I forgot to add
She is STEM strong but very socially minded. Has NO IDEA what direction she wants to go in however, her strengths are in math/science and physics
It’s a relief to read your update. I’m so glad to hear you’re protecting her from herself. She will be grateful to you for being the adult at some point in the future, no matter how unhappy she might be now.
Ok…now I see that she is more liberal-minded so I don’t want her to jump to the wrong conclusions by these suggestions…
These schools are still awarding huge merit for her stats…
UAB…yes, in Alabama, but Birmingham is liberal and less southern. Strong in math & sciences…strong in all things healthcare related (premed, prePA, preDental, Public Health, etc). Has a strongly ranked research med school on campus…
At UAB she could be a total left-winger and be fine. Granola all the way is totally ok. Tats, piercings, brightly dyed hair, no problem.
UAH…in Huntsville AL…Not southern at all. Lots of transplants from all over the county. I’m from Calif and when I moved to HSV, I felt like I was living in Southern Calif.
UAH strong in all STEM, but particularly strong in Eng’g, Bio, Chem, Nursing, and Business.
At UAH, it’s more conservative than UAB (because many are children of eng’rs), but still accepting of all types because the children are from all over the country.
At both, she’d get at least free tuition. I suspect that if she selects a major ((not undeclared), that she’d get a dept award on top of the free tuition.
Now…Miss State would also award her free tuition, however, it is a southern school in many ways…but strong in all STEM areas.
I would contact Truman State and see what they’d do at this point. Lovely school.
UDayton might also still award big merit for her stats. Lovely school, strong in STEM and also liberal arts but I don’t know if remaining costs would be too high. Last year, they were awarding top stats very large awards…they have a scholarship grid and were awarding top stats the high end of the range.
Is she a NMF??? If so, more options are still available.
For some reason, I see her going into Public Health …does that sound crazy or too far off?
One of my son’s friends went to UAB for public health and is finishing her PhD in public health at UMich.
Her Brother went Community Health, he is a now a Licensed Dr. of Physical Therapy. I think she is resisting health as it was her brothers path but yes, everything points to it.
Thank you for these resources, she is so against “the south” for school. Thank you for the insight into the Alabama schools, I have heard some of this but she would not listen, now that she is in a pickle, perhaps she will consider.
You’re courageous - it’s not easy for parents, but you’re right, as mad and upset as she is now, she would be not only mad and upset, but in terrible shape financially five years from now, crippled by debt for years and years and years.
However, she has ONE more option!
She can use the list of colleges that miscalculated yield. It’ll be published around May 5th. There are always excellent colleges on that list. She needs to have her commonapp ready to go, and take 3 days to write good supplemental essays. The early bird gets the worm or rather the first applicants get whatever FA/merit is still there. If she wants to study OOS, it should be feasible.
COnsidering how strong her stats are, the best option otherwise is for her to take a gap year.
OP- so relieved to read your update.
Your D will have so many more options professionally if she’s not stuck having to take the first job that comes her way once the loan payments become due.
Good luck to you guys…
Personally, in our home, we told our kids we would NOT allow them to take on debt for undergrad, under any circumstances, and we’ve repeated this regularly from age 12 or so onwards. They know our dollar limit, and we’ve educated them on the whys/wherefores/etc. We have the means to help them get a solid 4+ year education debt-free, and they can choose from a number of schools to attain this (merit aid at some OOS schools or cheap in state options – so far, 2 for 2 have chosen University of Alabama’s (OOS for us) generous merit aid). We would not co-sign loans, and would cut off every dollar of parental support if they insisted on going somewhere we could not afford – which would presumably stop them since I don’t think it’s feasible for them to borrow what they’d need to borrow). I’ve lived with student loans, and BELIEVE ME WHEN I TELL YOU that 80-100k (it’ll be 100k with interest by the time she graduates, even at 20k/yr . . . which is likely to be 25/yr by the time she graduates with tuition increases) . . . it is not going to be very manageable, AT ALL. Our kids have graciously accepted our limits and made wise choices within the parameters we’ve set.
I do not know of a SINGLE PERSON whose kid is going into high debt (say over 30k) for undergrad. NOT A SINGLE PERSON. It’s NOT NORMAL.
