[techtivist]

I am always conflicted about these. I was fortunate enough to get a full ride (all grants, no loans) to a top University, even as an international student. My parents couldn't afford to pay for my flight here, which the University did. In a way that has allowed me to take a riskier career trajectory by quitting a 6 figure starting salary at a top tech company after graduation within 3 months and starting a startup. So I am ever so grateful for policies like this.

But I wonder if universities should offer some sort of deferred payment (5 years after graduation for instance) to students instead (not a 3rd party loan). If you go to Stanford you are pretty much guaranteed a stable income when you graduate. Yes ,granted, a lot of alumni do donate without feeling the necessity to do so, but having such an option will help universities, perhaps more for those with smaller endowments "recover" some of the cost.

Universities could always make exceptions some time down the line on a case by case basis, depending on student's current income which will vary violently even for top universities, with some students deciding to work for a non-profit while others choosing a more lucrative job, just like income tax works.

Again, I am really not sure, just throwing it out there.

[bradleyjg]

Take a look at the Harvard Law School loan forgiveness program. Although it does rely on 3rd party loans (in this case the third party is overwhelmingly the government), and so is a bit of the inverse of what you are proposing, it helps pay a quite generous portion of those loans under a broad variety of circumstances while not providing any repayment assistance to those who secure the most lucrative types of private sector jobs.

It is a sort of post hoc means testing, in contrast to the more usual undergraduate system of pre hoc means testing.

The federal government also has income based loan forgiveness programs (the current one is called Pay as You Earn), but it is far less generous.

http://hls.harvard.edu/dept/sfs/low-income-protection-plan-l...

[techtivist]

Ah! Hadn't heard about this. Professional programs usually don't offer need-based aid a lot, so this probably still doesn't go a long way. I was thinking more for undergrad programs, where need-based aid is much more common, and not too many students (none for internationals) qualify for gov grants, which might have similar provisions.

[sytelus]

This is very interesting. As far as I know most universities don't even cover first semester worth of expenses for international students regardless of how bright they are. Most international students then find campus jobs and do 18 hour days to fill in for rest of the time in Masters programs. The PhD programs are bit more generous but never heard university paying for the flight.

[techtivist]

Only a handful do, the ones in top 10-20 academically and endowment wise. The university covered tuition, room and board, around $58k annually. I still worked 20 hours a week, to pay for other expenses, send back a little home and save a little.

[ProAm]

> Yes ,granted, a lot of alumni do donate without feeling the necessity to do so

You should pay it forward. It worked for you, help make it work for someone else.

[kroosaidher]

I'm glad I didn't go to college, so I don't have to give any money out of guilt to a place which wastes so much of it on landscaping and sports.

That's what I saw when I visited more privileged friends at Universities, anyway.

I'd really rather give money directly to someone that needs it than to a dysfunctional organization (and they are pretty much all dysfunctional). I wish that was actually feasible.

[techtivist]

I definitely hope to when I financially can. Just one year into post-grad startup life :)

But in the meantime I am trying in my own little way, by advising current students, interviewing applicants and also coaching students back home in similar position as I was by helping them with their applications and SATs

[mathattack]

I heard that Yale had a problem like this, and struggled to collect on it. It put them in a tough position of angering their alums to get their money.