First choice vs. lower tuition

[keys33]

Hello!

I'm in a bit of a dilemma here. I have acceptances from two schools and am having such a hard time making a decision.

#1: has always been my 1st choice because of its high reputation. A couple hours from home. 100k tuition. Summers off.

#2: initially interested because of location. A plane ride away. 70k tuition (received a scholarship). Year round. More community oriented with service requirements.

I know prestige isn't really a factor in PT school and thus both schools would prepare me well. The cost of living is similar and both schools are 3 years long.

I'm not sure if I should make my decision solely on tuition and the fact that I'll save 30k in loans. However, I also need to factor in the cost of plane tickets to go home, driving my car across states, and even just the stress of uprooting my life (adjusting to a new state, figuring out living situations long distance, no family/friend support, etc.). I also should consider the fact that having summer's off at my #1 gives me the option to work full time and either make payments on loans or save for upcoming semesters.

At this point I'm leaning towards the cheaper option, but I'm just not sure I want to give up on my #1!

Thanks for reading and any input you have!

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[jadedphysiotherapist]

Hello!

I'm in a bit of a dilemma here. I have acceptances from two schools and am having such a hard time making a decision.

#1: has always been my 1st choice because of its high reputation. A couple hours from home. 100k tuition. Summers off.

#2: initially interested because of location. A plane ride away. 70k tuition (received a scholarship). Year round. More community oriented with service requirements.

I know prestige isn't really a factor in PT school and thus both schools would prepare me well. The cost of living is similar and both schools are 3 years long.

I'm not sure if I should make my decision solely on tuition and the fact that I'll save 30k in loans. However, I also need to factor in the cost of plane tickets to go home, driving my car across states, and even just the stress of uprooting my life (adjusting to a new state, figuring out living situations long distance, no family/friend support, etc.). I also should consider the fact that having summer's off at my #1 gives me the option to work full time and either make payments on loans or save for upcoming semesters.

At this point I'm leaning towards the cheaper option, but I'm just not sure I want to give up on my #1!

Thanks for reading and any input you have!

Summer's off at programs has been getting phased out. You don't have summers as a professional. Also, our summers have very intensive didactic coursework that is directly relevant to the field. Having summers off is like losing two semesters of coursework and summer jobs won't make a dent really. 100k is robbery especially without summer semesters. Period. 70k is upper tier of tuition in my book. Minimize COL and leverage service requirements for a sign on bonus if possible. I've seen 10k on job postings

 

[pegasuscvc]

Ok, so let's figure out the summer job thing first of all. This is an INCREDIBLY rough estimate since I don't know where you live or what job you'd get, but let's say you work 40 hours a week for 16 weeks at $12 an hour. Take some taxes and spending money off, and we'll say you exercise the discipline and put $7,000 toward your loans for two summers, totaling $14,000. That makes the true cost of your first choice university $86,000. If you don't work 40 hours, if you take a few weeks to get a job, or if you make less than $12 an hour, the savings go down.

From here it depends on your living style and how determined you are to keep your loans low. I would personally go for the lower tuition (although I warn you that even $70K is high). An extra 16K will be an extra $200 ish a month when you enter repayments, and you'll be paying it for a loooong time. However, even if you choose the cheaper one, there may not be much difference in cost depending on how you handle the distance. How much does a round-trip plane ticket cost to go home? If you spend any more than $484 per month ($16,000 / 33 month program) travelling, you've blown all the savings of going to the cheaper university. I went to school across the country from my family, meaning it was $400 for the plane ticket to go see them. To be honest, I was a regular cheapskate. I told my family that unless there was either a family wedding or a family funeral, I was not going to travel home at all, period (unless someone else footed the bill). I went home three times in those three years - twice for weddings, and once for a family reunion (which they paid for). It wasn't fun, but it's definitely paying off now. If you have a similar attitude, then the cheaper university will definitely be worth it. If your plan is to travel home several times a month, your travel costs will be so high it hardly matters which one you choose.

 

[Aoshivam]

I go to one of the more expensive schools and totally regret it. lower tuition all the way.

 

[jblil]

I go to one of the more expensive schools and totally regret it. lower tuition all the way.

You're not the only one:
https://forums.studentdoctor.net/th...-expensive-otd-program.1180735/#post-18474778

Pre-PT students, please heed the advice of those who have gone ahead of you.

