Even though her dad paid for her education, Eaton works to pay for her own
expenses and to pay him back for at least some of it. It’s a decision she made on her own to be more self-sufficient.

Self-sufficiency and self-confidence are both necessary for adjusting to an unfamiliar college environment. Vargas’ experiences in Cleveland keep her grounded at Harvard. She sees her friends freaking out over class work, worried because they got a C instead of an A on an exam, and she can handle it better. “I saw so many people dropping out (of high school),” she says. “I knew being here was an incredible privilege. If I did my best and still got a bad grade, it wasn’t the end of the world.”

Vargas says the differences in education level and culture between her high school and Harvard took some getting used to. At her high school, there was a lot of diversity, and everyone was working-class, but no one cared. At Harvard, the student body is less diverse, but people take more pride in their heritage, she says. “It’s more in-your-face.”

Miami is notoriously homogenous — it was named the 18th least diverse college in the nation by The Princeton Review — but Chaffin says she has found close friends outside the stereotype. Chaffin is an outgoing person, who talks to everyone she meets. She and some friends walk into the lounge of the music dorm. Chaffin sits down at the piano and begins playing a song by her favorite band, Evanescence. Within minutes, a student runs in, exclaiming his love for the song. Chaffin immediately slides over and shows him how to play it. The two exchange introductions, as he quickly catches on.

Rachel Abbey is a sophomore newspaper journalism major. This is her first time writing for The Burr.

Comparing costs

Miami University — Public
Tuition: $21,605
Room and board: $7, 610
On-campus employment: about 5,000 students

Kent State University — Public
Tuition (undergraduate):
Ohio Resident: $7,954
Out of state: $15,386
Room and board: $3,220 to $5,352

Harvard University — Private
Tuition: $29,360
Overall charges will total: $51,972

Financial facts
Ohio received an “F” last year for college affordability, acccording to Measuring Up 2004 The National Report Card on Higher Education.

The proportion of family income needed to pay for a four-year college in Ohio has climbed about 30 percent in the last decade.

Ohio’s average tuition for four-year public colleges in 2004 was the fifth highest in the nation.

Information from: National Center for Public Policy and Higher Education

Ohio’s per-capita income is about $1,700 less than the national average, according to the Ohio Board of Regents.

— Compiled by Jessica Sprowl