Student Loans Debt

[UGAalum94]

Thanks for all the info. It's interesting to think about.

I think that most of the student I know who are looking at colleges are from an income bracket where they won't seem to have that much need on paper for college generally, but, unless your parents have saved a ton of money for you, who can really afford 50,000 a year for an expensive private?

I'm sure the information they fill out reveals that though and then can pick up some grants and lower interest loans.

[PeppyGPhiB]

Originally Posted by UGAalum94

Thanks for all the info. It's interesting to think about.

I think that most of the student I know who are looking at colleges are from an income bracket where they won't seem to have that much need on paper for college generally, but, unless your parents have saved a ton of money for you, who can really afford 50,000 a year for an expensive private?

I'm sure the information they fill out reveals that though and then can pick up some grants and lower interest loans.

This was certainly the case with the families of the kids I went to high school with (from a wealthy area), as well as some kids I went to college with. But like you said, while a state school may be very easily affordable for a couple, a private school tuition can be impossible for even a couple bringing in six figures. Therefore, "need" as determined by a private school will be much higher than need judged by a cheaper state school. Really when all was said and done, my expensive private school that I wanted really bad was only a few thousand more per year for me than my state school, because UW judged me to have no "need" financially (which is fair).

[AGDee]

The private loans have also become more scarce with the credit crunch/banking crisis according to my friends with college age kids. The way one co-worker explained it to me, when I was complaining that my daughter has very expensive schools in mind... the FAFSA figures out what you can afford to pay and that amount is the same no matter how expensive the school is. So, if they say you come up with $10,000, that's true whether your kid is at a community college or at an expensive private school and she found that the expensive private schools made that extra money available somehow, much like Peppy was saying earlier.

As my kids are quickly approaching college aid, I'm becoming more acutely aware of these issues. I'll get them through somehow though.

[Munchkin03]

Originally Posted by AGDee

The private loans have also become more scarce with the credit crunch/banking crisis according to my friends with college age kids. The way one co-worker explained it to me, when I was complaining that my daughter has very expensive schools in mind... the FAFSA figures out what you can afford to pay and that amount is the same no matter how expensive the school is. So, if they say you come up with $10,000, that's true whether your kid is at a community college or at an expensive private school and she found that the expensive private schools made that extra money available somehow, much like Peppy was saying earlier.

As my kids are quickly approaching college aid, I'm becoming more acutely aware of these issues. I'll get them through somehow though.

Good luck with it! College admissions is one of the things I'm really interested in, and I've been following it pretty closely. I don't have that much experience with the financial aid aspects of the whole thing, but I know private loans have been harder to find.

For private schools, you'll also have the CSS PROFILE, which looks at your assets a little bit more than the FAFSA. A lot of people say--I don't know if this is true--that the Profile expects you to tap into your home equity if you live in an expensive area. Also, the Profile looks more sympathetically to families putting more than one kid in college/taking care of an older grandparent.

It's funny how sometimes private schools end up being more affordable than state colleges.

[AGDee]

Originally Posted by Munchkin03

For private schools, you'll also have the CSS PROFILE, which looks at your assets a little bit more than the FAFSA. A lot of people say--I don't know if this is true--that the Profile expects you to tap into your home equity if you live in an expensive area.

We have a few years yet, but the home equity line made me chuckle. The joke is now on them.. nobody has home equity in Michigan anymore!

[Munchkin03]

Originally Posted by UGAalum94

Thanks for all the info. It's interesting to think about.

I think that most of the student I know who are looking at colleges are from an income bracket where they won't seem to have that much need on paper for college generally, but, unless your parents have saved a ton of money for you, who can really afford 50,000 a year for an expensive private?

I'm sure the information they fill out reveals that though and then can pick up some grants and lower interest loans.

A lot of people, it seems. At my undergrad, only about 40% of students received financial aid when I was there; most of that 40% were still middle to upper-middle class. That meant that 60% of students had parents or grandparents forking over the $35K a year. There were no merit scholarships--neither academic nor athletic.

Now, I think it's more 50/50, with more students who could be considered working or starting class.

There are definitely other schools where a lower percentage of students receive assistance, and tuition is about the same or higher.

[UGAalum94]

Originally Posted by Munchkin03

A lot of people, it seems. At my undergrad, only about 40% of students received financial aid when I was there; most of that 40% were still middle to upper-middle class. That meant that 60% of students had parents or grandparents forking over the $35K a year. There were no merit scholarships--neither academic nor athletic.

Now, I think it's more 50/50, with more students who could be considered working or starting class.

There are definitely other schools where a lower percentage of students receive assistance, and tuition is about the same or higher.

I guess some folks have saved a bunch in college funds for their kids too. If you started early enough, you could probably get a lot socked away, even if you had a moderate income.

I think I've mentioned the HOPE scholarship before on here. If a kid graduates from a public high school in Georgia with a B average, he or she can qualify for free full tuition at a public Georgia college or university as long as he or she maintains a B average. (Keeping it is certainly harder than the initial qualification for it.) If a kid attends a private college in Georgia, I think they get 3,500 a year towards tuition. While this doesn't make school completely free, it does make is hard for a private school to be anywhere near as cheap as a public school for any student who qualifies for HOPE.