College Fund

inomniaparatus · September 2015

I want to start a college fund for my baby as soon as he's born (or as soon as I'm back to work after maternity leave). Anyone have any good recommendations or tips? I haven't researched it yet, but figure some of you ladies may have experience with starting one if you have kids already. Also, anyone do UPromise? How does that work?

Scornelius · September 2015

I'm in Canada, so I imagine the system is different. But for our son, we joined a group plan when he was about 6 months, and put in a base of $50/m. When there's extra money, or he gets gifts, we just tell the company to take X extra. Well be starting one for this baby right away too.

My advice, if you go with a company instead of doing it all yourself, is to make sure that the money can be used for all sorts of post-secondary programs. University, college, trade school, etc. I'm more inclined to push my kid towards learning a trade than just getting a bachelor's degree. (Though honestly, who knows what the best plan will be in 10+ years.)

DrillSergeantCat · September 2015

I'll be looking into opening a 529 plan. There are some tax advantages in my state to having one, but I'll have to find out what the consequences are if LO doesn't go to college.

rainbowminion · September 2015

I looked briefly into a 529. It seems like they can use it for any post-secondary education, so trade school, community college, whatever. If they opt not to do any of those you can designate another relative to receive the money or you can cash it out, but there's a big penalty for doing that. I think you can also use it yourself but it sounded like you could only use part of the money if you did that.

I'm definitely interested in starting one, but I think I need to talk it over with a financial professional first to make sure I really understand it.

inomniaparatus · September 2015

rainbowminion said:

I looked briefly into a 529. It seems like they can use it for any post-secondary education, so trade school, community college, whatever. If they opt not to do any of those you can designate another relative to receive the money or you can cash it out, but there's a big penalty for doing that. I think you can also use it yourself but it sounded like you could only use part of the money if you did that.

I'm definitely interested in starting one, but I think I need to talk it over with a financial professional first to make sure I really understand it.

Thanks, I'll look into it! I'm not worried about him using it. But, I do secretly wish that you can only take it out if you get accepted to an Ivy, lol. This way, he'd have no choice but to work hard

I'm just kidding!

Monkeybutt80 · September 2015

We (my husband who works in finance ) found that 529 is the best option due to tax breaks. Also, it has a higher gift tax exemption when gifted through 529, which came in handy when my parents decided to generously contribute to their grandchild's college fund.

Each state has slightly different benefits, but I believe you aren't limited to your state's 529. Most states have several different types of 529; the biggest break/benefit would be if you opt for one that is restricted to be used for schools in that state, or ones with higher penalties for not using it for school. We opted for one with less benefits, but that allowed my first to go to school in any state (neither my husband nor I went to school anywhere near we grew up). We won't get penalized if he does not use the funds for school, but I believe we will lose some of the tax benefits.

Achae · September 2015

I have also heard good things about 529. I haven't looked into it yet, but probably should!

inomniaparatus · September 2015

Monkeybutt80 said:

We (my husband who works in finance ) found that 529 is the best option due to tax breaks. Also, it has a higher gift tax exemption when gifted through 529, which came in handy when my parents decided to generously contribute to their grandchild's college fund.
Each state has slightly different benefits, but I believe you aren't limited to your state's 529. Most states have several different types of 529; the biggest break/benefit would be if you opt for one that is restricted to be used for schools in that state, or ones with higher penalties for not using it for school. We opted for one with less benefits, but that allowed my first to go to school in any state (neither my husband nor I went to school anywhere near we grew up). We won't get penalized if he does not use the funds for school, but I believe we will lose some of the tax benefits.

Yea my dad did one for my half brother and his is limited to the state which greatly limits his choices. Neither my husband nor I went to state schools and I doubt our son will either. So, I definitely don't want to limit his options. That's a very good point- thank you!

Life is Exciting · September 2015

My bank has a high interest savings account that requires automatic transfer from your checking but has a 3% savings interest, which is a lot higher than even the CDs offer. You can't touch it for a year, but I'm not touching it for 18 anyways

. I put $25 per paycheck in for now for my toddler. Hoping I can increase it some day, but #2 is on the way and we have expenses right now. I'll do the same for my daughter when she is born if I can swing it.

