Parents paying for college

[CarolAnn856]

I have absolutely nothing against community colleges, but it is unrealistic to think that all students can easily transfer their credits to a traditional college and still finish in 4 years. It really depends on what major the student chooses and what school the student transfers to. My son is starting college at a 4-year school this fall, and the requirements for his major are extensive. There isn't 2 years worth of gen eds, and for many of his classes, the pre-reqs are set up so that you have courses that must be taken freshman year to qualify for the sophomore year classes, which are then required for the junior year classes, etc.

Now, obviously, one doesn't have to select that type of major or that college, but assuming that 2 years worth of CC credits will allow a student to transfer in as a junior and complete their studies in just 2 more years in the major/college of their choosing is not always accurate.

 

[McKelly]

I have absolutely nothing against community colleges, but it is unrealistic to think that all students can easily transfer their credits to a traditional college and still finish in 4 years. It really depends on what major the student chooses and what school the student transfers to. My son is starting college at a 4-year school this fall, and the requirements for his major are extensive. There isn't 2 years worth of gen eds, and for many of his classes, the pre-reqs are set up so that you have courses that must be taken freshman year to qualify for the sophomore year classes, which are then required for the junior year classes, etc.

Now, obviously, one doesn't have to select that type of major or that college, but assuming that 2 years worth of CC credits will allow a student to transfer in as a junior and complete their studies in just 2 more years in the major/college of their choosing is not always accurate.

And this is the EXACT reason my DD decided to go to another four year university. She was afraid the credits wouldn't transfer over.

 

[melanielll]

I honestly feel and maybe I am wrong but I don't think that real life is like the people on these boards. I believe that the folks on these boards make more than the average person - putting our children through college would cost us per child at least 25k per year - so 75k for all 3 for 1 year at an instate school like U of M or Michigan State. How in the heck do you people pay for all of that for your children? Scholarships are just not that easy to get here in our area and because we make a decent wage we are expected to pay 95% of our kids schooling - so how do you pay for bach degrees and grad school and some of you med school? What am I doing wrong here?

Here is how we did it:

First of all, we never started off saving for the $500,000 - $750,000 it is going to cost us. The higher number is if our younger daughter goes to med school. Our first goal was for tuition, books and fees at a solid public school. The next goal was living away from home at a state school. The next goal was graduate school and/or private school. I felt we owed the kids the first one - the others were gravy. For those who will say there is no state school where they live - where you live is a choice. When my oldest was 6, we moved. Our criteria were - job availability, reasonable cost of living, reasonable crime, excellent public schools and a solid 4 year state university within commuting distance.

When I was pregnant the first time, our income was $35K. We started saving $150 a month. Every month. It would take a long time to get to $750,000 at that rate. But - from every raise my husband got, we saved increased our savings by half of what he took home from it. So - if his raise netted him $200 a month - college savings went up $100.

We hit the first goal when my oldest was in the first grade. We hit the second when she was in junior high. The third took us until she was in undergrad.

We started out saving $150 a month. We ended up saving $4000 a month. We are continuing saving that even though we have enough to pay the $750,000. We are going to stash that for travel when my husband retires in a few years.

It comes down to how do you eat an elephant? One bite at a time.

 

[wgeo]

Here is how we did it:

First of all, we never started off saving for the $500,000 - $750,000 it is going to cost us. The higher number is if our younger daughter goes to med school. Our first goal was for tuition, books and fees at a solid public school. The next goal was living away from home at a state school. The next goal was graduate school and/or private school. I felt we owed the kids the first one - the others were gravy. For those who will say there is no state school where they live - where you live is a choice. When my oldest was 6, we moved. Our criteria were - job availability, reasonable cost of living, reasonable crime, excellent public schools and a solid 4 year state university within commuting distance.

When I was pregnant the first time, our income was $35K. We started saving $150 a month. Every month. It would take a long time to get to $750,000 at that rate. But - from every raise my husband got, we saved increased our savings by half of what he took home from it. So - if his raised netted him $200 a month - college savings went up $100.

