Cheaper state school or more expensive private school?

[echolikebells]

I am pulling my hair out over this. I have been admitted to a 3 term program at my current institution (a public state university, Ohio State) and a four term program at a much more prestigious private university (Vanderbilt University). Both are highly ranked nationally, with Vanderbilt being more highly ranked. I prefer to go to Vandy, and even received a partial scholarship to their program (1/3 of tuition), but it will still be more expensive than the program at OSU. I didn't get any sort of scholarship, fellowship, or grant for OSU.

My problem is that I just don't know what to do. I already have $35,000 in debt from undergrad, so I should be frugal for my graduate studies, but I am already going to have one degree from OSU and I prefer the Vanderbilt program. I mean, that is where I *really* want to go.

Help! Offer me advice! Anything is an improvement over what I have now.

[jbriar]

Hmmm.

As another indebted student, I would suggest going with the shorter, more affordable school. I know Vanderbilt seems great, but I've heard it is relatively difficult to get English teaching jobs- you don't want to be stuck with all of the extra debt while you're struggling to find a school placement.

The payoff of debt to future income for teachers is not a good one. I would take the financial aid offer from Vandy to OSU, and ask OSU for money. If they say no, you can think about Vanderbilt again. However, if they say yes, I would take the money and run. It is hard enough to be a teacher, much less one strapped down with debt.

Good luck,

J

[coonskee]

I've been told that, regardless of your plans for grad school (unless you're med/law), do not go into debt for graduate studies precisely because of what jbriar said: the debt you accrue will be really hard to pay off.

A high school teacher of mine was out of school 20 years with a Master's and still working to pay off her debts from attending a US school.

Will your career options be that different if you choose OSU over Vanderbilt? And is there any way you can mitigate the costs of the programs with scholarships, etc? Address these things very carefully. Especially considering the state of this economy and not knowing how the future will pan out in terms of the job market.

Good luck and congrats on your acceptances!

[new_to_kin]

Honestly, I would go with Vanderbilt. It will open all sorts of doors for you, plus I cannot believe how amazing US private schools are. My masters was at a private school and wow. We had so many more resources than state schools. The networking is also great.

That said, how much would you have to go in debt? Are you anticipating doing a PhD? If it's the end of the line, then maybe choose the stae school, but if you're going to continue, then go with Vanderbilt (you'll get a full ride for phd hopefully).

[echolikebells]

jbriar, OSU is incredibly hard to negotiate with. Not sure if it is because it is so large or so complexly organized or what, but I'm not sure I'll make any progress negotiating. I'll give it a shot though.

coonskee, first, thank you for the congratulations! I am afraid that having only attended one school for my undergrad and grad degrees will negatively impact my job prospects. It is less networking possibilities and I'm concerned that employers will write me off, assuming I couldn't get in anywhere else. OSU's funding is apparently so strapped right now that they only awarded a select number of fellowships that every prospective grad student (campus-wide) competed against one another for, and I was excluded from even competing for most of them due to my score on the Q section of the GRE. I'm looking into outside scholarships and things of that nature, but I'm not sure how much progress I'll make there.

new_to_kin, I am already significantly in debt (over $35k) and have approximately $65k in costs I would rack up (tuition and cost of living) over the two years at Vanderbilt. I'm not anticipating doing a PhD, not immediately anyway. I have no work experience in my field and I have to start working before I rack up more degrees. Not to mention, I'll probably get my M.A. in English before I get a degree in Education even more advanced than the Masters program.

Edited March 7, 2012 by echolikebells

[echolikebells]

New Dilemma. I just don't think I can make it happen at Vanderbilt unless I get significantly more funding. But how do I go to Ohio State, which is my undergrad university, without sacrificing the elements of additional networking, breadth of capability, etc. that people see reflected in degrees from more than one university? I'm not planning on getting my PhD, but crazier things have happened, and I am planning on getting my M.A.English eventually.