Worth it? Boston University degree costs $206,296!

[valeriana]

I was just reading an article and that is the 2011 cost of Boston University degree. (4 years, room & board) I am just so confused as to how this works out. I sometimes get very low self-esteem because I do not have a private school upper tier education, but I also have absolutely no student loans.

The question is, are the people that do pay this much (aside from those who come from wealth, which I am sure there are some, but how many, honestly?) going to sail past me in life since they paid so much? Is the 200K worth it? I guess I am just missing here something here, because in comparison I paid SO little for my rinky dink state school education. I am just wondering what the "catch" is - or is the "catch" that anyone willing to pay 200K for this education is just a sucker that will be in debt for life?

[Deleted]

Schools like BU have very generous need based student aid that pays for a huge amount of the cost.

[chiver78]

having graduated from a different Boston school, I'd say hell no!

that said, depending on what you plan to study, maybe it's worth it to you. I went to a school that was well-known for it's internship program, which was built in to the 5-year curriculum for each major. I will say that choice had a direct impact on my career, because I had a job before graduation - at a company that was a client of one of my internship companies.

for my school, tuition went from the mid-$20k to the low-$40k ranges between my freshman and senior years. it's getting expensive everywhere though.

[stats45]

The truth is that the high price of private colleges is what the market will bear. Let's say the top 50 private colleges have an average enrollment of around 3,000 students. That means that around 150,000 students will be accepted to one of these colleges in an average year. There are plenty of upper-middle class and upper class households who can easily pay that much for their children to attend these schools. Add in large amounts of student aid from the colleges themselves with their large endowments, and there is no problem charging that much.

[haapai]

I can't imagine many people paying that much. Maybe a few kids who came from wealthy families have parents who pay or borrow that much. As Archie mentioned, there's a heck of a lot of discounting that goes on.

How does that tuition compare to the current out-state tuition at the school that you attended? Doing that exercise might give you a bit of insight into why wealthy parents might consider paying that much. It might also make you feel a lot better about your own education. (I'm assuming that you'll check out current in-state rates while you are there.)

It's good to see you back.

[Angel!]

I sometimes get very low self-esteem because I do not have a private school upper tier education

You really need to work on your self-esteem & depression problems. You need a more positive outlook on life. The actual degree you got matters a lot more than the school that gave it to you. Be proud of yourself that you got through school with no debt. Be proud of yourself for working on paying down your debts.

[NomoreDramaQ1015]

Is that without a single bit of finanical aid? I really doubt anyone is paying the full price for all four years of college.

[Urban Chicago]

Schools like BU have very generous need based student aid that pays for a huge amount of the cost.

Correct, and many have merit-based aid too.
I would guesstimate that fewer than 10%of BU undergrads pay "sticker price".

[8 Bit WWBG]

...:::"I can't imagine many people paying that much. Maybe a few kids who came from wealthy families have parents who pay or borrow that much.":::...

There are other factors. One of the girls in my graduating class probably attended all four years for free, because her father was on the board. But her father also donated $4M to the school. So in a sense (assuming $500k for 4 years) he paid the tuition 8 times for one student.

My DF had some scholarships, aid, and loans, so she only paid maybe 1/2 sticker price. Some of the athletes probably got full tuition and board, and maybe even meals and more for free.

Some of these universities are like megacorporations, buying real estate and whatnot.

[bobosensei]

I went to Duke University which is around the same cost. My family made about 40k a year and there was my older sister in college and younger brother in high school who were considered when I got my financial aid package. My family paid no money and I came out with about 25k in loans. The average student with loans graduated with about 12k. I could have hit closer to that mark, but I did summer school one session with tuition and board on loans that the school gave me in addition to my federal stafford loans, plus I would take out the maximum loans allowed for the stafford loans each semester and then get about 2k back per year to supplement my working.

A lot of the students I was in school with were trust fund babies who were not on aid at all. I just checked the Duke website and for 2010-2011 it is 55,690 (without inflation 4 years would be 222k), but the average aid packet is 38,445. The 17k difference is split between the student and family. Most kids parents are working professionals and are able to pay on monthly installments while the kid gets a few thousand in federal loans per year.

It was definitely worth it to me to go to Duke. Now if the school hadn't been able to offer my parents any aid I wouldn't have been able to go. I had full rides including room and board and monthly stipends to go to any public university in Georgia. So I would have had to go that route.

[zibazinski]

At least it was a NAME school. Try paying that for a no-name school. Unreal.

[Jake 48]

Chiver, sounds like Northeastern. Val you get out of your education what you put into it, don't be down on yourself

[chiver78]

Mar 3, 2011 14:18:29 GMT -5 Jake 48 said:

Chiver, sounds like Northeastern. Val you get out of your education what you put into it, don't be down on yourself

yup, but that wasn't the point I was trying to make - I went to the school for what they had to offer me, specifically the opportunity to work in my field and network - as opposed to the name on the top of my degree.

val - there is nothing at all wrong with a state school. UMass runs an ad around here that showcases a lot of their system's more famous graduates. I remember Bill Cosby and Bill Pullman off the top of my head from that ad. take a look at this list and see if you recognize anyone. they managed to do quite a bit with "only a state school" degree.

