<p>anybody finding it difficult to decline a first choice school just because of fin aid? i’m having a hard time just picking up a pen.</p>
<p>I had already decline my first choice school(out of the state school) because of financial aid. They would only give me little.</p>
<p>I did. I found it very hard, but my parents didn’t. They practically signed it for me. :p</p>
<p>Just look at what will mean more to you in the long run, the debt and the amount of money, or the education and the name of the school that you’ll put on your resume. Which is more important to you?</p>
<p>There comes a point when you have to be practical. Harsh, but true. If you plan on going into academia like me, you’ll come out making $50-60,000 a year at most. I simply can’t afford to rack up a lot of debt in college. Anyway, I plan to go to that university for grad school if I get in, so it’s all good. :)</p>
<p>Im in grad school right now and let me tell you I wish that I had declined my first choice school. I did not get alot of financial aid and my parents did not make alot of money. I recieved a few and I mean very small grants that I was not required to pay-back. Each year that I was in college the tution and fees went up. That meant each year that I applied for a student loan, I needed to take more out. When I graduated with a degree from a highly recognized private university (which I thought would help me get a better paying job) I was floored with the amount of student loan debt I had gotten into. 80,000 was the initial total and its goign to end up being 130,000 with interest included. My friends who attended a smaller college or public university are experiencing a better standard of living because they dont have to budget $500 a month for student loan bills. Luckily I got a job working in higher ed so my graduate degree is paid for by the university. Im still really trying to get a good job to pay off the 4 years of undergraduate work. Im still very poor.</p>