CKW1984 · September 2015

My son inherited some money when he was about 6 months old from his great-grandmother. It went straight into a 529 so he has a good college fund started already. This next baby will get some sort of 529 as well, but it won't start with a big lump like my son's. It's likely that by the time our babies are in college, a public school will cost $250,000+ for 4 years and a private college will cost well over $500,000. Best to get started saving now and start to make a tiny dent in those huge numbers!

Aussiechicka · September 2015

We aren't doing a 529 because of the limitations. Our kids will have dual citizenship between Australia and America and I want them to have the option to go to school in either country. We are doing a savings account for ech I've been putting aside $50 a paycheck for our son and will do the same with baby girl from birth. It ads up quick once you put in Xmas and Bfay $ gifts too.

Monkeybutt80 · September 2015

CKW1984 said:

My son inherited some money when he was about 6 months old from his great-grandmother. It went straight into a 529 so he has a good college fund started already. This next baby will get some sort of 529 as well, but it won't start with a big lump like my son's. It's likely that by the time our babies are in college, a public school will cost $250,000+ for 4 years and a private college will cost well over $500,000. Best to get started saving now and start to make a tiny dent in those huge numbers!

College tuition is crazy already, but if it does go up as most analysts are projecting, it is going to be out of control when our kids go to college. My husband and I went to the same private college, and we hope to send our kid there or better, but it's already 49K per year, and most analysts are projecting inflation of 3 - 5% per year, which puts the projected tuition to be some scary, ridiculous number. Plus, we have two now so, even though it seems so far away, it's really stressful.

Wurrkingurrl · September 2015

For 529's you are not limited to the ones from your state. A few states limit you from using theirs if you don't live in it, but there is no state that says you can only use theirs if that makes sense.

RN0107 · September 2015

My dad started 529 accounts for each of my kids. He adds to do it for their birthday and Christmas gifts. I am beyond grateful for him being able to do that. My hubby and I also started savings accounts for each kid and we put money in when we can.

brushesnbrunch · September 2015

I remember reading recently in my state at least the tuition savings plan they were pushing a couple years ago shows that it's not saving enough for state university tuition..I could be misremembering it though!

DrillSergeantCat · September 2015

brushesnbrunch said:

I remember reading recently in my state at least the tuition savings plan they were pushing a couple years ago shows that it's not saving enough for state university tuition..I could be misremembering it though!

I looked at a calculator I found online and it said that contributing $50 a month over 18 years is only going to cover about 1/3 of a year.

brushesnbrunch · September 2015

@drillsergeantcat it is INSANE how much tuition is rising every year! I was super proud of my Alma mater about a year ago when they announced while every other state university was raising tuition, they were not. Made me feel good for that freshman class!

acuteangles · September 2015

DrillSergeantCat said: brushesnbrunch said: I remember reading recently in my state at least the tuition savings plan they were pushing a couple years ago shows that it's not saving enough for state university tuition..I could be misremembering it though!
I looked at a calculator I found online and it said that contributing $50 a month over 18 years is only going to cover about 1/3 of a year.

That is so depressing. I haven't even considered a college fund. My husband and I both paid for college ourselves (well, I'm still paying). I might make my kids do the same, and/or contribute to their loan payments when they are done. Is that terrible?

inomniaparatus · September 2015

We'll probably start off less aggressively with 50 per weekly paycheck or so, but then get more aggressive after we buy a house.

I'll also put any money we get for christening/ early birthday gifts in there.. but once they get old enough to know what money is, I'd feel too guilty taking a portion of it away for college. Even though it's for them, I feel like they would see it as a major bummer.

We'll see..

My mom never had a fund for me and ended up taking out loans and I really don't want to have to do that. Meanwhile, my husband's parents wrote a check for the whole thing right then and there. We had two very different experiences, ha.

DrillSergeantCat · September 2015

brushesnbrunch said:

@drillsergeantcat it is INSANE how much tuition is rising every year! I was super proud of my Alma mater about a year ago when they announced while every other state university was raising tuition, they were not. Made me feel good for that freshman class!

