What Should I do?

<p>…a real conversation ender.
Problem-solving skills matter</p>

<p>C’mon, the OP did a great job finding the Avery Point option in the first place. No point in being down on him/her. </p>

<p>It’s a shame it all hinged on a getting a ride from a friend. </p>

<p>I think living on campus and doing the original plan is the clear path forward. No exams will be missed because of a snowstorm. Plus the summer course was taught by a grad student and Jeffrey A. Meunier gets really high ratings on RateMyProfessor.</p>

<p>Total interest on ONE 7000 loan, where 1st payment is 55 months after disbursal is $7475. There will be additional interest on the student loans as well. </p>

<p>Obviously, IF student ends up with a 90K/year salary, then no problem. I’ll give you that. </p>

<p>CRD, why do you think this student was not awarded any merit from UConn (which has better than average merit awards for a flagship school), apparently has no programming experience/classes AND will not tell us his stats? </p>

<p>Let’s not forget that we’re talking about one of the top 3 hardest majors there is…and one where MOST students who start out saying they are a CS major end up changing their minds/major very quickly (or having their minds changed by the school). </p>

<p>Obviously, I don’t know anything about OPs academic talents. If he supplied evidence that provided SOME basis for concluding that he was one of the VERY small %age of entering freshman who plan to major in CS who have the potential to cut it and then <em>actually</em> do reach that goal, then your advice <em>might</em> have some merit.</p>

<p>In my daughter’s graduating class of 176 students, probably 15 of them said they are pre-med. Is this the same advice you’d give all of them?</p>

<p>Scubasue, you are very negative. </p>

<p>The student has self-confidence. The parents have confidence in the student. UConn engineering, which is not easy to get into by any means, has the confidence to admit the student. Why would I assume that the student is less than capable of being successful. </p>

<p>Becoming a successful software engineer is much easier than becoming a physician. Furthermore, after that one course CSE 1102, the OP will know if this is what he or she wants to do. If the OP can’t hack it or doesn’t like it, it’s only $12K and the OP can find something else to do. Perhaps transfer to a CC and become a system analyst, perhaps take driving lessons. There are many options. </p>

<p>But to discourage the attempt at a solid and reasonably attainable professional career because there is some risk is really hard to fathom. I’m glad I never listened to the naysayers.</p>

<p>I’ve been following this thread for a few days now, and it’s all very confusing to me. Though I’m not a math major and am a college student myself, here’s what I’ve got to say, OP:</p>

<p>1.) if you’re going to go through with taking out all of those loans for UCONN’s main campus, make sure it’s what you want. To echo everyone else here, what are your ACT/SAT scores and GPA? Why HAVENT you mentioned that already? Are you trying to hide something? (I don’t mean to offend you on that. Just trying to illuminate what I gather as a reader of the situation) </p>

<p>2.) are you 18 years of age? If so, you might want to look into getting your driver’s license quicker than most minors. At least in my state, 18 year-olds can get licences by taking some tests and practicals. If you had the means to drive to either UCONN’S main campus or the one in Avery Point, would you? </p>

<p>3.) do you understand what it means to be in debt? Try and really think about it. Do you know what it means to be so far under that you can’t afford to stay home and not make money yet you can’t even afford to transport yourself to a job? If your loans backfire on you and you’re stuck with tens of thousands to pay before you can resume school, that’s what it’s gonna be like. You’re going to not be able to sleep at night because your bills need to get paid yet it’s just impossible for you to do so. You could potentially want to give up on yourself, which is a stark contrast to your fresh beginning right now. </p>

<p>4.) is there any way you can defer your acceptance? If you give yourself a year to earn money and clear your head, you might be able to get a better take on things and get your license and a means to make things work for either campus. Maybe you can start the summer of '14 and take that one class you and CRD say you need. Maybe you can be able to drive by then and won’t have to pay for housing. School is coming up in about a month. You have a lot to think about in that short amount of time. </p>

<p>5.) can you take a gap year and completely start over? If you give us your stats, we could help you find schools that are both academically and financially fit.</p>

<p>6.) WHY CS? You’ve spent a great deal of time explaining how you really, really want to go to UCONN. But why CS? You said you’ve wanted to do it since you were younger. What’s your story?</p>

<p>See, I don’t think I’m negative at all. I think I’m realistic and practical. I have seen too many students who’ve had to drop out of school because the stack of cards they built their financial plans on came tumbling down–hard. And most–if not all–were just as self confident as OP sounds. That is absolutely half the battle. It is not the whole battle though. </p>

<p>As I said, if you had some concrete evidence about this particular student’s academic gifts/talents, you <em>might</em> have a point. Since you know nothing about his propensity for accomplishing his goal, the advice you are giving him could <em>easily</em> end in disaster. The fact that you’re giving this advice without knowing anything about the student other than that he was admitted to his state’s flagship is what is hard to fathom.</p>

<p>And, what in the world have I said that was negative, with the possible exception of pointing out how few well intended, well prepared students actually graduate with CS degrees? Is THAT the negative attitude to which you are referring?</p>

