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| Threat of debt drives US middle-class families away from private universities | Threat of debt drives US middle-class families away from private universities |
| (4 months later) | |
| Whenever anyone had asked, Molly Fisher said she was going to Wake Forest University in North Carolina. It was a given. | Whenever anyone had asked, Molly Fisher said she was going to Wake Forest University in North Carolina. It was a given. |
| Wake Forest, a small 7,351-person private university in Winston-Salem was her first choice because of its size. Molly's academic credentials were solid enough to get her in. "She was a shining star in high school," says her mother, Maggie. But getting in was not enough. Molly needed a merit-based scholarship and she was crushed when it didn't come. | Wake Forest, a small 7,351-person private university in Winston-Salem was her first choice because of its size. Molly's academic credentials were solid enough to get her in. "She was a shining star in high school," says her mother, Maggie. But getting in was not enough. Molly needed a merit-based scholarship and she was crushed when it didn't come. |
| With an annual household income of $175,000 the Fisher family didn't qualify for enough needs-based financial aid at the colleges Molly applied to – in addition to the private Wake Forest, she had applied to American University and state schools University of North Carolina Chapel Hill and North Carolina State University. | With an annual household income of $175,000 the Fisher family didn't qualify for enough needs-based financial aid at the colleges Molly applied to – in addition to the private Wake Forest, she had applied to American University and state schools University of North Carolina Chapel Hill and North Carolina State University. |
| Both parents work. Maggie owns her own business as a healthcare consultant and her husband is in advertising. They had put aside a certain amount of college money for their two daughters, $20,000 a year, but were clear with both girls that they would be responsible for all fees and expenses above and beyond that. When Molly realized that she would be incurring roughly $80,000 of debt by the end of her undergraduate degree, she picked her second choice. She is now at UNC Chapel Hill – an extremely strong academic backup from where she will graduate debt free. | Both parents work. Maggie owns her own business as a healthcare consultant and her husband is in advertising. They had put aside a certain amount of college money for their two daughters, $20,000 a year, but were clear with both girls that they would be responsible for all fees and expenses above and beyond that. When Molly realized that she would be incurring roughly $80,000 of debt by the end of her undergraduate degree, she picked her second choice. She is now at UNC Chapel Hill – an extremely strong academic backup from where she will graduate debt free. |
| The Fishers are typical of the well-educated middle class families who are being squeezed out of private colleges because their income is too high for significant financial aid and too low to afford the hefty fees that college entails. | The Fishers are typical of the well-educated middle class families who are being squeezed out of private colleges because their income is too high for significant financial aid and too low to afford the hefty fees that college entails. |
| A recent study conducted in North Carolina, said that 40% of students who were highly qualified to attend a selective college did not enroll in one. And the money has everything to do with it. If you look at the Fishers situation you'll see why. Wake Forest costs around $60,000 a year. The Fishers had set aside $20,000 a year. Chapel Hill costs $20,000 a year. Decision made. | A recent study conducted in North Carolina, said that 40% of students who were highly qualified to attend a selective college did not enroll in one. And the money has everything to do with it. If you look at the Fishers situation you'll see why. Wake Forest costs around $60,000 a year. The Fishers had set aside $20,000 a year. Chapel Hill costs $20,000 a year. Decision made. |
| While top schools across the country remain able to maintain a 'needs blind' application process (meaning if you apply and get in but can't afford the fees the school will pick up the slack) the vast majority of students are applying to places with smaller endowments and less money to give. That money naturally tends to go to those on lowest incomes, leaving the middle scrambling. | While top schools across the country remain able to maintain a 'needs blind' application process (meaning if you apply and get in but can't afford the fees the school will pick up the slack) the vast majority of students are applying to places with smaller endowments and less money to give. That money naturally tends to go to those on lowest incomes, leaving the middle scrambling. |
| It goes without saying that the more children you have the harder it is to pay. But colleges seem to ignore that family detail, offering more aid only if you have a child who's already an undergraduate. Brian Ellerbeck has two kids, one is going to college this year, the other next. | It goes without saying that the more children you have the harder it is to pay. But colleges seem to ignore that family detail, offering more aid only if you have a child who's already an undergraduate. Brian Ellerbeck has two kids, one is going to college this year, the other next. |
