Paying for College...

[pbm]

I'm going through the 'college search' for my oldest right now and it amazes me how expensive it is.
Almost every school has some sort of quote "no qualified applicant will be denied admission because of inability to pay, yada, yada, yada...."
I wonder if I would have been better off living above my means, taking vacations, driving expensive cars ect.... or putting money away for my childrens education? Something doesn't seem right.

 

[Footpounds]

Good luck...I feel your pain! I was going through in 2004 what you are going through now. She graduated college in 2008 and it's a great feeling! (I just have the one child)

 

[eljefino]

I think the formula mostly is based on income not savings.

However they sure pry into your personal business.

Best bet is having a smart kid with all sorts of well rounded qualities they want, and bargaining with them, prying one school against another.

Of course the award they give freshmen is better than the renewals when they become upperclassmen.

I'd finance a bunch with loans in your kid's name, what's the interest rate, 2%? And they keep talking about various forgiveness schemes so who knows what there'll be in 5 years when they start coming due. You could always help your kid with the loans... but who knows what pleasant suprise might be in store?

 

[JHZR2]

I believe they do check most all savings except cash value life insurance. I believe they also check the valuation of your real property as any of that could be loaned against.

You need to meet certain demographics to get free money.

Otherwise you get to be indebted to the system...

 

[pbm]

Originally Posted By: JHZR2
I believe they do check most all savings except cash value life insurance. I believe they also check the valuation of your real property as any of that could be loaned against.

You need to meet certain demographics to get free money.

Otherwise you get to be indebted to the system...



That's what I meant when I said "Something doesn't seem right".
It seems to me that the price of college is whatever one can afford to pay.
They make the tuition 40K and only those with a good job actually pay that while others pay a percentage based on income. It seems to be another example of one income group subsidizing another.

 

[Jeepster_nut]

I was once told- " You can finance you child's education, however, you cannot finance your retirement". Make saving for your retirement priority number one. Kids should have a sense of paying back debt and having financial burden. It will condition them for the rest of their adult lives.

 

[PandaBear]

I disagree with making kids pay for their education. Depends on your kids motivation level this may discourage them from attending the best school that they can do well in, or stay in school if finance is a concern.

I have one friend who had to work on and off between semester because his family keep having medical trouble and have no insurance (can't afford, parents both on minimum wage job), needing to withdraw all the cash available, etc. Took him 8 years to finish school and imagine the lost income between having a degree in 4 vs 8 and the 4 years of income difference between full/part time with/without degree.

IMO having fewer kids is the solution, as well as not letting kids going to money losing major in an expensive college. I'd be happy to let my kids go into science, medical, engineering, finance, business, legal and pay for them. But if they want to go in to liberal art, they better find their way in community college.

 

[JHZR2]

Originally Posted By: Jeepster_nut
I was once told- " You can finance you child's education, however, you cannot finance your retirement". Make saving for your retirement priority number one. Kids should have a sense of paying back debt and having financial burden. It will condition them for the rest of their adult lives.


On the contrary, we lived very frugally growing up, and my parents were able to pay for my entire college education. My grad school was paid for as is the norm in engineering trades.

Because of that, I am ahead of 99% of my peers. Those who had rich parents will always be well off, but for the average person, I was certainly better off and more flexible, more comfortable, and could move forward earlier on a path to financial stability than others.

You CAN save for comfortable retirement and pay for offsprings' college. My parents did. And I am eternally grateful... and I know how to live frugally, sustainably and carefully myself as a result of their training, not because of some late in life lesson strapping me with college loans.

 

[saberz]

I think college is the biggest rip off. If you cannot pay for it out right every semester it doesn't appear to be worth it.

You spent 4+ years of financial aid which can run up between 10k-150k or MORE pending profession(PHD, Masters).

There are numerous stories of people completing their bachelors and unable to find a job, then go for their masters and unable to find a job and they are in the hole 50-100k. Takes a lifetime to pay it off if you don't make out. Especially with how things are going now.

 

[Jeepster_nut]

Ideally, being able to pay for college and retirement is any parent's intention, however things don't always play out as planned. I have a young son and plan on paying for his college AND my retirement. However should some unforeseeable financial hardship occur that would affect my retirement, I will certainly have him pay for his own college if it allowed me take care of myself, rather than becoming a burden to him and having him care for me later in his life when he has a family of his own.

 

[JHZR2]

Originally Posted By: Anies
I think college is the biggest rip off. If you cannot pay for it out right every semester it doesn't appear to be worth it.

You spent 4+ years of financial aid which can run up between 10k-150k or MORE pending profession(PHD, Masters).

There are numerous stories of people completing their bachelors and unable to find a job, then go for their masters and unable to find a job and they are in the hole 50-100k. Takes a lifetime to pay it off if you don't make out. Especially with how things are going now.


A college degree today is what a high school degree was 20+ years ago.

You cannot even move into the upper echelon at the local McDonalds without a college degree.

 

[saberz]

I agree, but its gotten to the point of lunacy.

You place yourself into financial ruin without even a guarantee of getting a job related to your field(especially NOW). I feel bad for this generation of teens entering into college. That and rising costs(as always).

