<p>HM only accepted 1 out of 70 transfer applicants last year:</p>
<p><a href=“http://www.hmc.edu/files/institutionalresearch/CDS%202009-10/CDS_2009-10_D.pdf[/url]”>http://www.hmc.edu/files/institutionalresearch/CDS%202009-10/CDS_2009-10_D.pdf</a></p>
<p>I’m in a similar dilemna too and would appreciate any feedback. I’ve been accepted to both Cornell and University of Rochester. Both are amazing schools and ofcourse, Cornell has the name. I’m getting a full ride at Rochester while I’d have to pay at least 10,000/yr for Cornell. I’ve talked with a lot of people and have received mixed responses. Cornell has always been my dream school but i’ve started to consider Rochester a lot primarily because of their awesome aid. Oh and I’m a prospective pre-med bio major, any suggestions?</p>
<p>Good school and debt free…absolutely the best choice.</p>
<p>"In Ohio as well, there was a mistrust of employees with a degree fancier than Ohio State. Almost a “who do you think you are?” If you delivered and were humble, great. If not, and you were arrogant about where you went to school, you were gone. Even in Chicago where I have lived for the last 16 years, with Northwestern even present, I still have not seen where employers are overly impressed with Northwestern grads compared to DePaul, or UIC or UIUC, or Marquette. "</p>
<p>Gee, I miss the Midwest. I plan to talk to my children about the debt of those they are dating, and I am sure that people will have something to say about that. But to me it is indicitive of the times: live high now and pay later. The debt students are thinking about incurring will be with them for a long, long time.</p>
<p>Thanks arab,
I think he is set on Gettysburg…
He will be taking on 7000 in loans a year
My out of pocket is 6000 a year…
The COA is 51,000 so the rest is in grants, scholarship and federal aid.
Its a small school. He will be majoring in heath sciences or biology. He hopes to go to a 3 yr medical program after for physical therapy. I know things can change but I have to support the path he chooses…and pray we made the right decision.</p>
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<p>You do realize that attitude is just as bad as someone who thinks they are better than someone else because of where they went to school.</p>
<p>It is different in the Midwest. People probably care more about their in-state (or regional) rivalries than they do any kind of elite-college degree. I remember my dad talking about the “college boys” he worked with at his factory job; it was their summer job. It is more of a prove yourself environment. It’s hard to explain.</p>
<p>*
For me, I’m reasonably comfortable with a $45-50K debt max for engineering students, $35 debt max for regular undergrads, and I’m pretty leery of much debt at all for students in fields where employment is really, really tough. *</p>
<p>I’m a bit more conservative than this…</p>
<p>I would say $35-40k is the max amount of debt for young engineers. $40k of student loan debt requires a monthly payment of about $500 a month for ten LONG years. That is the size of a luxury car payment which a young person would be paying in addition to all of his other living expenses (which might also include a real car payment) and taxes! </p>
<p>For most of the rest of undergrads…an honest attempt should be made to borrow less than the “max Stafford” ($27k). </p>
<p>For those in majors where employment is tough or low-paying - no debt - because it could be impossible to pay back. I recently met a young woman who had graduated a couple of years ago with some kind of Fashion Design major. She went to school in NY and has debt. Her parents are making her loan payments because she’s only been able to find a lowly paying job.</p>
<p>Regarding my statement that a student should make an honest attempt to borrow less: I’m annoyed to hear some kids say that they would rather take on more debt than necessary because they don’t want to work part-time. They will choose more loans rather than accept work-study and/or summer employment. They’ll (falsely) claim the need to have more study time, but I’m more convinced that they want the social freedom instead.</p>
<p>*I’m in a similar dilemna too and would appreciate any feedback. I’ve been accepted to both Cornell and University of Rochester. Both are amazing schools and ofcourse, Cornell has the name. I’m getting a full ride at Rochester while I’d have to pay at least 10,000/yr for Cornell. I’ve talked with a lot of people and have received mixed responses. Cornell has always been my dream school but i’ve started to consider Rochester a lot primarily because of their awesome aid. Oh and I’m a prospective pre-med bio major, any suggestions? *</p>
<p>University of Rochester has a great reputation. By all means, check out their science programs and make sure they are strong in those areas before you make a decision, but in general I doubt paying tens of thousands in loans to attend Cornell over U of R would really be worth it in the long run.</p>
