Kids headed to College Fall 2012 Check-in

[zurgswife]

So, I have a son headed to college in the Fall. We have gotten all of our acceptance and now we are in decision mode. Waiting for the last FA offer.

How is your decision making going?

 

[Boston Tea Party]

Checking in. Just sent the deposit to USC this morning. Goodbye, Walt Disney World. It was nice knowing you!

 

[Southernmiss]

DS had about 5 schools he was interested in. His top choice wait listed him . His 3rd and 4th choice schools offered him scholarships which would have covered 2/3s of the expenses at their schools--if he chose school 3 he would still have $10,000+ in annual expenses to cover. School 4 he would have still had about $5,000 in yearly expenses to cover.

School #5 offered him a FULL RIDE all 4 years tuition, room, board books. So DH and I strongly encouraged him to take it--so he did. It is only an hour away and DH happens to work in the town and commutes each day. Much easier for me to let go knowing he's close and we are close if he needed us.

But after accepting school #5s offer, he was accepted admittance at his 2nd choice school, but no scholarship. He's very honored to have gotten accepted, but with no $ offer...

School #5 it is.

 

[java]

Spent this weekend at accepted student day at ds's school. Showed him around Boston. He loved it. We have not sent in the acceptance yet, but I'm guessing we will this week. He turned down a free ride to an Art school. It was. Great opportunity, but I believe this school is the right choice for him.

 

[DVCLiz]

DD18 applied to two schools - her top choice and what she thought of as a safety (although I was not sure she would be admitted.) She did get accepted at both and will be headed to Florida in August. She got a nice scholarship offer from her school which will help with tuition. She'll be in St. Pete/Tampa so I am looking forward to spending some DVC points in WDW when I visit!!

She is my youngest so I will have an empty nest next year - just me, the dog and the cats. I am so looking forward to it!!!I have traveled a lot this year and I will really enjoy more travel next year without any responsibilities at home. I suppose it is easier for me the second time around because I know that there is a wonderful time ahead of her and we will not lose our close relationship.

I know it will be here before I know it!!

 

[mvazul]

Our son applied and was accepted to two schools. Purdue (Indiana) was his top choice with Mount St. Mary's (Maryland) as his "back up". Mount St. Mary's offered him the Presidential Scholarship at $64,000 - just over half the total cost. Purdue offered him nothing. He has chosen Purdue.

Our son has known since he was 6 that he would need to be 100% responsible for his college education. I am not sure how he will pay for it. I really tried to talk him into MSM, but his heart is set on Purdue. So, he will need to get loans. Not exactly sure how that is going to work.

Michelle

 

[java]

Our son applied and was accepted to two schools. Purdue (Indiana) was his top choice with Mount St. Mary's (Maryland) as his "back up". Mount St. Mary's offered him the Presidential Scholarship at $64,000 - just over half the total cost. Purdue offered him nothing. He has chosen Purdue.

Our son has known since he was 6 that he would need to be 100% responsible for his college education. I am not sure how he will pay for it. I really tried to talk him into MSM, but his heart is set on Purdue. So, he will need to get loans. Not exactly sure how that is going to work.

Michelle

We visited Purdue last summer and learned one thing that may be helpful to your son. It is relatively easy to establish residency in Indiana. Even being on campus in school housing counts. So perhaps he will be able to get in state rates after his Freshman year.

 

[eliza61]

All done here. DS accepted into the DAAP program at the University of Cincinnati. I'll have 2 in college this fall so I'll be lucky if we can afford to cross the bridge over into Philadelphia, let alone go on vacation. LOL.

 

[goofy4tink]

I've been reading these 'kids heading off to college this fall' threads for years. I can't believe that now it's my turn to send my 'baby' off to college in the fall. She applied to 6 schools, got into all but one. And that one was a huge stretch. She even had her grades mistakenly sent to one school, that she was sort of considering but decided not to apply to...they accepted her and gave her a boatload of money to go there!!! Too bad it doesn't have the classes she needs.
But, she finally decided on her first choice school...Roger Williams University in Bristol RI. Not too far away from us.
A state school would have been much less expensive, but she's the only one we have to pay for, so in for a penny, in for a pound. And like others....goodbye WDW for a few years now. Ah well...we'll see what happens down the road, but it's going to take some creative financing to avoid dd's having close to $80,000 in loans when she's done.

 

[Bilberry]

I don't have kids, but have nephews visiting this week for spring break. A topic of discussion I'll be hearing often about is schooling and their soon to be future in college.

As i read the other day on a Professors sight, be careful about going into debt for schooling anymore. And in particular, it looks like the profession of being an attorney does not pay off all to often any longer.

