@Quietlylurking The very things that make me a financially conservative, wise consumer who manages her assets well, also make it impossible for me to rationalize transferring all of my hard earned money to these schools for an undergraduate education that is simply not worth the sticker price.
BRAVO! I second that sentiment
@VAOptimist Massachusetts family of two teachers with three kids. They could not afford to send their smart, talented, hard working daughter to their state flagship,
State Flagship? Umass? 15K tuition? - If there’s not some special circumstance there - you have found the definitive “the system is broke” example
@VAOptimist Massachusetts, I think is the top ranked state for education and fifth in terms of economy. With a highly populated, wealthy, educated population, Massachusetts does not HAVE to be less expensive. They have no shortage of highly qualified students from in and out of state. That’s why they are pricey.
@PurpleTitan D1 tuition and board will average out at GBP 26k pa. I expect her to earn her own spending money during the holidays. Her course is 4 years, the ave FX rate is going to average out at $1.40 = $146k total, had her course been 3 years the usual length of English undergrad would be $110k, at current FX rate 136k and 101k respectively, still huge numbers. How many kids actually graduate in 3 years from a US school, how many graduate in 4? A good buddy of mine has 2 daughters same age as mine same circumstances both at two very well known top tier schools in the Midwest, one public one private, both girls are mid 30’s ACT hat full of AP"s, neither are getting out in less than 4 years and neither will be under 200k. So in theory graduating in 3 years with merit sounds great but not necessarily the reality. At the end of the day he chose something I wouldn’t, had he stayed in state public it would have been cheaper, but there you are, horses for courses as they say
"With a highly populated, wealthy, educated population, Massachusetts does not HAVE to be less expensive. "
Because everyone from Mass is wealthy??? No. BECAUSE they are a Taxachussets, students in MA should have a reasonably priced flagship. They used to. They no longer do.
^The state flagship in MA, University of Mass Amherst, the honors college, is nearly $30K. I posted several pages back and then even several more back that the flagship is NOT affordable for many families in MA. Very little financial aid is given to instate students. For OOS students with good stats, merit aid brings the price down to the instate, give or take. A family with two kids making $60K, little savings, little retirement, might get the price down to around $24K, hardly affordable in that scenario. There are other state schools that are more affordable…MCLA in the far western part of the state (near Williams) is $15K I believe and the cheapest of the states.
@VAOptimist - turning your MA argument inside out… why should the people of NY (for example) contribute more in the way of taxes to support your MA kids than the taxpayers of MA were willing to?
There is something inherently wrong with another state being cheaper than your home state school…but its a problem that will never be resolved unless you take a NY type approach everywhere.
@NEPatsGirl - In our world of diversity, are state schools rewarded for broadening the student body with out of state “targets”?
NE- I follow your math and I agree with you that for middle income families in MA the situation is terrible. But the OP isn’t in the situation you are describing- they have saved enough to pay full freight, I’ll assume there might be an IRA or 401K in addition? Or not. But paying AMT they are likely making much more than 60K.
@suzyQ7 UMass does not HAVE to be less expensive because the market does not require it. They have plenty of highly qualified students willing to pay. And look at how people complain about it. Public schools in NE just aren’t good enough. So tons of money is invested and the price goes up and still it’s considered just four years of workplace preparation not a temple of learning.
States like Maine and Alabama have to offer great deals because they either don’t have the population or stats they want/need. I don’t think UMass is affordable for many Mass families. If you are UMC, it’s a really good value. And Lowell is great for engineering. And taxes are crazy which is why people commute from NH and RI. But consumers are driving the cost.
@elguapo1:
“How many kids actually graduate in 3 years from a US school, how many graduate in 4? A good buddy of mine has 2 daughters same age as mine same circumstances both at two very well known top tier schools in the Midwest, one public one private, both girls are mid 30’s ACT hat full of AP"s, neither are getting out in less than 4 years and neither will be under 200k. So in theory graduating in 3 years with merit sounds great but not necessarily the reality”
Right, but it could come down to choice. As you mentioned, your friend (or his kids) also chose against the cheaper in-state option. With AP credits, many who can get in to a top UK uni could also graduate from an American college earlier (and save money) but many choose not to.
But that doesn’t mean that saving money isn’t an option.
Be cognizant that the Uk summer breaks will not align with the US and that may impact summer internship opportunities. In my daughter’s interest area internships mostly run from before Memorial Day to Labor Day weekend. A parent mentioned how that has ruled out his daughter because her university begins mid August. That industry tilts heavily toward hands on experiences.
Be proactive in researching internship opportunities. My niece had very little guidance from her university and struggled find a job later.
Re: “mourn the loss of the days when we had temples of learning… now just workplace preparation.”
With increasing credentialism in the labor market and increasing cost of college, it is not surprising that pre-professional motivations have become a larger part of the motivation to attend college.
@Snowball City - That experience is similar to the handful of people I know that went to college overseas. They had issues finding jobs in UK, and then had long job searches when they got back to the US due to a lack of local contacts.
Yep. v unlikely you will be allowed to stay in UK after graduation. Daughter has never had a problem finding internships in the US during the holidays.
If you pick those selective private colleges that OP was lamenting about, a good 88-90% of students graduate in 4 years. Sometimes, you do get what you pay for.
@doschicos I never thought of that way. An extra year or two at the public flagship might make one of those selective private colleges make a bit more sense.
@Zinhead Of course, and I think college administration is quite aware of that. Such schools are very good about working with students to get positive outcomes if health, learning disabilities, or other such issues present obstacles. Based on my observations, you do get the premium service for the premium price, like many goods and services in life.
