<p>Well, here's the situation.</p>
<p>I got accepted into both NYU (Liberal Studies Program w/transfer to CAS) and University of Washington (Sciences). NYU would cost me 20k/year in loans after scholarships while UWash would be completely free. I'm torn between the two choices. Money isn't the issue here, the question is...is the debt worth it? By that I mean out of college career opportunities and/or graduate school prospects.</p>
<p>Willing to hear people out on the pros and cons of both.</p>
<p>The debt is so not worth it, and depending on what kind of college experience you’re looking for, UW has a campus, big sports teams, etc. while NYU has none of that (which may make no difference to you). Seattle is also a great city, much better place to be a college student than NYU in my opinion. But no, 80k in debt is far too much.</p>
<p>If you desired a job on Wall Street, or music/theater, NYU would be an easy choice. But for sciences, the full ride at UDub is a no-brainer.</p>
<p>Who is going to cosign those loans with you? You can only take on the Stafford Loans on your own ($5,500 freshman, $6,500 sophomore, $7,500 junior, and $7,500 senior years). Even if you could get a co-signer, you would graduate with at least $80,000 in student debt that would control your life for years to come. Don’t do that to yourself.</p>
<p>Take the full ride. Don’t look back.</p>
<p>Federal Perkins Loan 2,400.00
Stafford Loan 3,500.00
Unsubsidized Loan 2,000.00
Federal PLUS Loan 11,750.00 </p>
<p>These are the loans each year I’d have to eventually pay for NYU, added for clarification. Thank you for all the responses! I was leaning towards NYU because it seemed like an exciting choice, but I’m having second thoughts now…</p>
<p>Sure Manhattan is an exciting City, but save it for grad school. And if you are in the sciences, they will pay YOU to attend.</p>
<p>Thanks for the advice. I was a little irked by the fact that I didn’t see UW really discused on this forum at all but as long as it has a solid undergrad program I’m fine with it. (Long term lurker xD)</p>
<p>Anyone willing to come defend NYU in this scenario?</p>
<p>$80,000 in debt versus a free ride at a good school? Does not seem like a hard choice.</p>
<p>Two nice choices u have there Im endless… Forty thousand scholarship at NYU is probably eqivalent in real money to the free ride at UWash. What are you wanting to study? How do the two programs compare?</p>
<p>You say money isn’t an issue, but you question if the debt is worth it. Debt is money.
Where are these imaginary entry level positions out of college that will pay you enough to cover monthly payments on an $80K+ loan, + housing expenses + personal expenses, when you graduate? </p>
<p>The PLUS Loan is for your parents. Are your parents willing to take out those loans each year just for you to attend? NYU’s cost is most likely not going to be going down anytime soon, which could mean more loans every year you continue. </p>
<p>If you want the excitement of NYC, wait until you graduate from UW to live there, or spend your summers there while in undergrad at UWash.</p>
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Is that still true since the OP is going to be in CAS, not Stern? The OP will also be “stuck” in Liberal Studies for the first two years. What is the chance of getting a summer internship on Wall Street as a Liberal Studies ‘major’?</p>
<p>If money isn’t the issue, what is? NYC is full of people well into their 30s living in dives and surviving on Ramen because they went to NYU.</p>
<p>Debt is a burden you must do anything and everything in your power to avoid. If you would of said that you need to take 20K in loans total maybe some one would defend NYU and say that its up to your personal preference. Personally, I think that both schools are ranked high and 80K is a huge, huge chunk of cash that will hang over your head for a long time.</p>
<p>“I was a little irked by the fact that I didn’t see UW really discused on this forum at all but as long as it has a solid undergrad program I’m fine with it.”</p>
<p>Many fine colleges and universities are rarely mentioned in this forum because most of the people participating here are interested in a very small group of institutions. If you have a question about one you’ve never seen here, the places to ask would be in the Parents Forum (general information) or in the Financial Aid Forum (money issues).</p>
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<p>This is a parent loan. How do your parents feel about taking on 46k of debt? they would have to reapply every year for the loan while their debt ratio goes up. </p>
<p>If they are turned down for a Plus loan, you can borrow an additional 7k as an unsub stafford loan, but how are you going to fill the 7k gap (your parents would be out of the question as co-signers)</p>
<p>Thank you for all the responses guys :), I’m going to talk to my parents about my decisions soon.</p>
<p>You need to recognize that cc is east-coast centric. There is not much love for many colleges west of the Appalacholians.</p>
<p>U OF WASHINGTON!!! Dude nyu is not at all worth that much debt especially if your other choice is uwash. Personally I think Uwash is just as good as nyu academically and you can definitely go far coming out of uwash opposed to nyu and having to find 20k every year.</p>
<p>Cost of living should be part of your consideration. Probably much much more at NYU. UW is an excellent school and gorgeous too. Debt free is the way to go and no doubt about it!</p>
<p>this is an easy decision. go with UW all the way.</p>