<p>my s turned down full ride at state u for full ride at top private lac---I told him he could use college savings towards grad school if he made decision to go w full ride---but left it to him</p>
<p>whoops, misread post</p>
<p>whooops, misread post</p>
<p>No, I mean she accepted a spot at Yale rather than take full rides offered at other schools because of her National Merit standing. Sorry if that was unclear. Believe me, I'm well aware of Yale's finaid structure.</p>
<p>no harm done.</p>
<p>My son is at a little lower academic level than Harvard, but was waitlisted at Northwestern and got in at Pepperdine. He also got in at State U and also a small college with a $17K scholarship to small college, which would make State U and small college (not a vigorous academic reputation) same price. I would like to send S to Pep. Is is worth it reputation wise?</p>
<p>And he doesn't like "smaller schools such as Whitman or Willamette.</p>
<p>My daughter turned down a full ride at one LAC for a half tuition scholarship at another. She just felt a better fit.</p>
<p>The cost difference for us would be $26000 per year at Pepperdine.</p>
<p>Spending $100,000 for college is one thing. (Still too high in my opinion). Spending $100,000 MORE THAN WHAT YOU ARE ALREADY PAYING in my opinion is plain financially irresponsible. </p>
<p>Of course, I will qualify that with a statement that it's based on percentage. If you make $300,000+ per year, then it isn't that bad. If you make $100,000 per year, It's a lot worse. If you make less then that, you shouldn't even be thinking about it.</p>
<p>My opinion is based strictly from an investor's point of view. You are not going to recoup that difference. If it was the student asking this, it's possible to rationalize it. The have a pretty long time of earning potential ahead of the. There is NO rational for a parent. They aren't getting this money back. Unless you make the $300K a year or more, you are actually risking your financial future and possibly making your kids forced to help you out.</p>
<p>P.S. That $100,000 held for 10 years at a modest 8-9% would be worth about $250,000. You could help buy the kid a house later if you thought you somehow ripped them off of a better paying job. There is no direct correlation between spending more for college and a better career. Especially when the average MIT student will only pay about $15-$20K a year for school.</p>
<p>Christcorp, Please tell me how to get a modest 8-9% right now?</p>
<p>Kid, now college soph, was NMF who turned down full rides at two public and two private colleges to attend a small religious school with no financial aid.
Dad wanted him to go to this school; I wanted him to follow the $$$. Two years later it's still a sore point with our family as paying for this school is a huge financial strain. (No college savings). S has contributed everything he made during high school and working full-time during the summers, but I still ask him if he will transfer to a cheaper school or take a year off to work, pay for the next year. If you have more than one kid, and aren't rolling in dough, think hard about it.</p>