College quandary - parents perplexed

[jIMOh]

We saved for DD to attend State U (a Big 10 university) and be pretty much free from student loan debt.

However, DD got accepted to Cambridge University in the UK, which means $50,000 additional, which we would pay using Parent ("PLUS") loans. We can't afford to write a check for the additional $50,000, but we can afford the payments on a PLUS loan.

I think the default answer here as between, say, U of Illinois and Northwestern would be "go to U of I" - but I'm wondering if the twist of the exceptional opportunity to study in the UK changes that equation for any posters here.

Appreciate your thoughts.

Require her to make the loan payments when she is not in school (summers for example). There is too much regret to not do cambridge. Do that, figure out life lessons on money another way.

 

[daylatedollarshort]

If she wants a cultural experience she may be able to go to school in Germany tuition free:

How US students get a university degree for free in Germany - BBC News

 

[Markola]

Congrats on raising a bright kid. I wonder about the assumption that she will like the culture enough to stick it out 3 years or however long the degree program is. Cambridge is DIFFERENT. I spent an undergraduate summer term at Oxford and, later, went through a hiring process there before deciding it wasn't for me. The UK is wonderful, just remember that Cambridge is the very heart of the rigid British class system, which is unlike anything any American kid is familiar with and she will have to adapt to it, not the other way around. Is it possible for her to do a summer study there of some kind to make sure she likes it?

American State U. for undergrad on parents' nickel and work study, then Ivy League or international grad school after some maturation and on someone else's nickel is a perfectly respectable way to go. Regardless, congrats and good luck!

 

[MikeTN]

I have a PhD in economics, and was on the faculty at a Big 10 university for a while. More recently I helped manage major U.S. fellowship programs for graduate study, reviewing more than 10,000 applications in the process. I've seen how graduate faculty view transcripts from Cambridge and Oxford. I think your child would gain little or nothing from the Cambridge degree vs. a degree from a big 10 university -- in terms of gaining admission to a top graduate program in the U.S.. This is especially true in engineering, business, and many science fields. In the humanities the Cambridge degree may be better. I'm assuming he or she would have more difficulty getting the very top grades and research experiences at Cambridge.
However, the Cambridge experience would let your child see another very interesting culture and meet more interesting people. It may be worth the money. But if your child knows what they want to study, then look at the rankings of your state U.

 

[yakers]

Spent a year at Oxford during my college days. It was wonderful. In my limited and old (ancient? '70/'71) experience a lot depends on the major. In the sciences the better US colleges are as good or better (like CALTECH/MIT). In the non sciences Cambidge is likely to be much more difficult, more educational and probably lead to better employment opportunities, espically around the world. Although the normal BA program is 3 years ithere are programs to add a year and get an MA. A very different teaching method, it takes a lot of self discipline. Its not just a financial question its a compatibility question.