<p>Part of the problem in this thread may be that the OP has not been completely clear about:</p>
<p>a. How secure the family finances are relative to the $160,000 to $220,000 difference.
b. What the family previously discussed and agreed to back at application time, and how the application list was made (some small LACs and out-of-state giant ASU).
c. How strong the student’s preferences are between the schools.</p>
<p>It appears to me that (a) the family has the money, but $220,000 may not be a comfortable amount for them to spend, (b) this aspect is not clear, although the parents may have allowed the student to believe that they could pay the list price of the expensive small LACs, and (c) the student has a weak preference toward some of the small LACs over ASU, but is unsure and undecided, even if cost were no object. But I may be assuming incorrectly, and it appears that other posters in this thread may have read different assumptions from the OP’s posts.</p>