Hello, Ive gained admission to both Molloy and Suny ESF. I want to be a Biology major in the hopes of becoming a vet.
Molloy is close to home and I would be a commuter student. Since I got a scholarship it would be very affordable to attend. I could play a sport there and possbly play my instrument to earn a stipend. I may gain access to their honors college as well (smaller class sizes, ipad, trips abroad)
Suny ESF on the other hand i would have to dorm but it has many more animal courses and is much more conducive to my goals. Whille i want a taste of freedom I don’t want to place a monetary strain on my parents ( I have two siblings and they too are college aged).
Please tell me what you think is best. Also give me your opinions on both schools if possible.To save money for grad school and go to the cheaper school? Or boost my chances of getting in? Thank you! ;
If you’re planning to go to grad school, I’d avoid taking on debt as an undergrad. SUNY’s run about $20k/year for in state students, so that may be too expensive. Have you looked at Nassau Community College? They have a biology major.
Can you give us specifics, namely, calculate
Molloy: (tuition, fees) - (scholarships, grants) =
Molloy: (tuition, fees, room, board) - (scholarships, grants) =
SUNY ESF (tuition, fees, room, board) - (scholarships, grants)=
Would you take federal loans (also called Stafford) for any of them? What about your parents, would they be able to pay out of pocket for the difference?
I agree ESF is much stronger but costs will matter.
Where else have you applied and awaiting answers from?
@austinmshauri no I haven’t considered NCC. I know people who have gone there and the school is commonly considered as a last ditch effort to go to college.
@MYOS1634 For Molloy I would be paying 8,000 a year (24,000-16,000)
For SUNY ESF Id be paying upwards of 15,000 a year for transport, tuition, dorming, not to mention supplies and books and food. They are sending me mail for scholarships so I dont know what I have so far.
We are in the process of applying for loans since they haven’t done their 2014 taxes. They are paying out of pocket for me and one of my older brothers.
I have applied and have been accepted to both.
Thank you both for responding!
Can you dorm at Molloy? This way you’d have the real college experience (many students report being very happy they live on campus in the town they grew up, because their experience is so different from high school).
Would Molloy still be cheaper than ESF if you dormed there?
Apply for all the ESF scholarships you can!!!
@MYOS1634 I can dorm. Dorming costs about 10,000 max and it would still be cheaper than ESF but I live a short drive away. Also I think my tuition can be covered by my scholarship alone. 12 credits is 12,900 and im not sure what else i would have to pay for. Additionally I believe the scholarships at ESF are merit based and they are very few for freshman.
In order to graduate in 4 years, you’d need to take 15-16 credits per semester. Check with Molloy whether your scholarship would cover that.
Even if you live a short drive away, that’s not the point - the point is that, by living on campus at Molloy, you’d have the full college experience, you wouldn’t be like a grown high school student going back home - you"d learn the skills that living independently teaches people, you’d develop a new circle of friends, you’d be allowed to grow much more quickly than if you stay at home.
Obviously, many students commute, and if you’ve got no choice, it’s not so bad, but if you can live on campus, it makes a big difference.
ESF is a better school - one of the best in the Northeast for the program that interests you. However, it sounds too expensive for your family. You can apply for their merit scholarships (as a general rule, most grants and financial aid will come from the college itself, and the second biggest provider will be the government, with the federal loans and, if need be, Pell grants.) If ESF becomes affordable through their scholarships, then things will be different.
@MYOS1634 At Molloy to be considered full-time you have to take 12-16 credits per semester. My scholarship covers most of it. Ill consider doming, but ultimately I’m not the one paying for my education. My parents aren’t the type to let me dorm if I absolutely can avoid it. Their clingy and have double standards.
Im still eagerly awaiting mail from suny esf. Who knows maybe i’ll be surprised.
I just noticed I miss one of your questions. I am also awaiting admission from Stony Brook university, and CUNY Hunter. I have been accepted to : SUNY Binghamton, University of Scranton, and Adelphi.
