She was only accepted to USC for Spring '24. So we assume she would have enough credits to finish in 2 years (not 1.5 or 2.5). So 1 year living at home ($70k) and 1 on/near campus ($90k) = $160k minus $100k parental contribution = $60k debt.
As for declining UCSD - she felt students were too serious there and didn’t look like they had any fun - ‘UC Socially Dead’ was true for her unfortunately. However my Freshman (and the parents) love it there and committed earlier year (but got off UCLA wait list so going there instead).
I’ve told her we’re not co-signing a loan but haven’t had a chance for a full family conversation yet - it’s a holiday weekend so she’s always out with friends/boyfriend.
Just saw a reddit post of a student who accepted a T20 school now trying to back out (and go to the state school he declined) as he doesn’t want to give his parents $300k debt. They don’t seem to have the funds so it really is $300k all debt. Amazing they co-signed that…
Obviously if she’s living home - housing costs if any and food cost varies. USC estimates $80k at home. if you’re living home, you’re not going to school - taking advantage of all a school offers. College is about more than attending classes. So I’d never pay for USC and live home but that’s me.
I see the aforementioned bf - perhaps that’s blocking the issue and pushing her toward the unaffordable desire. At that age many don’t really understand the gravity of the situation.
My daughter and her bf are 2k miles apart. It’s hard but two years in survival - but that can be an issue too.
Honestly, if you’re not co-signing, then the decision is made. You just need to break it to your daughter. She cannot take out more that 15k over the two years herself.
Or if the acceptance is for spring 24, how much can she earn between now and the January start? That might also make the cost possible. Minimum wage in CA is pretty high.
It is possible to get part way through and discover that you cannot borrow enough money to finish your degree. I used to have a guitar teacher who had run into exactly this problem. He had to finish at an in-state public university and would have been way better off to have just started at the in-state public university. He had to give a lot of guitar lessons to pay off his debt.
If a family would need $300,000 in debt for a bachelor’s degree, it would not surprise me at all if they would run into the same problem at some point.
My friend at Syracuse had parents that didn’t plan.
Well they did. Moved into a trailer to afford the first two years.
Then couldn’t afford. Went to U of Montana (her home state) the last two. Her class was small and all 20 got on air jobs. She’s still in the industry. Glad she left Syracuse. I know few who made it even one year and five years after although a few of my classmates are now big time. But percentage wise very low.
It goes to show - it’s more the kid than the school.
In regards to UCSD, if it’s been rejected by the student, no point in going there although I hope the student knows college is about more than fun.
Did the student apply to UCI or UCR? Both have B schools.
I really don’t know when the - if you’re not taking the cheapest school available you’re a fool became dominant at CC, but it’s really become unbearable in the last year. Sure there are parents who haven’t saved and can’t afford their EFC, but most people I know have zero issue spending some money to send their kid to school. Why has this site devolved into an echo chamber of cheap schools? For the record, I graduated in 1995 with $20,000 in debt - about $40,000 in today’s dollars. Zero regrets. I paid it back in less than 5 years. And yes, despite the continued mantra of it doesn’t matter where you go to school, I leveraged that prestigious school into an extremely high salary career. One should certainly evaluate their potential salary and debt service, but the continued mantra of if you graduate with any debt you’re a fool is just ridiculous.
The parent has stated it’s $60k debt for two years, is not willing to sign for the loan, and the student doesn’t really have a path (choosing business because it seems good and doesn’t really appear to know the curriculum but does know econ isn’t for them).
Every situation is different and you are likely driven and made a bet that paid off. Most are likely not that driven.
Congrats - many people have different perspectives - than yours (or mine). But in this case, unless the parent changes their mind, there is no possibility for USC.
It’s not a question of least expensive. It’s a question of able to afford.
I also think a huge part of the USC experience is living on campus. And this student will be living at home. My daughter has met kids in classes and they are commuting. They are exhausted from commuting, waiting around for classes if they can’t arrange their schedule to be just right. These are also considerations.
