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<p>Her ya, hear ya… We are first-generation immigrants, my wife and I came to the US with less than $100 in total assets and a 12-month old baby. We lived on $620/month in Chicago with NO wellfare, we actually paid taxes (around $200/month, the beauty of the US tax system for “non residents”). We worked our asses off, never complained, never cost the government a dime, never took on any debt. Fortunately for us, we had education and eventually worked ourselves up to the class of "top 5% earners who seem to have so much scorn heaped on them in this thread. And now we will HAPPILY pay $250k for our D’s education a) because it is part of how we were raised B) it is the right thing to do C) once you get outside your own state the difference between a public and private college is marginal, at least if you have our income D) our “flagship” state U sucks pretty badly. We will spend every last cent we have saved in non-retirement accounts to fund our D’s education, and that is fine, we will live again. Our mortgage is $1500, our house is considerably cheaper than what people with our income live in, we have never paid more than $15k for a car, no boat, no second home. Yes, we do see a lot of our D’s peers from the McMansions down the street go to the crappy state school even though they were admitted in some really good programs.</p>
<p>Do I feel bitter about those kids from families with modest means who will pay next to nothing for the same education? Absolutely not. If things go the way they have been going, in 10 years our savings will have recovered to “pre college” levels, our decent retirement savings will have grown, and we will “live happily ever after”. </p>
<p>What is the point of this rant? Any family in a similar situation that claims they cannot fund their childrens’ education is full of s**t, plain and simple. Unfortunately, such parents can pass off lack of discipline and fiscal responsibility as “the government is sticking it to you, kiddo”. </p>
<p>To the OP: don’t feel bad for your classmates from affluent families, the tables have not turned, because college is what you make of it, whether it costs $25k or $250k. You can go to your fancy school “for free”, but unless you make something out of it, this will be money flushed down the drain. From the tone of your post, you sound like a thoughtful kid who will make the most of the opportunity given to you. Go for it, make all the money and taxes I am paying to send you (and others like you) to school mean something, and everything will be just fine.</p>