 

[Al]

Originally Posted By: PandaBear
I disagree with making kids pay for their education. Depends on your kids motivation level this may discourage them from attending the best school that they can do well in, or stay in school if finance is a concern.
IMO having fewer kids is the solution, as well as not letting kids going to money losing major in an expensive college.


You are spot on. In my experience those parents that push the burden onto the child do so bc they chose to spend the money on themselves. My parents paid my way. I did the same for my son and my Daughter til she married while in school.

Also consider community college for the first 2 years.

And yea on graduating with something useful.

Having fewer kids to you can put them through college or tech school??....a big 10-4.

When I go grocery shopping and see 3 or 4 young kids with young mommy......the word "Clueless" comes to mind.

 

[JHZR2]

Originally Posted By: Anies
I agree, but its gotten to the point of lunacy.

You place yourself into financial ruin without even a guarantee of getting a job related to your field(especially NOW). I feel bad for this generation of teens entering into college. That and rising costs(as always).



Teens themselves, the entertainment industry and non-caring parents are doing it to themselves. Oh, your going to be a _______ (rock, sports, rap) superstar? Great. Instead of focusing on being "fabulous" and spending your babysitting money on coach purses, abercrombie jeans and smartphones, perhaps they should realize that the physics of reality are still there, and just because you are under 18, does not mean that you are exempt.

 

[aquariuscsm]

Originally Posted By: Jeepster_nut
Kids should have a sense of paying back debt and having financial burden. It will condition them for the rest of their adult lives.


AMEN! I agree completely! I had to work two jobs to pay my way through night school. It`s so pathetic when you have all these grown adults who`s daddys pay for everything and they have no sense of responsibility. I came from a well off family,but I still had to buy my own cars,pay my own rent,pay for my own fun,and pay for my college. It must be nice being a grown adult living on the nip. Once they turn 18,make them work and get accustomed to how the real world is going to treat them. Have them start building their credit and make them take on finacial responsibility. If they wanna party,make them pay for their own partying. If they want a nice new car,make them take out a car loan and buy one. The real world isn`t nice or fair,and if they`re not prepared for responsibility,they won`t know what to do to survive once daddy removes them from his payroll.

 

[JHZR2]

Originally Posted By: aquariuscsm
Originally Posted By: Jeepster_nut
Kids should have a sense of paying back debt and having financial burden. It will condition them for the rest of their adult lives.


AMEN! I agree completely! I had to work two jobs to pay my way through night school. It`s so pathetic when you have all these grown adults who`s daddys pay for everything and they have no sense of responsibility. I came from a well off family,but I still had to buy my own cars,pay my own rent,pay for my own fun,and pay for my college. It must be nice being a grown adult living on the nip.


You dont seem to understand though that there is a division between good parenting and handing out money. Money can be handed out if good parenting is employed. My parents paid for about a third of a brand new first car and my college education. That does not mean that they did not teach me financial responsibility, leving within your means, living frugally and carefully, etc.

There is a difference between handouts and providing fully to help your children get a good head start.

 

[Kaboomba]

I hope I don't ruin everybody's day with this:

Is College Worth It?

I feel that my college eddykashon was worth it, but only because

1. Top-10 undergrad engineering program
2. Lots of scholarships and grants to bring the cost in line with public institutuion (I attended a private school)
3. The value of my eddicashiun allowed me to line up a well-paying internship after my freshman year and to line up a good job BEFORE I graduated

 

[Kestas]

The whole system stinks. Starting with the fact that nowadays you have to have a college education to get jobs that really don't require high education. Add the fact that a college degree costs a lot of money plus takes you out of the work force for a number of years. There are no guarantees that college will pay for itself during your career. Now we're being asked to work beyond the age of 65, because pensions and social security are going bankrupt. This, at a time where there are few good paying jobs and little employment available to keep us employed to age 65 or beyond. If anything, we should be retiring early to provide employment to the younger crowd.

Something has to give.

In the last meeting of our professional society, discussion drifted toward this "overeducation" issue. The local professors who often participate in our meetings weren't very comfortable listening to what we have to say.

I don't have the answer, but the pieces just aren't falling into place.

 

[Mr Nice]

What about tuition reimbursement from the company they work for while they are in college ?

I know many people who took an entry level job with a company and got their Bachelors/Master degree paid for. There are internships that are a stepping stone for great career.


JHZR2,
You did very well because you worked your tail off to get where you are today, your parents paying for your college only helped you so much.

 

[JHZR2]

Originally Posted By: LT4 Vette
JHZR2,
You did very well because you worked your tail off to get where you are today, your parents paying for your college only helped you so much.



I did, but had I had a large bunch of student loans, I would not have been able to buy a nice home in NJ at 26. If I had a large number of student loans, I would not have been able to save for retirement the way I have to-date, nor bought the things I have. As I am debt-averse, I would have been paying off about $100k in loans, which is roughly what undergrad cost when all was said and done.

Instead, we're able to save, we are able to live a bit higher than we should for a couple years because currently we are DINKs. And with good retirement savings, a mortgage already well-paid into, etc., we'll be able to save and pay my kids' college (when we have them) going forward.

Of course I could be hit by a bus, or a health tragedy could strike. These things do happen and they are unfortunate. However, when they do not, which fortunately probability seems to say is the case, one can make the best of what is given, or live foolishly.

Unfortunately there are more and more who choose the latter.