What are real costs of attending ASU as undergraduate? (2013, credit)

[Potential_Landlord]

I guess it's never too early to find out about college cost. What should I expect per child in tuition, books, room etc. realistically per year? Also, what grants etc. are out there to help with cost even if your child is not an extreme overachiever? Thanks.

[Minntoaz]

In-state or out of state? They have a cost calculator on their website but it's roughtly $7k instate and like $27k out of state. Books now days are like $200-500 a semester. Room- on or off campus? On campus will be significantly more. Grants are for low-income families. Middle-income or above do not qualify for grants.

[crystalys]

My son is in his last semester at ASU. An average semester for him (College of Liberal Arts - Bachelor of Science in Mathematics) including tuition, fees, books etc. was about $5500 to $6000. This did not include a meal plan (M&G Dollars) or dorm expenses.

All incoming Freshman are required to live on campus for that first year but you can apply for a waiver. We did, and our son lived at home the whole 4 years. That alone saved us a bundle as you will get sticker shock from how much the monthly charges are for a dorm room and the required meal plan cost.

Since we got the waiver from the living on campus, we were able to purchase just an M&G Dollars plan that could be used at any authorized dining location available. At the time they had a "bonus" deal where we paid $1000 and got an additional $250 bonus. As I mentioned before, my son is in his Senior year and he just finished using the $1250 last week. So that was a very good deal for us and convenient for him when he couldn't come back to our house for a meal.

Naturally we also had to factor in typical car expenses in addition to a parking pass for him to park on campus. That was about $260 a year. He has played all four years for the ASU Baseball Club Team which was $1000 a year dues.

That is all I can think of off the top of my head. Go to the ASU website, it really is chock full of information and resources. Also go on Facebook and search for ASU Parent Groups. That is where you can get info from those who have already experienced what you are about to.

Let me know if I can answer any specific questions Potential_Landlord.

[observer53]

Originally Posted by crystalys

My son is in his last semester at ASU. An average semester for him (College of Liberal Arts - Bachelor of Science in Mathematics) including tuition, fees, books etc. was about $5500 to $6000. This did not include a meal plan (M&G Dollars) or dorm expenses.

All incoming Freshman are required to live on campus for that first year but you can apply for a waiver. We did, and our son lived at home the whole 4 years. That alone saved us a bundle as you will get sticker shock from how much the monthly charges are for a dorm room and the required meal plan cost.

Since we got the waiver from the living on campus, we were able to purchase just an M&G Dollars plan that could be used at any authorized dining location available. At the time they had a "bonus" deal where we paid $1000 and got an additional $250 bonus. As I mentioned before, my son is in his Senior year and he just finished using the $1250 last week. So that was a very good deal for us and convenient for him when he couldn't come back to our house for a meal.

Naturally we also had to factor in typical car expenses in addition to a parking pass for him to park on campus. That was about $260 a year. He has played all four years for the ASU Baseball Club Team which was $1000 a year dues.

That is all I can think of off the top of my head. Go to the ASU website, it really is chock full of information and resources. Also go on Facebook and search for ASU Parent Groups. That is where you can get info from those who have already experienced what you are about to.

Let me know if I can answer any specific questions Potential_Landlord.

It used to be (fairly recently) that the freshmen had to live on campus UNLESS they were living at home. Has that changed?

[dvxhd]

Define "never too early." If this is somewhat soon, you can get more accurate costs, but fully expect (and accept) that tuition will increase even while your child is enrolled. I don't intend to make this political or derail this thread, but the state government cutting education spending also applies to universities, which will need to make up for expenses somehow, and what taxpayers would otherwise subsidize (as a potential investment in Arizona's future) you'll pay out-of-pocket. In fact, I think all Arizona universities had to increase tuition within the past year as more cuts were made.

***If you want a little background music for this part, I'd recommend "Master of the House" from Les Miserables, because it's quite fitting for the following...

Having worked in higher education: tuition, as above, is subject to change and will inevitably increase. Books... as a word of advice and as I recommended to my students, you can often find on Amazon cheaper than you will at university bookstores, and they'll often know which books they'll need well before class starts. Room... that depends on you and what you're willing to spend. ASU would prefer they live on campus, but after a cursory search it appears it's not required. Student housing is still a decent segue into living independently though, and I'm glad I had the experience, because really you learn how to do things and take care of yourself through experience. Personally, I think it's best to allow your child the opportunity to live in a somewhat controlled environment while also having the chance to live without your direct supervision. Aside from those, keep in mind other university fees, because many things have them. Add in living expenses too (food, entertainment, etc.) and any potential programs like studying abroad, transportation to unpaid internships, sports and extracurricular activities, etc. Some classes also require extra expenses throughout the semester, such as on projects. I wouldn't at all bet on tuition being the final price, and would fully expect to pay more. On a personal note, I would suggest that you persuade your child to work part-time and go to school because I did that and think that helped my work ethic, ability to multitask, learn greater responsibility, etc. This can also persuade your child to learn some accountability, and you can have an agreement that he/she can pick up some of the cost.

