I got into Lafayette as an English major and I’m wondering if it is the right choice for me. I love the school, and I’m fortunate enough to be able to afford it without having to worry (I’m going to be paying for college with money from my fathers life insurance) . But, I’m wondering if i would be making the wrong choice by spending so much on college, as I’m not exactly sure what I’m going to do, or if I’m going to end up with a high-paying job. I would like to later get my masters degree in english or art therapy, and I thought Lafayette’s art and writing programs are very good.
I also got into Quinnipiac, Fairfield, and drew with generous partial merit scholarships, and Fordham and TCNJ.
In short, I’m wondering if Lafayette is the right place for someone who does not have a clear/ high paying career path in mind. And, just because I can afford Lafayette does it mean I should?
You have a great set of schools to pick from! This is really a personal decision, not knowing how much money is exactly involved. I would tend to try to save money for a graduate degree, but again, if you can afford and love Lafayette, it’s a great school. Very different environment than TCNJ. Maybe go to accepted student days and see which one feels the best?
Congratulations on your acceptances. This really comes down to how much money you have and how you choose to spend it. Will you have money left for grad school if you go to Lafayette?
I can tell you the following:
My D is a recent graduate of Lafayette and IMO the school has a great deal to recommend it. FWIW I do disagree with the above comment about Greek Life (there is a post about Greek Life in the Lafayette page you can read) as it is easy to have a happy and busy social life if one goes Greek or not.). I felt that Lafayette found that secret recipe that allowed students to be academically challenged and also to have a good social life, get involved in ECs etc. She got a wonderful education, had small classes, made great friends, got to know professors, did research on campus for 2 summers which was published in a scholarly journal, and got into a top grad program in her field. She wanted to attend a LAC from the start and could not have had a better expereince.
That said, my S went to Fordham (Gabelli) and also had a fantastic expereince. He also met great friends, got a wonderful education, and got into a top grad school in his field. He specifically wanted an urban location and the combination of the traditional campus at Rose Hill with the access to Manhattan was ideal for him. As a Jesuit university Fordham (and Fairfield as well) have a large core curriculum which may make it difficult to double major. (The plus is that I felt my S got a wonderfully well rounded education there.) You can look up the core online as well as the graduation requirements and get a sense of where you stand.
I have less to say about Fairfield and Quinnipiac – I looked at the schools with my kids and liked them based on our visits but since they did not attend I have no meaningful first-hand knowledge to offer.
I think you have great options. Think hard about your financial situation and what options you have for the future if you go different ways. Maybe visit your top choices during accepted students day as well. Good luck.
Honestly, I would not spend as much money at a private school if I had cheaper public options.
English is a major that all colleges have and I don’t think one school is going to be that much better than the others.
For a masters in English, I think you would need to pay for that.
@happy1 I have to tell you the reason why the Greek life thing bothered me-it actually boiled down to an impression and please correct me if I am wrong. I believe there was an incident involving a death at Lafayette in 2017, a terrible tragedy. Now this could have happened anywhere. During my 4 years at Fordham we had at least 4-5 deaths of our classmates. It’s horrible to think about your child going off to college and never coming back. When on our tour of L, I actually asked our tour guide what steps the school had taken to address the issue with students and parents. She claimed she had no knowledge of any incident or death and really had ZERO idea what I was talking about. That shocked me to the core. Were the students told to discourage conversation about it? Was it covered up? That non answer really disturbed me.
@foreverfawn First, I’m sorry about your father. With regard to your choice, will that money be available to you for other things if you don’t use it for college? Would you have it for grad school?, a down payment on a home one day? Seed money to start a business if you ever choose to? If so, my preference would be for one of the lower priced schools. They are all fine places. Drew and Quinnipiac were very high on my daughter’s list. You have no idea how good it is to have some money saved for a rainy day - even unexpected health expenses. Kids don’t generally need to think about things like that, but you will soon be an adult.
If you really dislike those other schools, don’t go. But if you can see yourself at a place that will allow you to graduate with no debt AND a nest egg, don’t underestimate the importance of that.
