I have been giving this a lot of thought as my 2nd S heads to college this fall but haven't come to a conclusion so I'm wondering how others view the situation? My question is not about the parent contribution, but all of the other costs.
S1 attends a school that has a no loan policy, so he will graduate without debt. In addition he had outside scholarships that covered his summer contribution and work study this year. The scholarships were paid to the University and then he ended up getting back about $3100 for indirect costs. So, he didn't need to contribute anything nor did he need to work, yet he had ample spending money and never needed to ask me for a dime. In addition he had outside scholarship funds that covered his dorm supplies, computer, and all books and transportation.
S2 has a $5500 loan in his FA package toward direct costs. He is also responsible for all indirect costs(books, transportation, misc., however much that ends up being-his college does not provide an estimate) and will not have funds for dorm supplies or a computer. I expect that he will receive some outside scholarships. He has $1000 so far and optimistically will receive another $2000 or so.
First, it is not a problem financially to cover all of his costs including the $5500 loan, but the question is should I? Should I be equalizing their college experiences?
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