Parents of the High School Class of 2017/College 2021

[bjscheel]

DD has been working since beginning of sophomore year, and has put almost all of it in savings, plus she has gotten money from birthdays, picking up scrap iron at Grandpa's farm, and I contribute my church organist earnings to the girls' accounts. Amazingly, she has saved up over $13,000 and then she got $1700 from graduation. Plus she is still working at least through July. She will have 5 semesters of community college and then be done. Between scholarships and what we contribute, she won't have to pay very much tuition if at all. She will pay for her rent ($550/month), books, and groceries/personal items/entertainment, though I'm sure I'll be sending her back with lots of food after weekend visits and doing some shopping with her when we come see her . Haven't decided whether to have her keep using our card for gas.

Planning on her having a part time job up there- if she can make a few hundred a month it will really help her not drain the savings. She wants to apply at Michael's since she's artsy. The town is very up and coming so there are part-time jobs galore. Just behind her apartment building there is going to be a new theater and bowling complex and more new development happening.

 

[robinb]

DS18 has known for 2 years that he will need to provide his own spending money once he goes to school in the fall. We drop him off in 10 weeks. He has not bothered to get a summer job.

He has a little money in a savings account and some graduation money. I'm wondering how long that will last. Oh well, its time he grows up so I 'm sticking to the original plan. He'll have a meal plan so he won't starve but not much for extras. Maybe a few hours at a campus job??

I'm curious how everyone else is handling spending money???

My DD is in the exact same boat. We even offered to match every dollar earned by 50% and she doesn't have a job. I think that she expects us to give her money even though we said we wouldn't. She has a couple thousand but she has sorority dues to pay. It's not going to last her long.

ETA: She's never had a job because she was a competitive swimmer every summer with morning and evening practices and meets twice a month. She has no excuse other than she doesn't want to think about it until after graduation. She did apply to two places but I think she is too full of herself since they both pay $15 per hour as a lifeguard. If she can't get a lifeguarding job she's going to have to lower her standards a little.

 

[Mrs. Ciz]

My DD is in the exact same boat. We even offered to match every dollar earned by 50% and she doesn't have a job. I think that she expects us to give her money even though we said we wouldn't. She has a couple thousand but she has sorority dues to pay. It's not going to last her long.

ETA: She's never had a job because she was a competitive swimmer every summer with morning and evening practices and meets twice a month. She has no excuse other than she doesn't want to think about it until after graduation. She did apply to two places but I think she is too full of herself since they both pay $15 per hour as a lifeguard. If she can't get a lifeguarding job she's going to have to lower her standards a little.

Fraternity and sorority dues can be expensive!!!! DS's dues at our state flagship university are $2200 a year!!!! $1100 a semester. This is partly because the fraternity houses are palatial mansions. At his school, it is cheaper if you live in the fraternity house and have the house meals and get discounted dues than if you pay for college owned room, school meal plan and non-discounted dues.

DS only makes about $2000 a summer. There is no way he could pay his dues and his other expenses. Dh and I were both Greek, and we consider it an important part of college life. Our parents paid our dues so we could join, so that's what we are doing for our kids as well.

I am certain his fraternity helped him get admitted to UVA's McIntire School of Commerce. It is super competitive, and the program looks for grades, campus involvement and leadership roles. DS's fraternity requires its members to be involved in at least 2 non fraternity campus activities or clubs. He also attended their national fraternity leadership conference last semester. His frat appointed him to a committee on the IFC Council. And the older brothers helped him with his McIntire application and did dry runs with him to prep him for his interview.

DD will rush in January at her state university. I've scouted out her potential dues cost. It looks like $600-$800 a year in dues. The college owns the fraternity and sorority houses at her school, so dues are cheaper. I'm not sure what the school charges to live in the house.

 

[robinb]

Fraternity and sorority dues can be expensive!!!! DS's dues at our state flagship university are $2200 a year!!!! $1100 a semester. This is partly because the fraternity houses are palatial mansions. At his school, it is cheaper if you live in the fraternity house and have the house meals and get discounted dues than if you pay for college owned room, school meal plan and non-discounted dues.

We're paying for absolutely everything else. I do think that living in the house is cheaper than in the dorms but I don't know if kids just live in the house for one year or more. In any case, my DD is starting out in the dorms and playing the other 3 years by ear. ETA: We would pay for her to live in the house next year.

Good news! She got an email from one of the pools she applied to (MONTHS ago!) that there is an informational meeting for swim instructors. Not a peep from them until now. I hope that means that my DD has a better chance and the other kids already have jobs.

 

[v.t.]

