<p>“i understand the need to minimize debt, but i feel like this thread has become an argument on whether i should attend unc or a private school. Lets assume that i never applied to unc and only got accepted into the colleges that i listed. Which ones would you say are worth the price, and which ones don’t make the cut?”</p>
<p>MJ, the reason you’re getting the answers you are is that decisions aren’t made in a vacuum. To many adults, the question you should be asking is “are these schools worth the difference in cost versus UNC-CH”, which would be about $35K per year. </p>
<p>FWIW, your situation is similar to that of my older D. We live in the same area as you, and like you she was a very good student. UNC-CH was an option for her, but did not offer her intended major, and she wanted to go out of state. So she applied to out of state privates. She knew going into the application process that we would not pay the $35K difference (or even close to it), but she wanted to take a shot anyway. </p>
<p>We were very fortunate in that the aid offered made it possible for her to attend a very good out of state private at about the same cost as UNC-CH would have been. You may have similar results with some of the schools on your list that have very good overall aid, or merit aid, or preferential packaging. My theory is that living in NC works in your favor, since these schools like to have geographic diversity and it’s not so easy to pry the top kids away from UNC-CH. </p>
<p>Younger daughter will be attending UNC-CH in the Fall, so I have no bias either way. I do believe UNC-CH it is a relative “steal” at $20K. </p>
<p>My advice to you is to wait and see where you get in, then compare the aid packages to see the difference with UNC-CH. It would be easier to understand if UNC-CH didn’t have your major, or if you really wanted to get out of NC, but given your intended major you’ve got a great option at UNC-CH. IMO unless the costs come in pretty close it really isn’t worth the difference. As others have already pointed out, just because your parents CAN pay the difference doesn’t mean you should ask them to.</p>