<p>After one of my parents read this extensive thread, and after talking to both of them as to how it might be better for me not to go to HMC with so much debt, they offered together to pay 10k a year more for my last two years if I am above the class average GPA wise my first two years. My mom also informed me that my grandparents were contributing 2k a year more than I had thought they were. </p>
<p>This will leave my total debt around $43k.</p>
<p>Of course this does not including interest, tuition increase, or possible scholarships I might win, or a cheaper meal plan I may take, etc. However, this is a number that I am willing to pay to go to Harvey Mudd- not for the prestige, but for the amazing education quality, the students, and the professors. Especially seeing that in my field (engineering) it’s relatively common to get fellowships for grad school, graduating with a PhD in Engineering with 43k of debt (plus all the other factors, I know) when I will be making somewhere around 100k a year, won’t be too bad.</p>
<p>Thanks again for all the input!</p>
<p>I’m not a fan of over-borrowing either but I think the cost has to be weighed against the reputation/quality of the program and the opportunities it offers (as well as the career field, of course). A school that is known for producing top-notch engineers, or whatever, will likely have more internships, interviews, research ops, etc. for their students. Also, a grad that has received such an education is more likely to garner a higher starting salary, and/or move up the ladder more quickly, all other things being equal. So, if the monthly payments on the loans isn’t excessive (and IBR can provide some breathing room, at least until salary increases kick in), the extra cost may be more than worth it. </p>
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<p>I agree that students should work if they’re able to (and can find a job) as opposed to partying/socializing to excess but I’m not sure a sweeping generalization is fair and the use of “falsely” in your statement kind of bothers me. The fact is that some kids are in extremely challenging programs and also require a high gpa to maintain scholarships (or just to remain in their major)! Some kids routinely take 19 or more credits at a time or have other circumstances like LD’s and simply have to work very hard. Some are very involved with campus organizations, volunteer work, or unpaid research that does not produce income now but will add to their resume and may open doors later. </p>
<p>My D has a combination of circumstances (challenging science program, needs to maintain a 3.5, requires volunteer hours, and takes 17-22 credits/semester) that brought us to the conclusion that working during school would not be a good idea, at least for now. She averages over 30 hours a week on one science course alone and this is pretty routine among her friends (only one has an on campus job). So, while she could probably find 8 hours a week to work, but it wouldn’t be hours that there are many jobs for and I think she needs whatever downtime she can find to rest, relax, and regroup far more than she needs the money right now. Other than meal and coffee breaks, she’s normally in class or studying from 8 am - 10 pm on weekdays and gets up early on weekends so she can be done by 5 and try to have a social life! Luckily, the same is true for her two roommates, although one of them is known for studying until the wee hours! Like many of her friends in similar majors, she’ll take 3 summer classes to help offload her schedule next year and is looking for both part-time and volunteer work to satisfy a program requirement. It’s likely she’ll just babysit once the elementary schools are on summer break, since that will give her the best fixed schedule to work with. The following two summers will be spent in fieldwork/classwork and there will not be much opportunity to work. It seems that all of this is fairly standard for kids in challenging majors, particularly in the health professions. Fortunately, she’s a frugal soul and saves most of what she does make and I help her out with a little extra pocket money during the year. If she has an easy semester, I know there are several student organizations she would like to get more involved with and my feeling is that she should do so. If necessary, I would rather take on an extra part-time job myself so that she won’t have to. So, I don’t agree that paying tens of thousands for an education and then sacrificing opportunities in favor of working for little pay in meaningless jobs, or having no time to enjoy the experience, is a great idea. Just my $.02!</p>
<p>^^^^</p>
<p>If possible,i would also suggest not to work during the school semesters…</p>
<p>43k debt is VERY different from 110k debt.</p>
<p>Congratulations. I’m glad you had those conversations, and I’m glad you were able to make it work without taking on a ridiculous amount of debt.</p>