| "The cost of tuition was decisive in the choice of college," he says. His daughter, Emma, got into a "status school", Smith College, but will actually go to SUNY Binghamton. She was extremely bitter about the decision at the time, given how hard she had worked to get into Smith. But her parents told her they simply couldn't afford it. | "The cost of tuition was decisive in the choice of college," he says. His daughter, Emma, got into a "status school", Smith College, but will actually go to SUNY Binghamton. She was extremely bitter about the decision at the time, given how hard she had worked to get into Smith. But her parents told her they simply couldn't afford it. |
| "Given the pittance offered by Smith to defray expenses and our financial situation, the prospect of going $175,000 in debt for a four-year undergraduate degree is simply not tenable, college brand notwithstanding." | "Given the pittance offered by Smith to defray expenses and our financial situation, the prospect of going $175,000 in debt for a four-year undergraduate degree is simply not tenable, college brand notwithstanding." |
| His complaint echoes that of other parents who feel that they are somehow expected to come up with the money come what may. Colleges look less at how much money a family has than how much they might be able to get their hands on. | His complaint echoes that of other parents who feel that they are somehow expected to come up with the money come what may. Colleges look less at how much money a family has than how much they might be able to get their hands on. |
| "The manner in which colleges determine 'need,' and the expectations that they bring to family financing (such as assuming families will take out a second mortgage to finance the tuition) are perverse and fail to take into account the many claims already made on family budgets," says Ellerbeck. | "The manner in which colleges determine 'need,' and the expectations that they bring to family financing (such as assuming families will take out a second mortgage to finance the tuition) are perverse and fail to take into account the many claims already made on family budgets," says Ellerbeck. |
| Bruce Poch, who was for many years the admission director at Pomona College and is now the college counselor at the private Chadwick School in Los Angeles, acknowledges that the middle class is getting the least attention from private colleges. He sees the trickle down effect moving all the way to Kindergarten. | Bruce Poch, who was for many years the admission director at Pomona College and is now the college counselor at the private Chadwick School in Los Angeles, acknowledges that the middle class is getting the least attention from private colleges. He sees the trickle down effect moving all the way to Kindergarten. |
| "Some of these folks are asking if it's worth spending money on K-12, they are thinking in a more mercenary way. Is my kid going to go to a better college? You could argue about the better educational experience but sometimes they are looking at the bottom line rather than process." | "Some of these folks are asking if it's worth spending money on K-12, they are thinking in a more mercenary way. Is my kid going to go to a better college? You could argue about the better educational experience but sometimes they are looking at the bottom line rather than process." |
| In this economy, applicants are being clear eyed about what they want from college, and it's a job. But getting a job in today's economy can mean getting a graduate degree first. That's a long time to wait for an income. | In this economy, applicants are being clear eyed about what they want from college, and it's a job. But getting a job in today's economy can mean getting a graduate degree first. That's a long time to wait for an income. |
| This might explain why Jacques Laine's first son went to Harvard followed by Georgetown Law, but his second went to SUNY Binghamton before Wake Forest for his MS degree. His third son has been accepted to the University of Pennsylvania and is going but there is no money for him. | This might explain why Jacques Laine's first son went to Harvard followed by Georgetown Law, but his second went to SUNY Binghamton before Wake Forest for his MS degree. His third son has been accepted to the University of Pennsylvania and is going but there is no money for him. |
| "My wife and I know that we will have to borrow money to pay for most of the tuition, and he will pay for the rest through loans." | "My wife and I know that we will have to borrow money to pay for most of the tuition, and he will pay for the rest through loans." |
| With a household income of $190,000 the family has decided to pay on their own, motivated by their view of their children's prospects on the job market. | With a household income of $190,000 the family has decided to pay on their own, motivated by their view of their children's prospects on the job market. |
| "The way I see it is that the only way the playing field for my three sons can be somewhere leveled to an equal footing with a white candidate for a position, is if he goes to a better school. Our reality can be costly, but it is what it is." Their reality can be risky. Last year, a study from Harvard University said that the high cost of college was causing nearly half of American students to drop out before receiving their degrees. | |
| The reality for private colleges is that the loss of the middle class so-called 'brain trust' means a less rich academic environment for other students. Their loss is the state universities' gain. State budget cuts will have one impact on colleges, but the influx of bright, well-educated, motivated, middle-class kids may do a lot to redress the balance. | The reality for private colleges is that the loss of the middle class so-called 'brain trust' means a less rich academic environment for other students. Their loss is the state universities' gain. State budget cuts will have one impact on colleges, but the influx of bright, well-educated, motivated, middle-class kids may do a lot to redress the balance. |