"First, Let’s Indenture All The Lawyers"

Spring is here, which means that it’s acceptance letter season around many American kitchen tables this time of year. And because many graduate as well as undergrad schools send out acceptances around this time of year, both high school and college students will be checking the mail to see whether the school of their choice has sent fat or thin envelopes.
More than ever in these tough times, those letters will pose some hard choices in many families. To attend a more expensive liberal arts college or go for the scholarship at the bigger but less expensive state school? Does it really make sense to take out all of that debt for that graduate degree?
Many millions of students nationwide are now beginning to think about their local junior colleges, trade schools, or even start-ups as sensible post-secondary options. At the graduate level, if trends hold, close to 50,000 students, most of them probably liberal arts graduates without any real idea of what they want to do with themselves, will sign up for law school.
It’s all quite exciting for students and their families. It’s also expensive – often more so than young people realize. For those considering law school, Professor Paul Campos analyzes the picture at his blog. Close to half of all of law school graduates, he emphasizes, end up working not in big law firms, but in “small law” (firms of two to ten lawyers), or opening up their own solo practice. Given the relatively low salaries in small law firms and the high overhead costs of founding a new law firm (conference rooms, legal databases, bar fees), most young lawyers can look forward to no more than a median salary of $50,000, with those in the 75th percentile looking forward to … $62,500. That’s higher than the median income in the USA, but the real problem is the level of compounding indebtedness that can’t ever be paid off. Writes Campos:

The rest can be seen at:

http://blogs.the-american-interest.com/wrm/2012/04/01/first-lets-indenture-all-the-lawyers/

 

[tar heel]

I'll be sending my youngest off. Not sure where yet, but we'll be paying in-state tuition.

 

[ckay87]

Son graduated in '11, but just decided on college for this coming fall. Decided a grocery store was not his career of choice. He wasn't the greatest student, so I'm glad he took the time to find something he really is passionate about. Will be going to a technical college (Penn Tech) for aviation maintenance and is very excited. It's a division of Penn State, so we have some money scraping to do, to say the least.

 

[StephMK]

DD got into 4 of her 5 choices. The one that didn't accept her was the stretch & really expensive so that was a blessing! She chose the school she originally disliked until she actually visited. I am happy she will be 1 hr away. DH & I both went to big state schools w/lots of school spirit so I think she will have fun. She got some scholarships OOS but they basically just gave her the equivalent of instate tuition so it didn't matter which school she chose as far as finances go.

We're waiting on her final financial aid package but already sent in the deposits for enrollment & housing. She found a roommate through their finder system and just needs to sign up for a registration day when they release in the next week or so. We're now focused on prom & graduation plans! Yikes!

 

[VickiVM]

My oldest was accepted into Univ. of North Texas late last year and since that was his dream school, he didn't apply elsewhere. He auditioned for acceptance in College of Music in February and was accepted!! Dorm deposit in and now just waiting for scholarship information...FAFSA completed almost 2 months ago. His worries are over now and mine have just begun ($$$).

 

[zurgswife]

Our son applied and was accepted to two schools. Purdue (Indiana) was his top choice with Mount St. Mary's (Maryland) as his "back up". Mount St. Mary's offered him the Presidential Scholarship at $64,000 - just over half the total cost. Purdue offered him nothing. He has chosen Purdue.

Our son has known since he was 6 that he would need to be 100% responsible for his college education. I am not sure how he will pay for it. I really tried to talk him into MSM, but his heart is set on Purdue. So, he will need to get loans. Not exactly sure how that is going to work.

Michelle

I'm sure that your aware that he will only be able to secure about $5500 in loans by himself and everything else will be co-signed by you or some other adult in his life.

My oldest went this route. It was definitely nerve wracking to take on so much in loans. She is getting ready to graduate and find a job but the loan looms much larger in her eye now then it did 3 years ago.

Good luck to your son.

My son applied to 6 schools total. 4 audition schools (theater), one long shot (ivy league but it would have been free due to our EFC) and one academic/financial safety.

He got into all for audition schools and now we are just comparing FA packets...

 

[Buckalew11]

DD starts at her only choice this Fall. I can't believe it and am so excited for her, where did the time go?

It is 10 mins from my house (good thing we moved 3 years ago--it was only 3 mins. then! lol) She is going to live there or at least see if she likes it.

She got a Presidential Scholarship (yay! Our homeschooling did not kill her! lol) but that is not a full ride here anymore. Years ago, it was but not in these economic times, I guess. She has applied for a few more scholarships so we'll see--one is a 10,000 one (renewable) that would really, really help.

She is there for 2 classes 4 days a week right now doing dual credit and has loved it! So far, so good. This kid has waited for college since 2nd grade so I hope it lives up to her expectations.

The cost gives me stomach aches...

 

[ckay87]

Our son has known since he was 6 that he would need to be 100% responsible for his college education. I am not sure how he will pay for it. I really tried to talk him into MSM, but his heart is set on Purdue. So, he will need to get loans. Not exactly sure how that is going to work.

