Dear forum members,
My DS is in process of applying for college. He wants to major in Mechanical Engineering or Aerospace Engineering. My financial situation is that we have EFC of $18000 on $100k income, seems rediculous calculation. We are not eligible for any financial aid and I can’t afford to pay the much out of pocket. We live in NYC area, other than CUNY schools, I don’t see other good options. I don’t know any schools within CUNY with reputable engineering program. SUNY schools cost around $25k . My DS stats: SAT 1340 GPA3.75. Any suggestions will be greatly appreciated!
As a NY resident, isn’t your DS eligible for the NYS Excelsior Scholarship? That means tuition at CUNY/SUNY schools is covered so costs are room and board - how much are you able to afford? The EFC is often not a realistic amount for families, so work backwards from what your actual budget is.
Thanks thermom for your reply. Well appreciated! The thing with Excelsior Scholarship is that there are several conditions attached to it. One being that students have to work in NYS after graduation for the number of years the scholarship awarded, otherwise the scholarship becomes loan. And at least 30 credits a year plus maintaining good GPA. If nothing else works, we might have to apply for it. We could only afford a few thousands.
I would recommend community college with a strong or guaranteed transfer into a state engineering program. Engineering has such strict course progression and the first two years can be done more cheaply at the community college. Just research ahead of time the transfer options and stay on track with grades. This is more affordable, especially if he can live at home.
@sybbie719 would this student be eligible for the NY Stem scholarship?
@wahaha18 there is a payback for the STEM award and the Excelsior, but perhaps look at the cup as half full instead if half empty…your son could get some good experience while doing the payback years…and he would likely have $0 in debt…especially if he can commute from home.
What can you pay annually?
Also, what do you view as a “reputable engineering program”? If the program is ABET accredited, it is reputable.
Clarkson just announced a new scholarship for full tuition:
https://www.clarkson.edu/ignite-presidential-fellowship-program
Deadline is 12/15
Stony Brook.
I agree that Stony Brook is a great target.
The Excelsior only covers the ~$7k/year SUNY tuition. You’d still have to pay the ~$15k/year balance. The federal student loan is ~$5500/year, and if your son works summers he can probably earn ~$3k. That would leave you with a net cost of ~$7k. But there are time, GPA, and work commitments tied to the grant.
Your son should definitely apply to CUNY City College, which has an excellent engineering program. You must take a bottoms up approach to ensure that there is an affordable option on the table and CUNY is it.
He is fortunate that he has plenty of great options:
UBuffalo
Stonybrook
Binghamton
City College
Coordinated Engineering and Engineering Honors program at Brooklyn College https://www.brooklyn.cuny.edu/web/academics/schools/naturalsciences/undergraduate/physics/ceprogram.php
*you will have to crunch the numbers to see if the NYU part is affordable
NYIT- Private- see if he is eligible for scholarship consideration
While they do not have Mechanical?Aerospace, dont sleep on Oswego and the Possibilities Scholarship
If your son is is graduating in the top 10% of his class, he would be eligible for the STEM scholarship, which pretty much has the same conditions as Excelsior.
I am going to tell you the same thing that I tell my students when it comes to talking to their parents about affordability; you have to work from a position of strength.
If you say that you cannot afford much, then have your son take the Excelsior Scholarship , or STEM incentive scholarship (if eligible)
He will probably receive some kind of SUNY credit
He can take his $5500 loan ($3500 will be subsidized)
Too late to edit, but the full tuition scholarship at Clarkson does not seem to be based on stats. Ten scholarships will be awarded. Also, deadline is 1/15 for RD applicants.
“Across the University, Clarkson is looking for different students, those who want to innovate, be creative, and ignite passion about everything they do,” said Clarkson President Anthony G. Collins. “We’re seeking prospective students with minds that will challenge every way we do things, while intuitively knowing there is a better way.”
To apply for the scholarship, applicants must submit a video or 200-word essay on the following topic: Clarkson students strive to ignite their passions and turn them into innovations with impact. What passion(s) will you ignite at Clarkson? What innovation(s) do you dream of and what impact will it (they) have on the world?
I came here to chime in about CCNY, and sybbie719 has all the bases covered! i would add that SBU engineering is a limited enrollment program now and the stats are likely to be much higher engrg. admission there than the university as a whole. With a 1350 SAT and a 3.75 GPA, I would consider it as a target only for SBU general admission. My kid with similar stats was admitted AOI at SBU (Area of interest) CS program. He turned it down for direct admission to CS at another university.
I agree with @momprof9904 , while your son has the stats to get into general admissions at a number of schools, his stats do not make him a lock for admissions into the various engineering programs, where there are a limited number of seats and a more competitive process
@taverngirl wouldn’t the full tuition scholarship at Clarkson still leave over $17,000 annually in room/board etc. for the OP? That seems over what is affordable.
@happy1 If he took the federal loan and earned $5k through a job, it seems like his parents might be able to contribute the difference.
Thanks everyone for your genuine responses! @sybbie719 , CUNY city college is on his list. I really hope for him to go to college outside of NYC area, unfortunately money issue might prevent him from doing that. As for Clarkson, I thought this is highly selective school, he might not have stats good enough for consideration, even with merit scholarships, it would still cost more than SUNYs.
Any opinion on Engineering at Ubuffalo? Is it highly competitive?
@wahaha18 Whether or not UB would be competitive depends on the rigor of math and science courses taken in high school and grades in those courses. Admission to Engineering at UB is separate from general admission.
@wahaha18 His stats are fine for Clarkson (avg gpa 3.6, 75% SAT 1330) Great school, great outcomes.