We hit the first goal when my oldest was in the first grade. We hit the second when she was in junior high. The third took us until she was in undergrad.

We started out saving $150 a month. We ended up saving $4000 a month. We are continuing saving that even though we have enough to pay the $750,000. We are going to stash that for travel when my husband retires in a few years.

It comes down to how do you eat an elephant? One bite at a time.

I think that's incredible and shows real dedication. I think it also highlights that this board may not be a real representative sample of the US. I'm guessing that the number of people that have $4K of discretionary income every month isn't particularly high. The average income total for Americans is in the $50K range, and you are able to save almost that much every year, which is amazing but is not going to be the typical experience for most people.

My parents paid for half of my college which I thought was incredible at the time. I covered my half with scholarships/loans/and working. Got out without too much debt, my husbands parents didn't pay anything but he worked hard and saved his money. When we got married our combined debt was around $40K. We made paying that off a priority. We'll try to help our kids as much as we can but know that we won't be able to cover all the costs. And we wouldn't want to cover everything anyways. I feel like kids take it more seriously if they have a stake in it.

 

[mousefanmichelle]

Here is how we did it:

First of all, we never started off saving for the $500,000 - $750,000 it is going to cost us. The higher number is if our younger daughter goes to med school. Our first goal was for tuition, books and fees at a solid public school. The next goal was living away from home at a state school. The next goal was graduate school and/or private school. I felt we owed the kids the first one - the others were gravy. For those who will say there is no state school where they live - where you live is a choice. When my oldest was 6, we moved. Our criteria were - job availability, reasonable cost of living, reasonable crime, excellent public schools and a solid 4 year state university within commuting distance.

When I was pregnant the first time, our income was $35K. We started saving $150 a month. Every month. It would take a long time to get to $750,000 at that rate. But - from every raise my husband got, we saved increased our savings by half of what he took home from it. So - if his raised netted him $200 a month - college savings went up $100.

We hit the first goal when my oldest was in the first grade. We hit the second when she was in junior high. The third took us until she was in undergrad.

We started out saving $150 a month. We ended up saving $4000 a month. We are continuing saving that even though we have enough to pay the $750,000. We are going to stash that for travel when my husband retires in a few years.

It comes down to how do you eat an elephant? One bite at a time.

That is incredible! I wish we could save $4000 a month. Our income just doesn't support that. That is what I am saying about this board not being a real representation of general America.

 

[DawnM]

That is incredible! I wish we could save $4000 a month. Our income just doesn't support that. That is what I am saying about this board not being a real representation of general America.

We are offering $40K total for undergrad per child (and yes, if there is inflation, we will pay the difference.)

$10K per year includes tuition, fees, transportation, and books for our local 4 year school. They will need to live at home. Our local 4 year school is $7,000 for tuition and fees. Another $3,000 for transportation and misc. works well for us and for them as it will include a used, but decent vehicle for them to drive.

If they want more, they can finance it.

We have 3 kids, so that is a total of $120K. That is still a good deal of money IMO.

 

[mjkacmom]

We are offering $40K total for undergrad per child, max.

$10K per year includes tuition, fees, transportation, and books for our local 4 year school. They will need to live at home. Our local 4 year school is $7,000 for tuition and fees. Another $3,000 for transportation and misc. works well for us and for them as it will include a used, but decent vehicle for them to drive.

If they want more, they can finance it.

We have 3 kids, so that is a total of $120K. That is still a good deal of money IMO.

You are lucky to live in an area with lower college tuition, our state schools cost twice that.

 

[mom2rtk]

You are lucky to live in an area with lower college tuition, our state schools cost twice that.

The state schools in our area are pretty reasonable as well. But pay isn't as high here as it is in other areas of the country either. There's usually a tradeoff.