If there are NO OTHER options for getting an undergraduate degree, I would consider as minimal loans as were required. . . but, I don’t think that’s the case in your situation. I strongly encourage you to reconsider supporting this plan (with your signatures or finances).
And, if you are willing to support the plan, then, personally, I think it is ON YOU to come up with the loan repayments, and you might as well get used to that idea NOW, as otherwise, you’ll be out 100k AND your relationship with your daughter, too, as the conflict will be never ending.
18 years old with no higher education is NOT grown up enough to take on life-altering debt. The reason they require a co-signer is BECAUSE of that. No bank would be stupid enough to loan her, on her own, 80-100k . . .
Please don’t let your kid make this mistake. And, if you are gonna’ let her make it, then, please, step up, and accept the cost as YOUR cost, not your kid’s. It’s highly likely to be yours in any event, so why not accept that graciously now instead of furiously 5-10 years from now, after all y’alls credit is ruined.
Sometimes, the parent has to be the bad guy and play the reality card. Now is the time.
I suggest a road trip to visit some of these schools in the near future. Get some apps in, and go.
She needs to see for herself that these schools aren’t stereotypes.
These schools generally do not have complicated apps. Often the apps can be done in under 30 minutes, don’t require essays, and don’t require LORs. Easy peasey.
Another school that “might” be still awarding large merit is Springhill in Mobile. It’s Jesuit but really that is totally fine if you’re not Catholic.
DPT is very different from a Public Health career. Even if he did Community Health as his undergrad, going into PT is just a totally different path.
What about becoming an Occupational Therapist? Speech Therapist? Audiologist?
@MYOS1634
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However, she has ONE more option!
She can use the list of colleges that miscalculated yield. It’ll be published around May 5th. There are always excellent colleges on that list. She needs to have her commonapp ready to go, and take 3 days to write good supplemental essays. The early bird gets the worm or rather the first applicants get whatever FA/merit is still there. If she wants to study OOS, it should be feasible.
COnsidering how strong her stats are, the best option otherwise is for her to take a gap year.
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Finding excellent colleges isn’t really the problem. She needs at least full tuition awards. Falling in love with a post-May-5th school that deals mostly with need based aid, isn’t still awarding merit, or doesn’t award HUGE merit, will just get her back to where she’s already been…facing big debt to pay the bills.
Also, look at the New Mexico publics…they seem to always want more high stats OOS students.
The Nacac List will be published around May 5th (there’ll be a link on collegeconfidential as well as many national magazines). Students with strong stats who apply within the first week have excellence chances for merit aid: at that point, it’s a “need a college/need students” deal. How much merit however is impossible to predict in that round. It’s worth trying at least.
In the meanwhile, reach out to UNC Wilmington and its honors program, St Michael’s in Vermont, apparently both may still accept applications but not sure if they’d still have merit money for her stats and whether they’re still accepting applications. St Michael’s in Burlington, one of the top college towns in the country (it’s also where UVermont is) and UNCW is by the beach in NC. Both good academically and certainly better than Hofstra. UNC Asheville has Mechatronics, not sure if they’re still accepting applications. Hendrix is very strong academically and still accepting applications, it’s a very liberal small school but Arkansas so probably a no-no for your child (although Hendrix students are kind of in reaction to what middle-Arkansas is).
Perhaps you can reach out to Lewis and Clark - they’re strong in the sciences, on the outskirts of Portland Oregon, as far from Texas in weather and culture as you can imagine, I don’t know if they’d accept a late application and whether they’d still have merit aid.
Still accepting apps (till Ap 15)
If she wants radically different, there’s NCF (an Ivy-feeder, super intense academically, but also no grades, definitely alternative, small, on the beach in Florida - automatic merit if she applies by Ap 15) and Antioch College in Ohio (think “70’s hippie college meets co-ops”).
Concordia Moorhead if she wants cold and snow, musical and friendly. Truman State (inexpensive and excellent), Drake, Gustavus Adolphus, Luther, St Louis University, - all top regional colleges.
Also worth writing to: Illinois Institute of Tech. Marist (??)
