help out with paying room and board?

School starts this month. How do you still have options at UT Arlington? Haven’t you already committed to UT Austin?

I think it is worth it to attend UT Austin and have the $31,000 in debt, but you need to make sure that the allowed loans will cover your costs. Don’t start at UT Austin when you know you will run out of money and have to drop out!

5

I made the unethically decision to accept both universities and still haven’t truly decided. Haha… My parents can’t help out or won’t help out. It’s really an on my own kind of thing.

6

But yes I have committed to UT Austin, but can go back to UT Arlington if I choose so. I’d just like peoples advice on this dilemma, if you could choose between the two and based on what was offered.

7

It looks like you can’t afford UT Austin. Aren’t fees due?! The school is covering tuition but that leaves about $10,000 for you to pay. Your loan maximum is $5,500 (did your parents get turned down for a Parent Plus loan?)

Did you attend summer orientation and register for classes? Are you planning on living in a dorm?

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I attended orientation and registered for classes. I plan on staying off campus in an apartment. Parents denied the Parent Loan Plus

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What if my parent is credit denied for the Federal Direct PLUS Loan?

If credit denied, the parent will be presented with three options at the end of the web application process:

Apply with a credit-worthy endorser to continue with the PLUS Loan process and complete PLUS Counseling OR
Appeal the credit decision from the Department of Education if your parent feels he/she has extenuating circumstances or incorrect information on his/her credit report and complete PLUS Counseling OR
Indicate that he/she will not be pursuing either of the above options. As a result of the PLUS denial, you may be eligible for an additional $4,000 or $5,000 Federal Unsubsidized Direct Stafford Loan. If your parent indicates he/she will not pursue an endorser or an appeal, you will be offered any additional Stafford Loan eligibility via the Student Administration System.

10

^you should be eligible to borrow more money on your own.

I hate to encourage too much debt. Look for a job or ask about work study on campus. good luck!

11

Thanks! That is what I plan to do to afford to live. I would still like more opinions and advice on this situation!

12

It looks like you may be able to get the loans you need to be able to attend UT Austin. They do not give out many full tuition scholarships, so it’s great that you got one.

UT Arlington with no debt or UT Austin with $10k/year debt.

I typically would go for the no debt option, but I can definitely see the appeal of UT Austin. IF (and it is an if) you can secure the loans you need to keep go to UT Austin for four years, it might be worth doing. However, bear in mind that if you are planning on a science degree, you often need an MS degree to be able to do much.

UT Austin is difficult to transfer into, so I can definitely see going there and trying to make it work, but only if you have your funds locked down for your full first year. Do NOT start the schoolyear without the funds to finish it.

If UT Austin isn’t all that you had hoped it would be, you can transfer to UT Arlington.

13

parents choosing to not use parent plus loans is not the same as being denied a parent plus loan.