<p>Someone comes for advice. </p>

<p>Says they are good at math/science (post #73). Has been admitted to UConn engineering (not that easy). Wants to study computer science. </p>

<p>Who am I not to trust their judgement in what they want to do or what their capabilities are? We should tell them - no you might not be smart enough? I know better than OP, parents and UCONN? Not me, I’m not going to tell someone that. </p>

<p>Why not roll the dice for a loans with payments of $164/mo, $94/mo of which is on their parent’s credit and is payable over 25 years. Why not see if they have the stuff and can hack it and enjoy it. This first year is not THAT much money in the scheme of things. </p>

<p>If the student crashes and burns, it’s not that much debt. Become more risk adverse and pursue another line of work. If things go well freshman year, then the risk of failure goes down, the likelihood of success goes up, and it become rationale to make the second round of wagers (loans).</p>

<p>Says they are good at math/science (post #73)</p>

<p>Not how I read it
*Math and Science aren’t my weak spots… History and Literature are… *</p>

<p>We never said he wasn’t smart enough. We said, tell us your strengths, your course experiences and results. Show us the experiences that form a context here. Are you a complete newbie? All we know is the above and that he’s never done programming. And that he has resisted a number of inquiries.</p>

<p>So, go for it, CRD. But understand you don’t seem to have any more clarity on this than we do. And, apologies, but it has crossed my mind that we are all getting played here.</p>

<p>So how did OP get into UCONN. They needed a B+ average and decent SATs. If history and literature are the weak spots, then that B+ average must have been boosted by the math and science. UCONN admits 45% of it’s students, but the standards for engineering are surely a whole lot higher as is true in most schools. UCONN rejected 55% of the applicants, not the OP though.</p>

<p>What number do you need to see to be confident that the OP should be given the chance.</p>

<p>To be honest guys, these 5 days have been very tiring, Im here to ask advice. Yes I know i will be in alot of debt, and if loans arent payed I can be in very deep trouble , yes this has been repeated plenty of times. Math to me has never been a challenge, it takes a couple of practices and I can deal with it. Reason why I’m not releasing my stats is because I simply want to keep some sort of privacy right? IF there are any options left like other schools, then I wud’ve done that months ago. What does my SAT/ACT score have anything to do with this, I mean the highest level of SAT math is Algebra 1… and Im going for CALC here. I’m not sure if deferring one year is a good idea. School starts on 8/26 and my parents are encouraging me to stay, they hated when I even mention Community College.</p>

<p>“We should tell them - no you might not be smart enough?”</p>

<p>hmmm…now see I thought all this time we were all telling him: “OP, given what you’ve told us about your circumstances and intended major, you have a <em>very</em> tough row to hoe. Here is what we think you should do to maximize your chance of success.” </p>

<p>“Im going for CALC here” </p>

<p>OP: will you be talking Calc for the first time at UConn? </p>

<p>Together your SATs, GPA, and high school course rigor are the best predictors of your potential for success in STEM fields. That is why we were asking. If you have very high qualifications, then absolutely, the risk of exorbitant loans is mitigated by your potential.</p>

<p>“All students admitted to the School of Engineering are required to take a calculus placement survey prior to attending summer orientation or registering for their first semester. Based on survey results, students may be required to take additional preparatory course work that may not be counted toward graduation. Students not admitted into the School of Engineering at the time of entry to the University may apply for admission to a major through the School of Engineering.”</p>

<p>OP will darn well do what he wants to do. May have taken calc…but it is not a requirement for UConn.</p>

<p>Scubasue, you don’t see how your attitude is more than just a little patronizing at this juncture. Who are you to judge the what the OP is made of? The people that matter, (OP, parents and UCONN) have already made that judgement to their satisfaction.</p>

<p>According to OP, parents don’t know anything about the college process. And, I don’t think we even know for sure that he was admitted to the school of engineering do we? </p>

<p>OP?</p>

<p>CRD: do you not see that based on the realities for this particular kid, which none of us know, your advice <em>could</em> be disastrous? What you are suggesting is a huge gamble. Heck, through the first 2 or three pages of this thread, your plan B was that if parents were denied PLUS student could rely on additional student loans. You didn’t even have enough of a grasp of loans to understand that absolutely was not a possible solution.</p>

<p>And, again, given the major, the chances of ANY student actually graduating with a CS degree are VERY small. </p>

<p>You, rightfully, are looking at this situation through MIT-colored glasses. But, this is a student whose family (in terms of ability to give sage advice about college plans), financial and MAYBE academic (we don’t know) situations are fragile. That is the prism through which you should be offering advice.</p>

<p>Sue, I wondered that, as well.</p>

<p>OP, I understand where you’re coming from. You have a goal and a dream, and people here are questioning it. That sucks, and it is kind of crappy. You’re IN at UCONN, and you wanna go all out for it. You like CS, you’re being responsible and considering alternatives, and you’re being patient with all of the bickering here. You’re trying to listen to and comprehend many different opinions and advice, and it IS tiring. </p>