I meant to sat that it told me that I'd need to contribute $527 a month to fully cover the costs of college for 4 years.

inomniaparatus · September 2015

acuteangles said:

DrillSergeantCat said:

brushesnbrunch said:

I remember reading recently in my state at least the tuition savings plan they were pushing a couple years ago shows that it's not saving enough for state university tuition..I could be misremembering it though!

I looked at a calculator I found online and it said that contributing $50 a month over 18 years is only going to cover about 1/3 of a year.

That is so depressing. I haven't even considered a college fund. My husband and I both paid for college ourselves (well, I'm still paying). I might make my kids do the same, and/or contribute to their loan payments when they are done. Is that terrible?

________________________edited for quote fail______________________________

No. You do what you can and that's all you can do. It's totally fine. My mom paid for my undergraduate and took out loans to do so. I feel like, because she did for me, I need to pay it forward and do it for my child. It's definitely not required or make anyone a better parent.

But, you're right, it is depressing. Feels like you can never get ahead.

Isn't there a bubble that will probably burst before our kids go to college anyway? I keep hearing people talk about the college bubble being the next to go.

rainbowminion · September 2015

acuteangles said:

DrillSergeantCat said:

brushesnbrunch said:

I remember reading recently in my state at least the tuition savings plan they were pushing a couple years ago shows that it's not saving enough for state university tuition..I could be misremembering it though!

I looked at a calculator I found online and it said that contributing $50 a month over 18 years is only going to cover about 1/3 of a year.

That is so depressing. I haven't even considered a college fund. My husband and I both paid for college ourselves (well, I'm still paying). I might make my kids do the same, and/or contribute to their loan payments when they are done. Is that terrible?

I don't think so. Both my husband and I worked our way through college and took out loans. Sure it would have been easier if we'd had money handed to us, but that wasn't possible for our families and we understood that. They helped as they could. It may be the same for our son. We are fortunate in that the university we both work for offers a certain amount of tuition-free hours for dependents of employees. I would love to set aside money somehow to help cover the rest but it may or may not be possible for us.

edited for formatting and added our loans

AdventureMama · September 2015

acuteangles said: DrillSergeantCat said: brushesnbrunch said: I remember reading recently in my state at least the tuition savings plan they were pushing a couple years ago shows that it's not saving enough for state university tuition..I could be misremembering it though!
I looked at a calculator I found online and it said that contributing $50 a month over 18 years is only going to cover about 1/3 of a year.

That is so depressing. I haven't even considered a college fund. My husband and I both paid for college ourselves (well, I'm still paying). I might make my kids do the same, and/or contribute to their loan payments when they are done. Is that terrible? I don't think so. H and I haven't decided what exactly we're doing as far as our kids' college funds go, but I think it's important for students to have to work for it a little bit. A lot of kids I knew who had college fully taken care of by their parents just went, picked a "fun" major, and then didn't put in a huge effort for their four years there (lots of partying and stuff). But when kids have to pay for things themselves (even if it's just a little), I think they understand the magnitude and expense of what they're doing and they appreciate it more. I paid for my first two years completely out of pocket while working full time (no loans!) and I worked my butt off and maintained a 4.0 because it was my hard-earned money paying for everything and I didn't want it to go to waste.

That being said, I think the cost of a college education in this country is insane and I really hope that by the time our kids are there, it's cheaper.

Achae · September 2015

I think the best plan should be to encourage my husband to take up teaching at a university and then get the kid's tuition free there. Yikes!

Latina211508 · September 2015

We have made an account for each of our 3 children at our bank. We put money in it randomly. We will make an account when our fourth baby arrives. We would love if one of our children joined the military, then their college would be 100% covered. Thankfully I've also been able to use my husbands GI bill so we don't have any loans/student debt.

acuteangles · September 2015

AdventureMama said:

acuteangles said:

DrillSergeantCat said:

brushesnbrunch said:

I remember reading recently in my state at least the tuition savings plan they were pushing a couple years ago shows that it's not saving enough for state university tuition..I could be misremembering it though!

I looked at a calculator I found online and it said that contributing $50 a month over 18 years is only going to cover about 1/3 of a year.

