$120,000 in your college fund won’t even pay for two years at USC or UCLA. As an out of state student, you won’t get any need based aid from UCLA and probably very little aid from USC as a transfer. Both schools are going to cost you a lot.
So…who is going to pay?
@eyemgh I always appreciate your posts. Can you explain how your son was able to start funding a retirement account in undergrad? I thought that impacted scholarships and grants.
How would the balance in an authorized retirement account affect financial aid? The income is already income and will be reported or added back in as income if pretaxed.
The kid can fund retirement accounts as long as they earn the amount they are contributing.
Like I said…if the kid works, that income is going to count anyway…but if money is put into a qualified retirement account, the balance won’t be counted as an an asset. So actually, contributing to a retirement account rather than a regular savings could actually help with need based aid…a little.
Beware that the largest group of students I know IRL who regret their college choice and return to chat at my high school are those who graduate with high debt (defined as high 5 digit or into the 6 digits).
Younger you looks at what you perceive as the Ferrari and is wistful. Slightly older you will really appreciate not spending all of your money and more on very short term (4 years at best) gain.
As others have said, the Ferrari is mostly a mirage, being enhanced by your mind because you want it to be so. The debt and all that comes with it will be very real, chaining you for many years of your life.
That said, yes, get involved in your school. Join clubs. Start volunteering. By doing so you’ll not only make friends, but you’ll also be working on your med school app (by doing things you’ll be putting on it).
Many, many students who had to choose their second choice college due to finances have returned to chat super pleased with their choice - telling me it would be a first choice if they had to do it over knowing what they know at that point. I bet you can be in that crowd if you give it a chance. Keep your eye on your future.
And in the future your friends will likely be envious of you if they’re going into significant debt for their experience now.
He contributed to a Roth. Roth is only considered in calculating aid, if money is being pulled from it to fund school expenses.
Same for mine.
You can have a great experience anywhere once you find the right group of friends. The good thing about a mid-sized school like VCU is that there are a lot of students so your odds are pretty good of finding some that you click with.
I’ve learned from experience that there’s ALWAYS a “would’ve,” “could’ve,” and “should’ve” in every big decision. It’s just one of those ambiguities in life we never completely resolve. Years later, I look back at those moments and say…“what was I thinking trying to move all the way out there? Glad I didn’t…my life turned out GREAT!”
The fact is you don’t know how your life will turn out. You don’t know if your life would be better. There’s just as high a possibility that it could turn out worse, or even much worse. The possibilities are infinite, and we could drive ourselves crazy thinking of possibilities. The good news is that your reality right now is the one thing you can hold onto. Embrace it…love it!