@BronxBaby My D graduated in 2016 but I did read about the tragedy in 2017. While it doesn’t make the situation any better, this particular tragedy had zero to do with Greek Life – it was a freshman who drank to excess with his sports team and apparently took a fall and hit his head in the dorm. Freshman can not even pledge a frat at Lafayette (they have sophomore rush). Like many/most colleges, Lafayette does have a Good Samaritan Policy in place – sadly it appeared that this young man’s friends thought he was sleeping off the alcohol and did not recognize that he was in grave danger. If the tour guide was not at Lafayette in the fall of 2017 he/she should know about things like the Good Samaritan policy but may not know about this particular incident. I agree this was tragic. However, as you noted sadly this happens on virtually every college campus (including Fordham where my S attended, and it even happened back when I was in college).
NOW LET’S PLEASE GET BACK TO THE OP’S QUESTION (which had nothing to do with Greek Life)…I think the decision should be make based on things like: 1) is Lafayette strongly preferred over the other options 2) how much is the financial difference and what does it mean in terms of future plans (ex. paying for grad school, having a nest egg after college)?
@BronxBaby The death was tragic… You can Google it and get plenty of information however the short of it is that the student died from a traumatic brain injury following a fall. The severity and symptoms of the fall were misunderstood by others since the student had been drinking… It had nothing to do with Greek life. The student was a freshman (and Greek life is not available to Freshman) and the incident occurred within the first few weeks of school which while not excusing the guide’s ignorance, may help explain it.
To the OP, it is right to consider long term financial considerations. If it is a viable option, it is a great school. My son is a sophomore.
@Temperantia@happy1 I actually liked Lafayette and like I said my son has remained on the WL. My only issue was the tour guides reaction-and she could have set me straight right then and there about the incident or referred me to some statement by the president etc. Her not answering sent me into conspiracy mode!
@BronxBaby As I said earlier if the student was not on campus in 2017 he/she might not have been familiar with the incident. If you want to pursue this conversation you can feel free to PM as it is unrelated to the OP’s question.
Thanks everyone for the responses. Lafayette is one of my top choices but I’m still torn, as I like them all a lot. I like the overall environment of the school, but am not sure about the Greek life thing. I don’t think I’d fit in with the sorority girl crowd as I’m pretty quiet. I’m going to a few accepted students days and I’m going to see how i feel there.
On another note I actually loved Quinnipiac when I revisited, but since they are more known for health sciences I was worried about whether their English program would be a wise choice. However, english is a small community within Quinnipiac which I like. Yes I’m grateful to have so many options but it’s a hard decision!
Life insurance is a finite amount of money. Use it up on college and it will be gone.
I vote for TCNJ. I don’t think you will get a better education at any of your other choices and you will have money left over for your life after college. You could get a reliable car, put a down payment on a condo, or go to grad school.
Back to your original question - what career path do you have in mind? That’s the critical q for me. If you are planning to go on to graduate school in English, you will likely be working as a TA for a couple of years on a basically subsistence salary not able to save a whole lot for 6 or 7 years until you have your PhD. In that picture, the inheritance provides your financial buffer while you eke out your way through grad school clearing a couple thousand a year. If you are planning to go to a grad program you have to pay for - like law school - then you will need that inheritance to cover your tuition and living costs for 3 years after you are done your undergrad. So your options impact how much money you need to have in hand 4 years from now. What do you plan to do? I know that’s a big question for anybody let alone an 18 yr old, but if you can provide some of the context boundaries it’d help with the potential answers.
I am sorry for the loss of your father and commend you for thinking hard about your finances and college. My DS will be attending the admitted day on Sunday at Lafayette. At 72,000 a year it is something to think twice about. It sounds like you can afford to pay the tuition. And if you have a significant amount left over after your are probably good. But if not, I’d like you to consider a few things that happen in life where I (a parent with a good income) appreciated financial help from my parents. My Wedding, a donation towards my down payment on my home, a gift used towards my DS private school, and a small future inheritance when my parents go to heaven that will help in my retirement. So, you can see that there are many times in our lives when we can use financial support. In your case, you received all your financial support at once and now have to examine how to best spend it, not just now, but over your lifetime. I hope my own personal example helps as you consider your options. Best of luck. You sound like a thoughtful person and I’m sure all will work out as it is meant to be.