[Firebird]

Mar 3, 2011 13:36:44 GMT -5 Angel! said:

I sometimes get very low self-esteem because I do not have a private school upper tier education

You really need to work on your self-esteem & depression problems. You need a more positive outlook on life. The actual degree you got matters a lot more than the school that gave it to you. Be proud of yourself that you got through school with no debt. Be proud of yourself for working on paying down your debts.

Karma for this. I've never once felt "low self esteem" because of my humble state school degree. Heck, I'm proud of it! I worked hard to get it and it's more than served its purpose. It never even occurred to me to be ashamed of it.

You know what I would be MORE embarrassed about? Getting myself six figures into debt by age 22 because I went to an Ivy League school just to say I went there. That's a high price to pay for pride, if you ask me. A lot of times the ROI on these pricey degrees is not great.

[gooddecisions]

At the bargain price of 6k/year I graduated from Virginia Tech. I have no regrets and no self esteem issues. Bobo, if you're in Germany you probably missed the game Saturday night. VT won 64-60, Go Hokies!

[Deleted]

it was cheaper for me to go there as an out of state student than to go to Rutgers in-state. My DD is a fresman there at the moment and while it's more expensive than U of MD, it's definately not outrageous. So yeah, cost of school is not an indicator of success.

[valeriana]

My parents made around 300K a year so I was rejected in terms of financial aid

[The Walk of the Penguin Mich]

I have not one, but almost three degrees from state schools. The fact that the degree is from a state school has nothing to do with your self esteem - for the most part, it's what you do in the few years after you get the degree that opens doors.

Oh, and I graduated with a BS and no debt, my MS a small amount and haven't paid a dime for my doctorate.

[valeriana]

"Val you get out of your education what you put into it, don't be down on yourself"

I know, I just feel like my resume won't be taken seriously without a good name school on it. I think I have a lot to offer beyond where I went to school, but I guess some would argue with that...

[valeriana]

"Getting myself six figures into debt by age 22 because I went to an Ivy League school just to say I went there. That's a high price to pay for pride, if you ask me. A lot of times the ROI on these pricey degrees is not great."

True, but think of the type of people you will now be associating with...the top tier of society - best and brightest. I think getting that type of degree (the Ivy) is about networking and meeting the right people.

[valeriana]

"At the bargain price of 6k/year I graduated from Virginia Tech."

Yeah but VTech is literally the best state school in the country, I think...

[❤ mollymouser ❤]

I wonder how much of that was "room and board" vs. tuition. After all, some students who attend there may actually live at home for free ~ which may save them considerable money.

[stats45]

I agree that the prestige and selectivity of many schools counts for something. I graduated from a very highly ranked state school as an undergrad, but received my MS and PhD at a private, top-10 university. Had I went to a great state school for graduate work, I probably would still have a similar job, but I do think going to a private school just made it that much easier.

That said, what you do in your career often has much, much more to do with work ethic, perserverance, making good choices in your personal life, etc. If I had to think about the 'premium' associated with going to a private school for graduate degrees, it would be something, but it is certainly not the difference between wealth and privation. It is often the difference between being being upper-middle class or upper-upper middle class.

I must admit though, it does help my self-esteem to know that I made it into and graduated from a good school. I also realized just how brilliant some people are. You go from being the top student in your high school, to an excellent (top 1%) student as an undergrad, to observing close-up professors and a few graduate students who are nothing short of remarkable. I would say that I was in the upper quartile in my graduate program, but there was still a huge gap between me and the best students. They amazed me. No matter where you are (for 99.9999%) of the population, there is always some one who went to a better school, did better, or works a little harder (or more efficiently). You have to push yourself to the life you want and try your best to be thankful for the resources, intelligence, and values you have obtained.

[gooddecisions]

Val, I give you karma for that, even if you were just kidding

[Firebird]

Mar 3, 2011 16:59:46 GMT -5 @valeriana said:

"Getting myself six figures into debt by age 22 because I went to an Ivy League school just to say I went there. That's a high price to pay for pride, if you ask me. A lot of times the ROI on these pricey degrees is not great."

True, but think of the type of people you will now be associating with...the top tier of society - best and brightest. I think getting that type of degree (the Ivy) is about networking and meeting the right people.

It can be. But it can also be about sacrificing financial stability for bragging rights.

I'm not suggesting that one can't make the most of an Ivy League education and eventually come out ahead even if it wasn't attained in the most financially sensible way. It's just that a lot of times, that's not the way it works. The pricey degree doesn't impress as many people as it's supposed to, and now you have all this debt with a not-that-impressive salary to go with it.