College thoughts

[Chris in VA]

I wanted to post here instead of the High School board b/c you don't have to have a kid in hs to help!

 

How much debt do you feel is acceptable--I mean, how much would you allow your child to assume for their education? Does it depend on the job they will have after college? What if they are going in for a job that isn't really well-paid?

 

Also, I need advice on my situation. Because of early developmental issues with ds, we basically spent what we could have saved for college, on private schooling (before we homeschooled) and other expenses. So we have very, very little saved. I am going back to work for at least 3 years next year, saving for college for my sons. Would it be better not to work, and homeschool dd, and therefore be more financially eligible for scholarships? I can probably make $15K a year, and still be home after school. We have two sons, and they are a year apart in school. So, next year, ds will have enough $ to go to Community College as a dual enrolled student. Ds16 will be a Jr, and have two years of school. A year from now, I will need $ to send ds18 to college ("real" college), then for several years after, I'll need to work to keep both boys there. I don't mind putting dd in school for a few years, but I want her out by 7th grade.

 

Well, that's clear as mud-- any advice is appreciated. I don't mind ds graduating with some debt, I just don't know what is an acceptable level--we do expect them to contribute.

[readwithem]

SWB spoke at our convention a few years ago, I've mentioned this a few times here but it bears repeating. She suggested NOT straddling the student with debt as when they graduate they may feel "stuck" in a job they really don't like, just to pay for their college loans.

 

The CC's in VA are better than a lot of other state schools academically, so good for you for taking advantage of them :)

[Laura in VA]

You may want to read this from Thomas Sowell on choosing a college. It's a guide for parents and students. HTH!

http://www.leaderu.com/alumni/sowell-choosing/toc.html

[st_claire]

I think homeschooling is a much better choice than paying for her post-secondary schooling. There are lots of scholarships and loans available for students. It is not hard for a student to be able to raise the money. Also, most students graduate with debt.

 

That being said, I think *if* you can afford to pay for their post-secondary, you should. First of all, there are good tax saving strategies if you start to save early. This means it will end up costing the family less overall than if they paid themselves. Also, you can save early and the returns on your investment help quite a bit over time. I think its great when kids are ale to graduate debt free.

 

I expect my children to work part time throughout university. Both me and dh did. There are lots of good paying jobs available on campus for no more than 10 hours a week. That's easy to fit into a study schedule. That way the kid has money for things like going out with friends, textbooks, etc...

[Jenny in Florida]

My parents were pretty much broke when I went to college and couldn't offer anything in the way of financial help beyond letting me live with them. Even then, I often ended up kicking in some of my financial aid money to help with household expenses.

 

Aside from one ill-advised year at a small private college (where I didn't actually end up paying much more than elsewhere because I got scholarships), I went to a community college and then graduated from a state university. So, my expenses were minimal.

 

Nonetheless, I felt the burden of those loans. I got into financial trouble a couple of years after graduation, partly due to my own bad judgement and partly because of my family situation. My loans went into default, and the interest and penalties have now mounted to such a figure that I will likely never pay them off.

 

So, I feel VERY strongly about not putting my children in the same situation. Although we have no savings to speak of (again for a mixture of reasons, some of which have to do with continuing "involvement" from my family), we chose to take loans ourselves rather than allow our daughter to take on debt in her name. She got a scholarship that covers about half of her tuition (the largest merit scholarship her school awards), and we are paying the rest.

 

The one exception we are making is to cover the expenses when my daughter goes abroad for one term later in her college career. We've told her that, if she really wants to do that, she will have to take a small loan to cover it.

 

So, this is not merely theoretical for me. Not only "would" I go to great lengths and make pretty big sacrifices to help my child stay out of debt, I AM doing it and plan to continue as long as I can manage it.

 

--Jenny

[Wendi]

My dh and I will save all we can for ds's college needs, and he will need to either (1) get scholarships, (2) work during college, or (3) both. We are teaching him not to use debt for anything except perhaps a house.

 

Wendi

[Chris in VA]

Wow, this is really helpful! Thanks, Laura

[Sandy in Indy]

As one who is 50 and still paying for graduate work (yes, you read that correctly), I would prefer that my dc NOT go into debt for school. And we're not in a position to help, unfortunately. But my son is very determined to pursue pharmacy--a six year program. I see no way, even with scholarships and grants, that he'll escape without some debt. BUT, he will also graduate in a profession that's now paying graduates $100,000 a year. I'm more comfortable with ds acquiring debt with that kind of earning potential than I am with dd who aspires to be a children's editor. (Fortunately, dd has only had to borrow a very small amount, less than $4,000--not too bad, since her tuition alone is $85,000+ for the four years.)

 

I think you have to balance the pluses and minuses.

[Carol in Cal.]

College costs have gone up so much more than inflation. When I was in college, I could work at an internship for 6 months and save enough to pay for 6 months of college--books, room and board, tuition, everything. That is not possible anymore.

 

I know people who will probably never be able to afford to have kids because their student loans are such a burden.

 

I am mindful of those classes in poor communities who are 'adopted' by generous benefactors, who promise to pay for the college expenses of the children who make it to college. Every single time I have read a story like that, those children go to college, while others growing up in the same situation do not. Every time! Because of that, if for no other reason, I think that for children to grow up knowing that their parents will pay for their college and that going to college is both normal and expected is very motivational. So that's how I'm raising my daughter.

 

Scholarships are not as helpful as they used to be, because costs are so high now. Financial aid is often in the form of loan guarantees rather than grants. Have you thought about working to pay off the loans after the kids are done, instead of saving in advance of college? That might be a reasonable compromise. The quicker you pay a loan off, the less you end up spending on it.