Too much money for aid, too little for tuition

I always knew I would end up at Pitt. That doesn’t mean it was my first choice.

Out of the seven schools I applied to, it would be the only one my family could realistically afford without going into debt. Sure enough, even after receiving merit scholarships from other schools, Pitt had the lowest price tag, and here I am.

I ended up loving Pitt, but my commitment day started with discontent and frustration.

Financial aid systems assume that any family not living in poverty can automatically afford to pay for part or all of college. But this isn’t always the case, and the distribution of financial aid should reflect that.

I attended a private high school which — intentionally or not — lauded students moving on to “elite” colleges: Ivies or just high-ranked liberal arts schools. I felt like my college decision was somehow overlooked or lesser because I wasn’t headed off to a name-brand school — lesser, but not unique.

The college process frequently alienates the middle class by forcing compromises. What’s more important: prestige or affordability? Many students face this question without the resources to choose anything other than the latter.

The average cost of a public four-year university is significantly less than that of a private 4-year school. College Board reports that for the 2015-2016 school year, public institutions averaged $9,410 in in-state tuition, compared to $32,405 at private institutions.

When you factor in room and board and other fees, many private schools reach upwards of $60,000 a year, compared to Pitt’s $17,292 — the 2015-16 in-state tuition for the Dietrich School of Arts and Sciences.

Pitt’s tuition is still lofty, to be sure. In 2014 U.S. News named the University of Pittsburgh the most expensive in-state tuition in the country. But compared to so many other schools, it’s an incredible value.

The main problem with college tuition is not necessarily the tuition itself. The more palpable issue comes from the structure of financial aid options, which are limited for the middle class under the best of circumstances. More often than not, they’re nonexistent.

The Expected Family Contribution, which the Free Application for Federal Student Aid uses to measure how much a family can afford for college, is based on a number of qualifications, including each parent’s income and number of children in college. Although there is no definitive income too high to qualify for financial aid, a significant portion of the middle class is excluded from receiving financial aid.

Many families exist in this middle zone, where they earn too much for aid but too little to effectively pay for higher education on their own. Where possible, financial aid shouldinclude more of the middle class — at least providing some where there is currently none.

Without federal help, families like mine turn to merit scholarships and student loans.

Full-tuition merit scholarships are hard to come by, while partial scholarships help but still can leave a huge portion of tuition to cover.

Even after receiving significant partial scholarships from private institutions, my family just couldn’t do it. At around $60,000 per year, scholarships that covered roughly half my expenses didn’t make the schools cheaper than Pitt.

But the bigger issue with merit scholarships is how limited they are. Private institutions typically tend to reward only those who are at the very top of an applicant pool. Those students certainly should be rewarded — but what about the students just underneath? Colleges should improve their merit programs by broadening the scope of applicants who are qualified to receive them.

Someone who has a high school GPA far above the threshold for merit funding but with SAT or ACT scores a few points lower than that particular line can receive nothing. An off day shouldn’t outweigh four years of hard work that would qualify the person otherwise.

By only allotting merit scholarships to the upper echelon, admission offices unwittingly miss out on well-rounded students who excel in other areas.

One solution may be to award scholarships after a student establishes themselves in college. Creating more merit opportunities for current students, such as the University Honors College scholarship, offers second chances to those who who may not have qualified for merit as an incoming student.

Student loans are certainly a viable option — but they’re loans.

Upon graduation, a student has to find a job that will cover living costs as well as chip away at the massive college debt they face.

The pressure of that debt may even cause a student to choose a major or career path that does not particularly suit him or her but has a higher monetary return. I’m all for practicality, but a student shouldn’t have to choose between passion and paycheck. Work life becomes life. Do we have to sign up for a miserable one?

My parents were clear that if I wanted to attend one of my top-choice schools — which were all private — I would have to cover a major portion of the costs. After merit scholarships, I would still need to take out loans.

Based on sheer logic, Pitt was the way to go.

What I gained most from my college decision process was that it doesn’t matter where you get your undergraduate degree.

In general, colleges provide the same basic level of education across the board. The difference comes from other resources available to students — internships, extracurriculars and networking opportunities. State universities tend to excel in these areas due to sheer size of both the student body and the alumni base.

More importantly, an individual has more to do with his or her college education than the school itself. It helps to attend a school with impressive professors and accredited programs, but the student must forge their own path.

If I could go through the college application process again — which I wouldn’t wish on my worst enemy — I would only apply to state schools. It would have saved me a whole lot of time and trouble.

No college admissions officer wants to tell you this, but most colleges are pretty much the same.

Apart from specific specialized programs, every college boasts both good and bad professors, a similar array of student clubs and organizations, internship programs and long-held traditions. The size and location may change, but the fundamental structure does not.

I lucked out — I love Pitt and I’m happy here. But I think I would have been happy anywhere that I could afford.

Except Penn State.

Emily primarily writes on culture and education for The Pitt News.

Write to her at eks50@pitt.edu