<p>I'm from Florida and I got accepted to these schools:</p>
<p>James Madison
Furman
Miami(Ohio)
Florida State
University of Central Florida
University of South Florida </p>
<p>The bottom three are public instate schools for those who don't know and my question is, should money be the determining factor for where you go? I have a job and my parents are helping me pay for a majority of it but I feel bad and I would rather not have them pay that much. I am a business management major and I know it would be smarter to do good in a cheap undergrad and then go to a better grad school, I just want some more input. </p>
<p>Money almost always has to be a factor. If your parents have so much money that they will not miss any of the extra cost, then go where ever. If your decision makes it all difficult for them, then go with the best in-state school.</p>
<p>What is your cost difference between the schools? </p>
<p>My D’s go to Miami–we’re in state. It is a great school, but that doesn’t mean you couldn’t love a FL school just as much. D2 wanted a LAC that was very expensive, even with merit scholarship. She ended at Miami U Honors, loves it, and now states she is happy she didn’t go to a smaller college. I have never regretted spending less for their education. They are getting a great education at our state university and will graduate with no debt.</p>
<p>If in doubt save your money for graduate school. What do your parents think?</p>
<p>It really depends on what your family can afford. It’s a relative thing as to what is too much or not enough. We know families here for whom cost is not an issue at all. It isn’t even in the equation any more than whether we want a $1 or $1.20 purchase. For some family, every bit makes a big difference. If you are going to school on PELL and loans with a family that is already struggling financially, an extra $1000 has to come from somewhere, and it might be impossible to get if you are already backed up against the wall on what anyone can pay. For other families, the $1000 is incidental and doesn’t even come up in the decision. </p>
<p>Most of us work in categories. We can afford up to $X and anything beyond that is going to be a strain and has to be carefully examined and worth the financial risks it will bring to student and family. In such cases, it might be good to look at the savings over 4 years for comparable schools. My son was reluctant to ask for additional merit money from a school, and was a bit disappointed at the small increase, but, you know, X4, it is not a sneezing matter. Even a $2500, $1000 X4 can cover some things, and all things equal. I would go to the less expensive school. You gotta list the bottom line costs (don’t include WS and loans off of the cost) to get a good feel for what the true cost of a school is, and then assess the other attributes and drawbacks. It’s not always an easy choice. My senior is trying to decide now and it’s not an easy decision to make, though I think it is a nice problem to have this time of the year.</p>
<p>Furman: $51,000
James Madison: $33,000
Miami (OH): $37,000
UCF: $19,000</p>
<p>Now I’ve already eliminated Furman because I think thats a ridiculous price and the education it provides isn’t what I’m looking for. My parents say that they want me to be independent while have choices at the same time. They think it would be smarter to save money and spend it at grad school but if I believe its worth it at undergrad then to spend it there. I agree with them and I don’t mind having to work harder to get more out of the education at an instate school. I know I won’t have things spoon-fed to me for ever, thanks guys this has really helped.</p>
<p>Gosh - that’ll just have to come down to your priorities. I’d think that Miami would be a very different experience from UCF because of the size of the schools and the quality of campus community for which Miami is known, but $18,000 x 4 would buy a lot of grad school, overseas travel, house downpayment, etc.</p>