Everywhere you’re considered full time with 12 credits, BUT to graduate in 4 years or 8 semesters, you need to take 15-16 credits each semester. (However, dropping to 12 credits, ie., dropping a class, keeps you full time, ie., doesn’t cause you to lose your financial aid. If you fall under 12 credits you lose your financial aid, so it’s a good idea to start with 15-16 anyway in case you need to drop a class.)
Even if your parents are clingy, or especially if they’re clingy, dorming is a good growth experience.
UScranton is a very good school, as is, of course, SUNY Bing. Is either one of these affordable?
@MYOS1634 the sunys are pretty much in the same price range 20000+ plus a year. I ruled it out due to it being more liberal arts and it’s areas reputation.
My parents haven’t filed their 2014 taxes. I’ve done all I can and I’ve been applying to scholarships.
Actually, more liberal arts would be Geneseo, not Bing. But it’s not important.
Have your parents not filed because they don’t have a SSN, because they don’t qualify, or because they’re late?
If you don’t apply for FAFSA you won’t get the federal aid you’re entitled to!
Same thing for State Aid. Those would be very important for your ability to pay (and stay in college).
The #1 source of scholarship is the institution itself. #2 is federal aid. #3 is state aid.
After that, it’s minor: enough to pay for the trip home at Thanksgiving, for books (sometimes just books for one class…) But local and private scholarships tend to be very small, cover only incidentals, and are often only for the first year.
@MYOS1634 they just haven’t filed for 2014 I believe. I think they do it at like the last minute. I’ve only filled out what I can’t and I’ve stressed the importance of FAFSA. I’m not their first child going to college so their making it harder for me ultimately. I will file for TAP I just haven’t started to due to the previously mentioned road block. My parents have SSN their just not proactive or very dependable about these things you know?
CONGRATULATIONS!
That’s awesome. :))
However, if you haven’t filed FAFSA, I’m not sure it helps you financially - it’ll be the same at ESF and at Bing, because they both want FAFSA filed early. Can you make your parents sit down and do it? Tell them that the difference is litterally one hour of their time for thousands and thousands of dollars. Never in their lives will an hour of their time be such a fruitful investment!
@MYOS1634 I actually mentioned it to my mother this morning and she has the impression we won’t get any money. And I told her the earlier the better and that they already messed up. The FAFSA asks for 2014 information which I guess they haven’t done yet. I’ll try to stress it more often.
Tell your mother that regardless of your financial situation, you have a right to some federal aid - all students do. In addition, there are different state grants and you may well qualify. It costs NOTHING to file FAFSA and if they determine you can get more than the basic federal aid, all the better, but at least you know you qualify for federal aid.
So, some money (federal financial aid) is a right and you’ll get it no matter how much your parents make; then there is merit aid, based on your stats, not on how much your parents make; BTW, some schools won’t release merit aid unless you’ve completed FAFSA, too, so their not filing FAFSA may jeopardize those, too.
Finally, have you run the NPC? Net price calculator? If not, do it quickly( like: now). It’ll be better than your mother guesstimating you’ll get nothing.
Tell your mom: there are FAFSA deadlines and if you don’t respect them, you may lose your scholarships or not get that for which you qualify. Binghamton, for example, had all kinds of scholarships for students who’d filed FAFSA by February 1st! And since you’re a strong enough student to qualify for scholars, you’d most likely would have qualified for something.
ESF is a wonderful school. My husband has a BS and MS from there. He loved the interaction with students from Syracuse University as well and life on the SU campus (which is basically where ESF is). It can’t be beat, especially if you enjoy sports and lots of campus activity. ESF also has its Ranger school in the Adirondacks which is just one place they use as a biology field station. “Outside of the classroom” opportunities are numerous. If they don’t have what you need at ESF, you can usually get it at SU–with state tuition.
Ive recently sent in my deposit to ESF. I also plan on applying to vet school. I highly recommend it as it has a good relationship with Cornell University. Cornell’s vet school is the best in the country and it is a New York State institution so its tuition is only 30k for state residents which extremely cheap for vet school. Also ESF does give out some merit aid. I will only pay 4k for tuition with it. The expense of ESF is really in the room and board as they have beautiful new dorms to pay off. This brings my total to about 20k however after your first year you can move off campus and then the net cost is about 14k.
