UIUC $$$ v. IUB (full) v. Cardozo (full) Forum

[KidSampson]

Which should I choose? Offered $90,000 at UIUC, but full tuition at IUB and Cardozo. I grew up in Indiana but don't really want to work there and I prefer to work in a large city after graduation. UIUC seems like it would give me the best shot of a high paying job in at least Chicago. But, I'm extremely debt averse because of undergrad loans and IUB would be cheapest. Help?

[fakemoney]

If priority #1 is debt aversion: Go IUB
If priority #1 is getting out of Indiana and having a shot at city employment: Go UIUC

[dpk711]

If you want out of Indiana UIUC

[rebexness]

[Kate Monster]

Write Dean Pless if you haven't. I had the same money at UIUC and IUB and got UIUC to up their offer to full tuition. Plus, they guarantee to increase your award if (when) tuition goes up.

[bball25]

Write Dean Pless if you haven't. I had the same money at UIUC and IUB and got UIUC to up their offer to full tuition. Plus, they guarantee to increase your award if (when) tuition goes up.

Did you get this offer this year? Additionally, how did you go about asking for the money? Right now I have 90 at UIUC and 120 at IU.

[KidSampson]

Write Dean Pless if you haven't. I had the same money at UIUC and IUB and got UIUC to up their offer to full tuition. Plus, they guarantee to increase your award if (when) tuition goes up.

Did you get this offer this year? Additionally, how did you go about asking for the money? Right now I have 90 at UIUC and 120 at IU.

Wow, really? I think I will do that. Can't hurt.

[KidSampson]

Also, thanks to everyone for their responses. I'm leaning pretty heavily toward Illinois.

[Kate Monster]

Write Dean Pless if you haven't. I had the same money at UIUC and IUB and got UIUC to up their offer to full tuition. Plus, they guarantee to increase your award if (when) tuition goes up.

Did you get this offer this year? Additionally, how did you go about asking for the money? Right now I have 90 at UIUC and 120 at IU.

Yes, I got the offer this year. I sent an email saying how thrilled and grateful I was to be admitted and for the money they had already offered. Listed a few things about the school that I really liked, and then said that while I would really like to make my decision based purely on the school and program that I thought was the best, I needed to take money into account and listed a few of the reasons I was particularly in need of keeping my debt down (pre-existing debt, yada yada), informed him of the offer from IU and how hard it would be to walk away from full tuition. Then I asked if there were any way the award could be inreased. I got an email about a week later upping the offer to full tuition and I received the official letter a few days after that.
It certainly can't hurt to try, you might get it and if you don't it's not like it hurts you to try.

[bball25]

Kate would you mind PMing me your numbers? I want to see if we are comparable and if this is something I could pull off. Thank you!