<p>Weenie:
Re your post 1635, your are absolutely right. Very often, the minimum wage job parents work different hours so that one is available for the kids.
I was thinking more about the unpredictable hours some physicians must maintain. One of my young friends switched to a 9 to 5 job to spend more time with his kids and his wife also cut down on her hours. But they could do that only after they paid off med school loans.</p>
<p>Thanks Cur - when I said “list” I was talking about the synopsis put together (much) earlier on this thread - around page 74, I think. It was a good one, and I’ve printed it out to read again later.
Cheers - major is undecided, but stated generally as “notmath” lol. If he went to the LAC that he thinks is more “cool”, it would likely be English as it is a true LAC - no business, communications, etc. - but plenty of rigor about ideas. The other school has more options - international business, commnications/journalism, writing (yes, as a specific major) - NOT big bucks. Grad school is a possibility, but not a given. Debt would be 20 - 40K for the four years. The spread is due to the fact that there is still a scholarship weekend to go to at this late date, and I don’t know how to figure future rise in cost of attendance (increased tuition, etc.)
Does that help?
I just get the feeling perhaps there are more folks looking at this kind of decision than the HYP dilemma, but maybe on CC I’m wrong :)</p>
<p>orjr, I’ve been dropping stealth posts into the thread as my kid considers now 2 hefty merit scholarship offers, one at a “some folks have heard of it” school, the other at a very regional school, and two full-price tickets at known schools (plus another school that would fit with the first 2 but didn’t offer aid). But none of these schools is within shouting distance, “ranking-wise”, of HYPSM. And we’re still getting our knickers somewhat in a twist about it.</p>
<p>I truly have no idea how he’ll decide.</p>
<p>mootmom - I wish we could go have coffee!
What I keep wondering how to guard against is the possibility that we could put together financing to make it work the first year, then the second year tuition goes up 8%, R&B goes up 1K, and the scholarship amt stays the same and we are in a panic. Is there some way I can figure what I’ll need over the whole four year picture? Or specific questions to ask the school?
Folks on this board have really helped me know what questions to ask, and we are very grateful.</p>
<p>Cheers, I’ve asked that you be banned from this site. In a single post you called me old and implied I am not a yummy mummy. How dare you!</p>
<p>I look extremely young (just ask my plastic surgeon) and other than my chin hairs you would think I was a coed! I’ve been called yummy mummy lots (who cares that it was 15 years ago)! Lately I’m called an old cougar. We chase younger men. I married one a few months ago. Old, huh?</p>
<p>orjr, some schools will increase the merit to match the increase in costs. Some do it automatically, while others you have to ask for it. I found this out this week: School A does it automatically. School B didn’t do it automatically, but when I mentioned that that would be necessary if my D was to attend, they were more than happy to oblige, and they even sent me an email documenting it. Also, at School C, if we pay all of it upfront (gulp), it locks in the rate. I’d have to do the math to see which is the better investment, but even if it ends up being a bit more expensive to take out a loan for the entire amount and pay upfront, the joy of knowing how much exactly I will be paying for the next 4 years/how much to budget may be worth it. </p>
<p>There are so many phases of stress to this whole thing, aren’t there? 1. Application 2. Waiting for responses. 3. Making “the decision”. 4. Paying the bills.</p>
<p>orjr, most of our decision making had to do with how WE were going to pay for the expensive option. I think it’s fine for a student to take out the limit of Stafford loans, which I think is under $20K. To me, the decision is moot if the kid has to take out more than that – then the more expensive school just becomes an unaffordable option.</p>
<p>Funny, at my kids private HS, many (not sure if it is most) of the moms are stay at home moms, some have their own businesses or are consultants so can make their own work schedules, and some are fulltime working moms with professional degrees. IMO, everyone prefers to hear about their “happy” kids, but most caring parents, regardless of what kind or work they do or how many hours they work, want to know if their kid is struggling and want to do something about it. Thats what keeps my doors open 
. Truthfully, due to the sad state of the healthcare professions these days, with the challenges of insurance reimbursement , at least in the US (don’t even get me started about the insurance industry!! grrr), many of the moms (or dads) making the bigger incomes aren’t in healthcare. Funny, though, these parents want to know if I will see them after hours or on the weekends so that they don’t have to take time of of their work schedules! So perhaps some of the healthcare professionals work crazy hours because they want to take care of others. Sometimes it is important to take care of onesself first.</p>
<p>And kirmim and cheers, we aren’t old… we are “generationally challenged” :)</p>
<p>actually I am oldold…or is that generationally challenged squared</p>
<p>oldolddad-
so you are asymptotically old? :D</p>
<p>I think all the parents of kids who are choosing between the 65th ranked school for full price and the 90th ranked school for half price should meet in Lincoln, Nebraska (the middle of the country) tomorrow night for stiff drinks. Coincidentally, a google search on “tavern Lincoln Nebraska” brings up a bar called “Panic.” I think it’s perfect. I’ll see you all there at 9:00 PM.</p>
<p><a href=“panicbar.com”>panicbar.com;
<p>CC is my first stop in the morning,so Weenie’s post was my first sight.
I love you, Weenie!
My day now has a smile</p>
<p>Is there really a difference between the 65th ranked school and the 90th?</p>
<p>I like Oregon which is ranked 120th.</p>
<p>I’d agree with cur that the cachet differential seems to matter more in an external sense (what others think, prestige) in decisions between 1 and 25 than between 25 and 50. However, in an internal sense the difference between 25 and 50 may matter as far as how the child feels about attending and how the difference manifests itself in ways that will affect the quality of life at the school. For example, when I went on college visits, I noticed that at the most expensive and highly regarded school from among my choices (none elite) there was a palpable difference in small details. This included things like the level of professionalism of the admissions staff, the articulateness of the tour guide, the cleanliness of the campus, etc. These things had nothing to do with the quality of the educational program per se, but I found it difficult not to extrapolate upon those differences. For example, if the school knew how to choose admissions staff and tour guides, then I felt that they would probably also do a good job selecting professors. Thus, I was more confident (the headache test) choosing that school than choosing one of the others.</p>
<p>dstark: Actually it’s the 110th school that I like. (It’s probably WAY better than your 120th school.)</p>
<p>mootie: Are you in on the trip too? (post #1651)</p>
<p>Hey, my school is better than your school. ;)</p>
<p>^ Come to the Panic Bar and we’ll hash it out.</p>
<p>lol…</p>
<p>weenie-
I love the animation on the panic bar’s website. If you hold arc and distance contests (see p2n’s manthread), I’m comin’ to watch :)</p>