Is Trinity now the most expensive college? Imagine Sarah Lawrence is happy to let go of that distinction.
Well, if they have higher acceptance rates than Trinity then students arenāt clamoring to get into them are they? Trinity has been attracting students as evidenced by its increasing applications and declining acceptance rate. Smartest colleges does not = selectivity when it comes to college admissions.
We could sit here and listen to you on what defines selectivity and peer group but bottom line is Trinity is attracting students despite its tuition and its tuition doesnāt stand out as being too high relative to other private schools in its peer group and especially among those in its geographic region. It offers a unique set of attributes that works in its favor.
@jym626, isnāt Columbia most expensive?
Most colleges havenāt released 2018-19 attendance costs yet. I surely doubt theyāll be the highest as this article seems to indicate some were already higher than the 2018-19 Trinity number posted here during their 2017-18 academic year. But you do have to compare apples to apples and a lot of these articles include fees and such without pinpointing exactly what is included in the total.
@PurpleTitan - Sarah Lawrence held that dubious title for quite a while. If Columbia took it over, well thats a race surely none of them wants to win!
@jym626, actually, it could be a point of pride.
āOur education is so good that we can charge more than anyone else for it.ā
https://financialaid.gwu.edu/cost-of-attendance
https://www.sarahlawrence.edu/financial-aid/undergraduate/tuition.html
https://www.collegedata.com/cs/data/college/college_pg03_tmpl.jhtml?schoolId=436
NYU, GWU and SL are all pretty pricey. GWU hasnāt updated for 2018 yet.
@PurpleTitan - Iām thinking a school wouldnt was to be THE most expensiveā¦ as in āyes we cost a lot to attend and we are worth it, but at least we arenāt as expensive as XXXXX college! 
Isnāt that already the case in some states, like Pennsylvania?
Arg- typoā a school wouldnāt want to be THE priciest.
āIsnāt that already the case in some states, like Pennsylvania?ā
A lot of New England state schools as well.
Oh I definitely think Trinity is āaspirationalā in terms of what the college considers peer institutions and at that pricing. I would put them in the Dennison, Kalamazoo, St. Olaf crowd+$20,000. But if it works for parents willing to pay the inflated rates more power to them.
The Ohio/midwestern LACs are great and underappreciated for sure. If they were in the Northeast, Iām sure their admissions would be much more selective - and their fees would also be higher! Midwestern LACs are a bargain for oneās tuition dollar.
In terms of midwestern LACs, University of Minnesota - Morris and Truman State University have relatively low list prices, even for out-of-state students.
I think Trinity suffers a bit because of all the good company it has being in the NESCAC. Same with Conn College. Every school in that league is fabulous, but people like to rank, so in comparison to the likes of Bowdoin, Williams and Amherst etc etc, Trinity falls to the bottom of the list. But it really is an outstanding list. Kind of like when people refer to Cornell and Penn as the ālesserā Ivies. Lol!
Big culture/value differences across regions.
Outside the Northeast, even those families who are wealthy enough to easily afford being full-pay at a private (and paid for private school for all kids K-12) may opt for a state school (because of sports, Greek houses, or even to join the local power elite*). You almost never find a similar family in the Northeast opting for the in-state flagship option (outside of maybe PSU).
- In Louisiana, LSU undergrad+Tulane law would give you a better network than any combination of Ivies. UF alums have dominated the FL legislature since forever.
But, some people in the S. will pay for Sewanee, Rhodes, Vanderbilt, Hight Point (the country club mentioned earlier), Rollins, Wake Forest, Davidson, Richmond, Duke, Emory, some will pay for Birmingham-Southern, and a little unknown cute school, Millsaps etc. Its not all big flagships. Oh, and LSU is having some financial problems these days. Some programs are getting cut.
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Was Trinity a favorite for our generation and parents are sending their kids there now regardless of the cost or caliber of the college? I wonder what the mystique is that attracts full pay parents. What kind of kid chooses Trinity? I am genuinely interested.
Iām just one data point but found it very underwhelming given all the choices. I have never known anyone who sent their kids there including my east coast friends. Colby, Bowdin, Hobart, Bucknell, Dartmouth, Colgate for the smart but not bookish kids of my friends in the NE who didnāt venture out of the northeast. Trinity was on my radar and caused the trek because of engineering so we went, we listened and we saw. It is a strange linear campus too in the middle of a really bad area which made me wonder about safety but maybe that had changed in the past 5 years. My son is/was a 6āft 2ā burly guy so not so much worried about him but I was a tad concerned. For $70,000 really???
Hobartās going to set you back at least $66K a year (as would all the other colleges you mention), it is not ranked as highly as Trinity, and a lot of people would consider it in the boondocks relative to Trinity. For full pay families, many arenāt going to differentiate between a $65K price tag or $70K price tag. Theyāre going to make their decisions on other considerations.
Again, itās not my cup of tea either but hereās my impression based on students Iāve known who have gone there: A lot of the students I know who have gone there fit the mold - centrists to conservative and preppy. Iāve known kids who are athletes in rowing and squash (excellent rep in squash). Iāve known kids who went for engineering or economics. I think they want small LACs, they want atmosphere with less progressive political leanings, they favor greek life, they like to hang with people that look or act like them, they like being able to stay in New England and not being far from NYC and Boston. None of the kids I know who went there were legacies. Iām also sure for many it wasnāt their first choice college, but that applies to a whole bunch of colleges once you get out of the most selective top 20 or so.
Before someone chimes in to say they know a Trinity student who doesnāt fit my post, Iām just commenting on students I know.