Absolutely - and in this case USC may not be the answer. I’m more weary of the continued, non-stop posting of cheap, cheap, cheap, debt is the devil, why are you paying more when you can go to one of these schools that have to pay strong students to go there. That is also not at all the right decision for many students despite the non-stop cheerleading.
I don’t think the “cheapest” option is what is touted here – rather finding colleges options that will be AFFORDABLE without a huge level of undergrad debt (especially when a student is planning on grad school or has no defined path towards debt repayment) should be the goal.
But let’s get back to the OP. The OP stated an unwillingness to co-sign student loans for USC so that issue is settled for this thread.
Any back-and-forth personal discussions should be PMs.
She’s not going to UCSD no matter what unfortunately. IMO, could have been a great option as an int’l business/int’l studies major as she has a little background there (speaks a 2nd language, already studied abroad and traveled to many countries in Europe/Asia).
If she still insists on USC, guess she could make it work if she lives at home for both years and earns $25k between now and start of school in Spring '24 (or maybe even by the time she graduates). That way she’ll only need the $15k max loan amount. I’ll mention that option, but to me, still not worth it if you have UCSB (and can live on campus vs living at home) as the alternative. That’s not gonna be a fun college experience.
We’re only 30 minutes from USC so commuting wouldn’t be an issue. However living on campus during my college years were one of the best times of my life so always told my kids they should live away.
I don’t disagree that it’s a very different experience. But honestly, if my kid decided she’d rather live at home, earn money and take out the federal limit loans for USC Marshall vs a Communications degree from UCSB, I’d have zero issue. I think the estimate for living at home for USC is overstated (unless you don’t currently feed your kid - the incremental cost is much less). If she wants to swing it and make the sacrifice for not living in the dorms and graduates with 16K in debt with a USC Marshall degree - I wouldn’t stress a bit.
Well, in my daughter’s case, she’s not interested in grad school or finance/IB, so an extremely high salary career will be tough. I’d imagine her salary will be close to the loan amount she was considering ($60k) so it could take +10 years to pay off. If that’s the future she’s potentially looking at, IMO it’s best to save $100k ($60k debt, $40k savings) and go with the similar option that’s available.
Now if this conversation was USC MBA vs whatever cheap alternative, that’s a completely different discussion and I wouldn’t hesitate to co-sign that.
One truly doesn’t know their future path - grad school and all but most would have to work a few years before a top grad school would admit them.
So she’d have to work anyway b4 you can think about that at a school like SC and who knows what she’d be thinking in 4 or 5 years. My cousin, out of the blue, after working in a hotel fir a few years, is now in law school. So you never know.
I do not agree one needs a graduate degree or degree in finance to have a high earning career.
I know people even without degrees making $300k + and by plus I mean a lot more.
In the end, right place, right time.
I made six figures at 25 in 1993. They told me I’d make $30k. I was just good at what I did. I had just a bachelor and not everyone I worked with did although I remember one ucsd colleague. I just looked her up. She’s now a real estate appraiser in San Diego where we worked together. Our admin was a Stanford English major.
So your daughter still has the potential of a bright and high earning future, regardless of school and major. Some things do point you directionally toward certain things but there are no absolutes.
You aren’t asking her to make 25K between now and her enrollment. She needs to NET 25K which is an entirely different animal. Social Security off the top. Federal, state taxes. Commuting costs. Brown bagging her lunch every day. And fantastic if her job offers benefits-- but guess what? Those will be automatic payroll deductions as well.
I think you are living her fantasy by thinking she can bankroll USC on her own. And have her work through a loan repayment schedule to see what her payments will be. It’s going to take a lot longer than 10 years to pay off a 60K loan on a 60K GROSS income if-- like most kids- she doesn’t want to live at home after graduation.
Does she have any clue what stuff costs? Real stuff- health insurance, deductibles, copayments, rent, taxes?