Posted on 05/03/2016 1:19:36 PM PDT by SeekAndFind
In early April, my son Dan arrived home from the University of Wisconsin’s Admitted Students Day holding a Wisconsin windshield sticker—and immediately affixed it to our car above his older brother’s University of North Carolina sticker, with a smile I can only describe as vengeful younger-brother joy.
He, too, was going away to a prestigious public university in a storied college town and with a cult-like alumni following.
A couple days earlier I’d photographed him, lanky and beaming, at Bascom Hill, and posted to Facebook: “On Wisconsin! Dan’s a Badger.” Congratulations poured in: 58 “Likes” and 17 comments. He performed the teenage equivalent, recording Snap Stories for his buddies.
All along, he had been clear that he didn’t want to attend a private school because of the price tag: “$70,000 a year! That just makes me angry!” And then he’d laugh at the ridiculousness of those costs. Above average but not a rock star student, he labored through five Advanced Placement classes, including calculus, biology, and statistics; and earned a weighted grade point average well north of 4.0, as well as a very high ACT score.
He’ll graduate next month from a public high school in a New Jersey suburb, one of those places where 98% of the class attends a four-year college. Some go to Ivies or near Ivies, many to prestigious liberal arts colleges, and another group to public research universities. That’s my kids’ peer group. So Dan and I exulted our way through April.
Then, two weeks after we put down the deposit for Wisconsin, we got the financial aid package. We were stunned when he got zero—nada—in aid. Unless you count the $5,500 in federal loans we were offered.
“This must be a mistake,” I thought.
(Excerpt) Read more at time.com ...
“But why did she have to throw in a gratuitous comment about girls in tight dresses at Rutgers, and OMG will her son get hooked up with one of them????”
Yes, that was snobby and obnoxious.
Gamecock wrote: “Read the entire article. This woman is a moron.”
I read the article. The kid didn’t go to Wisconsin but to an instate college, Rutgers saving a huge amount of money. Why does that make her a moron?
My friend's daughter is going to University of Alabama at in-state rates in the fall. It's not a great school, but their dance program is pretty highly regarded, and she went to summer dance camp there a couple of years ago.
Don’t apply to a school you can’t afford on your own-they don’t provide any better education than one you can ...
Those are words of wisdom!
I second (or third ) the community college suggestion. Pick a good one (one ranked in the top 50) then have him transfer. My college routinely sends grads to Berkeley, UCLA, Cal Davis and UCSF. A part time job will help once at the four year university.
First two years of college, aka glorified high school, should be done at a CC. Its High school all over again.
“USCG,USAF,USN,USA,USMC.
In that order”
And maybe even the Merchant Marine Academy.
Of course, I was lucky to go to college in NYC. That town is much more than a lousy campus - it’s life, writ large. It more than made up for returning to boring old mom and dad after school. My schoolmates taught me how to eat, go to concerts and deal with the subways and mean streets. What a double education!
I do recommend culinary school - I’m paying about 1,000 dollars per semester. Not everyone has to go to the CIA which is now about 40- 60 thousand a year. There’s only one way to teach people how to bake bread. And it’s pretty hard to lecture against Republicans when you’re making ice sculptures. Plus, it’s now a very hot industry thanks to the Food Network.
Whaaaaa! Let’s all wring our hands and shred our clothes because little prissy mama’s baby can’t afford to go to an out of state school. She’s a moron who didn’t look at the costs before she put down the deposit. Geez, lady, it’s all right there on their website for any and all to see. Any other verification was just a phone call away to the admissions office. Sometimes the ignorance of some people make you want to reach into the computer and shake them.
Awwww, but it all ends well with prissy mama’s baby realizing the error of his ways and is going to go to that supposedly unknown entity, Rutgers. Oh, PULEEZE, as if she didn’t know Rutgers’ reputation. She’s one big fat LIAR.
I well recommend Hillsdale, also. A right fine institution, with solid foundation and excellent educational opportunities.
The Community College doesn't even need to be on a resume. It's a stepping stone to get into a four-year school or university, and an opportunity to knock off some of the lower-level requirements at a lower cost.
100% true, and this includes prestigious schools. Family friends whose finances blew up a few years ago — family business failed, etc. — had an income of about 45k for two parents with two kids. They are lily white and hail from a NYC suburb, meaning no colleges “need” their “type”. Daughter is a very good student, but not a star athlete or freakishly talented in any way. She applied to about ten very good private colleges, including Smith College and others like that, was accepted at most. Here's the really good news: almost all gave her GREAT financial aid packages, requiring very modest contributions by the parents and no loans or very modest loans (e.g., one top school would have her graduate with under 15k total after four years, which isn't bad). The rest was “aid”, meaning her parents didn't pay it and she won't have to pay it back. She ended up choosing a highly competitive, prestigious school in New England that happened to require her to take out no loans and requires her parents pay only the cost of books per year.
But if you have to move and get housing, how is community college any cheaper? Surely, the point of cc is that you stay in your OWN community.
Find a minority relative in your family tree and have him re-apply. Seriously. He might get financial aid if you have such a relative, even from long ago.
His son can get a job. I did. When did it start that kids could go thru college and just play and study a bit?
UW is an ultra lib school. Unless he is studying science or engineering, it’s not worth the money, unless what you want is a half way house to park kids until they turn 21.
And, if that’s what you want, then pay for it yourself.
She had to go on line to ask people what to do.
She freaked out when she saw college girls dressed in tight, short clothing, as if that doesn’t happen on all college campuses.
She exerted far more emotional energy than what is required to make what is really a simple economic decision.
Can you explain further about the Fed subsidizing it. Bill Bennett used to rail against this but I’ve forgotten how subsidizing schools makes tuition increase. Thanks!
Are you a minority?
An illegal alien?
Gay?
Muslim?
No?
Then get used to high price.
Otherwise you could claim victim status and go for free.
Community college for two years?
I did more like 5 and transferred with the maximum units allowed by my state, which was 80.
In that era I also worked full time and did part-time semesters too in order to work more and pay my bills.
SFSU did not make me a homo, and College of San Mateo did not make me a...whatever.
ROTC, baby....
Or join the WI National guard. In Mass they pay for state schools.
I was, too. I didn’t go there. Life is unfair.
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