@twoinanddone wow, thank you! So many helpful options for jobs that I hadn’t even thought about. I am required to live on campus for the first two years, but I didn’t even consider being an RA - I will have to look into that now. I won’t be working at the camp job every summer while in college, but I realize now that I will probably have to quit sooner rather than later. Very helpful!
@fergus, someone beat me to it but I was going to suggest applying to be an RA. My son is going to be an RA at Tulane next year and you get a free room and mean plan. He also got a job in the bookstore so he gets a nice discount on books. Living off campus in New Orleans is pretty expensive, getting an RA position is much better financially! He stayed in New Orleans for Thanksgiving (as an RA you are required to stay for Thanksgiving and Spring break) and he was going to stay for spring break but he found a cheap flight home on Student Universe. He will be home this summer but Tulane also has many summer positions for students that provide room and meal plan as well so he may end up staying in future years. Let me know if you have any questions.
You ‘have to’ live on campus, but get a waiver to live off. I know you want to, and I really wanted my kids to have the whole dorm experience, but sometimes it just isn’t possible because it isn’t affordable. If you talk to Tulane and tell them you just can’t afford it, I bet they’ll give you a waiver or some suggestions. Cheaper housing, working in food services, living off campus. It’s rare for a freshman to get to be an RA, but if you have years of camp experience, maybe they’d hire you.
At my daughter’s school, they require living on campus for 2 years. There are so many waivers granted that it shouldn’t even be a rule anymore. The other thing is freshmen have only one dining choice and it’s expensive, $2660 per semester. Sophomores and others living in the same housing pay only $1700 because the school knows that no student uses all the meals they pay for. As a sophomore, my DD will still live on campus but she’ll take the option where her meal plan is entirely ‘dining dollars’ so she can eat in the dining hall, at any of the venders around campus (pizza, smoothies, subs) or even at the grocery store and cook in her dorm.
If I were to do it again, I’d negotiate with housing/dining to get the cheaper plan as a freshman. How? By just asking. I think they make a lot of exceptions.
We found out in our situation that living off campus cost more than living on campus. You may want to do quick check on monthly rent around Tulane.
I think you could really make this work, but truthfully the summer camp job is what will cost you to give up this great opportunity.
RA for next year would be tricky. Usually you have to be a freshan to apply and interviewing is done early like Jan/Dec. Have your parents look into the Americazn Opportunity Tax Credit. The full amount is $2500.
When you look at living expenses don’t forget things like electricity. Try to understand your total cost. Your food should be cheap. Shop at walmart.
Tulane requires you to live on campus for the first two years, waivers are very rare. And you would have to pay for your dorm and meal plan freshman year, but if you were hired as an RA for the following year it would cut down on your costs drastically.
You mentioned that you are undecided as a major, but planning to double major. If you’re going to study for two majors, plus worry about jobs, finances…don’t overwhelm yourself! You’re in a more extreme position than I am - my parents are expecting me to pay for college too but nothing’s been set yet, and we didn’t talk about it much. My mom did, however, make me create a spreadsheet on the loans and interest accrued over the next ten years so I could see how much I would have to pay back. Sorry for not being very helpful, but I hope it’ll work out for you! Perhaps you’ll be able to look for outside scholarships next year, or find salaried internships (or one with stipends).
In order to get the refundable part of the AOTC, in addition to being able to claim your own exemption (meaning that no one else can, not just that no one else does claim the student as a dependent), the student’s earned income must be at least one-half of the student’s support. Taking out loans to support oneself during school will make this a very high threshold to meet. Also, if the student isn’t making enough money to owe any federal income tax, the non-refundable part of the AOTC goes away.
@dolphnlvr6 since you have a son who is an RA at Tulane - what are the duties of an RA, specifically one at Tulane? How time consuming is it to be an RA? What are some pros and cons? I honestly don’t even know what an RA really is, so any information is appreciated.
