OOS is absolutely an option were it affordable. U of Arizona is compared to other options at the moment. That doesn’t mean I don’t need to borrow. It means I can borrow and somehow pull it off. Much more than that and the borrowing gets really crazy.
Truman State is too much compared to other options. As I said, they can’t test now. They are not able. This is nothing I can “prove” you just have to accept that this is the situation for some. There are some parents reading this who have no problem understanding me, but I can understand parents with different children who are not able to reconcile their experiences of their children with what I am saying.
Actually when the last essay is written, which is coming soon, they want to go to work and make money. They are not going to study for standardized tests. Just not happening.
There are a bunch of schools higher up in the thread that I haven’t investigated though and I will do that.
The good news is that there’s scholarships for current students - so years, 2-4 and often of campus is cheaper - for later years.
Yep, AZ, UAH, Bama - represent some of the best scholarships out there. Not sure how Bama is handling - they are TO but their table shows a test score.
@UCDProf I have to commend you for this thread. Despite the occasional negative attitudes, despite the ignorance of some who can’t or choose not to understand the situation, you have marched forward and found a few nuggets of wisdom and assistance here.
To everyone else, to make this thread more helpful to the OP, I suggest we all try to stay on topic about Financial Aid ideas that are suitable for this family and the parameters the OP has reiterated several times so far.
I’ve been trying to stay on topic. If eligible, this parent can take a Parent Plus Loan each year for the first three years, then refinance their home the second half of year three to pay this off…and have the money for year four.
IS the Parent Plus payback deferred until the student graduates? @kelsmom
Holy cow, people. The poster asked a specific question and has repeatedly tried to refocus the discussion to the topic about which they inquired. Mild suggestions are helpful, but at this point, there is a lot of dead horse beating going on.
Re: Staying on Topic- OP can ignore or scroll past posts that don’t work for their particular situation. For other parents who will find this thread (Home Equity and Financial Aid is not exactly an obscure topic for many), I think it’s valid for folks to post a reality check or two.
Reality- studying abroad: I know dozens of kids who have done it. (I live in a high cost area where many dual income households cannot afford their EFC). Who does it work for? Highly motivated students, great test takers (that’s the system in most countries in Europe- tests, tests and tests), with very strong HS prep. I cannot comment on the OP’s kids motivation since that topic hasn’t been introduced, but there is nothing that suggests that they’ve got the testing Plus strong HS prep combo.
The field they may or may not be interested in- Allied Health perhaps? Is NOT a university level type subject in many other countries. Medicine- yes. University degree. But depending on the country, the technical skill level required-- it’s not realistic for a US educated kid to show up overseas and expect to be sitting in Organic Chemistry with other students who have only had
AP calc and no AP, lab based science classes. Those students in many other countries are tracked into non-university programs.
So OP- ignore me. For everyone else- yes, overseas is cheaper. But if your kid gets thrown into the deep end of the pond academically, because the type of learning supports which exist in the US at many universities don’t exist in that particular country, have a Plan B for coming home and resuming their education.
How do kids get tracked into universities in the rest of the world? high stakes testing which makes the ACT look like a walk in the park. How do kids stay in university? More testing. How do kids get certification to perform anything health related in a licensed facility anywhere else in the world? More testing.
So yes, I’m off-topic. But I’ve seen too many kids coming home after a year elsewhere with a transcript filled with the foreign equivalent of Incompletes and Withdrawn-- if you can persuade a faculty member to go there instead of flunking you out. There’s a reason why a smaller percentage of the HS population in many countries finishes college- higher ed weeds out, weeds out, weeds out. Degrees in Recreation Management, Tourism, even Physical Education? Those are certification programs, not university degrees. It’s a gauntlet.
If you would try not to combat you might see that I have already acknowledged these points about study in Europe.
But, they are also too sweeping and require correction.
Also, I’m going to start a thread on this topic so hopefully that will suffice.
About Europe:
Yes the teaching method in most public European universities is rather rote lecture and memorization. But there are exceptions such as special colleges within universities that are American LAC style, special learning philosophies (such as project based learning in some Netherlands programs), and private colleges, to name a few examples. The number of such programs is steadily increasing. It’s deceptive to blanket a whole continent in a misconception.
Yes as I said going into advanced study for health fields in the US, it’s smoother to go to school first in the US. It can and does work though to do it otherwise. Especially if you have an American curriculum. No one was suggesting advanced study in the health fields in Europe. That can work too but is far more problematic.
On my kids: Yes as I said my kids and I have no freakin idea how prepared they are for college, and I’m a college professor. We are about to find out. I don’t think anyone here knows any better than we do about what they are and are not capable of. To suggest we are not thinking about this, when clearly we are, makes no sense.
Only federal Parent loans are offered guaranteed deferment, but there are private lenders who will defer payment while the student is in school. Contact the lender to ask.
In fairness I have not read this whole thread, but just thought it worth mentioning- @blossom is one of the most well respected longtime posters on this forum, and whose posts are anything but combative. She may be direct, but she is realistic and spot on in her insights. OP , a relatively new member here, would do themselves a disservice by turning a blind eye/deaf ear to @blossom s comments.
I think it’s also important to remember that many times, posters are generalizing for other people who may be doing a “search” for titles that apply to them, so it may not directly apply to the OP but could be helpful for others looking to use home equity.
" I said my kids and I have no freakin idea how prepared they are for college, and I’m a college professor. We are about to find out. I don’t think anyone here knows any better than we do about what they are and are not capable of. To suggest we are not thinking about this, when clearly we are, makes no sense."
Im sorry you have been having a rough time with this. That being said, as a college professor with advanced degrees, why are you just now realizing your kids preparedness for college? My take from this thread is that you sit down with your kids and give them the financial facts. That may be a local UC, CSU or CC. Good luck.
My D19 chased merit $$$. She applied to 17 schools. She got all sorts of deals. She ended up going to MiamiOH. With an extra scholarship for Soph-Sr years she got almost all tuition and fees in scholarships. She had better deals with other schools but the schools weren’t quite as good.
In the end she will graduate with no loans. Luckily we could deal with room and board ourselves. She will get two degrees and a minor.
All that being said I see no issue with kids going to Comm College to save money. Then finishing at a 4 year school. I have met some people that have done this recently and they are happy to have no to low loans. My D did have to give up her #1 choice due to it being too much.
I’m used to having a rough time on CC. This time it was totally well worth it for the actually valuable and relevant information I got. Others got that information too, so it’s worth the rough time.
Why do you think I am “just now realizing”? Or that we haven’t sit down and talked about all these things?
Those are my questions for you. Any more questions for me?