 

[keys33]

@jadedphysiotherapist You take a few more credits each semester to make up for having summer's off. I'm not sure what their motivation was in setting up their program like that, but the professor I interviewed with said she thought it was a positive decision, letting students have a break to get refueled.

@pegasuscvc Breaking it down like that, it definitely doesn't make much sense to go the more expensive school... Making money over the summer is all assuming I'd be able to find a job, so that could not even happen. I wouldn't go home more than 3 or 4 times a year except for emergencies so there's no way it would end up costing that much. A better estimate would be about $6k for all 3 years, but that hardly compares to $30k.

 

[jadedphysiotherapist]

@jadedphysiotherapist You take a few more credits each semester to make up for having summer's off. I'm not sure what their motivation was in setting up their program like that, but the professor I interviewed with said she thought it was a positive decision, letting students have a break to get refueled.

@pegasuscvc Breaking it down like that, it definitely doesn't make much sense to go the more expensive school... Making money over the summer is all assuming I'd be able to find a job, so that could not even happen. I wouldn't go home more than 3 or 4 times a year except for emergencies so there's no way it would end up costing that much. A better estimate would be about $6k for all 3 years, but that hardly compares to $30k.

That's interesting. I'll be honest. My didactic was absurd. I can't imagine having taken extra coursework to take summer off but to each school it's own. Summer was also a time to do one day affiliations for burn units, oncology floors, general ortho practice, and PT/OT collaborations with post op hands. That was interesting for me and I got a lot out of those 8 hr one day exposures.

The other professional schools here all have requirements for summer with the exception of medical students taking summer off after first year to chill or prep research for their match system competitiveness

Edit: Nursing has off as well although that curriculum is being done in one year now.

 

[steveyk]

If the program with lower tuition has good graduation and pass rates, go there (I'd say 90% or more). 30k is a huge difference and no travel costs, adjustments, etc will be worth that much! This time last year, I was in a similar dilemma and had to choose between school a) beautiful new renovated facility, closer to home, 100k tuition and school b) older and more modest facility, older equipment, remote area, 3 hr flight from home, 35k tuition. Granted, the difference in tuition is a bit more drastic compared to yours but in 2020, when you graduate, you'll be happy not to pay even an extra 10k in loans.

And I fly back home around once a year to limit travel expenses. If I HAVE to go multiple times, I make that 16 hour drive and its still much cheaper than a flight. Just a few things to consider.

 

[keys33]

@jadedphysiotherapist I'm wondering if that is the best idea as well, taking more credits to get summer off. The typical program setup sounds crazy enough. You're basically paying for a shorter program but stretched out in the same amount of time. Maybe they incorporate those same experiences, just not during the summer. But maybe not since there's so much curriculum to fit into each semester...

@steveyk Yup, that is exactly the same scenario I'm in, besides the 65k difference which is insane.

Thanks to everyone for pitching in your opinion! Even though it's hard to let go of #1, it just doesn't make much sense to go 30k more in debt. I am really interested in overseas work too, so the less debt the better...

 

[jblil]

@jadedphysiotherapistI am really interested in overseas work

Overseas as in Western Europe (i.e., developed countries) or part of Asia, Africa (developing, or 3rd-world countries)?

If the former: unless you have a EU passport or can obtain one, it will be quasi-impossible to work there as a healthcare provider.
If the latter: depending on the local need, you may be able to get a position. It helps if you're somewhat adventurous.

I have worked for the United Nations in both environments. In Switzerland, a colleague of mine has a wife who is a MD. She could not obtain a work permit and ended up volunteering in a non-medical field. In Africa (at least in the countries where I was), I felt like I was living inside a "Mad Max" movie every day.

 

[twotired]

Hi there, I'm in the same boat (high rep school but $$$ vs. lower rep school but given substantial merit award). I'm choosing to save tens of thousands of dollars and take the scholarship. There's more to life than what school you went to, use/save your money to live the way you want!

 

[keys33]

@jblil Yikes, that sounds like an adventure. At least you have good stories to share! I meant third world countries, though hopefully my experiences will be a little less eventful!

@twotired Glad I'm not the only one in this situation! Love that last line, there's more to life than just what's in the next few years.