 

[Hikergirl]

I have absolutely nothing against community colleges, but it is unrealistic to think that all students can easily transfer their credits to a traditional college and still finish in 4 years. It really depends on what major the student chooses and what school the student transfers to. My son is starting college at a 4-year school this fall, and the requirements for his major are extensive. There isn't 2 years worth of gen eds, and for many of his classes, the pre-reqs are set up so that you have courses that must be taken freshman year to qualify for the sophomore year classes, which are then required for the junior year classes, etc.

Now, obviously, one doesn't have to select that type of major or that college, but assuming that 2 years worth of CC credits will allow a student to transfer in as a junior and complete their studies in just 2 more years in the major/college of their choosing is not always accurate.

I don't think anyone is claiming that they can, but just like a student planning on going to a 4 year school, a student going to a CC has to do their research.

 

[DawnM]

You are lucky to live in an area with lower college tuition, our state schools cost twice that.

And if I lived in an area where the in-state tuition were higher, our stance would be the same.....pay for local in-state tuition.

 

[DawnM]

The state schools in our area are pretty reasonable as well. But pay isn't as high here as it is in other areas of the country either. There's usually a tradeoff.

We are looking at moving back to CA, and I am glad their in-state tuition is reasonable as well. We *may* need to pay one year of out of state tuition, but we are budgeting for it if we do.

 

[Hikergirl]

NY offers free tuition to those students whose household income is less tan 100K (this coming year, then goes up in the next couple years) to its schools. There are requirements to stay in the state after you graduate for as many years as you use the offer.
It is going to help alot of families for sure. You are still responsible for room & board and other fees but you will save on average 6K per semester.

 

[RangerPooh]

I have absolutely nothing against community colleges, but it is unrealistic to think that all students can easily transfer their credits to a traditional college and still finish in 4 years. It really depends on what major the student chooses and what school the student transfers to. My son is starting college at a 4-year school this fall, and the requirements for his major are extensive. There isn't 2 years worth of gen eds, and for many of his classes, the pre-reqs are set up so that you have courses that must be taken freshman year to qualify for the sophomore year classes, which are then required for the junior year classes, etc.

Now, obviously, one doesn't have to select that type of major or that college, but assuming that 2 years worth of CC credits will allow a student to transfer in as a junior and complete their studies in just 2 more years in the major/college of their choosing is not always accurate.

I think that this varies on your program, the courses that you choose, and the CC and 4 year schools that you look at attending. I worked as an academic advisor for 6 years at two large 4 year public universities. Typically the 4 year school will accept a set number of transfer credits, maxing out around 60-70 credits. The courses that you take at a CC are up to you and you cannot expect that every single one will transfer as a 1:1. The best bets are those that are labeled as transfer (depending on the state they will either be numbered under 100 or over 100), and built into a transfer agreement to the local 4 year university system for the general education requirements. The best thing to do when looking at starting at a CC with the intention of transferring to a 4 year school is to look at the transfer page of the 4 year school as well as any transfer information listed on the prospective department/major for transfer equivalencies.

When I worked in WA we had a sizable pre-requisite list for students to complete prior to being admitted to the major junior year. All of the courses could be satisfied at the CC, and we posted the transfer list online for students and CC advisors to use when planning their courses. Of course, there was one course that tended to be the exception as a few CC in the state did not offer the course, but a student who did their homework could take it from any other CC in the state online if they planned ahead. However, there would inevitably be students who never consulted the transfer agreement course list for these courses, as well as faculty (and sadly advisors) who never looked for updates and therefore gave students outdated information, like 5 years outdated. Or would just assume that we would accept a course when we didn't. This lead to some students being a semester or two behind in being admitted to the major. They would initially be upset at us, until we pointed out where they could have obtained the information, as well as the fact that they could have reached out to us at any time with questions about transferring to our program. Most at that point would own up to their lack of follow through in planning. Ultimately we did our best to help them graduate on time or as close to it as possible, and many of our transfer students were able to do so. One thing that often did work in transfer students favors were the credits that were required outside of their major, as well as the general electives needed to reach the 120 needed for graduation. My 4 year straight students often would need a few general electives to reach these requirements.

