Colleges (private school, university, military)

[Pupmom]

I haven't done this in quite some time, but there is much controversy at work regarding college and costs. Can you go to a public HS and get a significant academic scholarship or do you need to attend private HS. We are talking about substanial $$ as well, not just the $2K catholic colleges will give if you went to catholic HS. Some coworkers are arguing that schools are out of money.
Another question was what is the difference if you are at the top of the class at a public HS vs the middle at a private school but have similar SAT scores - do both get the same amt of $$.

I'd like to hear some opinions on this forum rather than just the people in the office regarding this subject, since we will be doing this again in a few years.

[greentown]

My daughter is an honors student in a public high school and just received a substantial scholarship to Marywood University, which was based primarily on her grades and SAT scores. When I say substantial, I mean that approximately seventy-five percent of her tuition will be covered for all four years. I have heard that it is very important to get your application in as early as possible in your senior year (she had hers in by early October and received the scholarship letter right before Thanksgiving), because they only have a limited amount of scholarship money and the longer you wait, the less you might get.

My daughter was also offered a $15K scholarship from another college near Philadephia, so it wasn't just this one local college offering it. One of her friends that isn't at the top of the class academically was also offered $13K per year from a local college. I was rather surprised (and pleased!) with the amount that she was awarded, as this is our oldest child and we weren't really sure what to expect.

[drsmiley06]

I wouldn't bank on scholarships from colleges anymore, I mean it's nice to get them but if you don't get one that wouldn't stop me from going to school. As a dentist, I actually went into the military to help them pay for school because I knew I couldn't get a scholarship for anything. Not saying that's what everyone should do, but it worked for me! I do see students and parents time and time again worry that there aren't many scholarships out there for colleges but you can't rely on scholarships anymore. Trust me, if everyone waited around for scholarships to become available no one would go to college. I'm not sure what the difference is in regards to SAT scores from public vs. private HS and trying to get a scholarship. To be honest with you, SAT scores mean absolutely nothing when you're sitting there in Biochemistry or Gross Anatomy, so guys like myself don't put much value in those types of exams. If your child has a good SAT score and gets a scholarship, good for them, but don't for one minute think that because they didn't get a scholarship they can't attend college. I can tell you from experience that I've seen some pretty smart people with great high school SAT scores not make it in college or change their major. That's what you have to be careful of, if your child does get a scholarship make sure you read the fine print, if they happen to change their major they may lose that scholarship or if their GPA falls below a certain amount they may also lose it, and then you'll owe the college the amount. By the way, I know someone who was on a scholarship in college, lost it because of that reason, GPA went below 3.0 and had to repay the college, which in turn hurt him because he wasn't able to get his transcripts until everything was paid. Not trying to scare you or anything like that, just trying to give you the reality of it all. Tell the kid to go to college and learn and have fun and stay out of trouble and worry about it all later.