I found an interesting article on the tuition costs for degrees at the different public colleges and universities in Michigan. I was amazed. The cheapest were around $62K while the two most expensive were $85K and 108K with the rest ranging pretty evenly between $62K and $84K. It that is true, we got a screaming good deal. We paid around $2.5K per year per kid for tuition and fees at Wake Tech Community College in Raleigh and around $7.5K per year per kid for them to finish up at NCSU. That means, we paid about $10K for community college and $30K for university for a total of $40K. So our kids graduated from what we would argue is the best school in North Carolina (including UNC, Duke, Davidson and Wake Forest, but we are biased) for $20K per kid.
The two lessons I got from that are:
- Community college is an amazingly great bargain
- North Carolina is a great place to go to college
Natalie
I really enjoy reading your blog and what you have to say about education, but I never comment. But this is very interesting. Especially since I live in Michigan. Those stats are kind of misleading because they assume you didn’t get any scholarships or grants. Wayne State is located in Detroit. Lots of people who live in Detroit are living in poverty and would likely qualify for the pell grant. The pell grant would pay up $5,700 per semester and is good for up to 8 semesters or four years. Tons of people also get scholarships, many colleges give really good scholarships. For example, Eastern Michigan University gave scholarships for about half the price of tuition for four years to quite a few people I know, including my sister.
And if you go to a school like U of M it would be kind of stupid to take only 12 credits a semester when it is the same price for up to 18, so take more if you can handle. Also, clep testing brings down the cost, even if it is just for one or two classes. Searching for clep testing is how I found this blog. I took a marketing class back in high school and recently passed the marketing clep test.
But I think what it all comes down to is doing your research, college doesn’t have to be super expensive if you research schools, scholarships, cheaper textbooks, different living options, test outs, etc. I did my research and at the end of this summer I will graduate from one of the best community colleges in the state with two associates degrees in two years and my total cost for books, supplies and tuition is only about $6,500 (would have been about $11,000 but I got some scholarships.) I live with my parents but I have a part-time job and was able to pay for my education with my own money. Community College is cheap in Michigan, about $100 a credit hour, but because I went to a community college outside of my county I had to pay a little bit more for tuition, but I still think I got a good deal.
Too many students go to college, without a plan, of what they are doing or how to pay for it. They really should teach a class on how to pay for college and make smart financial decisions. Even if it is the parent paying for college, they should still be informed, getting a degree does not mean you have to go into tons of debt.
Also, you said $40,000 per kid and then later $20,000 per kid. I’m a little confused I think you made an error somewhere and it $40,000 total and not per kid. Based on what you said, it sounds like your kids got a good education for a good price. And even more amazing is they did it in four years time without even going to high school first.
Natalie, thank you so much for the awesome comment. I stand corrected. Of course you are exactly right. I believe kids can get at great education anywhere in America at a great price with a some foresight and hard work. You, in fact, beat us badly at the community college level. If you counted the books and other incidentals beyond tuition and fees, we probably paid at least $16K for both kids. It sounds like you have a great shot of doing better than us at the University level!
You are even right about my reporting error. It is, in fact $20K per kid. It would be very interesting to here how you do and what you study. Thank for your kind words and congratulations on the path you have taken. You absolutely got a great deal if you got completed two years of college with two associate degrees for $6500. You are going places!
Natalie
Thank you. I know I’m not the smartest college student out there but I know a lot about the school systems. And I found out to get a it a second degree it isn’t double the credits, you only need 15 additional credits different from the first one. And since the two degrees are just general and line up so well, I figured why not, I just took a couple cleps and a couple summer classes. I think what I’ve learned in life, is being successful isn’t always about being the smartest person in the room, but the person who makes the most their opportunities. Thats why I like your blog, I feel like your kids are really making the most of their opportunities.
You are pretty smart.
Smart enough to say “I know I’m not the smartest college student out there.”
This is one of my pet peeve topics. A lot of people believe our kids are very smart. The reality is they had to work very, very hard to get through school.
Both of the kids, many times have said, “The other students are a lot smarter than me.”
I have written about the fact that intelligence is not immutable. The more one uses their brain, the smarter they get. Think of the fact that you did the CLEP thing and a couple of summer classes so you could get the 15 additional credits to get a second associates degree. Both of those led to good results, but also required more work. It is amazing how smart one can get and how much more can be accomplished with a little more hard work. Don’t sell yourself short!