That is so depressing. I haven't even considered a college fund. My husband and I both paid for college ourselves (well, I'm still paying). I might make my kids do the same, and/or contribute to their loan payments when they are done. Is that terrible? I don't think so. H and I haven't decided what exactly we're doing as far as our kids' college funds go, but I think it's important for students to have to work for it a little bit. A lot of kids I knew who had college fully taken care of by their parents just went, picked a "fun" major, and then didn't put in a huge effort for their four years there (lots of partying and stuff). But when kids have to pay for things themselves (even if it's just a little), I think they understand the magnitude and expense of what they're doing and they appreciate it more. I paid for my first two years completely out of pocket while working full time (no loans!) and I worked my butt off and maintained a 4.0 because it was my hard-earned money paying for everything and I didn't want it to go to waste.

That being said, I think the cost of a college education in this country is insane and I really hope that by the time our kids are there, it's cheaper.

I worry about my kids taking it for granted if we were to pay, too. My friend's younger brother just dropped out of college a semester before graduating (on the parent's buck) and has been living on her couch for the past several months. I think if he were paying for some or all of his tuition, he would've thought twice about dropping out!

DrillSergeantCat · September 2015

I'm really hoping that our country goes the way of many other developed countries and offers free college tuition to all citizens.

inomniaparatus · September 2015

AdventureMama said:

acuteangles said:

DrillSergeantCat said:

brushesnbrunch said:

I remember reading recently in my state at least the tuition savings plan they were pushing a couple years ago shows that it's not saving enough for state university tuition..I could be misremembering it though!

I looked at a calculator I found online and it said that contributing $50 a month over 18 years is only going to cover about 1/3 of a year.

That is so depressing. I haven't even considered a college fund. My husband and I both paid for college ourselves (well, I'm still paying). I might make my kids do the same, and/or contribute to their loan payments when they are done. Is that terrible? I don't think so. H and I haven't decided what exactly we're doing as far as our kids' college funds go, but I think it's important for students to have to work for it a little bit. A lot of kids I knew who had college fully taken care of by their parents just went, picked a "fun" major, and then didn't put in a huge effort for their four years there (lots of partying and stuff). But when kids have to pay for things themselves (even if it's just a little), I think they understand the magnitude and expense of what they're doing and they appreciate it more. I paid for my first two years completely out of pocket while working full time (no loans!) and I worked my butt off and maintained a 4.0 because it was my hard-earned money paying for everything and I didn't want it to go to waste.

That being said, I think the cost of a college education in this country is insane and I really hope that by the time our kids are there, it's cheaper. ----edited for quote fail- damn it!----

I totally get that you are speaking from personal experience... and I don't think that parents need to pay for their kid's college, especially in order to be considered a "good" parent. You can only do the best you can. But, I definitely don't think that paying for college is a bad thing either. It's really nice if you can do it or if your parent insists on it... I really appreciate my mom for doing it for me. I partied in college and had my fun and also picked a really fun major but I also worked really hard and did really well. It was a really competitive program (one of the hardest in the country) and I got in. I would never let that go to waste - no matter who was paying for it. I used my major and work in the same industry now and I appreciate everything my mom did for me every single day. I totally recognize that if it weren't for her, my life may be totally different.

I wanted to do well for me and also for her. She always tells me how it's the best money she ever spent.

Obviously our opinions will all be based on our subjective experiences, and I know some people do throw what they're given away-- but, from my experience, that's the exception. Most people I know that had their parents pay their tuition did really well in college. Was it a bit like summer camp with booze for 4 years, sometimes. But, I went to a school where it was very "work hard, play hard". Kind of like most of my friends' lives now too. Lol!

Monkeybutt80 · September 2015

AdventureMama said:

acuteangles said:

DrillSergeantCat said:

brushesnbrunch said:

I remember reading recently in my state at least the tuition savings plan they were pushing a couple years ago shows that it's not saving enough for state university tuition..I could be misremembering it though!

I looked at a calculator I found online and it said that contributing $50 a month over 18 years is only going to cover about 1/3 of a year.

