Parents paying for college

[dosekies]

Did your parents pay for your college or did you pay for your child's college?

Personally, my parents did not pay for my college. They did try to help pay for books and food and things when they could, but I graduated 2 years ago with about 60k in student loan debt. I did understand when I picked a school that I would be paying, which is why I decided not to go to my dream school, but now that I am moving out and hoping to finally plan my wedding it makes me hope that I can help to pay for most of my future child's schooling when the time comes.

 

[Westcoastwild]

Yes. I was the oldest kid and they put more emphasis on my going to a 4 year school than I did. I wasn't given a choice, and I didn't put up a fight because I wanted out of that house. Because of various factors, though, I ended up with about the same amount of debt as you.

I'll pay for my kid to go to school if I can afford to and they really want to. But those are big ifs. And I honestly think that a lot of kids should not go to college straight out of school.

I don't know if "dream school" would come into it. I don't expect my coffers to be bottomless and if I was going to contribute, I would pretty much say you can go to the school that you get the most aid from. There's a lot of emphasis on which school has what program, but I don't even think that should be a huge consideration until they have the core requirements completed. The upper division classes that I ended up taking mostly were from a department that wasn't even on my radar as a freshman. And I actually took relatively few core classes compared to my friends because I tested so high in English and math.

 

[amberpi]

My parents paid everything that scholarships didn't. I had 5 years that they'd pay for anything. I got grad and undergrad in my allotment and I've tried to pay them back in a zillion ways since. I have taken them on a number of really cool trips but nothing that can truly pay them back for the position they put me in on entering true adulthood. Coming out of college with 0 debt, a nice, reliable (not fancy) car, and cash in the bank from working meant I had a huge leg up on success going into the real world. It allowed me to not take the highest paying job I got offered right out of B school, but the one I wanted, in a field I have loved since I started and that's afforded me so many amazing opportunities and blessings.

 

[dotfurio]

My parents paid for junior college, which covered my first career, but when I went back for a career change at a 4-year university I paid for it with student loans.

DH and I plan to fund our kids educations at state universities (or others if scholarships make them similar in cost).

 

[wannabee]

My parents paid for all 4 of us to go to our state flagship . DH and I will do the same for DS. He leaves in August. DH struggled to pay his own way and we don't want DS to go through what he did.

 

[amberpi]

Having just typed that out - now I'm feeling extra grateful for amazing parents

 

[Skippy918]

Yes they paid for most of it that scholarships didn't cover. I had some loans which I paid off about a year after I graduated. I'm really lucky that my parents did that for me. I knew so many kids who didn't have that option and had to work practically full time while going to class full time. I did have internships so I did pay for rent while I was working.

 

[earfulofmagic]

Did your parents pay for your college or did you pay for your child's college?

Personally, my parents did not pay for my college. They did try to help pay for books and food and things when they could, but I graduated 2 years ago with about 60k in student loan debt. I did understand when I picked a school that I would be paying, which is why I decided not to go to my dream school, but now that I am moving out and hoping to finally plan my wedding it makes me hope that I can help to pay for most of my future child's schooling when the time comes.

Hey, we're around the same age! (25 this month, graduated in 2014)

My parents did not either. They really couldn't (financially) but they also did not want to. Not one cent came from my parents.

On the other hand, my SO has (divorced) parents who both refused to pay for his college as some weird post-divorce bitter continuation of their divorce settlement... when either could have easily paid for college in full. Only child, too. They worked out something where they would each pay a little, but make him do loans for the rest.

Lots of feelings and thoughts around it, but at the end of the day, my SO and I share the same conclusion as you: if we have kids, we want them to be able to go to school without worrying about their tuition, room and board.

 

[rndmr2]

I did have student loans but my parents helped me pay them off. They did pay for books, etc and made interest payments while I was in school and then we paid 50/50 for a few years. When I got a good job after a couple of years and was getting paid well finally, I took them back and paid the rest myself. There were 4 of us kids but only 2 of us went to any post HS education. They did the same for my brother, he went to a full 4 year school, lived away, etc. He did the same thing, took them back after a few years. I went to Nursing school and lived at home, it was a 3 year Diploma program with an Assoc Degree.

