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Stanford (or other big name schools) are probably a bad example, because if you get accepted, they'll ensure that you can attend regardless of your financial si
by gtrubetskoy 11y ago
Stanford (or other big name schools) are probably a bad example, because if you get accepted, they'll ensure that you can attend regardless of your financial situation. Most "big name" schools have instituted programs in the last couple of years whereby they'll cover your tuition without (or with very minimal) student loans. For example https://nobarriers.uchicago.edu/ https://nobarriers.uchicago.edu/
The problem is the the rest of the schools out there - 50K might be on the high end, but 20-30K is quite common, and having attended those, you might end up with a huge loan and a worthless degree.
- jcheng 11y agoThat's exactly right: https://collegescorecard.ed.gov/school/?243744-Stanford-University https://collegescorecard.ed.gov/school/?243744-Stanford-Univ... Expand the "Costs" section and you can see that if your family income is less than $100K, you're probably going to pay a small fraction of $50K.
- brianwawok 11y agoIf your parents make a lot of money but won't pay for college, you get stuck with the full bill. One of the many big wholes in the financial aid game.
- sokoloff 11y agoAnytime a pervasive worldwide, nationwide, or statewide problem has been reduced to a fairly rare intra-family problem, that's still a great thing.
- brianwawok 11y agoIs it fairly rare? I know a lot of upper middle class friends who's parents had 0 savings and could not help at all with college, but by income guidelines they were expected to contribute a lot.
- sokoloff 11y agoI have no data on how rare it is. My anecdotes suggest that it's more a matter of how the family prioritizes and allocates the income they have. There is a very tight spot in the curve where you make a "good income" but your associated lifestyle expenses are such that all of that income is allocated before any is earmarked for college. I still view that as a choice, though.
- brianwawok 11y agoOh it's a choice.. but it is a choice of the parent screwing the kid. College is one of the first real things you do as an adult. i.e. you may sign up for giant loans you owe the rest of your life. Silly that the kid is responsible for the loan side, but if he has irresponsible parents he gets no financial aid.
- sokoloff 11y agoIf the alternative was every kid got money just based on the parents saying they wouldn't pay, it would take me less than one clock cycle to conclude I wouldn't pay for my kids either...