That is so depressing. I haven't even considered a college fund. My husband and I both paid for college ourselves (well, I'm still paying). I might make my kids do the same, and/or contribute to their loan payments when they are done. Is that terrible? I don't think so. H and I haven't decided what exactly we're doing as far as our kids' college funds go, but I think it's important for students to have to work for it a little bit. A lot of kids I knew who had college fully taken care of by their parents just went, picked a "fun" major, and then didn't put in a huge effort for their four years there (lots of partying and stuff). But when kids have to pay for things themselves (even if it's just a little), I think they understand the magnitude and expense of what they're doing and they appreciate it more. I paid for my first two years completely out of pocket while working full time (no loans!) and I worked my butt off and maintained a 4.0 because it was my hard-earned money paying for everything and I didn't want it to go to waste.

That being said, I think the cost of a college education in this country is insane and I really hope that by the time our kids are there, it's cheaper.

----------------------------------ETA quote fail ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

While I agree with your overall sentiment that it's good to learn the value of money by working, I disagree with that statement, and I know this isn't always true. I believe how you conduct yourself in college and how seriously you take it, has to do with your upbringing and your motivation; not necessarily whether or not the money comes out of your pocket or your parents' pocket.

My husband and I were both extremely fortunate to come out of school with no student loans; it certainly made our lives so much easier when we started working compared to someone with student loans. But knowing that our parents were working so hard to provide for us in college was a constant and huge motivation on how well we needed to do in school. I could have chosen any fun and easy majors, but I double majored in econ and philosophy. My husband was in the engineering school of the same college, and studied his butt off to make sure his parents wouldn't be wasting their money.

I believe that if you teach your children well, regardless of whether you pay for their education or not, they will take college and their future seriously.

SoSweetTea1124 · September 2015

H and I currently have a 529 set up for DS that we contribute 5% of my income into. So over 18 years there will be about 90K in the account. Once this LO is born we will be setting up another 529 that 5% of my H's income will go into. I figure that is more than enough to get them going and after that its student loans like the rest of us.

inomniaparatus · September 2015

What's so wrong about picking a "fun" major anyway? Shouldn't you find what you do for the rest of your life, fun?

Practicality can sometimes be a dream killer.

I always believed that I could do anything I wanted in life - and I still do. I hope my kid feels the same.

But, there does come a point where you have to be somewhat realistic and keep in mind your abilities. Like, I find singing fun, but I am the worst singer in the world- no joke. So, I wouldn't major in singing lol.

But, you know, to an extent - I think picking something you find fun is important.

Maybe you meant "easy". Because my major (Television, Radio, Film) was "fun" but not "easy".

AdventureMama · September 2015

@inomniaparatus @monkeybutt80: I was speaking based on personal observation. I didn't (and would never) say that all kids who have to work through college appreciate it and work harder than all kids who get their kid paid for. Paying for your kids' college educations is an awesome thing if you can do it. But in general, yes, I think that if you truly "feel" how expensive your education is, you appreciate it a little more and *may* be more motivated to work hard for it.

And of course, all that being said, I don't think it's as easy to do well in school and have a balanced life when you also have to kill yourself working a job or two to pay for it. College should be fun, too.

DrillSergeantCat · September 2015

inomniaparatus said:

What's so wrong about picking a "fun" major anyway? Shouldn't you find what you do for the rest of your life, fun?
Practicality can sometimes be a dream killer.
I always believed that I could do anything I wanted in life - and I still do. I hope my kid feels the same.

But, there does come a point where you have to be somewhat realistic and keep in mind your abilities. Like, I find singing fun, but I am the worst singer in the world- no joke. So, I wouldn't major in singing lol.

But, you know, to an extent - I think picking something you find fun is important.

Maybe you meant "easy". Because my major (Television, Radio, Film) was "fun" but not "easy".

The popular "fun" degree in my area is Psychology. It's pretty worthless unless you plan on getting a master and/or doctorates. My son jokes that at my school the girls there getting a pscyh degree are really just looking for an MRS degree.

dem068a · September 2015

Wurrkingurrl said:

For 529's you are not limited to the ones from your state. A few states limit you from using theirs if you don't live in it, but there is no state that says you can only use theirs if that makes sense.

