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I've been curious. I always looked into community colleges and thought tuition fees are "affordable" so why don't people take this route instead of crying about expensive tuition costs (of universities)? I've seen one university (or college) had at least close to $50K in tuition fees (housing and meal included, etc.).
I've been curious. I always looked into community colleges and thought tuition fees are "affordable" so why don't people take this route instead of crying about expensive tuition costs (of universities)? I've seen one university (or college) had at least close to $50K in tuition fees (housing and meal included, etc.).
If you start out at CC, you have to have a transfer college in mind and tailor your course selections to those the transfer college will accept. Not every course from CC transfers to every college. Even the courses that they accept sometimes only count as electives.
It is, however, one way to cut down on college costs, at least to a certain extent.
OP, at some places, it can cost up to 90K to get a BA. I don't know any families that can afford that or that deem it worthwhile.
I keep hollering from the rooftops: look for a community college that has a transfer agreement with a 4-year college and know what transfers beforehand.
Students will save a lot of grief.
Even better, don't attend any college without a clear, attainable goal: "I want a degree so that I can make a lot of money (vague)" vs. "I have volunteered for two summers at a hospital and want to become an RN (specific)." The latter student is more likely to finish and not waste time or money.
I've been curious. I always looked into community colleges and thought tuition fees are "affordable" so why don't people take this route instead of crying about expensive tuition costs (of universities)? I've seen one university (or college) had at least close to $50K in tuition fees (housing and meal included, etc.).
All right... you've seen one. You know there are over 3000 four-year colleges and universities in the United States, right?
Since your username references Appalachia, let's just look at the University of West Virginia. Instate tuition/room & board/fees is $18k. With outstate tuition it's still only $33k, far below the $50k of your question. Even in California, instate tuition/room & board/fees in the UC system is slightly below $30k even with books factored it but without health insurance (ie, if one is still riding on their parents' plan) and still under $32k if one needs the university's health insurance. I used California as an example because it is a comparatively high-cost state (though, it should be noted, with an excellent university system for that cost). As such, I suspect that there's no state where the instate tuition/room & board/fees/books/insurance cost of a degree at a public university is anywhere close to $50k. While in California, you'll top $50k for outstate students, in most states that would not be the case.
Even at private colleges, that is regularly not the case because the costs we're discussing here are the sticker prices. My oldest two children are currently enrolled in private colleges with nominal total costs of $62k and $51k, respectively. However, the total out-of-pocket costs (cash + loans) is less than half of that in each case due to grants and scholarships. The sticker price is rarely the final cost at either private or public universities.
So, the answer to you question is that even for an average student who does not want to attend a community college, there are many hundreds of options for getting a degree for less than $50k per year.
If you start out at CC, you have to have a transfer college in mind and tailor your course selections to those the transfer college will accept. Not every course from CC transfers to every college. Even the courses that they accept sometimes only count as electives.
It is, however, one way to cut down on college costs, at least to a certain extent.
This is a very true statement. It's not just transferring credits but course prereqs and sequences. I look at CC as an option for our daughter and once I laid out all the courses and prereqs in sequence, it would have taken two years at CC and then another three years at regular college (total 5) to complete a 4 year degree. Plus if you look at the six year completion rate those who start at CC and transfer have a much lower completion rate than those who started directly in a regular college.
OP, at some places, it can cost up to 90K to get a BA. I don't know any families that can afford that or that deem it worthwhile.
I keep hollering from the rooftops: look for a community college that has a transfer agreement with a 4-year college and know what transfers beforehand.
Students will save a lot of grief.
Even better, don't attend any college without a clear, attainable goal: "I want a degree so that I can make a lot of money (vague)" vs. "I have volunteered for two summers at a hospital and want to become an RN (specific)." The latter student is more likely to finish and not waste time or money.
Couldn't agree more with this arrangement. Especially when you're a life-long, academically, struggling, off and on student like myself that has to work because they no longer qualify for grants and don't want to risk loans of any type. Gives one a chance to brush up on their skills as much as possible until they know they're truly ready to get the courses done once and for all.
Been at the crazy game since graduating HS in '01. I'll nail it eventually.
everything else is all "living" costs, that people take out student loans for
if people actually worked/saved for their own living costs, housing/food/entertainment, they can finish the degree at a reasonable cost
you could do it like some people, game the student loans and take out 4 year interest free loans (since they are deferred) and collect interest/invest it for duration of the degree, then pay it back in full at graduation
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