paperplane

Well that does sound better. Others may have more detailed advice but I would try to minimize loans for first few years--keep the loans beyond the fed ones for the end, because that will keep interest from racking up while you are in school. And once you've spent more of the college fund, you MAY get better aid. (No guarantees...but if the money was in your name, not in a 529, that could be part of why they have your need lower than I would think it would be--money saved in student's name 'counts' against you more than money in a 529 or in the parent's name).

Good luck, glad you & your parents talked.

Jenonymous

Thank you both!

cptofthehouse -

Yes, I do realize that the reason they don't have a retirement fund is that they're doing it for me, and I'm moreeeeee than thankful of what they have sacrificed. I may not show it to them, but I am awfully thankful and I do plan on giving them lots of money in return once I start my career of being a pharmacist. It'll take 8 years, but it'll be worth it. They work many hours through the day 6 days a week with no vacations except holidays under uncomfortable conditions, so they definitely deserve it!

paperplane-

My parents probably plan on taking care of the loans early anyways and thank you! Just to clarify, what do you mean by "keep the loans beyond the fed ones for the end"?

happymomof1

"keep the loans beyond the fed ones for the end"

If you and your family need to supplement the college fund with a few Parent loans for them or Private loans for you, you should wait to take those on after you have maxed out on the federal student loans. This has to do with the way interest accumulates for different kinds of loans.

Debruns

You might also look into jobs on campus during the summer or RA positions later to help with R & B. I know jobs can vary, my son was much luckier than my daughters with finding them, but it can accumulate.
Freshman summer, he worked for 8.50 an hour at a store and made just under 2500 and over the year, it reached 4000 which he put part of it toward his tuition, abut 3,000.

I agree, take the stafford loans (which get larger each year) and perkins first, they have much better interest rates.

And I second what HappyMom said about COA, none of my 3 chidren came close to what they estimated, maybe some do, but they never did. Books can be cheaper, meal plans, expense money, etc. We saved money by not taking the health insurance (700.00 off there) becuase our Blue Cross was more than adequate. I think at HC, the meal plans are the same money, just how you want to divide it, one place or more dining dollars to use in other dining areas. You wont have some freshman expenses after the first year on your bill which helps.
We did the 10 month payment plan which helped us, same amount, but spread out, paying it all at once was not doable and it kept us from taking a loan. If they like that option, even if they take a loan, the FA office can give them information, if it wasn't in your packet.

happymomof1

"once I start my career of being a pharmacist"

Somehow I missed this earlier, but you do need to take the cost of pharmacy school into consideration. If you have a bunch of debt from your undergrad degree to add onto your debt from the pharmacy degree, you can end up with more debt than you are able to handle. Knowing pharmacy school is in your future may mean that you want to go to a cheaper undergraduate college.

cptofthehouse

Happymom is right. Pharmacy school usually means loans. Once your ug degree is up, there are not many options for grant money for that. You gotta borrow. A lot. A whole lot. And though pharmacists make good incomes, huge loans that have to be paid can bring that income down to not such great amounts. I agree that you should keep your ug college costs down low because you will be paying loans for a long, long time. Where you go for ug is not a big issue for acceptance to pharmacy school unless you are going for some joint program or where there is a relationship in programs, so it is wise to take the least expensive ug option and get top grades there.

bchan1

What is the pre-pharmacy/pharmD program like at HC? Is there a reason this school is worth it - i.e. direct admission to pharm. school etc.?

These considerations can be important, sometimes a program looks less expensive at the beginning, but the admit rate to the professional portion of the program isn't high and you could waste time and money waiting to be admitted whereas other schools offer an option that makes admission a relatively likely event if certain criteria are met.

So, how good a deal HC is, in your case, now depends on what the big picture - all the way through pharmacy school, looks like.

GTalum

It seems to me that the OP's parents are comfortable with the choice. Since they both own a business, i suspect they are not unrealistic people when it comes to finances. Since they own a small business, the salary may not be all the income, especially considering the college fund they have socked away. I'm not sure I see the problem since the family seems OK.

cptofthehouse

I don't think that HC has a Pharmacy program connection. It does have a lot of kids who are headed for health care related schools and a goodly number of them do get into their programs, but that has to do more with the caliber of kids there than any connection to a program.

An example of a school that does have a favorable route to pharmacy school is Duquesne University. I know a number of kids who seamlessly made the transition from pre pharm to pharmacy major/grad student going there. They have specific programs for this.

bchan1

cpt - I too am unaware of any direct connection to pharmacy at HC as well - Duquesne, Drexel and Creighton come to mind....

Jen - are there any direct admit options on your radar? Or is there something about HC/pharmacy that we don't know?

cptofthehouse

HC is a wonderful school . Two of my kids applied there and I loved it. Neither considered the acceptances they got because they didn't get any money from them and it was out of range for us. I wish I could send a kid there.HC has outstanding premed type courses for those wanting to go into health related grad programs and I have no doubt their acceptance rate is high , for no other reason than the kids who go to HC and the caliber of the curriculum.

I think the OP is set to go there, and the parents are in good shape to send them there. But be aware that Pharmacy school is going to mean more loans, likely big ones unless you have a program at your in state public that is heavily subsidized.

Jenonymous

GTalum - The only problem is grad school :-\

bchan1 & cptofthehouse -

HC doesn't have pharmacy, but I was admitted into premed & biology, which are competitive majors/programs to be accepted into and I was lucky enough to get into both. I'm just afraid of passing great opportunities up and thinking "what if" ... I'm not planning to go into medical school, but I'm sure premed isn't just for doctors. I was thinking it could span out for all different health related careers and med schools know of HC's academics. I would hope that pharm schools would believe the same. If I take both biology & premed, it'll cover all the pre-reqs I'll need.

I also got a call from Uconn admitting me off the waitlist and I think I got into my first choice program, pre-pharm. However, this will all depend on the FA package they'll send me and I have two weeks to make a decision for Uconn. The downside of Uconn is that it's pre-pharm, meaning I'll have to apply again and take the PCAT in order to get into their pharm school. It's very, very competitive and if I don't make it, I'm afraid I'll be stuck and lost.

Debruns

They do have an affilitiation with the College of Pharmacy in Wooster if you wanted to take a class or two there. (I think most would be covered with HC's though)

"Admission to Holy Cross means access to the 12 institutions of the Colleges of Worcester Consortium. Participating institutions are: Anna Maria College, Assumption College, Clark University, College of the Holy Cross, Quinsigamond Community College, Tufts University School of Veterinary Medicine, Massachusetts College of Pharmacy, Nichols College, University of Massachusetts Worcester, WPI, and Worcester State College"

cptofthehouse

I love that school. I think you will be well prepared for any grad school, job, program, educationally going there. Congratulations. It is worth working hard and scrimping to go there.

Jenonymous

Debruns - Thanks! I actually discovered today during the online HC chat that they have a newly developed course of study for those that want to go into Pharmacy and that they OK'd a pre-pharm collaboration with MCPHS!


cptofthehouse - Even after all that advice about going to a cheaper undergrad school? What changed your mind? After all these opinions, I got the impression that money would be tight for me :\