This is totally true. Definitely look into your state. I live in NY, and started a savings plan for myself post college (I wanted to have money set aside for grad school, and get the tax break for putting money into the plan). For me, when I withdrew the money, they just transferred it to my bank account, and didn't ask any questions whatsoever. I was able to pay part of my tuition on my credit card and then used the money from the 529 plan to pay off my card. In NY the plan was very flexible and you literally could use it for anything school related that you wanted (and they didn't even check to make sure you did that). I already started a 529 plan for my baby, and our plan is to pay for tuition, but leave all other expenses up to our child. That is what my parents did, and it didn't leave me with a lot of student loans, but I did have to still shoulder some of the burden of college (and worked though college and every summer). It definitely made me work hard, but every kid and every situation is different.

The biggest perk of starting to save some money early is the beauty of compounding interest. For example, if you put $5,000 in an account today, at 4% annual returns over 18 years, that will be worth ~$10,000 18 years from now (even with no other deposits in the account). Obviously you have to count for inflation over that time, but your money can grow faster that the rate of inflation, but it is always a good idea to have money grow over time (since the interest compounds), if you can!

wisco29 · September 2015

Dd has a bank account and a savings but we don't put a lot of money in it regularly right now. She gets gifts of $ in her account and we out all of our lose change in her piggie bank and deposit it randomly

Everyone does what they can. I think it's important to atleast have an account open for them so that putting $ in is something that's a thought and really important to teach them to save when they get older!

When she's old enough to understand and get an allowance I'm going to promote and encourage putting her money into savings.

She just started putting money into her piggie bank, she found some coins of h's and wanted to put them in there so we have a start

AdventureMama · September 2015

inomniaparatus said:

What's so wrong about picking a "fun" major anyway? Shouldn't you find what you do for the rest of your life, fun?
Practicality can sometimes be a dream killer.
I always believed that I could do anything I wanted in life - and I still do. I hope my kid feels the same.

But, there does come a point where you have to be somewhat realistic and keep in mind your abilities. Like, I find singing fun, but I am the worst singer in the world- no joke. So, I wouldn't major in singing lol.

But, you know, to an extent - I think picking something you find fun is important.

Maybe you meant "easy". Because my major (Television, Radio, Film) was "fun" but not "easy".

Well, I think you are taking more out of my words than I was trying to imply. I actually just had a conversation with someone recently about how an education in any field is worthwhile for the sake of learning and I believe that to be true.

I guess what I meant by picking a fun major and screwing around was that a lot of kids I knew were like, "Hmm, philosophy sounds cool!" and went with it (or whatever else... art or sociology or something, I don't know, I hesitate to mention any specific major for fear of offending someone who does it for a living) without really considering what they were going to do with it afterward. I think there is a bit of a privileged mindsent that CAN (notice I didn't say "always does" so please don't anyone get offended) come with your college being paid for- that you don't have to worry about the future or get a useful degree (useful in the "getting a job and taking care of yourself" sense).

inomniaparatus · September 2015

DrillSergeantCat said:

inomniaparatus said:

What's so wrong about picking a "fun" major anyway? Shouldn't you find what you do for the rest of your life, fun?
Practicality can sometimes be a dream killer.
I always believed that I could do anything I wanted in life - and I still do. I hope my kid feels the same.

But, there does come a point where you have to be somewhat realistic and keep in mind your abilities. Like, I find singing fun, but I am the worst singer in the world- no joke. So, I wouldn't major in singing lol.

But, you know, to an extent - I think picking something you find fun is important.

Maybe you meant "easy". Because my major (Television, Radio, Film) was "fun" but not "easy".

The popular "fun" degree in my area is Psychology. It's pretty worthless unless you plan on getting a master and/or doctorates. My son jokes that at my school the girls there getting a pscyh degree are really just looking for an MRS degree.

Omg you are so right. I say it all the time. My mom is a psychologist but also, luckily, very smart and motivated. Even 30 years ago, getting into a PhD program was uber competitive. Now, it's even more so. My mom does really well with it - is a school psychologist and has her own private practice she does after school. I know so many people who pick psychology because it's interesting and fun, but really aren't competitive enough to do much with it. You really need a PhD to do something with it and it's becoming more and more based in biology and science than social science as research and what we know advances.

That's really where taking your abilities in mind really becomes important. If you aren't in school for the long haul and are really passionate about your field and keeping up with the latest studies, research, etc. then you should reconsider.

