When You Have To Pass Coins On... :(

From a fellow college student to another, I highly recommend this course of action. There are many scholarships and grants out there that could help offset the cost. If it comes to selling coins, getting rid of duplicates or problem coins as you mentioned is a good place to start. Then maybe shift to selling coins outside of the set(s) you are collecting. But like others have already said, study abroad is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity that will be more worthwhile in the end! My friends who have done it absolutely loved it. Coins can be replaced, but memories and experiences cannot

Good luck with what looks like an exciting opportunity. I am going through a similar situation right now in terms of selling off some coins to raise some funds. I put together, with the help of my dad, a complete set of lincoln cents back in the 80's (the 1909-S VDB was a later purchase after he passed away). My numismatic goals have changed over the years and now I'm working on an extensive type set of US coins and currency. My lincoln set has just been sitting in a drawer for 20 years now doing nothing - I'm on the fence as to wether I should start selling off the key dates to free up the $$$'s I need for some things I want to buy now. My dad purchased some of the key dates for me when I was younger so it would be difficult to sell those but he also bought a lot of the random dates that were inexpensive, and which I would have no problem from a financial point to keep. I've sold off most of the other sets I'd put together over the years but this is the last one. Oh the woes we collectors put ourselves through! :)

It is never fun to part with the coins in your collection when you don't want to do it. I think you have the right idea, which is keep the coins that would be hard to replace. According to what I read the market is not lusty right now. I hope that you will be able to raise the amounts that you are hoping to get.

Luckily for me, I do a lot of buying and selling, so it is easy for me to let most coins go.

Many of the pieces I am selling have been with me for a few years. Some are nice, but some are not. The way I am going about this is looking at my coins and saying to myself "I regret buying that coin" or "There was that little thing I did not like about that one." It makes detatching myself much easier. The ones I cannot say those things about, or the ones that were gifts or milestones, are staying with me. Of course there are a few that would be very hard to get back what I paid (prooflike Trade dollar for $450), so I would keep those since I am not desperate.

I like to think of this as forcing my way into a rebirth. It will be a new chance to fill up the (somewhat) empty album with (hopefully) better coins.

I am going through with selling my coins. There is no guarantee that I will get any scholarships, and I'd rather have the money and not need it (and then I can rebuy coins!), instead of suddenly needing and desperately selling my coins for less than they are worth.

Almost no kids have the chance to go to other countries for education purposes. Hopefully you can accomplish this. My Son was a bit lucky since I paid for him to go to Poland for a year in college there. He also was able to travel through most of Europe while there. Really hopefully you get the chance to do as you are planning.

Here is an update. First of all, thank you to everyone who helped me out this semester by buying my coins! It meant a lot to me, and I hope you are enjoying them. I have raised over $5000 by selling coins. I have also gotten over $9000 in scholarships, and working this past semester netted me a further $3500. I am in a very comfortable position right now.

So, what was the damage? Nearly my entire type set is gone. I still have a few choice coins, but the albums are nearly empty. That just means I get a chance to start over and get coins that I like better than the old ones. :)

CONGRATS on the funds you have accumulated and gotten through scholarships!!! That is great news!