Congrats to everyone! We have graduated and registered for college. I am so ready to sleep in all week! LOL

As far as spending money, the boys will get 10% of their scholarship money to use for that. We will pay for gas the weekends they do come home. I told them if they attended church I would buy lunch for them on Sundays. During the summers they do odd jobs for the grandparents as well as members of church. That seems to pay better than a part time job.

 

[bjscheel]

Oh, we also know a family from our church camp that live near the college. I am hoping DD can accompany them to church at least the first time she goes, so she's not alone, and that maybe there will be a couple of babysitting opportunities with their boys.

 

[sk!mom]

I told them if they attended church I would buy lunch for them on Sundays.

Darn, wish I had thought of that 3 years ago. I'm not sure I could convince my College senior DD but I may give it a try.

We cover all school (after her scholarships) and living expenses for her and with one year left- no loans. She covers spending money including gas. Although when she comes home for the weekend, DH normally fills it up before she heads back.

She's got a great job with a local ballet studio in her college town. She contacted them 3 years ago just after high school graduation and sent her ballet resume. They hired her to start Freshman year and it has been just the best experience. They pay her well above minimum wage and she only works Mon-Thursday in the late afternoon/early evening- 12 -14 hours a week.

The Summer before Freshman year, she dipped ice cream and went to school with a healthy savings and with the ballet job starting right away she's mostly built savings since then, The summer after Freshman year, she worked in a day care and hated every second of it.

Last Summer and this summer- she will stay around her college town. She moved into an apartment Sophomore year so she doesn't have to move out and come home. She'll work at the ballet until their summer hiatus starts in late June and then be off until early August. She added a paid internship with an interior designer last summer. It worked so well and is so flexible- project to project- that she has kept it all year. She just texted that she has been promoted to Design assistant and got a pay raise there. She was promoted last Fall at the ballet as well.

Hopefully this will all look great on a resume and she will be fully employed (and off my payroll) this time next year.

She recently said that she is so glad that she has worked during the year. Her jobs have meant that she's always got money for concerts and fun. She's been able to head to the beach on Spring Breaks and just spent last week in Vegas with her boyfriend and friends celebrating her 21st birthday (we did gift her 2 plane tickets as her gift but they paid for the rest.) She loves doing all these things without having to consult us. Although DH did comment as she was planning Vegas, "why doesn't she ever think- Hey my savings is healthy, I could pay my own phone bill."

Good luck to all those starting this journey.

 

[robinb]

Well, the prospective job has a glitch. We had a Disney vacation planned for early August but the job is not done until Aug 10. We are bringing her boyfriend of a year and a half with us (!) so we'll need to check his schedule to make sure the next week will work for him too.

 

[aprilgail]

My daughter got her class schedule for college today- she is ok with most of it but not wild about the 2 days she has class at 8am! She is SO not a morning person! She is going to try to switch those at orientation to something later.

 

[Poohforyou]

Got a nice little surprise this morning, dd college gave her an additional scholarship. That knocks a few thousand off the bill.

 

[robinb]

My daughter got her class schedule for college today- she is ok with most of it but not wild about the 2 days she has class at 8am! She is SO not a morning person! She is going to try to switch those at orientation to something later.

I've been trying to get my DD to sign up for orientation so she can select classes. Some of the freshman-type classes have closed sections already and I'm afraid she's going to get stuck with a 7:30 am class!

 

[bethbuchall]

My daughter got her class schedule for college today- she is ok with most of it but not wild about the 2 days she has class at 8am! She is SO not a morning person! She is going to try to switch those at orientation to something later.

I've been trying to get my DD to sign up for orientation so she can select classes. Some of the freshman-type classes have closed sections already and I'm afraid she's going to get stuck with a 7:30 am class!

My son is chomping at the bit to schedule classes. He needs to wait for a call from his advisor on June 12th. He called in a month ago to set up the appointment for the advisement call. He keeps looking at courses and says that they are filling, and he's getting nervous. He joined the honors program because it's supposed to give him first choice on classes, but it doesn't seem to be the way it's done for entering freshmen, since he knows others who have had their advisement calls already and have their schedules set.

 

[v.t.]

Got a nice little surprise this morning, dd college gave her an additional scholarship. That knocks a few thousand off the bill.

Great surprise, congrats!

I've been trying to get my DD to sign up for orientation so she can select classes. Some of the freshman-type classes have closed sections already and I'm afraid she's going to get stuck with a 7:30 am class!

We were told at our college that new slots open up right before each conference. Hopefully that will be the same for you. One DS wanted 8 am classes, he had no problem getting those. LOL

 

[lovesdumbo]

My son is chomping at the bit to schedule classes. He needs to wait for a call from his advisor on June 12th. He called in a month ago to set up the appointment for the advisement call. He keeps looking at courses and says that they are filling, and he's getting nervous. He joined the honors program because it's supposed to give him first choice on classes, but it doesn't seem to be the way it's done for entering freshmen, since he knows others who have had their advisement calls already and have their schedules set.

