So far, my main choices are a top Institute in Cambridge, MA and and ivy league school in NYC.
Institute
Scholarship — 39,180
Federal Loan — 2,500
Work/Study — 3,000
My parents will cover the rest ~21,500
Ivy League in NYC
Scholarship/Grant — 48,760
No loan
No work/study
My parents will cover the rest ~22,000
I want to major in engineering
What do you think? The school in NYC is given me more; however, it is not as if the school in Cambridge is impossible. I want to keep things in perspective, see everything in context 
Which looks better to you?
Work Study is not guarantee.
If you are looking at engineering, I don’t see how you can pass up MIT. It will cost more but passing up one of the top engineering schools in the world would be hard to do.
which offer looks better to you?
@Tigers1981 My family’s exact thoughts. My parents don’t think that a couple of thousand dollars should be a deal breaker, taking into account the ROI of a degree from the Institute.
Although Federal Work Study is not a guarantee (and it’s not a grant- you actually need to show up for work and do the job to get the dough) MIT has a huge database of jobs on campus ranging from menial (cafeteria) to esoteric (programming, working in a lab on a cool project, etc.).
It is not hard to find a job at MIT, and you may find that it positions you nicely for a summer job after Freshman year which then puts you in line for good jobs after sophomore year and beyond.
Do you have a reason to need to be in NY?
Ask M if they will match C. Worst case they say no. Regardless, assuming you are up for the challenge, go with M.
How do you have numbers from C already as an RD? If you are ED you have to go. Especially as technically they gave you the better offer.
Financially, the second offer is better. Finances are a big consideration, but not the only consideration. Boston v NYC, STEM focused school vs one that has several focus areas, division 1 sports vs division 3. There are all kinds of considerations you need to weigh for yourself.
@blossom No special reason to be in NYC. I don’t mind working doing whatever at M. No a problem for me.
@SeekingPam I’m afraid that such bargaining could be misconstrued as rude. I’m very appreciative of the admission and don’t want to look petty, tbh. Concerning C’s decision, I got a likely letter, which in turn included a likely financial aid offer.
@twoinanddone My family is not rich, so obviously money is to be considered; however, we also understand that the amounts we’re talking about are rather marginal in the big scheme of things. In all honesty, I’m more interested in academics than sports. Location is not an issue since both schools are in world-class cities.
I would look into the research and project opportunities at each school. I suspect MIT will have more opportunities to get involved in research and hands on projects. Consider housing cost after year 1, restrictions on the scholarships and the tech companies in area for internships. Also I believe MIT is pass/fail for freshman year.
My gut says the competition will be stiffer at MIT which will push you to become a better engineer. You might have more co-op opportunities at MIT but I am just guessing.
@noname87 Thanks! All good points.
Also, you can take out an additional $3000 in Direct Loans if needed.
You have to compare apples to apples, which is a bit hard to do … Columbia does not have its 2016-2017 tuition and fees posted. It was hard enough to find 2015-2016. What I found is this for MIT, 16-17: Tuition/fees = $48,452; Room/board = $14,210; total = $62,662. Columbia, 15-16 (sure to be several % higher for 16-17): Tuition/fees = $53,000; Room/board = $12,860; total = $65,860.
MIT net cost, not including loans or work study, 16-17: $23,482
Columbia net cost, 15-16 (again, 16-17 will be more!): $17,100 (if you figure a 4% increase, the net cost is $19,734; 5% increase, net cost is $20,393; 6% increase, net cost is $21,051)
In the scheme of things, if your parents are able to do it, a few thousand is not all that much … and don’t forget that NYC is probably more expensive than Boston in terms of the cost of personal items.
@kelsmom Concerning C, this part of the likely offer relates to what you mentioned:
*The figures listed are for the current 2015-2016 year. The final 2016-2017 Cost of Attendance is subject to final approval by the Board of Trustees in June 2016.
Based on 2015-16 year, C’s estimated Cost of Attendance $ 70,573*
To cover COA, C is offering me $48, 760 in grants. No loans, no work study.
M’s COA is $ 66,128 as per financial aid document.
M is offering $39, 181 in grants. Plus, the loans and work study.
To me what makes C’s offer tricky, and by extension the apples to apples comparison, is that, although a good offer at first glance, C’s offer is not as good as M, since M is far superior to C in the engineering world. I don’t want to lose the forest for the trees, so to speak.
I would accept the work study as part of college life and look at $24,000 vs $22,000. If you parents will pay $22,000 for Ivy, ask them to pay $22,000 for MIT and then you are at $2,000/yr loans. $8,000 in loans for four years as an engineering student isn’t a bad use of loans. And while I know you can make yourself bankrupt saying only a thousand more, but if you parents can pay $22,000 and presuming that they aren’t incurring debt to do so, then they may be able to pay $24,000. Nothing says you can’t turn down the loans and pay cash for that part.
It is not rude or petty. There are many for whom $5000 would be impossible to bridge. If you are planning on graduate school that unsubsidized loan of $5000 per year will be quite a bit more than $20,000.
Every school tells you that if there is a small amount that will help you, to approach them and ask.
@Sportsman88 My parents are being totally helpful on this. They are more than willing to help me. I’m just pondering the two options. My youthful impression is that things are not exactly the way they look, a price v. value issue. Am I wrong?
What kind of engineering do you want to pursue? Does the core curriculum at Columbia appeal to you? Honestly, they are two great choices; you can’t go wrong with either one. At MIT you’d have to take a job and would have 10K in debt; at Columbia, you wouldn’t. That amount of debt seems quite reasonable, though.
If both were free, which would you prefer? The financials are close enough that I wouldn’t get hung up over a few thousand dollars.
p.s. My dad got all three of his engineering (chem) degrees at Columbia, a very long time ago. He remembers the core fondly. YMMV.
What am I missing? Either way, your parents pay roughly the same amount, within a few thousand. The difference is to you, in loans and work study. Will you need to increase loans in the following years? You can. But assuming you kept it to 2500/year, that’s a 10k debt. I’m not checking, but probably a little over $100/month after grad. Or you just pay it off, once employed.
Is there a student contribution now or in the next years? If not, you could eliminate needing a loan by kicking in from summer earnings.
Thanks for your input @mamadefamilia @lookingforward ! ! ! ! !
I think C’s is a wonderful school and offers so many intellectual opportunities, including the Core, which I find extremely appealing. Hence, I’m having issues turning it down. However, M can’t be beaten in its field.
I have this feeling in my heart of hearts that although price-wise C looks better, value-wise M is the better offer. An engineering education at M can’t compare to an engineering education at C.
So, for what I get from you, I’m not crazy in thinking that, big picture, M is the better offer. Do you see what I see?