Paying for college - a spinn-off thread

[Brooke]

This is a spin-off of the expectations thread.

Will you help your children pay for college? Why or why not?

If yes, will you pay for all or just part of it?

Are there any conditions to you helping to pay? (like they must live at home, have a job, pass all classes, pay for books, declare a major, etc.)

If you can't afford to pay, will you help them get financial aid (grants, loans)?

[Brooke]

Will you help your children pay for college? Why or why not? Yes, I will help pay. My parents didn't really help pay but they helped as much as possible. When my loans didn't cover all of my tuition and books, they paid the rest. And my mom gave me gas money every week since I lived at home and commuted. She figured I was saving her a ton in room and board by living at home.


If yes, will you pay for all or just part of it? As much as we can, but I want the kids to help too. I don't want them to feel like they are getting a free ride. I want them to appreciate it.


Are there any conditions to you helping to pay? (like they must live at home, have a job, pass all classes, pay for books, declare a major, etc.) I'm not sure on this one. I would like them to have a job but I want school to come first. My mom always felt that jobs came first over homework or projects. I do want them to pass all classes, get all A's and B's if possible, even though I know that's not always possible (college is hard!). And I want them to have a goal, not just take classes to take them.


If you can't afford to pay, will you help them get financial aid (grants, loans)? Absolutely. I decided this a long time ago.
I had an ex-boyfriend whose parents didn't think college was important so they refused to help him pay for anything. They even charged him rent to live at home starting the day he graduated from high school. They were not hurting for money at all. He desperately wanted to go to college and was trying to get loans but his parents wouldn't give him the information he needed for the loan application. Since he lived at home, he couldn't get federal loans or grants without his parents' financial information. So he ended up working full time during the day at a minimum wage job and taking one class a semester at night because that was all he could afford. After that, I decided that I would definitely help my kids go to college, even if it meant just helping them get loans.

[Amy]

Will you help your children pay for college? Why or why not? Yes, we will help them pay for school. By six months of age, each of them had a 529 set up, and we put money it those each month. We figure that will cover approximately half of what they will need for tuition at an in-state school.


If yes, will you pay for all or just part of it? As mentioned above, we hope to have about 1/2 of what will be needed. Beyond that, I don't know that we'll pay much more. They will be expected to have good enough grades to qualify for scholarships, and they can take out loans for the rest. We don't want them saddled forever, but I think they will appreciate their education more if it isn't handed to them.

Are there any conditions to you helping to pay? (like they must live at home, have a job, pass all classes, pay for books, declare a major, etc.) We will help with ONE undergrad degree, to be completed within 5 years. DH has a cousin who went to college full time for almost 8 years, never did finish, and his parents paid for it all. Since we intend to relocate to my hometown within a couple years, we are hoping the girls will stay at home for the first couple years after HS and go to the local campus of Indiana University (where I went and am going now). That will let them live at home, and we won't charge rent as long as they are in school. They will be expected to work for spending money, pass all their classes, and not change majors every semester.

If you can't afford to pay, will you help them get financial aid (grants, loans)? ABSOLUTELY!! I cannot imagine refusing to help my motivated child go to college, even if it just means handing her information for financial aid forms. I will *not* do what my dad did, even though he meant well. Even though it was just assumed we'd go to college, money was never set aside for it, so we had to scramble. My dad took out PLUS loans (parent loans) for all three of us kids' college degrees, and deferred the payments until the last one graduated. Imagine our shock in Jan 2001 when he announced that he couldn't afford the monthly payments anymore (he'd been making them for about 6 months, since my sister graduated), and my portion was $XXX a month. :faint: By that point, my loans had been accumulating interest since 1994. D and I managed to do it until last fall, and then in March of this year our family inherited a sizeable amount after my grandfather died, and my dad paid off everyone's student loans, even the ones my siblings had taken out separately. No way do I want my kids to go through that!!

[Michele]

I kind of answered this in the last thread....but...

Will you help your children pay for college? Why or why not? Yes I will help them as much as I can. I think college is really important for the experience and for the education and I don't want my kids to miss out on it.

If yes, will you pay for all or just part of it? I will require that they pay part of it either by taking out loans that they will pay back or by working on weekends/summers and paying me with that. I will most likely do this even if I can afford to pay for their college straight out (doubtful this will happen though :lol: ) b/c I think spending their own money on it gives them more motivation to do well.

