<p>I just got done applying to three ivies and two other top 25 schools and the #1 regional school in the south (Rollins). Obviously I don't know which of those I will be attending but I'm pretty sure I'll get into Rollins and maybe 50% of the others. I would really love to attend any of those, not only for the education, but also for the chance to continue my swimming career at a school that I would be on level to compete. Problem is my parents don't want to pay for it.</p>
<p>My mom just got a promotion that will increase our household income to over $200k. Her raise was about the same price as an Ivy is per year, and that's without bonuses. I was so excited for my mom, because I thought the extra money could go to my education at a top school (they had already promised me at least $10k per year w/out the raise), but they aren't going to give me anymore.</p>
<p>I know this is sounding selfish, that I want my parents to give that much money per year, but I don't see why they won't. I went past what they have asked for me, have tried for several scholarships, and they keep asking me why I have done this much with all my hard classes and EC's. They simply want me to attend UF, only because I have bright futures and I would be close by to them. While I know UF is a decent school, it's still not as good as any of the other schools I have applied to, and it just seems like such an anti-climatic ending to my high school career. I can't swim there either, which is also a reason I do not want to attend. My mom is actually the one who got me on track for all these schools, and I'm not seeing why they don't want me to attend now. I can't figure out if they really think they're that strained for money, but my mom just bought a Mercedes which really confused me. </p>
<p>I do realize that my family's financial situation is what a lot of people dream of, but it isn't showing. Am I just being a selfish jerk here and lamenting too much, or is there something I can do? I know that so many people have it worse than I do, and that I shouldn't be complaining, but I still don't see why it should leave me out of an education that I have worked all of high school for. Can anyone analyze my situation? Am I just going to be stuck at UF (or Rollins depending on whether they give me merit aid) or can I get to where I want to go?</p>
<p>you're not just being a selfish jerk. that raise can really hurt you since you'll get less need-based aid because of it.
is there a particular reason they don't want to pay anymore?
I'm not sure really what you can do...</p>
<p>It will hurt, because my parents are more than perfectly capable of paying for private tuition, and even before our home equity was way to much to qualify for any aid. I really don't know how to bring this up with them in a way that would make them understand how I feel. I've always just kind of nodded my head when they say that "we can't afford that much tuition" when I well know in the back of the my mind that they can. I even asked them where all our money went each year in terms of food, house/car payments, and such and they started to tell me, but things got fuzzy and they changed the subject. I always wonder if there is a deeper motive to all of this (like them wanting me to stay near) or if they want to pay off their house loan quicker or something like that.</p>
<p>I guess what I'm trying to say is that I've been looking on here and parents with easily lower incomes work hard to pay for private tuitions that even with aid are still daunting, yet my parents can't muster up that same commitment. UF isn't a bad school, but that's really not where I see myself at.</p>
<p>I've at least told my parents about my hatred for UF, but all they say is that if I really don't want to go there I need to apply for scholarships. The problem is, I'm not a science whiz with an award-winning project and I obviously don't qualify for need-based scholarships. I guess swimming year-round, and the lack of a good school science department prevented me from pulling off the former, and you all know why I don't have the latter. So far, I got $1,000, and it's a savings bond. I've been doing several essays, but I only got honorable mention for one which didnt give me any money (AFSA).</p>
<p>I just hate to see what all I've done go to waste. While I truly enjoy swimming, the main reason why I killed myself in everything else throughout high school was to get into an amazing school. I realized that I had the potential to do it and pushed myself to the limit. While it is still hard to get into UF, I could have easily coasted (relative to my current schedule/EC's anyways) into admission. Does anyone else have advice? I'm really open to anything, including telling me that I need to suck it up and go to UF.</p>
<p>What's wrong with UF? You should be lucky you have the opportunity to get a Bright Futures Scholarship. Many states don't have a scholarship program like Bright Futures. </p>
<p>If you attend UF (nothing wrong with their education) then at least you wouldn't have to pay off loans once you graduate. Ivies are overrated.</p>