<p>However, I also understand everyone else here. Debt is a HUGE thing that no one can truly understand until they’re immersed in it. My mom became overwhelmed by debt after my father lost his battle to cancer, so I know what it can do to a person. To be honest, because of my mom’s debt, I knew I could NOT go into ANY kind of debt for my schooling. So I chose the full-ride from one of the state universities in my area. It gives me some room to breathe, to focus, to learn; to be devoted to and worried about my education and my education only (although I do work, too. Probably too much). It just so happens that this school is one of the few in the country to have my desired major, so it worked out in the end. </p>

<p>All I’m concerned about is that you might get swamped in debt and not be able to climb out. I think I can trust you’re good enough for UCONN if you got in, and I’d be certain you’d flourish in a cc since you got into UCONN. It’s just that sometimes, life can’t turn out the way we want it. Your parents want what’s best for you, and they want to see you happy. A parent never wants to see their child sacrifice their dreams over money, so of course they’re going to encourage you; of course they’re going to take out loans for you. They love you, after all. </p>

<p>I don’t mean to offend you or make you stressed, and I doubt anyone else has that intention. We just don’t want to see a young, smart kid with an entire future ahead of them get weighed down with debt. It’s noble that you want to pay it back as soon as you can, but sometimes life happens. </p>

<p>If school starts on August 26th, that means you do have a month to make other plans if you find it feasible/possible. You have a month left to work and maybe get your driver’s license. You have a month left to reread all of these well-intentioned posts with facts and figures that I know I could personally never fathom on my own.</p>

<p>Please know we’re just trying to advise you financially but in the end, you can do whatever you want and completely ignore all of us strangers. </p>

<p>Good luck to you.</p>

<p>

</p>

<p>I’m looking at it as a poor kid from NYC who was a first generation college student, who found out that if I could get in, then MIT would pay for it. The teacher who served as my guidance counselor told me not to bother to apply because I’d be wasting an application. She didn’t know that I might be given some preference because my parents didn’t go to college. Hell, I didn’t even know that until I started researching the process for my kids. I thought they made some kind of a clerical error on me. I had very high math scores and very low verbal scores. I’d never stand a chance today. </p>

<p>I had almost a full ride, but I took my maximum loans anyway because I could. Then I got to MIT and found it to be much much harder than I bargained for. I could not have imagined it could be that hard, but it was. I did poorly at first but went for lots of free tutoring and eventually figured out how to excel. There were plenty of opportunities to quit, but I stuck with it and by luck I landed a summer job after sophomore year and learned how to be an engineer. Then I came back to school and courses were a whole lot easier and I had Professor Bose who explained engineering better than anyone else ever could. I eventually did well enough and stayed for a PhD. I’ve love my work, and it’s been extremely lucrative and great fun!</p>

<p>What many of you don’t realize is that if you’re already poor, the downside risk is really small because poverty already really sucks - what more can you lose?</p>

<p>The people who are most at risk of failing are the people who think that they know it all and are afraid of looking stupid by asking questions. If you’re hungry and modest, you can find a way to avoid the peer pressure and change your life.</p>

<p>The OP has a great opportunity to break out. This will be one motivated individual who I am rooting for.</p>

<p>You’re helping me make my point about your vantage point. The difference between this kids situation and yours is that 1) you went to a private school with way more financial and academic support available then this kid is getting and 2) your plan did not involve financial risk to your parents…he is asking us about jeopardizing whatever financial security his parents have. The risk of them ending up losing their house or being completely destitute in their senior years if he does not follow through with his plan is just too high. </p>

<p>I have 0 reservations about OP maximizing HIS student loans in pursuit of his dreams.</p>

<p>Guys I think I’ve made up my mind… ClassicRockerDad, what you just wrote there just really made me want to Jump out of my seat and go to UConn right away to become a Computer Scientist. My dad told me of a friend who borrowed 90k of debt but because he couldn’t find a job, he took a dealer job in a casino making 40k a year, sure the debt was high but he still managed to pay up the debt with that job, yeh living with his parents, used car, but after a couple of years he left the dealer job and got himself the engineering job that he wanted. I think that If I dedicate my time and efforts for the Bachelors, I think I will do fine academically. Lets say I will end up as a dealer, I can use that time to make some money and study because there is always another language available for me to learn.</p>

<p>My parents couldn’t stress enough telling me to keep my head in studying and getting the GPA high. I think they have something planned for the parent plus. I posted this thread because I simply needed some guidance and assurance but I think I’ve made my decision.</p>

<p>Thanks Guys for all your advice but from now on, Is there alternative suggestions like How I can increase my chances of internships or how I can improve my GPA as an engineer. Scholarships that may be available to undergraduates, I think that will help me alot more from now on. Certainly I would love to be debt free but being a first generation college student, I am bound to have some debt. I asked the Uconn CSE departments and they told me that I can’t graduate within 2 years from a CC. SO that suggestion is a fail and The most I can actually save is 7,000-10,000 but with the risks that you guys are mentioning of not guaranteed parent plus loan, that can still happen after I go to one year of CC or Avery point.</p>

<p>Honestly, I dont want the burden to be on my parents but they seem to have some thing planned out and they’re my parents. I will definitely pay them back.</p>