“running start” program in Ohio is called College Credit Plus (aka dual enrollment). Students pay no tuition and get their books covered, too if enrolled at public universities/community colleges. Some private universities are also participating with incredibly low cost per credit hour.
When is the best time to start preparing for PSAT, SAT, ACT? Merit aid is one of the goals.
@bgbg4us Saving money that we pay for sports club. Thank you for bringing that up. My kids are not anywhere near elite athletes and we have realistic expectations about athletic scholarships. That is definitely in our cards.
My 8th grade played fall, winter, and spring sports (tennis, basketball, and track). We will need to talk to him about maybe narrowing down his sports to two or maybe even just one to focus more on academics. Does that sound reasonable and sensible?
Since we live in Ohio. We are highly considering Ohio State University. I saw they offer few scholarships based on merit. Aside from great SAT, ACT scores, what else can my kids do? Community service? Any particular HS programs, organizations, or activities that colleges look for? I would like for them to build their academic portfolio as early as possible.
To be clear:
- your child takes dual enrollment classes which count for both HS graduation and college credit, showing rigor.
- they apply as freshmen (freshmen get the best scholarships)
- once they arrive on campus their college courses are credited toward their general education requirements so they can take more advanced classes, add a minor, have a lighter semester, study abroad, and/or graduate early.
Left unsaid: If the student has done well in a college’s classes as a HS student, that college is fairly sure the student will do well in their college. That’s a good incentive for admitting the student.
Some sequential classes can be greatly accelerated through dual enrollment, as long as the child has the basics. It’s especially true in Math and Foreign Language, where college classes are very compressed and cover a lot more material.
Your child should complete algebra 1&2+ geometry in highschool. Then IF they are talented at math they can take precalculus and Calculus over one semester each, in college, and cover in one year the content of two. (Hence, the necessity of being talented!)
Same for foreign language: take foreign language 1+2 in highschool, review with college Spanish/French 1 (covers hs1+2 with more reading and culture), then each semester of language is worth one year or HS foreign language.
College will also offer more subjects: Anthropology (cultural and Biological), Philosophy, International Relations, Music History… And lots of choice within one subject (once the freshman requirements are covered, your child will be able to take a variety of literature courses ranging from international graphic novels to 19th century British literature to Monsters in Ancient Literature… )
These classes require a lot more autonomy than HS classes: no easy quiz grades, little hand holding.
Club sports:
By 8th grade you know your child is likely or unlikely to become a professional athlete. So, playing HS sports is totally fine for his balance. 1 club sport max. He may be recruitable for D3 (no scholarship but may help with admissions) if he’s really good.
Colleges don’t look for particular HS organizations. They want to see involved, curious students. One or two activities done well and developed, would be better than a myriad activities as a member once a week/month - sophomore on (freshmen can try fifteen different clubs and activities). They should find what they like, have fun doing, even if it doesn’t do anything wrt college admissions.
If finances are an issue, you need to look at ALL of the public universities in Ohio, not just Ohio State.
Look at Ohio University, Bowling Green, Miami, Kent, Toledo, Cleveland State. You will find that the costs are lower at some of these than at OSU. Also, IIRC, Ohio University might guarantee your cost of tuition for all four years. Check to see if they still do that.
And the regional campuses of our publics offer the same classes often with a tuition discount and their own scholarships to entice strong students to attend. Ohio has a ton of great places to get an affordable education.
Your kids are young enough that they could pick up a musical instrument from “scholarship row”, and get good enough on it to have it bring them money for college the same as if they were, say, a soccer player. They’d have to practice hard, and be great in band all through school, and get into Regionals and All-State, but it’s doable. It would require a commitment of probably $200/month for lessons. Sometimes you’re lucky enough that there is a music teacher in the district who played that instrument who will give lessons during school time, for free. Schools often provide the instrument for Tuba/euphonium and possibly bass trombone. I would say that the Tuba (and bass trombone if school has a jazz band) offer the best combination of being possible to learn, and being in high demand - especially for band and marching band. Other instruments in high demand are oboe and bassoon, but they’re not in marching band, I think. Figure an hour a day of practicing until they’re out of high school, and even through college! For many instruments, it’s 90% practicing, only 10% talent. And they’re NOT too old to start band instruments.
