<p>Well I’ll make it clear that I have 0 knowledge of Berkeley and very little about Columbia. Though I know that grad school is not exactly necessary, especially for a business field (for example, at Wharton, where I’m most likely going, a huge amount of its alumni don’t go to grad school at all). I don’t know about the career prospects coming out of Berkeley over Columbia, but that’s something to consider as well. For example, if by an “english/business” job you mean she wants to write and sell fiction, perhaps it would not be the greatest idea to go into an ivy league school simply because people reading your books don’t give a crap where you went to school. On the opposite side of the spectrum, if she wants to help write reports for an investment banking company or something like that, it is likely she would make a lot of money and the rep of an ivy league like Columbia could help a lot with this. Ultimately, though, it is entirely up to her. It is her future, and I know I’d be very mad at my parents if they “made” me go to a particular school or didn’t “let” me go to my first choice (I say it in quotes because it is ultimately her decision as an adult, assuming she’s 18 but regardless it is still her decision where she wants to spend her time in college). It is not unreasonable, it is in fact understandable for you to not pay for more or much more than you would at the cheaper school, but for me she should be presented the option to take out loans and such.</p>