Again, if your student is considering starting at a CC they need to do their homework each year to determine if the transfer courses that they are about to enroll in are still accepted for equivalency. Likewise they need to contact the transfer school and specific major department for accurate information about doing so as not all transfer offices know the correct information.

 

[tvguy]

That is incredible! I wish we could save $4000 a month. Our income just doesn't support that. That is what I am saying about this board not being a real representation of general America.

We dedicated our tax refund each year to the college fund, so about $5,000 there, and one Grandma gave $1,000 savings bond for Christmas and Birthday to both our children so that put us at $9,000 a year total. MIL passed away 6 years before oldest hit college, her $25,000 life insurance went into the college fund, and our house was paid off 5 years before oldest hit college, so the $1,000 house payment each month went to the college fund. By the time our oldest hit college the fund had about 2 years of our take home pay in it and I still had to borrow $40,000 for the oldest child. That 5 year loan is paid off now as oldest has been out of school for 7 years.
Looking at the total numbers, it is staggering what we saved and spent........on a combined income of less than $100,000. The key financial things I think were, avoiding the temptation to move up to a nicer house, or not having to move, being smart enough to pick a 15 year mortgage (original, and 2 refinances) so the house payment wasn't a factor, and driving our cars forever. The lack of house payment and car payment freed up a lot of cash to save.

 

[soccerdad72]

I don't think anyone is claiming that they can, but just like a student planning on going to a 4 year school, a student going to a CC has to do their research.

This is very true. I work at a CC (in administration) and I know all CC's are different, but we have been adding articulation agreements every year with 4-year colleges so it's becoming more commonplace to do 2 years at a CC (usually attaining an Associate's degree first) and then transfer into a 4-year school.

But it's not something you can just automatically assume will happen, nor is it for all areas of studies - there are specific requirements, certain degrees and courses that need to be taken, etc. Students need to work with a counselor (of which our school has many really good ones) are be diligent about following a program.

 

[RangerPooh]

I don't see that happening soon, at least not in our town. At our high school, there's a list outside the guidance office with the names of the students and the schools they got in to. It's really disgusting, in my humble opinion. Schools get a level of recognition for having graduates attending top tier schools. They get recognized for the number of students that go on to college.

My high school did the same thing 20 years ago. In addition to posting the "accepted" list in counseling office they also announced it over the intercom each morning, and had an awards ceremony of sorts for these students and their families to attend. Personally it made me feel like a loser because my parents couldn't pay the $50 application fee that each school required. So needless to say my friends and I weren't included in this show of "success".

Locally I know that there are a few high schools that have "signing day" where students declare where they will attend and where they have been accepted. The school in particular that I'm thinking of was covered on the news for being successful in encouraging the number of students that go on to pursue a college education, even at the local CC. It's in a low SES area where many of the students are the first in their family to graduate high school or attend college. I think what helps to encourage kinds to continue their schooling is that here in TN there is program in place where if you graduate form a TN high school with a specific GPA or above you are eligible for 2 years of free tuition at a TN CC. You just have to maintain program eligibility requirements.

 

[mousefanmichelle]

We dedicated our tax refund each year to the college fund, so about $5,000 there, and one Grandma gave $1,000 savings bond for Christmas and Birthday to both our children so that put us at $9,000 a year total. MIL passed away 6 years before oldest hit college, her $25,000 life insurance went into the college fund, and our house was paid off 5 years before oldest hit college, so the $1,000 house payment each month went to the college fund. By the time our oldest hit college the fund had about 2 years of our take home pay in it and I still had to borrow $40,000 for the oldest child. That 5 year loan is paid off now as oldest has been out of school for 7 years.
Looking at the total numbers, it is staggering what we saved and spent........on a combined income of less than $100,000. The key financial things I think were, avoiding the temptation to move up to a nicer house, or not having to move, being smart enough to pick a 15 year mortgage (original, and 2 refinances) so the house payment wasn't a factor, and driving our cars forever. The lack of house payment and car payment freed up a lot of cash to save.

