robin1234

What about some of the liberal arts colleges within the SUNY system, places like Potsdam, Cortland, Geneseo, New Paltz (although New Paltz is bigger.). They have many of the merits of private liberal arts colleges but with SUNY prices. Geneseo is probably the best, others are more in the middle rank.

notonuksoil

New Paltz was a disaster when we visited..... the person that gave the initial admissions presentation was very poor so things didn't start well. The type of students on campus were not a good fit for her and she couldn't see herself going there. Neither me or OH got a good vibe from the place. On the other hand we all liked Geneseo and it seemed a good fit. Great campus and facilities, great setting, competitive to get into but she has the grades (might get a little chilly in the winter!) Good college feel to the town even though very close to Colgate seems the students mix well. She has friends from school that are at both and they meet up even though at different colleges. Cortland made her short list but we didn't have time to visit but will try and drive up over the summer. Not ideal but hey! I'd also like her to just "look" at a couple of the CUNY schools in the city but she won't even consider looking, they have fantastic programs and great opportunities but she has her mind set on a small rural school.

robin1234

My daughter went to Cortland, brilliant little place, skewed towards turning out phys ed teachers, so sports and the education department are big. My daughter was a geology major though, small department but with a strong tradition going back decades. She got a good degree there which stood her in good stead for graduate school and a career in her field. She's still in touch with a couple of the professors there, ten years after graduating. Geneseo is the best of the SUNY liberal arts colleges, as you say, the most selective.

New York is the Mecca for small, private, liberal arts colleges. Most are religious and mediocre though! Mind you, some of the Catholic schools are very good and should be considered seriously. Siena and Le Moyne, for instance.

Other than that, St. Lawrence, Hamilton, Colgate, Hobart & William Smith and Skidmore are all very highly regarded and in small, rural towns, all within six or seven hours of Westchester County. Two of the best colleges in NYS are Union and Vassar, both very selective and to be taken seriously.

notonuksoil

Thanks for the overview, its great to get quality feedback from someone who has experience in the field.

MarylandNed

Yeah and that's only for the 3rd year and beyond of undergrad. The limit is $5500 for the 1st year and $6500 for the 2nd year of undergrad. Also those limits are for dependent students whose parents can get PLUS loans - the limits for dependent students whose parents can't get PLUS loans and for independent students are higher.

https://studentaid.ed.gov/types/loan...d-unsubsidized

MarylandNed

I have 4 kids and have told them that college must be "in state" or Canada if they are expecting me to contribute. They are all Canadian citizens and so qualify for domestic tuition rates there (Canada does not have residency requirements for domestic tuition rates for Canadian citizens). The eldest just finished 3rd year at the University of Western Ontario and loves it there. Her tuition is less than "in state" tuition at a public university in Maryland.

The 2nd child still lives at home, attended the local community college (a great deal at around $4000 per year) and has just finished her 2-year associates degree. She is transferring to the University of Maryland this fall to complete her final 2 years of undergrad and obtain a bachelor's degree (and is also moving out of the house to be near campus).

The 3rd child is a junior in high school and will be applying to 4 year, "in state", public universities this fall. The 4th child is still in middle school.

I started late with college savings. The Maryland 529 plans have been a good deal although I wonder if I could have done even better myself if I'd had the time and energy to do so. The money doesn't have to be used at Maryland colleges - I was able to use the disbursements to pay the Canadian university.

My savings don't cover everything so I've made the 2 college students obtain US student "direct loans". I want to avoid parental PLUS loans at all costs. The student loans are a better deal even if I end up helping pay them off.

I've also had to contribute extra money which I obtained from refinancing my mortgage a couple of times - something I probably could have avoided if I'd started saving earlier.

By the way, Canada is a good deal even for US students paying international tuition rates. My eldest daughter's boyfriend also goes to university in Canada and he will qualify for domestic rates at a Canadian grad school after graduating with a Canadian bachelor's degree (not sure of the exact details e.g. if there are any restrictions on where he can go and still obtain domestic tuition).

kodokan

Those of us living in the western states also have the Western Undergraduate Exchange program, where you pay 1.5x resident tuition rates at participating unis: http://www.wiche.edu/wue.

It doesn't cover all unis, or all degree majors at the various locations, but is pretty broad in scope, and might bring a uni in a neighbouring state down to an approximately comparable tuition rate as staying in-state.

MarylandNed

Same here. I'm not exactly sure of the details but I have heard that there are arrangements between some Maryland and Virginia unis to charge in state tuition if a student has to go to the other state to take a major that is not offered in their home state.

Michael

Besides my son going to UC Santa Cruz and University of Minnesota, he also spent one semester at the University of Texas at Austin when he was having issues with his girlfriend. Initially I thought that I'd have to pay significantly higher tuition due to his love problems but tuition was cheaper at University of Texas than at UC Santa Cruz and I don't know why. Of course he became lonely and moved back to UC Santa Cruz the following semester but claimed the reason was because Texas was too conservative.

Sue

Yep our son is in a similar position, and when we first moved over here we didn't think we would still be here all these years later so never gave university much thought.

robin1234

What is heartwarming, though, is that universities you've attended never stop thinking about you! My son and daughter slipped away from home without giving their colleges a forwarding address, so we receive lots of mail from them. Then there are the unsolicited phone calls from current students, who just keep on calling, even when we tell them the kids are not at home right now...

Sue

ottotheboar

There is a program in Virginia called the Governor's School, this can be for the academic year or a summer program for high school children.
If the academic year program is successfully completed the freshman year of college is not a requirement the student starts as a sophomore.
I am not sure if other states have this program but it may be worth checking.