I’m an currently a rising junior in high school. Iv always been very involved/interested in my college selection process. Iv been debating lately about which major I should go into. I was going into between business and pre-med. Iv been thinking about each major extensively and which would be the best outcome for me to sustain a profitable lifestyle but I MUST absolutely love what I do. From a young age I always saw myself as a doctor and recently have been really interested in anesthesiology. On the other hand, I like the idea of traveling and having a variety of job options in business. I consider myself a very proactive person and I will work to the best of my abilities to be successful. Recently, my parents informed me that I will have to take out many loans if I choose to go to an expensive private college. I have the grades (4.0) & extracurriculars to get into theses schools but I don’t think I would get the finacial aid I need because I’m smart but not insanely smart( definitely not valedictorian) and also because my father is a doctor but did not save enough for my college fund. Now I have an internal struggle because I want to go these expensive colleges to live up to my potential and get a good job, but at the same time I’m wondering if it’s worth it because I will owe $100,000 and all the money for medical school if I become a doctor. I just don’t want my options to be limited. I can’t see myself at a public state school when I know I could be successful at a private school. I just need some advice on which major & school is the best fit for me because my parents are bias based on the price and I don’t think that’s fair for me or my future.
With wealthy parents who cannot or will not pay much for your college costs, your options will be limited, like for many college students.
Please lose the anti-public-school attitude, since that will needlessly limit your options.
If you do have a 4.0 GPA and high test scores, investigate merit scholarships:
http://automaticfulltuition.yolasite.com/
http://competitivefulltuition.yolasite.com/
http://nmfscholarships.yolasite.com/ (if National Merit)
I’m not the FA expert. Others on this forum are.
However, do not go into $100K debt for undergrad. It is not worth it.
Repeat: It is not worth it.
If you have excellent grades, see if you can “chase” merit aid. One strategy that I’ve read on this forum is to find schools that 1) give great merit (Alabama) and 2) where you are in the top 1/3 of their applicant pool.
Apply to several of these schools and see what they offer you.
To do this research, there are websites like one called all one word college navigator and one called college data. Just type in your favorite college and see if it’s a merit-heavy school. Also look at the threads on this forum devoted just to financial aid and scholarships and merit aid.
If private school is your dream, then you need to do the right amount of research to not end up in debt.
I repeat: No undergrad education is worth $100K in debt. The metric I use for my family is if my kids will end up with $25K debt or less. That’s the amount that I feel they’d be able to pay off in a reasonable amount of time.
However, with Med School on your horizon, you should be pulling that figure as close to zero as possible. Med School is expensive. You can go to med school from lower-tier colleges and universities, no problem, ones that offer great financial aid or are much cheaper.
That being said, you may want to look at the special fellowship offered at Hobart and William Smith, called Blackwell, for students interested in medicine. It offers money plus a reserved spot at a medical school in NY State. You may also want to look at the Sophie Davis program or the program at Brooklyn College, which allow you to begin med school immediately and cost almost nothing to attend. There’s a thread on this forum for Sophie Davis so that you can see what other candidates are doing to support their applications.
Best of luck
For pre-med, the best thing to do is to go to a good state college. Save your money for med school.
Medical schools don’t care that much about where you go…it is all about GPA and MCAT.
If you are as awesome as you think you are, you will be a super star at your state school.
There will be honors programs and what not.
If you are a business major, then you need to look at the Return on Investment of big loans…you will see they are not worth it in general.
Plenty of people go to less costly colleges, or places where they will receive significant merit aid…and are able to live up to their potential and get good jobs.
You need to broaden your way of thinking.
What state are you in? There are some very excellent business programs at public universities in some states. Yours could be one.
Premed? Not a major…but if you plan on going to medical school…you want the very bare minimum in debt for undergrad…and $100,000 is WAY too much. And anyway, YOU the student can only borrow a total of $27,000 in your own name…total for the four years of undergrad.
Think about this. Your parents are both employed. One is a doctor and one a teacher. The can’t finance your college costs…and they have a good amount of total income. Why would YOU think it’s a good idea to take on a very high amount of debt yourself?
It would be helpful for your parents to tell you exactly how much they can give you a year. If for example they can give you 40,000 then there are private colleges that could give you enough merit to help cover costs. If your parents are only willing to give you `10,000 a year then you need to look at universities with full rides or your state school. Ask them and come back and you’ll get good suggestions here