Michelle

You know what stinks about that....and this is just something that occurred to me as we go through the FAFSA process.... When you apply for financial aid, it is the PARENTS' income that is taken into consideration, whether the parents intend to pay or not. That's a real bummer for students whose parents don't plan to help. Perhaps the parents make plenty and are not eligible for aid. The student, on the other hand, probably makes very little and would (should) indeed be eligible for aid.

I'm not giving you a hard time. Your plan was the same as we basically had for our son. But it seems like there is a gap there that makes the financial aid eligibility requirements really unfair for kids whose parents can pay (kind of) but won't.

Someone please correct me if I'm wrong on any of that, I don't profess to be an expert on this at ALL!

 

[mvazul]

Son graduated in '11, but just decided on college for this coming fall. Decided a grocery store was not his career of choice. He wasn't the greatest student, so I'm glad he took the time to find something he really is passionate about. Will be going to a technical college (Penn Tech) for aviation maintenance and is very excited. It's a division of Penn State, so we have some money scraping to do, to say the least.

Small world - I grew up in Canton, just 40 miles north of Penn Tech. I have a cousin there right now and a few others who have graduated from there. I decided after 19 years, it was the for me to go to college (I went back in 2009). I had looked at Penn Tech, but decided on Mansfield. Penn State Main is less expensive than Tech. Mansfield was half of Tech.

Now, I am enrolled in The Art Institute of Pittsburgh (on-line), because we moved to florida in December. I can't find a good, quality Graphic Design school here for anything.

I'm sure that your aware that he will only be able to secure about $5500 in loans by himself and everything else will be co-signed by you or some other adult in his life.

My oldest went this route. It was definitely nerve wracking to take on so much in loans. She is getting ready to graduate and find a job but the loan looms much larger in her eye now then it did 3 years ago.

Good luck to your son.

My son applied to 6 schools total. 4 audition schools (theater), one long shot (ivy league but it would have been free due to our EFC) and one academic/financial safety.

He got into all for audition schools and now we are just comparing FA packets...

You know what stinks about that....and this is just something that occurred to me as we go through the FAFSA process.... When you apply for financial aid, it is the PARENTS' income that is taken into consideration, whether the parents intend to pay or not. That's a real bummer for students whose parents don't plan to help. Perhaps the parents make plenty and are not eligible for aid. The student, on the other hand, probably makes very little and would (should) indeed be eligible for aid.

I'm not giving you a hard time. Your plan was the same as we basically had for our son. But it seems like there is a gap there that makes the financial aid eligibility requirements really unfair for kids whose parents can pay (kind of) but won't.

Someone please correct me if I'm wrong on any of that, I don't profess to be an expert on this at ALL!

I'm really not sure how we're going to handle this. As I have said, I am in college, too. I have my own to pay for. Plus, we have put out a TON of money in attorney's fees due to 14 years of my ex's crap and pulling me back into court for every whim (wanted full custody - judge laughed at him, kidnapped my son, beat the crap out of him, had to get a restraining order, etc.). Any money we would have had for college is gone. Paid to attorneys. That was something we had to do. It can't be undone.

However, even if we did have the money, we would still hold him financially responsible. I have seen the results of kids having everything paid for and they don't appreciate it. He will need to work for it and figure it out. We had a long talk this weekend and told him Purdue may not be in the cards for him this year. He may need to take a year off, or look at Mount St. Mary's, or join the military (I'm hoping he doesn't have to resort to this).

By lowering standards and making it easier for everyone to get into college, the costs have skyrocketed. I had loans before the government got involved. Now all of my student loans are federal. I will leave it at that, so I don't receive points for getting political. What I can say is by the government sticking their noses in, they have created a mess.

 

[BrerMom]

DS only applied to one college and was accepted. He even was chosen to be in the specialty major he wanted (less than 15 students accepted per year). I think it will be a good fit for him.

We will be joining the ranks of families that have two in college. It will be interesting to see what kind of financial aid package we get - and by that, I am hoping that we make enough to qualify for the loans they both will need.

 

[Nickimouse]

My son will be going to Lamar University here in Texas and it's only an hour or so away so I'm happy about that!
He will be a mechanical engineering major and the class size is great for such a tough major.

He plans to be a member of the marching band as a trumpet player, and on a college day in the fall got to sit in with their jazz band. He said he felt like he fit right in! After his first semester as a marching band member he will get a small scholarship. His private lesson instructor highly suggested he audition for more musical scholarships so fingers crossed for that!

My oldest has one more year so at least only one year of 2 in college.
Right before I logged on here we were filling out his housing/food plan application. ugh,it's all too real. My last child leaving is hitting me hard!