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With three kids college bound or in college, I have been watching the costs of higher education in WA closely.
Interestingly, for the first time, I've seen universities actually reducing costs from prior years in a variety of ways. Perhaps the most striking is the reduction in actual 'sticker price' tuition vs. the normally touted 'net costs.' Lower 'net costs' are typically code words for significantly cheaper if low income. I've never seen a private school cut base tuition before. Yet Seattle Pacific just slashed tuition by 25% this past fall. Apparently there have been others as well. Seattle Pacific University cut tuition 25%. Even bigger is their In-State Matching program which makes tuition cost the same as attending a public flagship school - UW Seattle, in our case.
Another new, big potential saving for us is Portland State University's recently announced program for Washingtonians living in borders counties. Washington Border Discount
We'll receive a tuition cut at only 110% of Oregon residents. That's even better than the Western Undergraduate Exchange (WUE) Tuition Savings at 150%.
I'm sure there are additional saving out there as well. If you know of others for WA residents, it would be great to hear of those. Just don't tell me about the low income discounts which are obvious and abound. In the past, as middle-ish income earners who are basically above poverty level, we normally don't qualify for any financial perks these schools offer. So, its typically a full cost proposition. And that can add up very quickly when you have three college bound! As a result, private is typically not a consideration.
There's also some interesting things happening at the national level with debt forgiveness. This looks to be targeted toward lower income families and first generation students as well. Who knows if it will ever trickle over to rest of us smucks. But that's a discussion on the national side of things.
Derek
Last edited by MtnSurfer; 04-24-2022 at 04:56 PM..
Only the strong will survive.
The strongest will be at near capacity.
So, are you suggesting privates like Seattle Pacific are about to go under? I think all universities took a financial hit during Covid in the form of reduced enrollment. So, they're having to get more creative to attract students now. "Hey, let's lower tuition." What a brilliant idea they should have thought about long ago. But I wouldn't see larger privates like Seattle Pacific or Pacific Lutheran in any major jeopardy of closing. Maybe some smaller privates and publics like Evergreen, perhaps...
Location: Was Midvalley Oregon; Now Eastside Seattle area
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^Absolutely No idea on the enrollment situation at SeattlePacific or any other college.
This I do know, There the X'ers didn't have enough babies and the Millenials, are having even less.
There just not enough kids to support our current numbers colleges and universities.
The model of using Federal Guaranteed Student Loans is broken. We need to admit what it really is-A subsidy to the wealthy and a grant to the less wealthy.
In our time 2002-2006, the DS's university(private, high prestige, tech oriented) admitted that they are raising tuition to help subsidized the Need students.
Another model was to give merit aid to high achieving or wealthier students and let the less achieving pay a higher proportion of the college's costs.
Location: East of Seattle since 1992, 615' Elevation, Zone 8b - originally from SF Bay Area
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I was just reading that the college enrollment is way down, initially because of Covid, but now people are still not returning.
This is causing a huge financial impact, reducing tuition is like a last-ditch effort to try and save them. The reduction in people having kids made a big difference but so has the recent talk of college graduates, even with advanced degrees flipping burgers or pulling espresso while owing $100,000 in student loans.
We are about to send our kids off to college and it's in a very different context then I could have anticipated before the pandemic.
With the Great Resignation (including a lot of Boomers) there are unfilled jobs... really great and sustainable jobs... across pretty much every industry. Many of Boomers leaving didn't have 4 year college educations themselves, or picked them up along the way, so you can't necessarily say 4 year degrees are necessary for Zoomers to have in order to fill these newly opened roles.
And I think the boys or their parents have figured it out quicker than girls. Their enrollment has been dropping for many years now, even before the pandemic.
We're quite content having our kids skip 4 year degrees if they aren't needed. And for certain our oldest isn't. He's going to technical college for an AA. After completion he can get a job paying about $70k. Not the most amazing salary, but a decent start for a 20 year old.
Our younger son will likely follow the traditional route because he's so extremely socially-driven. He's the kind to network his way through life so it's imperative that he has access to the best social and brightest networks he can gain access to. On the other hand.. I could easily see him skipping higher ed altogether because one of his best friends' dad took him on as a protege. He has a knack for making friends with the 1-.01% and also has a knack for impressing his friends' parents.
That'd also be fine with me... Sorta.
20-30 years ago the talk of social security running out when Boomers got older dominated the prediction discussions. Nobody thought to really question the growth and sustainability in economy and infrastructure. We were content to keep building malls and outlets and, at universities, completely unnecessary buildings like additional student unions with climbing walls, stores and fitness centers.
I was driving from Bellingham yesterday and noticed that in Marysville, not only was the mall dead, but also the outlet strip. You see it in other towns too. Everything is shrinking. This should have been forecasted better.
We are about to send our kids off to college and it's in a very different context then I could have anticipated before the pandemic.
With the Great Resignation (including a lot of Boomers) there are unfilled jobs... really great and sustainable jobs... across pretty much every industry. Many of Boomers leaving didn't have 4 year college educations themselves, or picked them up along the way, so you can't necessarily say 4 year degrees are necessary for Zoomers to have in order to fill these newly opened roles.
