College Funding

A Little Knowledge Can Go A Long, Long Way

We always tell it like it is. So here's the bad news about paying for your kids' college expenses. No matter how old your kids are today, it's going to cost a whole lot of money to send them to college. According to the College Board, tuition and fees at your basic run-of-the-mill four-year public college or university is $4,694 for the 2003-04 school year. Private schools cost an average of $19,710. When you factor in inflation, the number of years it will be until your kid heads off to college, and the budgetary whims of state governments everywhere, and then you multiply that number by the 4 or 5 years it will take to earn a degree, let's just say we're hoping your calculator can handle the equation.

But there is good news! The Census Bureau reports that as of 2000, the average college graduate (B.A. degree) earned $49,674 a year, compared to just $26,059 a year for non-graduates. That's a 90% earnings advantage, up from 57% in 1975. So if you're wondering whether it was worth it, it has all the potential of being worth an extra $23,615 a year (at least this year). Those figures aren't for entry-level jobs, of course. But they paint quite a picture about the earnings potential of college grads in general. If only the picture were framed with dollar bills.

Of course, attending college isn't just about making lots of money. It's about attending lots of parties and football games and setting world records for Number Of People Crammed Into A New VW Beetle. Stuff like that. Clearly, there's a potential value to a college education that goes way beyond opportunities for bonding with fellow students in a compact car. It's an investment that may pay dividends for a lifetime. Wait a minute. Pardon the ridiculous financial cliché, but it sure holds true in this case.

Anyway, here's a little knowledge that can go a long way toward helping you overcome your disgust, fear, loathing, confusion, procrastination and Stage I panic on the subject of paying for college.