My daughter has options at a number of great schools and than some that were not affordable. At the end of the day, if you applied to a schools it likely is due to is being a good fit one way or the other. We just don’t think it’s worth breaking the bank given their is little difference. For my daughter OSU had the best to offer in terms of the program she was looking for and it fell within the budget…plus she loves the campus. It was an easy decision. No school is worth double the cost…
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Mine was able to sign into her Student Self Service and is not enrolled.
But that said, I doubt we will get any aide (lovely middle class). I’m just so confused on the merit. They say scores were not needed but how do they determine merit then?
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D got Capstone, OOS waiver and $500. Weighing that against FSU with OOS waiver, and UF (but no merit). Blessed to have such great choices.
How to say no to your kid. C of C is still “reasonable”. U of SC will be instate minus $500. C of C about $10K more per year. We’d be under $40K.
It’s got less pedigree - but it’s not like it’s Harvard to SC. So i don’t think that matters.
She’s got really cheap tuition at Alabama and Florida State (not - Honors). You never want to disappoint your kid. I can afford the C of C - but is it worth it??
We are identical. Wife/Daughter will visit FSU/UF next week. The FSU waiver is huge - their tuition is dirt cheap.
They will also go to UGA ($9500 off), U of SC ($500 + out of state) and the C of C - the favorite and most expensive (tied with UGA) at about $21K a year.
As a parent we think with our wallet - but i always want to to what my child wants if I can.
Many seem to compare U of SC and FSU. There’s a chat string about it. Rank wise FSU is higher by about 50 spots - but I don’t think that holds true in reality to most employers. They’re just both big state schools.
Most on the chain seem to think the U of SC area is nicer but it will be interesting. I guess it’s about $5K difference if you get the $500 scholarship at U of SC vs. OOS waiver at FSU.
Personally I liked FSU’s campus and the surrounding area a little better than UofSC, and the dorms seemed nicer. I didn’t care at all for UF’s campus or Gainesville and the dorms seem very shabby. But its her choice, not mine. I think our all in cost difference comes down to about $10K less than SC for FSU, $10K more for UF, and we are very fortunate that she doesn’t have to make the decision based solely on cost. I feel she will do best where she feels most comfortable, so I hope she doesn’t just chase the ranking. We’ll see.
@ab4924 same for my daughter. Original acceptance letter stated 40k now today’s letter is distinction award approximately 15k per year. Is this an upgrade or in addition to? What is Capstone? Thanks in advance for for your help!
If you went from 40 to 15k per year that’s a 5k per year upgrade. You e t from the merit to distinction award. Congrats. They both have a gpa of a tad over 4. The lower an act of about 29. The higher a 31. See the scholarships here.
Capstone is the ‘honors’ of non-honors programs. It’s highly rated on the chat board. It’s got a loving and other component. It’s not the Honors College but it’s a fairly great opportunity.
https://sc.edu/about/offices_and_divisions/capstone_scholars/index.php
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@tsbna44 thank you for clarifying! Originally thought it was 40k plus an additional 60k 
Sorry. My typing stinks on the phone.
You aren’t that lucky. Another $60k. That’s better than levels a few above what you got.
The money you got is fantastic but frankly the capstone is a wonderful opportunity.
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We received the merit letter last night - daughter got OOS waiver + 4K/yr.
My daughter received Capstone as well and merit went up from $40K to $62K (plus that random $500). I don’t think U of SC is on her radar because it’s (in her mind) too close to home. She got into Darla Moore, which I think is a great program (and more highly regarded than some of the others she’s gotten into) but I can’t force her. Still keeping U of SC in my back pocket as it’s one of the few schools that she’s gotten into that’s committed to 100% in-person learning and campus activities. That’s priceless to my husband and I, as we’re not interested in paying for her sit in a dorm room and watch recorded classes.
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We liked UGA’s campus and the surrounding areas a lot more than UofSC. So be prepared for that to rise to the top after visiting, if she hasn’t already.
We haven’t visited UofSC yet but currently, UMD is ahead of UofSC in term of cost, location (near home) and the Honors College program that they offered based on what I know so far.
Does anybody has any idea, which school has better Honors college between UMD and UofSC? I don’t know much about UofSC’s Honors college except, they have nicer dorms. Daughter got into Integrated Life Sciences program (Honors) at UMD, which sounded fit for her Biology science major. I went there many moons ago, so I know the campus is huge. However, I’m hoping, with honors college, kids will experience smaller LAC feel along with other benefits.
There are a number of honors college rankings sources. UofSC shows up on a number of “best” lists, but I do not recall seeing UMD.
UofSC says they have the best because one group that now rates based on number of mortarboards (5 is best) used to rank numerically and last time they did that UofSC was 1st.
I would recommend googling best honors colleges and seeing what you can find.
Personally, no. Spending an extra $40k over 4 years on an undergraduate education isn’t worth it. Unless C of C offers something so dramatically different academically that will result in a significantly greater career opportunity it’s not worth it. These kids all build up this image of the dream school. It’s nonsense. In end in our case my daughter ended up with 4 great schools that fit within the budget , require loans etc…she picked her favorite from the 4.
People get hung up on rankings as well and ultimately it means nothing. Employers don’t give a hoot where your school was ranked or where the honors program was ranked. They care what practical experience you gained upon graduation. I work for one of the worlds 10 largest companies and I can tell you a kid that graduate from Stanford isn’t more likely to get a job than a kid from U of Kentucky because of school ranking. We hire based upon actual skills and experience gained during there four years and not the name of the school on the diploma. Students should be picking schools by the quality of the program for their major, what experiential opportunities exist, campus life and affordability. Rankings, “dream schools” etc should have little relevance.
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Son got into Capstone and received Superlative Award (in-state tuition and $500). He is finally ready to commit!
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From google search, “College Kickstart” and “College Transitions” listed both UMD and UofSC:
College Kickstart: https://www.collegekickstart.com/blog/item/top-undergraduate-honors-programs-class-of-2025-edition
- Listed UMD lacked of Honors priority Class registration but I heard UMD has H-version Department courses, which for Honors students only. UofSC doesn’t have Honors advising and Research opportunities for Honors but maybe the info is not corrected.
College Transitions: Top Honors Colleges
I think daughter will need to spend more time researching on the Honors programs. She did a couple of Honors events from both schools but liked UMD more so far.
I wonder if U of SC is now going to wait to see how many kids accept/reject their offers (now that merit has been awarded) before releasing the final round of acceptances for those deferred from EA and in the RD pool. If so, we may have a longer wait than I had hoped for.