Another option, if your kids are big strong boys, or will be, based upon their father’s and uncles’ size, is rowing crew. All the Ivies and most of the top, big schools have crew teams. But most high schools don’t. So if a kid has a strong record of rowing crew, they can get into schools with a scholarship for crew. It’s far less competitive than the more common sports. Even if your school doesn’t have a team, there may be a club if you live near a river or big lake. Other wide open sports are fencing, sailing, squash - you know, the things you might need money or connections to learn to do. But if you happen to live near the ocean, or near the Great Lakes, it’s possible your school offers it, or that there are clubs nearby.
You really cannot predict what your income will be. If you’re in a year when your husband is between jobs for the year that you fill out the FAFSA, you’ll get more financial aid. But once he’s back at work, you won’t, and he might be out of work when you need to pay, as opposed to the year upon which you filled out the FAFSA.
Studying and playing an instrument can be an EC IF the student is interested in studying and playing an instrument.
My kid was a top state rank oboe and English horn player…on the “endangered instruments” list. I can tell you…this did not help her get accepted to college at all. And you are correct…no oboes in the marching band, but my kid hated marching anyway.
There are some scholarships for musicians…but they need to be at the top of the game, and these usually require an audition.
My kid played in her college orchestra and got $750 a year performance scholarship for doing so. Her college cost about $60,000 a year.
Many colleges expect their musicians to bring their own instruments…even the tubas.
If this parent banks the $200 a month for lessons while the kid is in high school, they will have $8000 plus towards college costs.
Now…if the kid is interested in playing an instrument…that’s another story.
Also, the financial aid forms use prior prior year tax and income information…which could get complicated for folks with fluctuating income.
I understand your concern about the money for college - I was where you are on that when my kid was finishing middle school. But do give yourself permission to step back a bit and look at your kids’ own growing interests and how those might translate into college and career goals. My kid has been laser-focused on a career field since 9th grade that has multiple entry options including formal and informal apprenticeship tracks that require no college at all. In the end she chose the college track. However, she knew that she had our full support to choose the no-college-needed apprenticeship route, and parents who would have driven her downtown to the union hall to sign up on her 18th birthday.
Believe it or not, you are ahead of many other parents because you are talking to your kids about these things now. So give yourself a little pat on the back. It is heartbreakingly common to see kids posting that their parents told them not to worry about finances…and they only learn the bitter truth after acceptances come out.
Thank you everyone! I appreciate your time and the advice.
@Otterma thank you! I thought I’ve been irresponsible for not preparing (saving, research) much earlier. The reality hit me hard when my oldest son started 8th grade this year. There is not a single day and night I don’t think about college for both my kids. Knowing how unstable we are financially, it can be so stressful and overwhelming.
Both my kids have no passion for playing instrument or music. They play piano for fun. They do play tennis, basketball, soccer and run track but they are not exemplary. However, do well academically. 3.8-4.0 GPA consistently. They are both in honors Math and Science.
I will make sure to be good at documenting academic achievements, involvements (science olympiad etc).
May I ask what do you all think about National Honor Society. My oldest son was recommended by his teacher last year not get accepted.
Almost 1/2 my daughter’s class was in NHS. IMO, it means nothing unless your student becomes an officer and is highly involved.
We did not have a nickel of college savings. We chose to fully fund all of our retirements accounts.
BUT we did have a plan for paying for college. Both of us parents had full time professional jobs. One person’s income paid all the family living expenses, and the other parent income paid for college…for two kids.
This worked for us. But I need to emphasize. We had a small monthly mortgage payment, no car payments, and no other appreciable debt. We fully planned this.
You don’t mention the other parent. Are both of you employed? If not…maybe now is the time for parent number two to get a job.
Strategies for Affordable Colleges
If you are told there is no money, or you don’t know how much money, or there is a limited amount of money you need to choose colleges that are affordable for you family. For your parents, it used to be possible to work your way through college. This is no longer the case.
** Financial Need **
If your family has financial need (according to FAFSA/CSS, not what you think!), you can get need-based grants.