If you are into it, it's totally a respectable field, super interesting and you can do really well in it. But, yes, many people I know also picked it because it was "easy."

inomniaparatus · September 2015

wisco29 said:

Dd has a bank account and a savings but we don't put a lot of money in it regularly right now. She gets gifts of $ in her account and we out all of our lose change in her piggie bank and deposit it randomly Everyone does what they can. I think it's important to atleast have an account open for them so that putting $ in is something that's a thought and really important to teach them to save when they get older! When she's old enough to understand and get an allowance I'm going to promote and encourage putting her money into savings. She just started putting money into her piggie bank, she found some coins of h's and wanted to put them in there so we have a start

That's so cute and very smart to get her involved- I love it.

inomniaparatus · September 2015

AdventureMama said:

inomniaparatus said:

What's so wrong about picking a "fun" major anyway? Shouldn't you find what you do for the rest of your life, fun?
Practicality can sometimes be a dream killer.
I always believed that I could do anything I wanted in life - and I still do. I hope my kid feels the same.

But, there does come a point where you have to be somewhat realistic and keep in mind your abilities. Like, I find singing fun, but I am the worst singer in the world- no joke. So, I wouldn't major in singing lol.

But, you know, to an extent - I think picking something you find fun is important.

Maybe you meant "easy". Because my major (Television, Radio, Film) was "fun" but not "easy".

Well, I think you are taking more out of my words than I was trying to imply. I actually just had a conversation with someone recently about how an education in any field is worthwhile for the sake of learning and I believe that to be true.

I guess what I meant by picking a fun major and screwing around was that a lot of kids I knew were like, "Hmm, philosophy sounds cool!" and went with it (or whatever else... art or sociology or something, I don't know, I hesitate to mention any specific major for fear of offending someone who does it for a living) without really considering what they were going to do with it afterward. I think there is a bit of a privileged mindsent that CAN (notice I didn't say "always does" so please don't anyone get offended) come with your college being paid for- that you don't have to worry about the future or get a useful degree (useful in the "getting a job and taking care of yourself" sense).

I understand what you're saying and said, from very beginning, that I recognize you were talking about people you know from your personal experience. Not insulted here. It's good to hear all opinions.

Twindling · September 2015

We are doing things a little differently. It was how I was raised and I really liked it. We have a set amount that we will give each child to use towards their education however they choose. The rest is on them. For us, a higher level education is a privelege and we want our children to understand that college is business. I had to work my way through college and pay for some of my stuff...knowing that my college education was coming from my own pocket encouraged me to work just that much harder.
Fwiw, the amount we give them will be enough to cover their pre req classes at a community college. Our public school system also works hand in hand with the community college nearby and if they excel in school, they have the option to take college credit courses for free paid by the public school system. If they set themselves up right, they could have their 1st year of college under their belt before graduating high school.

AdventureMama · September 2015

DrillSergeantCat said:

inomniaparatus said:

What's so wrong about picking a "fun" major anyway? Shouldn't you find what you do for the rest of your life, fun?
Practicality can sometimes be a dream killer.
I always believed that I could do anything I wanted in life - and I still do. I hope my kid feels the same.

But, there does come a point where you have to be somewhat realistic and keep in mind your abilities. Like, I find singing fun, but I am the worst singer in the world- no joke. So, I wouldn't major in singing lol.

But, you know, to an extent - I think picking something you find fun is important.

Maybe you meant "easy". Because my major (Television, Radio, Film) was "fun" but not "easy".

The popular "fun" degree in my area is Psychology. It's pretty worthless unless you plan on getting a master and/or doctorates. My son jokes that at my school the girls there getting a pscyh degree are really just looking for an MRS degree.

This is a good point. I have a friend who graduated about five years ago with a degree in psychology because she met her future husband their first year of college and he was majoring in math because he wanted to teach in high school and she had this whole vision of him being a math teacher/football coach and her being a school counselor/cheerleading coach and she talked alllll the time about how they'd be the "cute teacher couple." Now he works an entry level job at a bank and she worked as a receptionist until she had kids and now stays at home. Nothing wrong with either of those things, but her vision was unrealistic and they didn't really pursue it after they graduated because it was "hard." haha

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