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College: Part 1 of 3
Surprisingly large expenses and bigger than expected payoff

Several surprises
College education has many benefits. But the cost can be a shocker – up to $150,000 for four years of college.

The 2006-2007 average total costs (including tuition and fees, room and board, books and supplies, transportation and other expenses) were $12,294 for students attending two-year public colleges, $16,357 for students attending four-year public colleges and universities, and $33,301 for students at four-year private colleges and universities. Out of state students attending public colleges and universities pay an average total cost of $26,304.

Room and board adds $4,000 to $12,000. Total college costs typically rise 7% a year.

Financial aid
Financial aid is actually going down. Federal Pell grants, awarded solely on financial need towards an undergraduate degree, are an example. They were down $900 million to $12.7 billion for the 2005-06 school year. The average grant fell $120 to $2,474.

The heavy price of textbooks
Thirty percent of students have no idea how expensive textbooks are. Textbook prices have nearly tripled from 1986 to 2004 to an average of $900 a year. It’s also getting harder to buy and sell used textbooks, in part because many professors assign new editions, even when changes are minor.

Sixty percent of students nationwide choose not to buy the textbooks required for their courses. I found that I often got enough information by taking careful lecture notes. I also got some books in my local school and community libraries.
I was buying textbooks that I never had time to read. This led me to a life lesson that you may never hear from your professors. You can’t do everything, so you have to pick and choose what’s most beneficial. College, like life, is a challenge to find what really needs doing. Life is always a challenge to use our time, money and other resources wisely.

College requires a lot of all these resources. Even so, it’s still a really good deal.

How to earn $1.1 million dollars more
A person with a 4 year college degree earns about $1,000,000 more than the earnings of a high school graduate. Even an associate degree brings $800,000 more lifetime income than just high school. An associate’s degree typically takes just two years and can later be used towards a four year degree.

Compared to a four year college degree, a graduate degree adds another $500,000 total lifetime earnings.

These earnings differences may get even bigger. In the 1980’s, a person who attended college earned about thirty percent more than a person who only graduated high school, far less than today’s difference.

College might be costly, but getting a degree is well worth it. Still, you’ll want to plan ahead on how to pay for college. The earlier you prepare, the less stress and expense you may have later on.

by Tara O'Donnell, Hearts & Minds volunteer
Website © Copyright: 1997 - 2007 by Hearts and Minds Network at http://www.heartsandminds.org/self/collegecosts.htm - online June 17, 2007, latest changes June 24, 2007