 

[BrinkofSunshine]

I have some loans in my name, but my mom took out most of them. I am extremely grateful and hope to help her out with them eventually (if she lets me!).

 

[sk!mom]

No our parents didn't contribute at all but that was back in the 80's when working to pay the difference, after scholarships, was doable. DH however graduated with loans because he didn't have scholarships.

We are paying for everything, after scholarships, for DD21.

 

[Felicis]

Our systems are a bit different in that I think we have more funding for students, however, I ended up with about a 30k loan by the end. I paid for it all, and contributed to the household at the time, above and beyond standard board costs. Still, being able to live at home would have saved me money even with that. (living at home in NZ while attending Uni is relatively common). I worked 2-3 different jobs all the way through.

 

[ols386]

We paid for both our kids' college. They both attended community college for 2 years which saved a lot of money, and then University the last 2 years. We were fortunate to have been able to save for their college during their growing-up years. They both worked part time during college which was also helpful. Made their own car payments, paid for their books, and some other incidentals. Living at home also saved a ton of money.

 

[Luv Bunnies]

My parents sent my sister and me through college, and my brother through trade school. My son is going to begin college next month. He received a good amount of money from his chosen school, and between DH and me, my parents, and my sister, the balance will be covered for all four years. DH's parents also sent him through college, so we both graduated without debt. We want the same for DS, and we are fortunate to have very generous family members who are willing to help us achieve that.

 

[nancygirl1]

We had our 3 children in college at the same time. They had to pay for school with student loans. We paid for books, food, clothes, cellphones, etc. That was all we could afford to do. My husband and I are both disabled and were unable to help more than that.

Unfortunately, between state and federal loans they each owe around $90,000. Every month I see them struggle to pay the loans and feel overwhelming guilt that we couldn't help them more.

 

[ronandannette]

My parents paid for some of mine and I got reimbursed by my company for some (I finished school part-time after I entered the work-force; a 3-year B.Comm took me closer to 5). DH went back to school when he was in his late 30's and financed his degree. Our DS has been unable to settle on a plan so rather than have him rack up loans on "the wrong thing", he's also going part-time, which we are covering on a pay-as-you-go basis. When he enrols full-time he will need student loans.

 

[disykat]

My parents paid for mine. DH's parents helped him to the best of their ability. We wanted to do the same. We were able to get our kids out of school debt free. There were definitely some limits, but even if we hadn't been able to fully fund it, minimizing debt load was our goal. They had the same goal and contributed by working summers in high school and college, during school as able, and getting some scholarship money along the way. They also lived cheaply, in the oldest dorms the first year and off campus the others.

We had planned pretty carefully and had some prepaid tuition, paid our mortgage off right before our oldest started college, and increased my work hours when the oldest started college.

The biggest limit we put on our kids was that if their school required them to take out more than the federally funded loans, they would lose our financial support. Harsh, and thankfully we didn't have an issue there, but we really wanted them to know how important the financial part of choosing a college was. We also gave them a four year limit. (We figured those things can always be adjusted on a case by case basis, but were really important to consider when choosing.)

 

[AquamarineSteph]

My parents paid for my college education and my foray into graduate school. My other half paid for his entire educational experience. I was extremely fortunate.

They did have a four year limit on achieving a bachelor's degree, but I thought that was more than reasonable given the fact I didn't have to pay for any of it.

 

[Poohforyou]

Yes, my college was paid for and we'll be paying for dd's college. She starts in August.

Now, she knew that she'd have to apply to schools that would likely give her a nice merit scholarship. This was as much about the principal of not paying $60k+ per year for an undergraduate degree as it was about the money.

All the schools she got into did that. The one she's going to, her 1st choice school, gave her a presidential scholarship that covers about 40% of the tuition.

It was important for dh and I to do this for our daughter. She will take out the student loan that was offered at least her 1st year. She may have to pay that back herself. We'll play that by ear.

 

[Happyinwonerland]

Nope. And when I was at orientation, my dad was in the financial aid office forging my signature on student loans. I had no clue.

We started a college fund for DD when I was pregnant. I make a good living so hopefully we can pay for her college.