Question: Although I sense that the emphasis here is on top tier schools, mainly on the East Coast, I’m posting this in hope of some input.

Our son, 17, is a senior in a rural, Northern California high school. He’d like to attend a college that’s in the western US. He’s still torn between a computer science major and one in a liberal arts field and has seriously contemplated a dual major. Basically he’s just enjoying life and exploring the things that interest him and doesn’t want to peg himself permanently into a round or square hole yet. That’s fine with us.

He attended the week-long summer military experience at the US Coast Guard Academy in Connecticut, but has pretty definitely ruled out a military academy–mainly because he’s very reluctant to commit the five extra years after college when he doesn’t even know what he wants to do next August.

Grades are solid; a 4.13 gpa, with two AP courses (scores of 3 and 4), and five honors courses. He is taking his senior year of high school at the local community college through a College Connection program and this semester is studying computer programming/JAVA (huh?) and a 6-unit honors program on western culture as well as the usual senior-required coursework. He’s completing his Eagle Scout award in Boy Scouts, is president of the school’s Key Club (service organization) and runs cross country at the varsity level (but more as a team member, not a stellar individual runner). Tests are okay; ACT composite of 30 and SATs of verbal: 690, math: 660.

Funds are tight and, because we’re self-employed with a new business, it won’t reflect well on the FAFSA.

Our son would like to attend a western region college, ideally with an honors college (he’d enjoy socializing with other kids who like to study as well as have fun). He’s looking for schools that offer merit-based, renewable scholarships that would cover tuition as well as room/board–isn’t everyone? We’re aware of one at Cal State Fresno (Smittcamp Honors College) but are trying to find others.

Does anyone have any specific ideas?

Answer: Good call. My hindsight tells me that I shouldn’t have sweated $10k when I was looking at colleges. I knew tons of people in high school who chose one public university over another because of a $500 entrance scholarship. Hell, I know a guy who turned down Harvard for McGill over a matter of $8000. Of course, he did win a Rhodes scholarship and he’s now a grad student at Harvard, so he’s never paid a cent to any university.

something to keep in mind – I attended a public university where everyone paid the same $2500 USD per year (ie – no out-of-province/state tuition). Our average debtload was $18000 after four years – more than the average debtload at Harvard. At some schools, the *average* level of indebtedness is well above “manageable.” I doubt those students started out as freshmen with the realization that they would graduate with so much debt. But tuition rose, or there was an emergency, or college generally turned out to be more expensive than expected. So there they are. They have a degree, and they have a good pile of debt.

From what I’ve seen, many experts have been concerned about the impact of student loan debt upon people’s career choices. For a lot of people, the existence of student loans virtually forecloses the option of pursuing work that might start with low pay but might offer the best long-term fit for the graduate’s abilities and ambitions.

The definition of “manageable” and “hardship” can change with changing circumstances. It seems especially important to say so now, when so many young people have never seen or experienced the panic that can arise, from nowhere, in response to a sudden economic downturn. For instance, we could have been in a bad way during the Asian Contagion a few years ago; it may be that the only thing that kept us purring along was that the Chinese decided, for their own reasons, not to devalue their currency. Will they decide the same thing next time? A few years before that, we had the savings & loan fiasco, with its potential for severely messing up the U.S. banking system. What if Congress’ expensive, quick-fix solution hadn’t worked? And then there are oil price spikes, superstorms, unprecedented stock market volatility.

I don’t think the end is at hand, but at least I recognize that the world contains a great many things that have upset our applecart, unpredictably, in the past, and that might do so again at any time. It’s not unreasonable to recognize that no amount of debt is “manageable” when you are suddenly, unexpectedly, unemployed. If student borrowers are suffering in this boom economy — and many are — then it will be very interesting to see what happens to other student borrowers, in somewhat better shape, if things slow down. Again, this may seem cautious, but isn’t caution considered a virtue among those who make loans for a living?

I’ve heard differing opinions on the necessity of taking out student loans. Some people insist they are absolutely unnecessary, that scholarships and other sources of aid can carry the ball. Some people will prefer to go to less expensive public schools. Some will pursue distance education, or postpone college in hopes that their present or future employer will subsidize it. But I do agree that a person can make a series of decisions that leave student loans as the only solution.

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