I think this is great and I wish when we were young parents (23 and 26) we would have sat down and made a solid plan. We didn't. We just did what our parents did. It does possibly change my thought process though and my dh and I need to talk about how we might be able to help them, even if it's only their books but it's never too late I guess.

 

[crazylady]

My parents paid for 50% mainly because they wanted us to have some ownership of the education. I agree with this concept bc I saw alot of my friends wasting time/money in college whose parents were paying for everything. It was like they didn't get that they were in college for a reason. My loan from college was actually to my parents.

 

[chicagodisneyfan]

I don't see that happening soon, at least not in our town. At our high school, there's a list outside the guidance office with the names of the students and the schools they got in to. It's really disgusting, in my humble opinion. Schools get a level of recognition for having graduates attending top tier schools. They get recognized for the number of students that go on to college.

Disgusting? I don't think so. It is just one more tool to use when determining which high school to send your child to.
With private school tuition here ranging around $35,000 a year you bet I want to know which top tier schools the students are getting into!
Just like I want to know the percentage that goes on to a 4 year college and the amount of scholarships awarded.

 

[sk!mom]

I have absolutely nothing against community colleges, but it is unrealistic to think that all students can easily transfer their credits to a traditional college and still finish in 4 years. It really depends on what major the student chooses and what school the student transfers to. My son is starting college at a 4-year school this fall, and the requirements for his major are extensive. There isn't 2 years worth of gen eds, and for many of his classes, the pre-reqs are set up so that you have courses that must be taken freshman year to qualify for the sophomore year classes, which are then required for the junior year classes, etc.

Now, obviously, one doesn't have to select that type of major or that college, but assuming that 2 years worth of CC credits will allow a student to transfer in as a junior and complete their studies in just 2 more years in the major/college of their choosing is not always accurate.

This has been my recent experience. Every school that DD21 looked at had her starting pre reqs to her major immediately. That coupled with the amount of credits she came in with from HS for gen ed classes would have made a start at CC difficult to manage. Not to mention that the one CC here doesn't have a solid reputation.

That is incredible! I wish we could save $4000 a month. Our income just doesn't support that. That is what I am saying about this board not being a real representation of general America.

Our income doesn't support it either but our choices do. We paid off our mortgage years ago and drive 12-15 year old cars. No mortgage and no car payments frees up a lot of income. We started that process many years ago.

The key financial things I think were, avoiding the temptation to move up to a nicer house, or not having to move,

Another good point. We still live in what many would term a "starter house." It's in a good convenient neighborhood and since we valued travel and experiences over a bigger house, we chose to stay put. I do enjoy my friend's/families' larger homes though and sometimes question that choice. Thanks to this thread for reminding me that it was wise, for us.

I also, was only a SAHM for 3 years and during that time, I advanced my education to switch careers when I returned to work. Two incomes is another choice that allowed us to pay off mortgages and cars and set aside more for college. If you aren't fully employed, that could be another avenue to pay for college. I have a close friend who was a SAHM mom until her children were in HS. At that time, she took a flexible part time job and used all of the income to increase the college funds. Once the oldest entered college and with the youngest 2 years behind, she started a full time job. 100% of her income goes to what is now 2 college bills. A full time job is a significant amount to contribute even with being out of the workforce for 20 years. Her DD's are at public state universities with $25,000 annual price tags but her full-time job easily covers one while savings can fund the other.

As far as how to reenter the workforce, my friend's years of volunteer work with the various things that her DD's were involved in opened the door to the part time job and then the full time as well. She put the word out that she was considering going back to work and had people contacting her.