Dollars and Decisions: Choose a College Based on Financial Aid

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Dollars and decisions require students to choose a college based on aid.

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Jeremy Ogul

Hey, my name is Jeremy Ogul. I live in southern California, where I was born and have lived all my life. I am a senior at Vista Murrieta High School. My school just opened in 2003, so it's pretty new. My class is the first class to go through all four years at the school. Starting up a new high school has definitely been a unique experience. My school is relatively large in terms of population; this year I think we have about 3,500 students. My class has somewhere around 780. It's hard for me to imagine what life would be like in a school of 500 or something like that. Two different worlds … I live with my brother, who is 15, and my mom. My parents are divorced but I go to my dad's house pretty often. My dad is remarried, so I also have a step-mom and a sister, 8, from that marriage. Some of my favorite bands are Pixies, Nirvana, Weezer, Cake, and Depeche Mode. While I enjoy rock and alternative more than anything else, I have been known to be a fan of rap and hip-hop as well. From that genre I like Outkast, Black Eyed Peas, and Eminem. I am pretty involved at school. I play euphonium in my high school's wind ensemble. I am the drum major (conductor) of the marching band, a unit that includes almost 200 people. In the short amount of time school has been open, we have been able to build one of the top music programs in southern California. I'm also an editor for the student newspaper, which is a lot of fun. Some other interests of mine are photography, Español, literature, and politics. I hope you enjoy reading the column over the next few months as I tackle the challenges of the last year of high school!

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My dad and my uncle were born and raised in Los Angeles and spent their whole childhoods rooting for UCLA in sports and thus treating the University of Southern California as their mortal enemy. When it came time for my uncle (who was the older sibling) to go to college, he applied and got into both schools, but USC offered him a full-ride scholarship. Coming from a low-income family, he couldn’t afford not to take it.

My dad has called him a traitor ever since. So when I talk to my dad about the possibility of me getting into and attending UCLA, he gets really hopeful and says, “That would be the end to 30 years of shame.” (He’s only half joking.)

I haven’t gotten word from UCLA yet (that comes at the end of March), but college acceptances have begun to trickle in, and I’m starting to have to make decisions – like my uncle – taking into account financial factors.

Seen your scholarship matches recently? Check them out now.

The first school I got acceptance notification from was American University in Washington, D.C. They have top political science and international relations programs, and because of their location in the nation’s capital, they have outstanding internship programs in Washington. From alumni I’ve talked to, I understand it’s a great place to go if you really want to get involved in politics, which is something I’m interested in. The only problem with my admission to American is financial aid. I was awarded a Dean’s Scholarship in the amount of $15,000, with an additional $3,000 in student loans, but the annual cost of attendance is about $45,000. That leaves me paying $27,000 a year, and according to the FAFSA (Free Application for Federal Student Aid), my family is not even able to afford half that. Because I am not willing to take out $14,000 a year in student loans to finance an education at American, especially when I can get a state school education for far less, American has been almost completely ruled out.

When I was researching colleges and completing applications, I never considered the possibility that financial aid would be a factor in my final decision. Now I’m beginning to realize that there is more to this equation than just what I want in a school as far as size and programs go. If you are not yet a senior, I recommend putting some thought and research into what kind of financial aid you can expect from the colleges you’re looking at. What is the cost of attendance? There’s a big difference between state schools and private schools, and the difference isn’t always corrected by better financial aid from the private schools. How much of demonstrated need does the financial aid department meet? The top-tier private schools, such as Princeton, Duke and Dartmouth, have endowments large enough to meet all the demonstrated need of all admitted students. Other schools, however, will only meet 70 percent or 50 percent of demonstrated need. If you see numbers like that, expect to take out a lot of money in loans.

Consider the military as a means to cover tuition bills.

On the bright side, I have also received acceptance letters from UC-Davis and UC-Santa Cruz, and my financial aid package from Davis is generous and all of my demonstrated need is met through scholarships and subsidized federal loans. So right now, based on financial aid, it’s looking like Davis is my top choice.

That, of course, hinges on decisions from UCLA and UC-Berkeley, which will be out soon. I am anxiously awaiting notification, hoping that if I get into UCLA, financial factors won’t prevent me from ending “30 years of shame.”

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danallenross

almost 2 years ago

JaysonM19 mentions a book "How to Pay for College" by Pedersen, but I've google searched and can't find it. Anyone know the book that's being referenced, and / or have another one to recommend that's similar?
ErinElisabethx3

almost 2 years ago

My decision was solely based on money. The school that was my last choice is now my destination for next year due to the financial package. Other schools I had applied to hadn't even come close!
ladydaler

almost 2 years ago

The college of my dreams that i know i want to go to i deffinately cannot afford. So i have come down to two schools and my problem is the cheaper of the two i visited and i jus felt like i would fit in there and that i wouldnt be happy there...

