A Breakdown of College Education Costs
The cost of post-secondary education varies greatly, and with large amounts of financial aid being offered by the Federal Government and private donors, the price tag on your dream school may change substantially. However, we understand the importance of cost when deciding where to attend college.
These series of articles offer a breakdown of average costs of public and private, online and traditional, and undergraduate and graduate universities. Although we encourage you to check with your school and its financial aid office, this should give you a general idea of what to expect.
If you're looking for resources to help finance your education, please check out our articles on scholarships and grants.
The Cost of Online Colleges
If you are hoping to save a substantial amount of money by attending school online, you may disappointed. Most online schools have education fees that are comparable to traditional public universities, and sometimes even private universities. Bnet.com reports that the average cost per student credit hour is $239, versus $252 for online courses. This is hardly a significant difference and actually waves in the favor of traditional universities. You must also consider how many years you hope to be attending online university. If you are planning on obtaining a bachelor's degree or a Ph.D. you are looking at four to seven years. Clearly this will greatly increase the overall price tag of any university, traditional or online.
However, keep in mind that by attending school online you are saving on gas money, textbooks (most online universities have online libraries), and housing. Further, most online students keep their day jobs and are still bringing in their normal salary. When you add all of this together, you will be saving a substantial chunk of change.
Finally, remember that you are paying for a quality education. Online universities that boast extremely low price tags are usually diploma mills and are designed specifically to rob you of funds. Be careful when you sign on with an online school. Make sure that they have a valid, up-to-date accreditation system in place.
The Cost of Two-Year Colleges
Two-year colleges include technical or trade schools, community colleges, and junior colleges. The general yearly tuition for these types of institutions varies on average from between $2,000 a year to $10,000 a year. These averages do not include some specialized private schools that, because of the structure and specificity of the courses offered, may charge hundreds to thousands more.
Tuition costs cover the classes taken in school, but there are also living expenses, which include room, board, transportation, and books, that must be considered when budgeting for school. These expenses, of course, will vary depending on where you live. On average, you should plan to spend between $10,000 and $15,000 above your costs. This is a very general average and many students save money by finding creative ways to live.
Two-year colleges offer a freedom that is not often found in many four-year colleges and universities. A lot of the classes offered through community or technical colleges can be taken in the evening or even on the weekends. This provides students with the opportunity to hold a part-time or full-time job while they earn their degree. This is a choice you need to weigh on your own, since working means that there is less time to devote to your studies. On the other hand, working while you go to school can reduce the student debts that can be accrued.
The Cost of Public Four-Year Colleges for State Residents
A four-year institution within your state of residence is probably one of the best bargains you can get for an undergraduate education. Public universities are often funded through both federal and state governments. This state funding is provided so that students within that particular state can take advantage of lower college tuition. These colleges and universities set state resident tuition rates, on average, between $5,000 and $10,000 a year. At these rates, many students are able to put themselves through school without collecting huge amounts of student debt.
The cost of living depends on how and where someone chooses to live. There are many different kinds of living situations available to students; some of these include room and board exchange or house-sharing. Also, the area in which you choose to attend college will greatly affect the cost of living. Living in a city is, obviously, more expensive than living near a school in a smaller town. Depending on your living situation, you can expect to pay between $10,000 and $15,000 above the cost of tuition.
The Cost of Public Four-Year Colleges for Non-Residents
Four-year college and university tuition rates for non-residents are usually comparable to those of private universities. For out-of-state students, the state funding of public universities is not used to help lessen their tuition costs. This is why many students stay closer to home when they complete their undergraduate degree. The tuition rates of public universities for non-resident students, range, on average, between $15,000 and $25,000 a year. Some institutions have even higher rates.
Living expenses are not included in the price of tuition. Typically, a student can expect average costs between $12,000 and $17,000 to pay for annual books, rent, food, transportation, and entertainment. Books alone can cost as much at $2,000 a year, depending on the discipline of study. Out-of-state students also tend to pay more for their cost of living because they live farther from home and traveling expenses are higher.
The Cost of Private Colleges and Universities
Attending a private college is often seen as being one of the most expensive ways to earn an education. However, the higher cost of private schools is often balanced by smaller class sizes, more individual attention, and more financial aid offerings. Tuition, regardless of your home state, has an average range between $21,000 and $40,000 a year. The higher tuition is based on the fact that private schools receive little to no help at all from local or federal governments.
Due to the fact that private school tuition is often much higher than public school education, there is often slightly more financial aid offered to students opting for a private college or university. This does not mean that there is any change in the amount of money needed to pay for basic living expenses. Of course, these costs can vary greatly according to your living situation and location, but you can typically plan to spend between $10,000 and $20,000 per year.
Here's a graph illustrating the trend in tuition cost between 2-year Public, 4-year Public, and 4-year private institutions:
The Cost of Public Graduate Schools
Graduate school can be hard to price because the cost of tuition depends greatly on the type of graduate school a student plans on entering. For instance, an MBA program is generally the most expensive option, and it can cost up to $10,000 more a year than a nursing school. Due to these variations, it is difficult to generalize the cost of tuition, but students can expect to pay anywhere from $3,500 to as much as $25,000 a year. The price for a non-resident will be slightly higher than for a state-resident.
The key financial distinction between an undergraduate education and graduate school is that there are many more opportunities to have tuition, and even living expenses, covered by the school or an outside scholarship entity. At the graduate level, there are more occasions for research, and therefore, more chances for paid opportunities to contribute to the academic community. As a result, many schools offer full tuition reimbursement and a small salary for students to earn their master's and PhD degrees. This is not a fool-proof option, however. Students who get the chance to have their graduate degree paid for,generally show high accomplishment (good grades) in their undergrad years, and therefore, show promise for contributing to the university's advancement.
The same $10,000 to $15,000 undergraduate living expenses can be expected at the graduate level.
The Cost of Private Graduate Schools
The difference between private graduate school and public graduate school is not quite as extreme as the differences between undergraduate colleges and universities. This is simply because graduate schools cost more than undergraduate education anywhere you go, be it private or public. Graduate school education in private institutions tends to fluctuate according to the discipline. Depending on the program, tuition rates can range from $20,000 to $40,000 per year.
The opportunity to get your graduate education paid for by an outside resource, though still possible, is less common at private universities. This is because there is less government funding available at these institutions. The quality of education offered through these programs is not any less, however.
Living expenses above and beyond the tuition rates of these graduate programs don't necessarily contrast from the rates paid by graduate students at public universities. You can expect to spend approximately $10,000 to $15,000 on things like room and board, books, and transportation.