Are there any conditions to you helping to pay? (like they must live at home, have a job, pass all classes, pay for books, declare a major, etc.) I think my only condition is that they have to pass all their classes. I would like them to live at school, unless they don't want to. I had a work study job in college and I would like them to do that rather than work off campus so that they can focus more on their studies (I had 2 jobs all through college...to pay for my shopping/partying habit, not my tuition and I think my grades did suffer some b/c of it).

If you can't afford to pay, will you help them get financial aid (grants, loans)? Definitely

[Brooke]

They will be expected to have good enough grades to qualify for scholarships, and they can take out loans for the rest.

My mom thought the same thing, but I just wanted to point out that just getting good grades isn't enough to get scholarships. I was 3rd in my class in high school and I applied for all kinds of scholarships and didn't get a single one. So while thinking that the kids will get scholarships is good, I've learned that there aren't as many out there as one would think.

[Dennis]

Will you help your children pay for college? Why or why not?

We're in the very fortunate position that my grandparents and my dad have both opened accounts for Joe and Frances which should fully cover their college costs. We also have 529 accounts for both of them with money people have given them. If they do need more, we will help them out with what we can afford.

If yes, will you pay for all or just part of it?

See above.

Are there any conditions to you helping to pay? (like they must live at home, have a job, pass all classes, pay for books, declare a major, etc.)

I don't think there are any conditions on the money from my grandparents and dad. From us, it would just be they need to make progress towards a degree at a reasonable pace.

If you can't afford to pay, will you help them get financial aid (grants, loans)?

We'll see how the financial picture is when the time comes.

Dennis

[Karri]

Will you help your children pay for college? Why or why not?

We'll pay for part of it. My parents paid for my first year of college and I paid for the rest with loans. But they also supported me a lot the rest of the time, like when I came up short on rent, all the time with groceries, and usually clothes. DH's parents paid for all of his college. I'd like to meet somewhere halfway...maybe pay for the equivelant of 2 years of each child's education at a state school. I gained an appreciation of my education (after my 1st year of partying & drinking & sleeping in) and took it seriously. I guess I'd like my kids to have that same understanding, as well.

If yes, will you pay for all or just part of it?

See above.

Are there any conditions to you helping to pay? (like they must live at home, have a job, pass all classes, pay for books, declare a major, etc.)

I don't think there are any conditions on the money, aside from passing their classes (i dont think that is unreasonable). I would never make my child declare a major. Why pressure? They'll just change their mind and spend more time in school then! :lol: In their first year or two, I wouldnt make them work, because I think its important to focus on school (i worked minimally, but like michele, it was for beer & shopping :lol: ). Later on, I would expect that they'd get some sort of paid intership or p/t job related to their chosen field.
And I'd never make my kids live at home. For me, a HUGE part of the college experience was living away from home and being "independent"...learning to get my a$$ outta bed on my own and being responsible for getting myself to class. The whole social life thing was great. I wouldnt trade that for the world!

If you can't afford to pay, will you help them get financial aid (grants, loans)?

Assuming that federal guaranteed student loans will still be around, they will be able to get those.

[redhairedgirl]

Will you help your children pay for college? Why or why not?
Yes. Aiden already has a 529 set up. We are also doing the Upromise thing - although I've added to a separate account. Sometimes, the products for upromise are a bit more expensive. I will take the difference (if I buy something elsewhere on sale for example) and put that money aside into his account. Sounds like a lot of work, but it's important to me that he has a college fund. DH agrees. Especially since we have enough student loans between us for a small house. :blush:


If yes, will you pay for all or just part of it? It will depend on the cost of school and where it is that he wants to go.


Are there any conditions to you helping to pay? (like they must live at home, have a job, pass all classes, pay for books, declare a major, etc.)
As long as he passes and doesn't end up in jail, we might not have any conditions. I don't know.

If you can't afford to pay, will you help them get financial aid (grants, loans)?

Absolutely!
My parents didn't help me AT ALL. When I was starving and near eviction, they still didn't give me a penny. I worked full time and went to school full time making honor roll and that still wasn't good enough. I will NEVER put my son out like they did to me. (Can we sense the bitterness in my voice?)