Should one choose the school caus its the cheaper of the two or should i choose the other school which is only givin me loans no grants or scholarships. Take in mind i will only be stayin at this school for one or two yrs until i can get into my orginal school of my dreams as a transfer student with good grades.
JaysonM19

almost 2 years ago

Wow, Jeremy, we had the same experience with American U! Luckily my son was awarded a full tuition scholarship for four years at a really great school. Now he can save money for grad school. One book that was helpful was "Pedersen's How to Pay for College", or "Pay for College?". It gives the breakdown of each school, how much money they have to give out, how many kids get it, and the percentage of need met. It never hurts to try your luck and hope for the best package at your chosen school, but practical decisions should be made.
jeouimet

almost 2 years ago

I have to chose between the school I really want to go to (35000 a year in loans) and a state school I really have no interest in, but is much cheaper (4000 a year in loans). This article did not make me feel any better.
ileger

almost 2 years ago

Everything comes down to ideology meeting practicality. Of course I expect young people to go for the highest possible level school they can find, but they oftentimes do not understand the consequences of spending now paying later. I figure they probably are not able to realize what starting out life with a $100,000 student loan feels like and just how much it will hold you back later. The irony is they are trying to get into a good school to get ahead in life, but will actually be behind starting off with so much debt.
10124750

almost 2 years ago

i totally find myself in the same situation. i either go to sac state and have only about half of financial aid for me or go to UC merced and have practically a full ride with an extra five thousand dollars. but i and my mother wants to stay really close and UC merced is about two hours away from sacramento.
ash492

almost 2 years ago

Im with most people that their wasn't much advice given here. What i did was make a spreadsheet of the 4 colleges my daughter was accepted too. I put down every loan, scholarship, and grant money she recieved from each one. I then added the EFC from the FAFSA we were given. What ever was left over was what either she, me, or the school would have to come up with. I then multiplied her loans times four years and added five thousand to account for tuition increases that WILL come no matter what for each school. That immediately ruled out 2 of the schools because she was already over 40,000 in debt after 4 years. No happening. I should point out you should look at the average in-debtedness at graduation at each school and how it compares to your financial package after 4 years. If its double, thats a no no, UNLESS you can afford it. The school we ended up decided on after how much i knew i could afford OVER the EFC amount put just over 3 thousand over average indebtness. I thought that was fair. I also appealed to the financial office for more aid, (cant hurt right), but even if the package stays the same, we will be okay. I suggest do a spreadsheet of each school side by side and multiply it by 4 years to see how much debt your child will ATLEAST be in. If thats acceptable to you, go for it. If not appeal to the financial aid office or go somewhere else, because those repayments books will come to your child no matter what.
maihnialorlee

almost 2 years ago

I find myself in the same exact situation.
Prepqueen978

almost 2 years ago

I think its hard to come from a low income house hold but what if you have a great opportunity to go to a four year college and you decide not to go for financial purposes is it really worth losing out on a wonderful experiance? Or would you rather stay at home and go to a community college which is more affordable and see nothing more but the four walls you grew up in. I think college is worth every penny because if you work hard you'll be able to overcome any obstacle in life
ladybug_9

almost 2 years ago

I think most of us are in the same boat! I too have chosen to attend a small private college instead of Brown University because at the former, I was accepted into the Honors program (where the majority of my tuition would be paid for), and at Brown it would cost roughly $35,000, and that's after financial aid packages and scholarships have been taken out! I loved the University and the programs it offered, but it's simply more practical to go to the other college, especially when I'm looking at paying for medical school once I'm out of college.
annarose393

almost 2 years ago

No one can tell you how to make your decision...it boils down to what is right for you, within your financial means. I think Jeremy adequately covered that, if it is "advice" you were seeking. He explained how he realized that he may not be able to go to his "dream school", but will be perfectly happy where he can afford to go. The old adage still applies in regards to Colleges (like everything else in life)..."you get out of it what you put into it"!
bcharnigo

almost 2 years ago

ahh! FASFA was completely useless for me and my family; we didn't get any aid from most of the schools that accepted me. My final decision was based fully on financial aid, and I just made it today. I hope it was the right decision, but it was really the only affordable option left for me. I was lucky to get some nice scholarships from other schools as well and they were all more prestigious colleges than the one I am now going to attend, but I had to decline their offers due to their expensive tuitions.
harashun

almost 2 years ago

I made my decision on school based on Financial Aid, but it also happened to be that I realized I wasn't too fond of my "top choice" school after I attended their accepted student's reception and realized my "last choice" school really fit me better. Which was good because it was the one with the best financial aid package.

How was this article supposed to help me?? I guess it's a nice story and all, but it didn't inspire me or help me a bit.
suzebt

almost 2 years ago

I think it's easy - before you actually apply, you determine the max you and ytour familycould afford without any financial aid and only apply to those (unless of course you fit a profile where aid would be likely. Then when your kid gets in, there isn't this major disappointment about not going to a school they really wanted to attend. I have seen so many kids apply and get into pricey schools when there was no way they could afford it or want to take out loans to cover the costs. Our rule was whatever school our son got into that was the absolute best fit was where he should go, especially since he has many years of grad school ahead in his field. We will be taking out some sizable loans but to us it is worth it. All of these types of things need to be discussed before applying.