<p>I was wondering about how people think about the cost of going to school. What are you willing to pay to go to college for a year? Please be reasonable.</p>
<p>Ahh, this is a bit too unfocused to get you much reasonable feedback. Consider this question:</p>
<p>How much are you willing to pay for a communication device? Please be reasonable. </p>
<p>We don’t know if you are asking about the latest Smartphone or two tin cans and a length of clothesline.</p>
<p>its all on you. how bad do u want to go to a certain school? what school fits you best? and will it be worth it. college is not only about the education, but the experience. if you are poor, then fin aid will help dearly. if your parents make just enough, and u cant get aid, then consider community college. theyre cheaper, it’s a bit more laid back, and you will have a good time. afterwards you can transfer.</p>
<p>if you really want to go to a certain university, then just check it out. make sure u explore your options. this is a big choice. again, its ur money.</p>
<p>how much are u willing to pay? everyone’s answer is different.</p>
<p>If you’re in the grey area of having too much in assets to be eligible for need-based aid but not enough to be price-insensitive, then the range of options includes in-state publics and schools with significant merit scholarships that come in <$30K per year, or privates and top OOS publics that would be >$50K per year. In our household, we’re looking for the best options in the <$30K category.</p>
<p>This question if far to open ended. The answer varies wildly because of family circumstances, student skills, student interest, and the wide varieties of college options out there.</p>
<p>I would say this is a good discussion to have with your FAMILY…but what others are willing to pay or think is reasonable is really not important at the end of the day.</p>
<p>I think a better question might be “How much debt are you willing to take on in order to attend college?”</p>
<p>For my kids, we’re capping undergrad debt at $27,000. Total, not per year. Savings, merit aid, and current income will have to be enough to pay for the rest. If not, then they’re not enrolling. The best case scenario is that they won’t need to borrow. The jury’s still out on that.</p>
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<p>Even that question will have some variability from family to family. </p>
<p>I would agree that the total of the Stafford loans would be the MAXIMUM I wanted to see my kids have as college debt. BUT I will say that I know others who have a much higher debt threshold than I do…and the Parents were willing to take on more debt than that.</p>
<p>Steph, from your previous postings on CC it appears you are a HS senior who is currently applying to colleges. If this is the case, the people you should ask are your parents. </p>
<p>It is really really important for high school seniors to understand what their parents are willing to contribute (if anything) and it’s important to find this out while you still have time to apply to schools you can afford. Many parents are reluctant to discuss their finances with their kids, and I think this is a terrible mistake (sort of like not telling your kids about sex).</p>
<p>A lot of parents have very vague notions of what it costs to go to college, since the costs have increased astronomically in the last decade or so. If your parents haven’t yet done so, you should ask them to use an EFC calculator to get a ballpark estimate of what kind of costs they might be looking at. Here’s one:
[FinAid</a> | Calculators | Expected Family Contribution (EFC) and Financial Aid](<a href=“Your Guide for College Financial Aid - Finaid”>Expected Family Contribution (EFC) Calculator - Finaid)</p>
<p>If you are looking at colleges that use the CSS Profile form see if you can find “net price” calculators on their web sites, as these will give more accurate information for the individual schools.</p>
<p>One thing that it’s important to understand is that it is very likely that your family will be asked to pay more than the EFC. At the same time, many (most?) parents think their EFC is not affordable. The EFC doesn’t take into account things like consumer debt or whether they are underwater in their home mortgage.</p>
<p>So what you really need to know from them is how much they are willing to contribute to your education. Tell them you really need to know this information before you write your applications and don’t accept a “we’ll see” answer!</p>
<p>In answer to your question, we are willing to pay our EFC of $23K plus my DS will have a total of around $20K of debt when he graduates. I consider myself very lucky to have the ability to pay the EFC when so many other families are struggling right now.</p>