<p>My son got accepted to a bunch of schools including BU, BC, NYU, and others. His decision right now is between Tufts and The College of New Jersey (TCNJ). He will be studying Pre-Med and majoring in Chemistry in TCNJ and Biochemistry in Tufts. He absolutely loves Tufts, but financially TCNJ makes more sense. TCNJ gave him $10k/year and Tufts has no Merit scholarship. We're in state, so TCNJ will only be $15/year for us. He also didn't get any financial aid. So financially it's a stretch for us. Both me and my husband don't think its worth spending this much money on the Pre-Med education. If he goes to TCNJ we will be able to help him partially with med school. I hate for him to graduate with over $300k loans for the med school especially the way the medical industry is going. But Tufts is his dream school and I know its a perfect fit for him.</p>
<p>I wanted to hear what people's opinions are. Is Tufts worth all the extra money?</p>
<p>Tufts is great, but it’s hard to justify the differential in cost given your residency benefits and the scholarship at TCNJ, not to mention the costs of medical school.</p>
<p>I love Tufts, but would not allow my son or daughter to go that far into debt to go there or anywhere else, even an Ivy, for that matter. 4 years of tuition/room/board and expenses!! Has your son researched the cost of medical school?!</p>
<p>We were faced with a similar conundrum with our son this year. He was accepted into several private universities (including one ivy) where we would be nearly full pay (ouch) and some state schools with merit based scholarships which made them much more affordable choices. In the end, we have decided that graduating debt-free from undergrad will make the college experience much less stressful for all of us, will free up money for study abroad and other interesting experiences throughout these next 4 years for him and will give us the opportunity to help out with med school down the road. I must confess, it was most difficult to pass up the ivy league offer, but ultimately, we believe we are teaching our son important life lessons in living within one’s means and financial responsibility. I also firmly believe that he is an exceptional young man who will achieve whatever he sets out to do regardless of where he goes to college. </p>
<p>These are tough choices to make. I hope you and your family come to a decision you can all be at peace with. Good luck!!!</p>