[Mrs.Greevy]

Will you help your children pay for college? Why or why not?
Yes

If yes, will you pay for all or just part of it?
I expect my children to have loans and any extra stuff (fraternitites off campus housing bars) be paid by them, the rest is up to DH and I

Are there any conditions to you helping to pay? (like they must live at home, have a job, pass all classes, pay for books, declare a major, etc.)
I will pay for 4 years only

If you can't afford to pay, will you help them get financial aid (grants, loans)?
Yes

[AahRee]

I hope to be able to pay for all of it for Katie. There's only one of her, and we *should* be able to pay off our mortgage by then, so we could transfer that money to paying for college without too much trouble, I think. Plus, my ILs put aside $100 a month for Katie and have since she was born, and she'll have that for college when the time comes. Seeing as she's their only grandchild, and they paid for college for DH and BIL, I'm guessing that if we can't swing it, they'll help us so that she doesn't have to work or anything.

My only condition on her would be that she maintain passing grades and a full schedule. If she drops below full-time for one quarter, I'd put her on probation and make sure that she got back up to full-time the next quarter. If not, we'd talk about whether or not she was serious about school, why she was less than full-time, etc. Same with low grades - one quarter of probation and then we'd talk about it. If it sounded like she just wasn't into it, I'd tell her to take a quarter off and figure out what she wants to do. If she's like me, though - I went below full-time a couple of times during my college experience, and both times it was because I was taking classes that were really, really hard (senior level classes as a freshman), and I wanted to do well in those classes, so I dropped others to make sure I wasn't taking on too much. That would be okay with me, as long as she had a plan to get herself back on schedule. I'm all for doing what interests and challenges you, and I wouldn't want her to be limited or feel like she couldn't take a class that was a reach just because she needed to keep up a certain number of credits. Same with an occasional bad grade. If she got a bad grade because the class was just way, way too hard for her, but she tried, I'd be okay with that. Not as a habit, but once or twice. I guess I see college as the last safe place to really learn about yourself and challenge yourself without the serious (financial) consequences that you have when you take those kinds of risks outside of college, and I want her to have that freedom.

If we can't afford to pay for college, I'll take out loans (parent loans) if we have to. I don't want Katie to have to pay for it at all. I worked a bit in college and it was always a distraction for me. I'd rather have her focus on her classes and school-life, not be worried about having enough $$$ for rent or tuition. I also don't want her to be saddled with student loans after she graduates. I had some (not many, but some) and that's an extra stress that can limit how free you are to pursue your dreams, IMO, and I don't want those limits on her.

[Nichole]

Will you help your children pay for college? Why or why not?

We haven't fully decided yet, but I know we'll pay for at least part of it. My parents paid for all of us to go (4 of us! :faint: ) and I was very grateful to not have to graduate with debt. I'm not sure that I appreciated school any less because they paid for it. :dunno:

Are there any conditions to you helping to pay? (like they must live at home, have a job, pass all classes, pay for books, declare a major, etc.)

I can't think of any definite conditions, aside from making sure they finish at a decent pace and take a full load and do well. I'd like for them to work a little, just for spending money but I think it's too distracting to have to work to pay their entire way. It's more important to me that they do well in school.

If you can't afford to pay, will you help them get financial aid (grants, loans)?

Definitely!

[Nanley]

Will you help your children pay for college? Why or why not?

Yes. We have a 529 set up for John now, and we put enough in every month to cover four years of school at a private university (not a $$$$ school, but a medium-cost one). I paid for my own undergrad degree and DH's parents paid for his. Although I didn't mind paying for mine, we just both prefer the idea of taking that pressure off our kids.

Are there any conditions to you helping to pay? (like they must live at home, have a job, pass all classes, pay for books, declare a major, etc.)

We haven't really talked about conditions. They certainly wouldn't have to live at home, and they wouldn't have to have a job (at least during the school year), nor would they have to declare a major. If anything, I'd say they'd have to pass their classes (although the money train wouldn't stop the instant they failed a class; I'm all about second chances).

If you can't afford to pay, will you help them get financial aid (grants, loans)?

Yes, we'll do whatever we can financially to help our kids get through college, whether that's directly out of our own pockets or by helping them get grants and loans.

[JustJen]

Will you help your children pay for college? Why or why not? Yes to some degree. We will pay for their first 2 years of community college while they live at home. We will then split the last two years of tuition at whatever school they want. If they want an advanced degree they have to fund it themselves.

