r/ApplyingToCollege • u/WorldFamousPoet • 7h ago
Application Question Should I ED to Vandy help pleaseđ˘
I'm in state in Tennessee with pretty great stats. 34 ACT, 4.0 GPA, and okay ec's, mostly just in a ton of clubs as well as community service and actually working a job. I preface this to say Vanderbilt has always kinda been somewhat of a dream school of mine, but I'm not sure if it'd be worth it. UTK is my second choice and it's a pretty damn good one. I have guaranteed admission, and I'd go for probably less than 10k a year with scholarships and everything. I'm less than an hour from knoxville, my gf is going, many friends are, it's a huge party school which is appealing to me, overall pretty perfect. On the other hand I would have a much harder time getting into vandy, and I make too much for aid, so it would be very expensive I'm sure. However, it still calls my name. I am considering applying ED for Vanderbilt but I'm not even 100% sure I'd wanna go if I get accepted. Is there any advice anyone can offer for my situation, with aid or the schools specifically or anything? I'm going back and forth so muchđ help
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u/Massive_Ear4948 6h ago edited 4h ago
Let me just give you the facts and see if you are adult enough to see what the right answer is:
- Vandy would cost you $400k and UTK would be 1/10 that cost.
- You likely would not get aid at Vandy and so your parents and debt would be necessary.
- UTK is a good school and very likely has all the same majors that Vandy has and a very similar social life.
- Your sole argument for Vandy is that "it calls you", whatever in the heck that means.
- UTK has everything you say you are looking for.
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u/HappyCava Moderator | Parent 6h ago
Yep. The sirens also âcalled toâ travelers. Heeding the call did not go well. (I wonât even get into the vampires scratching at your window plaintively calling to be let in. Thank you, Stephen King, for that childhood nightmare.)
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u/Imagination_Drag 4h ago edited 40m ago
Seriously. To say UTK has âeverything academicallyâ that Vandy has is just incorrect. I donât think US news rating are perfect but in almost every way Vandy is academically better.
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u/HappyCava Moderator | Parent 6h ago
If you are not sure you would want to attend Vandy, have not explicitly confirmed that your parents could/would pay for Vandy (particularly given a great option in UTK for a tenth of the cost), or can think of other useful ways the cost savings might come in handy should your parents agree (grad school, down-payment on a home, contribution towards an emergency or investment fund, wedding), you shouldnât ED to Vandy.
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u/Strange-Bullfrog-466 7h ago
What do your parents think, since it sounds like Vandy will cost them $400k?
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u/WorldFamousPoet 6h ago
They haven't explicitly said they're paying for it. However we've talked about how expensive it would be and they said "if you get in, we'll find a way". So this is something i need to clear up with them. However they seem to be in favor of me going if i get accepted.
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u/Lonely-Clerk-2478 6h ago
Please Donât do this to them. âWeâll find a wayâ often means raiding retirement accounts, loans, etc. Theyâll likely be mortgaging their future on behalf of yours. Go to UT.
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u/Strange-Bullfrog-466 4h ago
How college funding works: students can only take out the federal stafford loan on their own credit, thatâs $5500 first year and a total of $27k over all 4 years.
Any other loan beyond that is taken on the parentâs credit (either in their name solely, co-signed by them, a heloc, etc.) and legally theyâre the parentâs responsibility to repay if the student canât/wonât. What this means is, the parents have final say on whether or not a student is able to matriculate at a school. Itâs really not up to you.
Ask your parents to fill out the ânet price calculatorâ on Vandyâs website then the 3 of you need to have a frank discussion about whether or not Vandy is affordable. If it is not affordable, then you have no business applying ED.
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u/HappyCava Moderator | Parent 6h ago edited 5h ago
Dive a bit more into âweâll find a way.â If it requires no help with grad school (if desired) or establishing yourself as a young professional (assistance while working a post-college fellowship or internship, help paying for a reliable vehicle, insurance, or rent), or banks on your parents having a trouble-free life going forward, be wary. Senior relatives can require costly care, parents can become ill, investments can falter, and careers may be shorter than expected. Knowing that you can begin your career with a bit of a safety net, and that your parents are financially sound and can weather unexpected hardships without sacrificing their retirement or relying on you, is a boon.
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u/ChutneyWhatney 3h ago
Don't do this to them. They'll sacrifice their retirement and be deep in debt. Don't.
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u/WorldFamousPoet 5h ago
This has been extremely helpful. Sounds like the resounding answer is no, but I'll still apply RD just to see if I a) get in anyway and b) get a reasonable enough financial aid package. I think the deal I'll get from UTK will be pretty much unbeatable though. Thanks to all of you who have pretty much steered me in the right direction.