My DD, also going to a SUNY school, honors program, has to wait until orientation. We're gong to the first one June 29/30. She's hoping they accept her grade 8 plus 3 years of HS French as 4 years of language so she doesn't have to take a language in college-she also took French in 6th & 7th grade.

She's really hoping to hear about dorm assignment soon. They go by date you paid your deposit. We had hers in in February so we're hoping she's close to the top of the list. She's really hoping for a newly remodeled dorm.

 

[Poohforyou]

Great surprise, congrats!



We were told at our college that new slots open up right before each conference. Hopefully that will be the same for you. One DS wanted 8 am classes, he had no problem getting those. LOL

This is how my daughter's school works. She's going to orientation next week. Classes open up in equal batches before each session and every freshman needs to attend in person and met with an advisor or have a virtual session.

Lots of classes are available for my daughter to select.

 

[bethbuchall]

My DD, also going to a SUNY school, honors program, has to wait until orientation. We're gong to the first one June 29/30. She's hoping they accept her grade 8 plus 3 years of HS French as 4 years of language so she doesn't have to take a language in college-she also took French in 6th & 7th grade.

She's really hoping to hear about dorm assignment soon. They go by date you paid your deposit. We had hers in in February so we're hoping she's close to the top of the list. She's really hoping for a newly remodeled dorm.

I haven't asked him about dorm assignments recently...don't want to stress him out more on something he can't control. He should get a room assignment in the dorm that he wants, since that's reserved for honor's housing, but I know that things can work out differently than they should.

He took 3 years of high school French (plus 8th grade) and wants to take German in college. He has a number of AP classes that he should get credit for, so I also don't know how scheduling will work before those scores come in. It sounds like he has been looking and knows what he wants, but he hasn't really shared all of that with me, and the control-freak side of me is screaming internally. But the experienced mother side knows that it's best that he figures it out and that I stay on the side-lines unless he asks for help.

My older two went to the same SUNY school (but different from the one my youngest is going to). They didn't have orientation until the days right before school started, and they didn't schedule anything until they were at orientation. So, this part is all new to me. Our orientation is July 6-7, and parents have to pay to attend orientation. That surprised me as well.

 

[lovesdumbo]

I haven't asked him about dorm assignments recently...don't want to stress him out more on something he can't control. He should get a room assignment in the dorm that he wants, since that's reserved for honor's housing, but I know that things can work out differently than they should.

He took 3 years of high school French (plus 8th grade) and wants to take German in college. He has a number of AP classes that he should get credit for, so I also don't know how scheduling will work before those scores come in. It sounds like he has been looking and knows what he wants, but he hasn't really shared all of that with me, and the control-freak side of me is screaming internally. But the experienced mother side knows that it's best that he figures it out and that I stay on the side-lines unless he asks for help.

My older two went to the same SUNY school (but different from the one my youngest is going to). They didn't have orientation until the days right before school started, and they didn't schedule anything until they were at orientation. So, this part is all new to me. Our orientation is July 6-7, and parents have to pay to attend orientation. That surprised me as well.

Oswego doesn't have an honor's dedicated dorm.

We have to pay for orientation too. $60/person. We are all going and doing a family trip from there but I've only paid for me to attend orientation. DH & other two will find something to do in Oswego. We could have stayed on campus for $20/person but only DD will stay-we got a hotel room for the rest of us.

She got an invitation to apply to attend a free weeklong Math Camp and move onto campus early. The email was sent the last day you could make housing requests and suggested which dorms to request (none of her choices). They do math in the morning, other college transition skills in the afternoon and social events at night. Sounds like a great program but they said it was limited and based on need so I don't think she'd qualify as she's already tested into calculus. They have to kids take the math placement exam at the end of the week in hopes that they test into a course higher. She has no desire to attend.

 

[robinb]

=
He took 3 years of high school French (plus 8th grade) and wants to take German in college.

My DD took 6 years of French, 2 in middle school and 4 in high school. She took AP French 5 her senior year. She's done with French but I have been begging her to take the French placement test. If she takes a French class in college and gets a "B" she gets retroactive credit for all the classes prior to the one she'll take. I've been trying to convince her that if she takes one semester of French she'll be able to coast 2-3 semesters later on and take fewer classes.

 

[laughinplace199]

DD graduated today. Thankfully the rain stopped and the sun came out. It was a beautiful ceremony with lots of smiles and some tears too! DD has been at this school since 7th grade and there are only 59 girls in her class, so they've become a very close knit community.

 

[3smithboys]

DS graduated today. Hard to believe it's over and he's leaving for Penn State in 2 weeks!