If yes, will you pay for all or just part of it?See above

Are there any conditions to you helping to pay? (like they must live at home, have a job, pass all classes, pay for books, declare a major, etc.) I would expect them to live at home the first 2 years or work to pay for living expenses away from home themselves. We would have them take basic courses the first 2 years and wait to determine a major. Passing all classes would be required for us to continue paying for it.

If you can't afford to pay, will you help them get financial aid (grants, loans)? Financial aid yes. My husband is in the military we would let them use his GI bill.

[Amy]

If you can't afford to pay, will you help them get financial aid (grants, loans)? Financial aid yes. My husband is in the military we would let them use his GI bill.

I may be mistaken, but children of military personnel are not eligible to use *his* GI bill. My Dad was in the Air Force for 36 years, and none of us kids could use his GI Bill. He's now a disabled veteran (severe hearing loss) so I'm going to school as a graduate non-degree education major, and the VA pays for 124 hours, but we were not able to use the GI Bill for any of our degrees. If your husband would become disabled due to his military service, then your kids are eligible under VA rules, but GI Bill education benefits are only for the service personnel.

I just went to the GI Bill website, and it is only for active duty service personnel. GI Bill Education Information (http://www.gibill.va.gov/education/c30pam.htm)

[Amy]

My mom thought the same thing, but I just wanted to point out that just getting good grades isn't enough to get scholarships. I was 3rd in my class in high school and I applied for all kinds of scholarships and didn't get a single one. So while thinking that the kids will get scholarships is good, I've learned that there aren't as many out there as one would think.

A lot of that depends on the school you go to. I was no where NEAR the top of my high school class...I think I was around 140-160 out of 600+, with a B+ average. I still managed to get a $5000 scholarship to Indiana State University (which I ended up turning down to go to Indiana University) and a $500 scholarship from the Officer's Wives Club at the air force base where my dad was stationed. Granted, it wasn't enough to pay for everything, but any little bit helps. At the local IU campus where I got my BA and am going now, there are TONS of scholarships available to children of alumni, nursing and education students, scholarships through my husband's employer, etc. I learned that being involved in extra curricular activities is just as important as good grades. My ISU scholarship was offered after I attended an intense French language course there for two weeks the summer before my senior year.

[gulp!]

Will you help your children pay for college? Why or why not?

Yes, and hopefully we'll be able to pay for all of it. One of the most amazing moments in my life was my first day of college, when my dad and I went to the financial office and i watched him write out a check for all 4 years of my tuition. That day I vowed that I would do the same for my kids, and motivated me to work hard to achieve that goal.

If yes, will you pay for all or just part of it?

All of it. They can pay for extra stuff, like if they want to get an apartment off campus, spring break, etc.

Are there any conditions to you helping to pay? (like they must live at home, have a job, pass all classes, pay for books, declare a major, etc.)

Not really, though if they weren't doing very well and were having more fun partying than studying, then I might have to think twice.

If you can't afford to pay, will you help them get financial aid (grants, loans)?

Absolutely.

[schwanda]

We'll pay for as much as we can afford. That having been said, I think there's nothing wrong with having student loans. I still have student loans to pay off! When I graduating college, I knew that I either needed to go to graduate school or start working so I could pay off my loans. I didn't have the option of "taking time off" and I think that really helped my career!

Amanda

[Bonnie]

Will you help your children pay for college? Why or why not?
Yes. We have 529s for both girls and will start one for baby #3 hopefully by the time she is one. I do not want them to be burdened with debt upon graduation from college. DH and I both have HUGE debt from law school, and I know how hard that makes thing. If they chose to pursue an advanced degree, if we can help with that, we probably will too.

If yes, will you pay for all or just part of it?
We will pay for as much as possible, and if we can pay for all, we will. I had a full scholarship to college, and DH's parents paid for his. I imagine we'll both still be working when they go to college, and we will be able to supplement the 529 amount with our income.

Are there any conditions to you helping to pay? (like they must live at home, have a job, pass all classes, pay for books, declare a major, etc.)
No conditions on payment. I do expect they maintain a full schedule of classes and graduate in 4 years, but unless they really screw up, I'm not pulling the $$.

If you can't afford to pay, will you help them get financial aid (grants, loans)?
Of course.