@dolphnlvr6 also, you mentioned that you have to stay for Thanksgiving and spring break as an RA but then said your son went home over spring break… can you clear this up? Staying for thanksgiving break is no big deal but spring break I might want to be able to go home
@pyrefox it’s nice to hear from someone in the same situation as I am! Thanks for the advice
An RA is a Resident Assistant. You are responsible (along with other RA’s) for maintaining your dorm. You help plan activities and programs, help ensure the safety and security of the dorm and students, be available to talk to your residents and help guide them to appropriate resources, are in charge in case of emergencies. Check out the RA page on the Tulane housing site, it’s pretty in depth. You also have to work the desk a few times a week (depending on your schedule). Pros- free housing and meal plan, it looks good on your resume due to the level of responsibility, get to meet a lot of people, lots of fun activities, and you get a room to yourself as well. Cons- it is your primary non-academic responsibility. So your involvement in other clubs, sports, etc will be subject to your RA duties. Also, you have to be the responsible person so you might not always be the most popular 
Also as an RA you have to stay on campus until the last day the dorms are open at the end of each semester to make sure everyone has left and do a room check. Once you are an RA it opens doors for you to apply for other Residence Life positions where you can get paid.
My son is not an RA this year, he is a freshman. You can’t be an RA as a freshman He will be one next year, his sophomore year. He did stay in NOLA for Thanksgiving, many students do, it was too expensive to fly home. His RA’s last semester cooked Thanksgiving dinner for all the residents in the dorm that stayed. They had a great time! He was going to stay in NOLA for Spring Break too but ended up coming home, but he said a lot of students stay. Next year when he is an RA he will stay for Thanksgiving and Spring Break. It saves a lot on airfare! So while you may have to find the money to pay for housing and meal plan for your freshman year, if you can secure an RA position it will be a huge benefit for the rest of your years. You can also be an RA as a graduate student at Tulane.
It’s really not a big deal to not come home during Thanksgiving and Spring Break at Tulane. Apparently there are a lot of students that stay. Some come from far away and it’s just not practical, others are athletes and have to stay, most international students stay.
@dolphnlvr6 yeah, I was planning on only being able to come home on Christmas break and maybe spring break. Can RAs leave on thanksgiving and spring break though?
No, they have to stay, it’s part of the job. That could go in the con column!
@dolphnlvr6 it said on the website that RAs have to have junior or senior standing. Your son will be a sophomore next year - how did he become an RA? Also, obviously for study abroad you can’t be an RA in a Tulane dorm, but is there something similar where you can be an RA in the dorm room (or wherever you’re staying) abroad? That is a pretty specific question so it’s okay if you don’t know the answer
Being an RA is a job. It’s work. It’s worth $10,000-$15000 for the 9 months, so yes, it’s a hard job.
Like other jobs or scholarships with conditions (ROTC, athletics) it’s not for everyone and takes a lot of time, but it’s a way to go to college without loans. In my years in college, I never left school on spring break. I usually saw it as an opportunity to earn even more money (my job was typing in the school library), and since it is getting toward the end of the school year, I was usually running a little low on the savings from the prior summer.
I think that must be a typo on the page. You only need to be a sophomore to be an RA. Study abroad does not have RA positions. That’s a totally different beast. There are different housing options and costs depending on where (what country) you are studying in. That’s something you can look into once you decide on a school, there are numerous programs out there! I believe you received the DHS? If you get into the Tulane Scholars program there are additional opportunities for professional study, travel and research and grants and scholarships available to you as well.
Fergus3, you seem to be a very responsible and dedicated young person. I hope that this all works out for you!
I understand that your parents are reluctant to take out a PLUS loan, but it seems to me that the best scenario would be for them to take it out with your agreement in writing that you will repay it in full as quickly as possible. Then set it up so that you can start making whatever payments you can as you go through college. It would be so much easier, and it would seem to be more affordable in the long run. Perhaps tell them that any birthday/Christmas presents to you should be made as payments to the loan instead. It wouldn’t be more risky to them than co-signing a private loan would be, I would think.