I received my acceptance via mail from Amherst today, which is great except I did not get honors college nor did i receive any merit aid. I also have an offer withstanding from Lowell which is a full tuition scholarship along with a $4,000 research grant. Financial aid is a large dilemma and my parents are pressuring me to accept the Lowell offer. However, I feel that since I am a finance major the quality of an Isenberg education and the projected earnings will outweigh the benefits of the Umass Lowell offer at a less than impressive business school. Furthermore, I want the college experience Amherst seems to yield whereas Lowell seems to be comprised of more commuters than I would like. Essentially, I feel like I would be happier attending Amherst…Is it worth the debt? Please help.
Tuition at both campuses is around $1,500, so “full tuition scholarship” is only a fraction of the cost. Fees, room, and board are the driving cost at the UMass campuses and Lowell is about $4000 cheaper than Amherst. If you qualified for the Adams scholarship, it would save the $1,500 tuition at either school. Both schools have a base of around $25K. For Lowell you are at $25,097 less $1,454 tuition, less $4,000 grant or $19,643. UMass Amherst without the Adams scholarship is $26,088.
You should check and see if the Lowell offer included not only tuition, but also fees. The fees are around $12,000.
Getting into the honors program at UMass is extremely difficult. Getting into Isenberg is not easy either. Congratulations. I’m a parent and also a tax partner at a national accounting firm and we love hiring kids out of Isenberg. I think UMass Amherst is a great value buy and a very good school, but this decision is one where you and your folks need to consider so many factors beyond what someone from a message board would post. My daughter got in UMass Amherst this week as well. It is much cheaper than her other choices. I will pay the cost of UMass for both of my kids. I have told them both that they would have to make up the difference themselves in grants or loans if they choose to go to a more expensive private university. I hope my advice helps and I wish you the best of luck in your decision.
I think this student means he/she got the Chancellor’s Scholarship at Lowell, which is a full ride. Mikescott, would you qualify for other aid at Amherst? How much can your parents afford?
As a finance major, well, which one makes the most financial sense, both for you and for your parents? You will be able to put “full ride scholarship” on your resume, and most people would then understand from that why you went to a lesser program. As one of their stronger students, you’d likely be able to wrangle that research assistantship and build relationships into a good job afterward, though possibly at a different sort of company. First job is a stepping stone though… Also, if there is any chance you’ll change your major after taking a few classes, the difference might not seem as great?
Can you quantify the amount of debt?
@ljberkow It would include fees, and I would only have to pay room and board.
@redpoodles yes it would be a chancellors scholarship. My parents have said that they can provide room and board and possibly a little extra, and the rest would likely be covered in loans. So, approx. 30-40k in total loans over the 4 years at Amherst. @am9799
Mike, you have a tough decision and I wish you the best of luck with it. I think there are two reasons that you should go to Amherst. The first is the college experience that you will get living on the campus in Amherst and the social investment in yourself over four years at Amherst. The second is the quality of education you would get at Isenberg and the doors open to you upon graduation. You have to weight this against $40K in student debt (interest rates are relatively low now).
The day my son moved into UMass Amherst as a freshman almost 4 yrs ago, there was a shooting 3 blocks from the UMass-Lowell campus the same day!! Reinforced his choice of Amherst over Lowell.
If your a serious student, dont be afraid of the extra investment of Amherst…work hard and get good grades!
Mike, congratulations on getting in to Isenberg. I would encourage anyone to accept their offer. However, it is difficult to go in to such debt and hard to advise you to say “yes” even though it’s what I want to do. The program at Isenberg is fantastic, the deans are completely driven to make it the best and the professors, and more importantly the students, are very impressive. How about a compromise. Work extremely hard at Lowell for the first year (or two) and then apply to transfer to Amherst? Saves a little, yes? Or…carpe diem…seize the day…live for now! Study well, be serious, you’ll get a great job and pay back the loan. Guess I’m not much help…go to Isenberg.
From those 30-40K about 25K would be yours and the rest 5-15K would be for your parents to cosign. As debt goes is manageable but of course it depends on your family’s circumstances. It is hard to judge. My only advice is to choose your classes well.
I attended UMass Lowell in the 80’s. Although there were commuters (I was not) there was a very lively on campus residential life. Today, the dorm capacity dwarfs what I knew and the school has D1 sports (Hockey East - Yay!!) I’m curious about what really defines a college town these days…Amherst, where I visit often because of kids sports, now has every chain store you can imagine, and a multitude of cozy Dunkin Donuts. Yes, there are thousands of kids, but the area seems all about chain retail opportunity. Quaint - not so much. Lowell, on the other hand, has a bit of grit (for me and my 80’s peeps, local places cheap food and nickel drafts meant college town). My sweetheart went to Tufts, which was in a working class (seedy) neighborhood at the time. Things have changed - Starbucks, Wholefoods…what does a college town really mean??? I don’t mean to disparage UMA in any way - Mass states schools kick ass, and I’d argue, blow away many of the private counterparts. In Mass (and likely around the country) profs are clamoring to get into the state system where pensions actually exist, and health plans don’t require a second mortgage. Give UML a hard look - it is well respected, and a very good value. And you can have plenty of college fun.