Relax, Everything is Going to be Okay!

[Forkyfinder]

Fully aware. Like I said sane school choices.

Right. Choices available to the 600k who live in WY. Its a great choice to make.

Wait until you see what the Hathaway scholarship adds. Wyo is a great choice. If it wasn’t for having to live in the dorms for a year, I suspect the substitute pay would be enough to cover it.

Fully aware myself . My point is that your situation is unique and you'd not be putting 2 kids through college in any other state on the wages provided.

 

[BigHornRam]

UW! Is their any other choice?

I'm a UW graduate, but it's probably a different UW than your UW. Reading the school magazine over the last 15 years, it's not the same University I attended in the 80's. It's a shame. I have a niece and nephew that graduated from there several years ago and enjoyed their years in Madison. It was a good stepping stone for their careers. One's a Doctor and one is a Marine jet pilot. So it worked out for both of them.

 

[WyoCoalMiner]

Right. Choices available to the 600k who live in WY. Its a great choice to make.

Fully aware myself . My point is that your situation is unique and you'd not be putting 2 kids through college in any other state on the wages provided.

It’s everyone choice to live where they do. Wyo will let anyone in. Getting residency is a low bar.

 

[WyoCoalMiner]

I'm a UW graduate, but it's probably a different UW than your UW. Reading the school magazine over the last 15 years, it's not the same University I attended in the 80's. It's a shame. I have a niece and nephew that graduated from there several years ago and enjoyed their years in Madison. It was a good stepping stone for their careers. One's a Doctor and one is a Marine jet pilot. So it worked out for both of them.

Your UW is another outstanding choice

 

[Irrelevant]

Right. Choices available to the 600k who live in WY. Its a great choice to make.

Fully aware myself . My point is that your situation is unique and you'd not be putting 2 kids through college in any other state on the wages provided.

https://www.wiche.edu/tuition-savings/wue/wue-savings-finder/

There are several schools on this list that similar to Wyoming.

 

[BigHornRam]

We could discuss the disparity between in state and out of state tuition, and open up a whole new vein in this thread, to piss and moan about.

 

[BrentD]

Brent, I'm sure your experiences support your opinion, but the data doesn't seem to support it on a larger US, scale. Or maybe I missed your point entirely.
View attachment 390866

Educational Attainment Statistics [2025]: Levels by Demographic

Statistics on the level of educational attainment (i.e. high school, bachelor's degree, etc.) broken down by demographics including age, sex, and race.

educationdata.org

But maybe my data source is bad.

It is not that the data are bad, but rather, are they relevant?

I am not even sure what the data are, in this case. % of what? What is the denominator?

 

[Bonasababy]

Catching Up on this. Several things.

Tuition at the university of Minnesota = $16,500 for residents. A year....unless you are poor.

Just guessing but re: my earlier point I'd assume the bottom line cost between Mn and Wyoming isnt much different, but state support is.

Also this was our experience...the one of our kids who went to a private college got by CHEAPER than going to public.

Yet tuition was higher at the private school.

How did that work? FAR more scholarship grants were made available at the private school, and we were able to appeal that some of the parent assets were not solely owned and therefore should not be counted in aid calculations at her private school. Couldn't even get in the door to appeal at the public schools.

That kid had very good grades coming in which helped. She also graduated in 3 years due to college in high school credits. Cost of grad school more than ate up those savings though.

Bottom line, dont ignore private schools based on cost of tuition....they may be cheaper after aid than you'd think.

 

[406dn]

I'm older than most on this board. Education was prioritized by my parents, back in the day. After my father retired from the Air Force, they chose to move to a college town to make getting a college education within reach. The tuition at North Dakota State, when I went, was $145/ quarter. Books cost maybe $100/quarter, if you purchased used books. I was able to pay for my education on a part time job at a grocery store. During the school year, I worked 20 to 25 hours week, and in the summer I could usually work close to forty hours. I also bought a car, after my freshman year.

There was enough money to spare to hunt waterfowl, buy my first rifle, and drink more beer than I likely should have. When I graduated, there was no debt, to anyone. I bought a new car, after getting my first job after college.

My parents gave me room and board, but no financial help with college expenses.

I do not think that is close to an option in today's world.

We were able to help our daughter get a college education, without debt. That took me working a good bit of overtime, at a good paying refinery job.

 

[Wildabeest]

I'm older than most on this board. Education was prioritized by my parents, back in the day. After my father retired from the Air Force, they chose to move to a college town to make getting a college education within reach. The tuition at North Dakota State, when I went, was $145/ quarter. Books cost maybe $100/quarter, if you purchased used books. I was able to pay for my education on a part time job at a grocery store. During the school year, I worked 20 to 25 hours week, and in the summer I could usually work close to forty hours. I also bought a car, after my freshman year.

There was enough money to spare to hunt waterfowl, buy my first rifle, and drink more beer than I likely should have. When I graduated, there was no debt, to anyone. I bought a new car, after getting my first job after college.

My parents gave me room and board, but no financial help with college expenses.

I do not think that is close to an option in today's world.

We were able to help our daughter get a college education, without debt. That took me working a good bit of overtime, at a good paying refinery job.

Very similar experience for me, although my $850 per semester tuition probably means I’m a couple of years younger than you.