• Look at Net Price Calculators on colleges to see if you would get need based financial aid.
• Apply to Colleges that meet Full need (google “Here’s Every College That Offers 100% Financial Aid”)
Merit
Another way to get scholarship is through merit scholarships. Merit scholarships are used to attract strong students to a college. Ivy League schools do not give out merit scholarships because all students are strong that go there.
- Look for scholarships
a. Apply to colleges where your stats are significantly above average to get merit scholarships
b. Look for colleges with auto-scholarship based on gpa/sat http://automaticfulltuition.yolasite.com/ (somewhat out of date) - Study for SAT on Khan Academy to increase your SAT score
Lower Cost School
Another way to save money on colleges is look for colleges with a lower sticker price. Also you can get credits for almost free in HS and then use them in college and attend for fewer years.
• Look for cheaper schools. In-state public schools are usually much cheaper than private/out of state schools
• Look to get as many college credits as you can in HS.
o Take AP or IB classes and do well on the AP/IB tests so you can get college credit. Find colleges that give extra credit for IB (e.g., SUNY Binghamton). If you have enough you may be able to graduate early. *Unless you want to go to medical school. Medical school don’t want you to fulfill the requirements of Bio, Chem, Org Chem, Physics with AP.
o Your state may have a “running start” or “dual enrollment” program where you can take college courses for free in HS
• Go to community college for two years, and then transfer to a state school
What about Loans?
You really want to avoid taking out big loans to pay for college. Your parents have to co-sign any loan you take over the Federal Direct Loan (Starting at $5500 and going up to $7000 as a senior). Student Loans are one of the only type of loans that cannot be discharged in a bankruptcy.
To be inducted into NHS, in general you need the four pillars: Scholarship, Service, Leadership and Character.
Guess what colleges are looking for? Scholarship, Service, Leadership and Character.
So NHS is a way of the school honoring the students who excel in those four pillars. That is a very good thing! We honor football players and band members and such…let’s also honor academics!
Also, parents love to see their children publicly honored.
Don’t worry, colleges care about what would get you into NHS, not necessarily the title.
Get a copy of “Paying for College Without Going Broke”.
It’s a good read.
If you live in NJ there is the NJ Stars program…you get free tuition at the community colleges if you are in the top 15% of your class.
http://www.njccc.org/njstars/nj_stars.html
if you transfer then to a 4 year college you then can get Significant Scholarship toward the NJ four year college.
http://www.njccc.org/njstars/nj_stars_ii.html
@thumper1 thank you for the information.
My husband has a job. A good job actually (makes over 100K) BUT he has Asperger Syndrome. Due to his disability, he can’t hold a job. There is no financial stability, unfortunately. I also have a full time job but I do not make nearly as much.
We do not have credit card debt and no car payment. Our mortgage is not outrageous. But, since my husband employment instability due to his disability, we go through money we have in the bank to pay for everyday expenses and bills whenever he becomes unemployed.
The way to get good merit is from a good GPA, Test scores and lastly ECs.
This may sound crazy but it would probably work. Get rid of your TV. Forget playing sports.(kid probably won’t get a scholarship not worth the time and money) Take the kids to the library every night after school. Do homework and then read. Then read some more. And finally read some more. Read everything. Fiction and non-fiction. You can get textboooks and workbooks at a library.
Once in HS find the ECs that take up the smallest amount of time.
Living in Ohio if your kids get good test scores and GPAs they should be OK with OSU or Miami.
Remember that ECs don’t have to be volunteering in the summer in Africa or starting your own non profit helping sick kids thru music.
One of our neighbor kids had an EC that wouldn’t occur to most kids. He wasn’t much into sports or the arts. He was really into cooking so he started catering in the neighborhood for small backyard parties. Really gourmet stuff. Kid goes to Stanford. He was able to show a side of him that Stanford found interesting without inventing a new startup.
Whatever your kid is passionate about- cultivate that.
These kids might actually financially be better at Kent or Bowling Green or Toledo, less costly and possible some merit.
Ohio University and Miami are both options too, but a tad more competitive for merit aid.
OSU is the most competitive of the publics for merit aid.