And I think the boys or their parents have figured it out quicker than girls. Their enrollment has been dropping for many years now, even before the pandemic.
We're quite content having our kids skip 4 year degrees if they aren't needed. And for certain our oldest isn't. He's going to technical college for an AA. After completion he can get a job paying about $70k. Not the most amazing salary, but a decent start for a 20 year old.
Our younger son will likely follow the traditional route because he's so extremely socially-driven. He's the kind to network his way through life so it's imperative that he has access to the best social and brightest networks he can gain access to. On the other hand.. I could easily see him skipping higher ed altogether because one of his best friends' dad took him on as a protege. He has a knack for making friends with the 1-.01% and also has a knack for impressing his friends' parents.
That'd also be fine with me... Sorta.
20-30 years ago the talk of social security running out when Boomers got older dominated the prediction discussions. Nobody thought to really question the growth and sustainability in economy and infrastructure. We were content to keep building malls and outlets and, at universities, completely unnecessary buildings like additional student unions with climbing walls, stores and fitness centers.
I was driving from Bellingham yesterday and noticed that in Marysville, not only was the mall dead, but also the outlet strip. You see it in other towns too. Everything is shrinking. This should have been forecasted better.
I’d say Amazon had more to do with malls dying than population shifts. If you saw Amazon coming, I’m surprised you’re posting here with your billions in the bank!
Interesting comments and observations on the need for college in general and economic impact of these ideas upon college costs. As enrollments decline, costs will hopefully go down as well.
While I'm definitely in the 'pro-college' camp for our kids, I could also see non-traditional career paths as viable alternatives. This, of course, depends on a career's current entry requirements as well as strong preferences. There are a number which there is no chance entering without the formal college education. One example of many are medical positions where obtaining a professional license to practice 'includes' the college degree. Then there are those in the engineering, scientific and research fields which require extension study to even begin to understand the body knowledge let alone practice.
That said, we're seeing more entering the exploding IT space going non-tradition. That includes coding boot camps and the like. In those cases, when someone is naturally gifted, they are able to create a resume of early experiences (once eventually hired) which can exceed their peers. This will continue to shift and morph over time with things like 'micro-degrees' and specialized online training. That includes the expansion of 'e-Campus' programs from all brick and mortar schools. Covid, of course, accelerated the need for e-Learning. That alone has significantly impacted in-person college as we've known it. These are interesting times for higher education, for sure.
BTW, of my three, the oldest is just finishing up at UW which was crazy during Covid. He was already offered a fulltime gig upon graduation which he accepted. And the offer blew us away starting out as a newbie. I don't believe he could have launched so quickly into an interesting, lucrative and highly competitive role without going the more traditional route he took. Though, that's not to say it absolutely a requirement in his field more generally speaking. But the top companies still have their pick of the litter when it comes to hiring practices. So, the answer really depends on both the areas of specialization as well as goals within it. I'm also seeing a wider 'salary gap' even within professions than I've ever seen before. This is especially pronounced in the more entry-level roles as one launches their careers.
Derek
Last edited by MtnSurfer; 04-25-2022 at 02:11 PM..
I’d say Amazon had more to do with malls dying than population shifts. If you saw Amazon coming, I’m surprised you’re posting here with your billions in the bank!
haha! You'd be surprised who posts here, but no... no billions in my wallet... just yet.
Oh yeah for sure online sales have had a magnificent impact and killed a lot of retail, but also too, Boomers are leaving the consumer phase of life at the same time that the internet is taking over retail. Younger generations have more of an appetite for digital products and services and there are more people like me, that are minimalists. Go visit the retirement section here in C-D and it doesn't take long to find downsizing folks overwhelmed with their decades worth of acquisitions that their children and grandchildren don't want.
Location: We_tside PNW (Columbia Gorge) / CO / SA TX / Thailand
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Having friends get caught in both the recent Concordia and Marylhurst College failures in Portland, there are concerns about the continued viability of other private U's. (One I attended an edu event last weekend is at 30% of previous student numbers, Ghost town). It would be wise to have a plan B on place. A few family and friends are Seattle Pacific grads, and 2 friends are attending at the moment. DS lives within 5 min so we visit frequently.
I think it's great that U's are reducing tuition, as long as they have sustainable methods to continue a high quality of academics and maintain the facilities.
Of course WA students can get the first 2 yrs for free, so total college costs can be quite minimal.
Current workforce needs and wage adjustments avail the excellent opportunity for students to very easily self-finance college as well as gain relevant work experience while in college, They can graduate debt free and capable to engage as a direct benefit to an employer.
168 hrs / week, 40 hrs in college and 40 hrs sleeping = 88hrs for 'other' including employment. even a measly 20 Hrs work / week @ $20/hr can add $16k+ / yr to your school spending budget. (Some grunt retail is now paying that rate, applicable jobs to career major should be easy and plentiful to find.) Work from home, work nights, work weekends... many exceptional opportunities for students.
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