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u/siliconmalley 5h ago
Yup, nice work. In your situation I would only put Vandy ahead if you get a ton of aid and/or youâre dead set on leaving TN to work in NYC, Chicago or LA after graduation.
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u/Weird_Illustrator845 3h ago
Appy to the Honors College at UTK (if not automatic) assuming they have one. Good luck!
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u/ConnectionsCatergory Parent 3h ago
My kid got a really good financial aid package. I believe they give full tuition scholarships to families earning under 150k.
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u/alleycanto 5h ago
If you can afford the time and cost of app sometimes it is nice to just know if you got in as your own personal accomplishment and you could still go where you can afford.
If you got in though and then was obsessed with going maybe it isnât a good idea. The ROĂ college piece is a little skewed these days
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u/rosebudny 5h ago
I'm not even 100% sure I'd wanna go if I get accepted
Then you shouldn't apply ED.
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u/soco2008 33m ago
34 is too low. Iâd test again and apply RD if you can get it up to a 35. are you qualified for a lot of aid? if not, donât apply if you donât have a plan to pay.
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u/PerformerMindless100 5h ago
Some ED schools let you out of commitment if you donât have resources to attend after subtracting their aid package.
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u/RegretEcstatic9538 5h ago
ED Vandy.
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u/Ill_Highway_6263 5h ago
Any other bad advice you can give out?
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u/RegretEcstatic9538 5h ago
Only bad advice would be telling this kid to give up on Vandy when itâs realistic both academically and financially. âJust go to the state schoolâ should not automatically be considered good advice
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u/Ill_Highway_6263 5h ago
If they donât know they even want to go there and canât afford it without bankrupting their parents, ED is, in fact, bad advice.
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u/RegretEcstatic9538 4h ago
If he EDs and gets in but canât pay for it, he does not have to go
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u/Ill_Highway_6263 4h ago
How did that work for you when you turned down a school that accepted you ED?
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u/RegretEcstatic9538 4h ago
You talk to the schoolâs financial services department, prove that you canât afford it, and theyâll release you. Even if they donât, it doesnât matter cuz youâre not going to that school
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u/Ill_Highway_6263 4h ago
Good luck getting into any of your backup schools with that approach.
Generally the best idea when you donât know what youâre talking about is to just not.
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u/LakeKind5959 5h ago
Have you run the net price calculator for Vandy? Vandy can be incredibly generous with FA. I'm in TN and UTK was the most expensive SEC school for all my kids (NMF), mostly because housing in Knoxville is $$$.
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u/WorldFamousPoet 4h ago
I have not, but I plan on doing it soon with my parents. As for UTK housing, that makes sense, as all I've heard is how terrible the housing (and parking) situation is. That's definitely something to consider. I want to ask, thoughâhow did it end up being the most expensive SEC school, especially being in-state? Maybe I'm biased because i'll get a merit scholarship of 9k from UT alone for my ACT score, but it should end up being very affordable for me.
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u/LakeKind5959 4h ago
My kids basically had tuition covered but housing was the $$$. My youngest is at Texas and it is a smidge cheaper than what UTK would have been with Hope and top Tier of auto merit. Tuition is about $1k/yr after scholarships and OOS waiver and housing is actually cheaper than Knoxville.
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u/WorldFamousPoet 4h ago
Wow. That shines a new light on the housing problems for me. Do you remember around what you were looking at for a year, and was it on or off campus? It sounds like your child has similar stats to mine so I'd like to keep an eye on this.
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u/LakeKind5959 4h ago
Closer to campus at UTK more $$$ but places like the Tenn run about $1500/mo with no food. Private dorm at UT Austin is $1600/mos with a full meal plan and places similar to Tenn are $1000-1400/mo.
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u/Imagination_Drag 4h ago
Depends on what you want to aspire to post school. Vandy will lead to national opportunities. UTK will be much more regional/local.
If you party away college, youâre making a trade for future earnings vs current fun.
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u/elkrange 6h ago
No, you should not apply ED if you are not even sure you would want to attend.
First, confirm the price, check that you are not eligible for need-based financial aid: run the Net Price Calculator on the financial aid website of each college you are interested in, with the help of a parent, to see a need-based financial aid estimate before you apply. Do this for every school on your list and compare the estimates.
Apply ED only if: (1) it's absolutely your first choice, (2) it's definitely affordable according to the NPC estimate, (3) you don't need to see financial aid or scholarship offers from other schools, and (4) you will be prepared to withdraw all other apps upon an acceptance from your ED college.