Lastly, when I started posting today, I promised posts on the past, present, and future. We’ve covered the past and present, now to the future. It is college acceptance season, and given that I’m the father of a high school senior, this means the acceptance letters are starting to come in. Not all are in yet–we’re waiting on Reed, Georgetown, Tulane, and UC Berkeley–but the bulk are in hand or in email. No rejections yet. One wait-list at Washington University St. Louis. The rest are all accepts, with various degrees of merit scholarship money: UC Santa Cruz, UC Santa Barbara, American University, Occidental University, Bard, and George Washington.
Which one will she accept? We don’t know yet, because the final decision depends on ultimate affordability (in other words, what offers of financial support they give). She has her favorites, but it will boil down to what we can afford to pay, ideally with the minimum of school loans. How things have changed on the college affordability front compared to when I went to school at $271 a quarter!
I vote for Cal. Oh, wait, do readers get a vote? 😉 Congrats on the multiple acceptances. I have a nephew at Reed (junior year) and he really likes it there. Portland is a really nice place to live; his only “gripe” is that Reed’s small size (barely bigger than his public H.S.) makes it feel a little less diverse and a little more insular than he expected; however, a sophomore year spent near Peking took care of that. 🙂
Vote? No. The ultimate decider will be what we can afford. If a school, no matter how good, doesn’t come up with a financial package that bring it down to a realistic level, it just isn’t possible. After that, the sole vote is up to Erin — it is her life. Luckily, with the exception of Bard, I have enough friends in all the areas that I know there are folks that would look after her in case of emergency. Beyond that, I know she is a resourceful young women who will do well. She may well be President one day, although I can see her more as the power behind the throne, a much safer position :-).
If the decision comes down to financial aid, don’t be afraid to negotiate. Take your best offer and ask Erin’s favorite schools if they can come close.
Best of luck wherever she chooses.
That’s our intent. We’re actually working with a company that will help us get the best deal financially. They should help us with any negotiation.