SLU vs Washu - Full ride vs. No aid

Colleges and Universities A-Z Washington University in St. Louis
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Hi all! I hope the college decision season has turned out well for you/your sons/daughters. As May 1st approaches, I have a pretty big decision to make. I’ve gotten advice from so many different people, and they all seem to be saying something different, so here’s my final shot at discerning a clearer answer to my problem.

I was selected for the Presidential Scholarship at Saint Louis University, meaning I would only have to pay for room and board (~10k per year). On the other hand, though, I was accepted into my dream school: WashU. Here, however, I would have to pay the full price tag of nearly 65k as we did not qualify for aid.

Now, I know what I want to do - obviously I want to go to WashU. Its social life, academics, and campus “vibe” is a far better fit for me than the Jesuit-Catholic institution that SLU is. My parents are letting me choose, though. We can technically afford WashU, but I would have to closely watch my spending while in college (maybe take out a slight loan too…I don’t know much about their income) and cut back on the lifestyle that I currently live. At SLU, I can continue to live like I do now - eat out frequently, shop a few times per month, etc.

Here’s a little bit about me that may help you give me some advice:

I’m honestly undecided as to what I want to do. I’ve switched from journalism to medicine to business to nearly everything in between. I’m still exploring so many different academic disciplines, though if I went to WashU I’d matriculate as a PNP major (whether or not that changes is unknown), and at SLU I’d be a Psych major. These are obviously subject to change. With my current trajectory, I’d be going to med school…but I really do believe I will grow passionate for something else and medicine will not be in my future. Do I know that for sure, though? No.

Will WashU be worth it for me? I’m afraid I’m making an illogical decision to attend, but I really don’t feel a lock and key fit at SLU. With that said, I do feel like I can eventually adapt and be happy anywhere, but if I got into my dream school - where the students are nerdier/quirkier (right up my alley), where the classes are more engaging, where the food/dorms are far superior, where I honestly want to spend 4 years, then is SLU even worth it?

Thanks for your help!!!

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Hi. I sent you a PM. :slight_smile:

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IMHO, you need to more clearly and convincingly establish the value in spending an extra $220+ thousand to go to Wash U. Meeting nerdy kids, eating better food and sleeping on a nicer bed doesn’t do it. Those are not investment grade reasons, and this needs to be an investment with a return. For a net savings of $55k per year, you should be able to eat ok and even bring a Tempur Pedic mattress into your dorm room at SLU. Trust me, there are plenty of quirky kids at SLU too. If there are some specific academic/career benefits to Wash U–for you and your individual situation–that would be different but, based on what you have shared here, that is not entirely clear. Further, if grad school is in your future, your cost savings would have basically paid for at least a healthy chunk of it. By that time, it is quite likely that your unknown future field of interest is more sharply in focus and you would have the freedom to select the proper grad school to best launch yourself, without having to think so much about the cost factor at that time.

Your sponsors might appreciate your interest in saving them a quarter million dollars, even if they don’t say so. Allowing you to make your choice here is pure love and a willingness to sacrifice for you. Even though you don’t know much about their finances, the mere fact that you might need to take out a small loan should tell you that attending Wash U is likely to have a significant financial impact. You should not mistake their willingness to do this for you as meaning that it’s easy for them. And maybe that’s why you are asking all of us for our thoughts. If so, good on you.

My daughter attends Wash U and she too had a tuition-free offer elsewhere. It was only after laying out some seriously major, specific, career-related advantages to Wash U for her, that we made that decision and her mom and I don’t look back. We regard the money as being a solid investment–in her case. But without those substantive, readily demonstrable, benefits–to her particular situation–in favor of Wash U, she would most definitely not be there. In my view, you need to examine this through that same lens to arrive at your conclusion and determine if you are making an investment or simply spending money.