Grants are a bit harder to come by, so I'd recommend you seek scholarships because there are a lot that aren't claimed. If your child is in a traditionally underprivileged group (racial, religious, LGBT, etc.), there are organizations that put together funds to help benefit their respective communities. Aside from that, looking into available scholarships just takes ample time and research, but at least these don't need to be repaid.

[pbenjamin]

One my sons went to ASU and at the time (18 years ago) tuition was waived for incoming freshman Arizona students with a high school grade point average (or class ranking?) above a certain level. Are they still doing that?

[observer53]

Originally Posted by pbenjamin

One my sons went to ASU and at the time (18 years ago) tuition was waived for incoming freshman Arizona students with a high school grade point average (or class ranking?) above a certain level. Are they still doing that?

Not so far as I know, although there are a lot of scholarship programs available through ASU that would pay tuition for students with higher grade averages. I had a tuition waiver all four years of undergrad at ASU, but that was in the 70's. Tuition was subsidized by the state back then for instate students, the value of that waiver was $160 a semester.


Look at programs like the Medallion Scholarship through the alumni association. Grades help, but the main qualifications are extracurriculars and community involvement. It is a WONDERFUL program. Look into it now.

[Potential_Landlord]

Originally Posted by observer53

Not so far as I know, although there are a lot of scholarship programs available through ASU that would pay tuition for students with higher grade averages. I had a tuition waiver all four years of undergrad at ASU, but that was in the 70's. Tuition was subsidized by the state back then for instate students, the value of that waiver was $160 a semester.


Look at programs like the Medallion Scholarship through the alumni association. Grades help, but the main qualifications are extracurriculars and community involvement. It is a WONDERFUL program. Look into it now.

Thanks this is a good tip.

[crystalys]

Originally Posted by observer53

It used to be (fairly recently) that the freshmen had to live on campus UNLESS they were living at home. Has that changed?

Well, even though he was living at home, we still had to apply for a waiver and include a letter as to why we thought it was better for him as a freshman to live at home. ASU wanted all incoming freshmen to live on campus to get the full college life experience so you were automatically "reserved" on campus housing. They felt it was the best way to create a well rounded student. So that was in the fall of 2013 and I just went on the website and it seems that has changed....but I don't know when that happened. It now says they expect the student to live on campus but to just notify if they make other arrangements.

I personally thought it was very intrusive and really presumptuous that ASU thought they knew my son and his academic habits when I had been raising him for 18 years up to that point. He went into Freshman year with 17 college credits from high school AP classes and he earned a Provost Scholarship from the New American College based on his academic achievement. So I just told them in the letter, since that is what he had done so far by living at home, then he should be allowed to continue in his home environment. You know, if it ain't broke, don't fix it type of thing. LOL

[ScottsdaleMark]

Originally Posted by crystalys

Well, even though he was living at home, we still had to apply for a waiver and include a letter as to why we thought it was better for him as a freshman to live at home. ASU wanted all incoming freshmen to live on campus to get the full college life experience so you were automatically "reserved" on campus housing. They felt it was the best way to create a well rounded student. So that was in the fall of 2013 and I just went on the website and it seems that has changed....but I don't know when that happened. It now says they expect the student to live on campus but to just notify if they make other arrangements.

I personally thought it was very intrusive and really presumptuous that ASU thought they knew my son and his academic habits when I had been raising him for 18 years up to that point. He went into Freshman year with 17 college credits from high school AP classes and he earned a Provost Scholarship from the New American College based on his academic achievement. So I just told them in the letter, since that is what he had done so far by living at home, then he should be allowed to continue in his home environment. You know, if it ain't broke, don't fix it type of thing. LOL

Thanks for the info. When you think about it, most universities are extremely presumptuous. The kind of people who go in to the field of being a "campus life" program director or employee would be the type of people who really and truly believe college is the greatest time in your life and critical to your formation as an adult...but most people don't feel that strongly about it.

I personally think one can potentially learn a lot more about being an adult and real life in general from living off campus and being in the real world than from being in a dorm complex that is full of nothing but young adults. It's such a bubble, in a lot of ways, and being surrounded by a cohort of people who are the same age and having the same experience might be easy and fun, it doesn't teach you how to interact with the adult world.