A way to broach thing would be something like… “Hello, My name is… I am a student from Texas and I have … weighted GPA with … APs and a …ACT. I’m interested in many subjects: …, …, … I’ve come across your college online recently and I’m very interested. I realize it’s outside of application season but might you still be accepting applications and might you still have merit aid for successful applicants? I wish I would have applied during the regular season but I am looking at colleges on my own and hadn’t come accross your college until yesterday, when I researched it more and decided it’d be a great fit for what I want - strong academics, in/near a city - and bonus it’s in the Pacific Northwest. I hope you will not find my question out of bounds and thank you very much for your time. Sincerely, …”
Depending on your budget, there’s also the UK. They’d only look at her scores. Durham, UAberdeen, UBristol, UEast Anglia, UGlasgow, U St Andrews are still accepting American applications through CommonApp. All top programs. It’d probably cost 25K. Among the above, I’d list Glasgow, Aberdeen, St Andrews (more flexibility), Durham (college system). However be aware that there’s a lot less support in British universities, you must be able to work on your own.
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Depending on your budget, there’s also the UK. They’d only look at her scores. Durham, UAberdeen, UBristol, UEast Anglia, UGlasgow, U St Andrews are still accepting American applications through CommonApp. All top programs. It’d probably cost 25K. A
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Plus int’l travel. The family was already facing $25k per year net costs that weren’t affordable, hence this thread.
This student needs a “net cost” of below $13k per year because some of that will be paid for with student loans, some parent money, and probably the balance would be summer earnings.
@MYOS1634 I like the phone script and the unc Wilmington and st Michaels idea. Unc Wilmington attracts OOS northerners who want better weather. Cost is lower than privates to start and maybe there is still some $ for high stats STEM kids.
Would Agnes Scott in Atlanta be worth a call? All women, they want STEM, can take classes at Emory. If all the merit money is gone, apply next year?
St. Mary’s college of Md is public LAC that is often on the May 1 list. They give merit.
Good luck. It is painful right now but you’ve saved your kid a lifetime of debt.
What about contacting St Mary’s in Indiana for their engineering program - done at Notre Dame across the street…
What’s the exact amount the family can pay out of income and savings? Does the daughter have a job or is she willing to find one asap?
^^^
@MYOS1634 Does St. Mary’s give huge merit? (Like free tuition + )
The family has made is clear that they can’t contribute much, hence the reason why Hofstra wasn’t affordable even after generous merit.
We don’t know how much exactly the family can contribute. We need that data.
In the meanwhile, we try to find ideas to help, the family will be able to pick what works and set aside what doesn’t.
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The university has given her a great package but there is still a $20K yr deficit. From the Get-Go we told her we could not pay this bill
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And the mom further says this about how much DD will be borrowing for freshman year…
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It would be approx $20K for year one.My DD’s outcome of $80K is low compared to what we are seeing in her high school group.
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It appears that the parents can pay around $7k-10k, which left $20k uncovered after Hofstra merit was applied.
merit brought costs down to about $28k-30k…after parent contribution, there is a $20k gap.
Because of this, we need to focus on schools where she’d get at least free tuition so that parent money, fed student loan, and maybe some summer earnings can cover the rest.
Thank you all so much for all the advice. DD is still pouting but I figured it would be a few days. Sucks to back yourself into a corner, then try to manipulate your parents and then get called out.
We need to get her free tuition - between her and us we can then handle housing/travel and fee’s.
Unfortunately the past 5 years have been tough on the family financially and what we could contribute was never kept a secret from DD. She just decided that we would either cave or she would somehow manage to finance a ridiculous amount of $$ for her education.
We told her that her grades and test scores were going to have to be heavily relied upon. Sure, its not ideal and its not what we planned for over the years but at this point in the game, this is the way it is.
Her father had a stroke a few years ago and gone was his ability to earn the kind of living he had most of her life.
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DD is still pouting
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That’s normal…time will heal.
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We need to get her free tuition - between her and us we can then handle housing/travel and fee's. <<<
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Thank you for the confirmation. That way we won’t clutter your options with unworkable suggestions.
In the meantime, coming up with some alternatives, and maybe planning a road trip to visit some of these schools will help.
Was she a NMF?
No she never got involved in NMF
She is an IB student but not seeking IB diploma