$120,000 for a Diploma! Why IS College So Darned Expensive and What Can You Do About It?
by www.SixWise.com
It's official. Attending college now costs as much as buying
a small house (or a large one, depending on where you look).
Worse yet, getting a college diploma is, more and more, becoming
not a luxury but a necessity for anyone looking to secure
a decent job.
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Nearly half (42 percent) of four-year college students
attend schools that cost $6,000 a year or less.
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If you're lucky, that is if your child (or
you!) attends a four-year PUBLIC university, you can skate
by with owing just under $13,000 a year for tuition, room
and board and fees, according to the College Board. If this
sounds like a steal, consider that tuition at public schools
has increased nearly 50 percent in the last decade alone.
But suppose you or your child wants a "fancy" degree.
One from a private school or (gasp) a top school like Stanford
or Princeton. You're looking at a price tag of $30,367 a year
for tuition, room and board, books and incidentals at the
average four-year private college or university -- a 6 percent
increase from last year ... and a 30 percent increase from
10 years ago. Those with even bigger aspirations who want
to attend a prestigious school can pay upwards of $45,000
a year.
Why is College so Expensive?
There are professors to pay, certainly, and research to be
done. Not to mention upkeep on all those grounds and dormitories.
But does it really add up to tens of thousands of dollars
a year from each student?
Probably not. To be fair, state funding has hit rock bottom
for the first time in 30 years, according to The Week magazine,
which accounts for part of the public college increases. Private
schools are also devoting more money to financial aid, while
schools across the board are playing in a competitive market
that demands top-notch facilities -- dorms, gyms, student
centers, etc. -- just to stay in the game.
Still, colleges and universities are not stupid. They know
a degree is a critical component of life, and they know people
will pay for it.
"For over a decade I participated in university meetings
aimed at determining annual tuition increases," said
Peter Wood, an anthropologist at Boston University in The
Week magazine. "The only real question was, 'How much
can we get away with?'"
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Before heading off to school, try to get a scholarship
-- for your musical talent, your dedication to teaching
in urban areas or your Native American ancestry -- it
will bring your tuition costs down significantly!
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What you can be certain of is that college tuition is going
to continue to increase, as will the demand for college-educated
workers in the job force.
How to Go to College and Keep Costs Down
Most people nowadays go to college by going into debt (nearly
two-thirds of college graduates owe money toward their schooling).
However, there ARE ways to manage the costs of college, and
still get a good education:
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Attend a community college first. Go there for a couple
of years, get your basic credits fulfilled (at a bargain
price), then transfer into a four-year school to complete
your degree. Just be sure you know ahead of time that
the credits you earn will, indeed, transfer over to the
four-year school.
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Go to a public university in your own state. Public universities
are still much less expensive than private ones, and even
more so if you attend one in the state you live in. Some
42 percent of four-year U.S. college students are, in
fact, attending schools that cost less than $6,000 a year,
according to The Week.
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Look for scholarships, grants and other "free"
money. You can earn a scholarship
for academic, athletic or artistic talents, and for many
other reasons, like majoring in a certain field of study
or belonging to a certain minority group.
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If you are thinking of joining the military, or already
have, they offer several college tuition support programs.
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Work-study programs. When you apply for financial
aid one option other than a loan is a work-study program.
The school guarantees you a job for a certain number of
hours a week, and you use your earnings to help cover
costs.
Now, if you're having second thoughts that college is simply
just too expensive, you may want to reconsider. As high as
the costs are, college is still a good return on the investment,
particularly when you consider that a high school graduate
earns under $30,000 a year on average, but a college graduate
earns over $51,500 (and over $78,000 with a master's). Of
course, money
isn't everything, but those who've attended college get
more than just a higher income.
"It's an investment," said Susan Dynarski, a Harvard
economist in The Week. "People who go to college have
better lives."
Recommended Reading
Why
Returning to College After Age 30 (Age 40, 50, Etc.) Might
Be Just The Right Choice For You
20%
of High School and College Students Victims of Being Stalked:
What to Do If You're Stalked
Sources
The
Week Magazine May 11, 2007
The
College Board