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...Says the man who went to school when the opportunity cost wasn't a decade in debt (at the very least). I got a great college education and graduated with a

by jmduke 13y ago

...Says the man who went to school when the opportunity cost wasn't a decade in debt (at the very least). I got a great college education and graduated with a level of debt that I paid off in less than a year, through a mix of need-based grants, merit-based scholarships, working 15 hrs/wk, and a lower overall tuition because it was a public school. (There's also the growing trend of 2&2 programs, which in retrospect seems like an even better choice.) I'm not necessarily arguing that the value of college outweighs its costs (for me, though, it certainly did), but to say that the opportunity cost is at least a decade in debt is invalid.

enraged_camel 13y ago
Perhaps it has not occurred to you that you were an outlier who was able to qualify for grants and scholarships and also had a (presumably decent-paying) part-time job. Not to mention living in a state with a decent school for your degree of choice. But, I mean, let's get real. Take a good public school like University of Washington. 4-year tuition comes to $160,000 - if you life with parents [1]. Are you telling me that this is not a crippling amount of debt for a lot of people? [1]http://admit.washington.edu/Paying/Cost#freshmen-transfer http://admit.washington.edu/Paying/Cost#freshmen-transfer
- saryant 13y ago
  That's for non-residents. At least look at the in-state number which is less than half the one you quoted.
  - enraged_camel 13y ago
    Most of the resident students live on or around campus, as opposed to with their parents. For them, total cost comes down to around $110,000. That's still a six-digit number.
    - jessaustin 13y ago
      So it's the non-resident students who live with their parents? That seems impractical. b^)
- RougeFemme 13y ago
  I agree that college is/can be expensive, but I think that your 4-year figure for tuition actually includes everything. Granted, tuition and fees are pretty fixed, but the other expenses - room/board, books/supplies, transportation, personal expenses - are usually quite variable. And, if you go a community college, which is considerably cheaper, you can then move on to a 4-year college. In some states, doing well at the community college, almost guarantees you admission to one of the good public 4-year colleges.
- jmduke 13y ago
  I'm not trying to assert that my experience was the standard. But the post to which I replied was asserting that the minimum cost was ten years of debt, which is also not standard. From a financial standpoint, there's little difference (at least to my knowledge) between attending an out-of-state public school and an out-of-state private school. A more apt comparison would be looking at UW's estimate for Washington Residents who live away from home, which is $12K tuition and $27K estimated total expense ($10K of which comes from room and board. As someone whose alma mater quoted something like $13K for room and board, I can speak anecdotally that those estimates come from on-campus dorms & meal plans, which are awful; you're basically paying $15/meal.)

by jmduke 13y ago

enraged_camel 13y ago

Perhaps it has not occurred to you that you were an outlier who was able to qualify for grants and scholarships and also had a (presumably decent-paying) part-time job. Not to mention living in a state with a decent school for your degree of choice. But, I mean, let's get real. Take a good public school like University of Washington. 4-year tuition comes to $160,000 - if you life with parents [1]. Are you telling me that this is not a crippling amount of debt for a lot of people? [1]http://admit.washington.edu/Paying/Cost#freshmen-transfer http://admit.washington.edu/Paying/Cost#freshmen-transfer

saryant 13y ago
That's for non-residents. At least look at the in-state number which is less than half the one you quoted.
- enraged_camel 13y ago
  Most of the resident students live on or around campus, as opposed to with their parents. For them, total cost comes down to around $110,000. That's still a six-digit number.
  - jessaustin 13y ago
    So it's the non-resident students who live with their parents? That seems impractical. b^)
RougeFemme 13y ago
I agree that college is/can be expensive, but I think that your 4-year figure for tuition actually includes everything. Granted, tuition and fees are pretty fixed, but the other expenses - room/board, books/supplies, transportation, personal expenses - are usually quite variable. And, if you go a community college, which is considerably cheaper, you can then move on to a 4-year college. In some states, doing well at the community college, almost guarantees you admission to one of the good public 4-year colleges.
jmduke 13y ago
I'm not trying to assert that my experience was the standard. But the post to which I replied was asserting that the minimum cost was ten years of debt, which is also not standard. From a financial standpoint, there's little difference (at least to my knowledge) between attending an out-of-state public school and an out-of-state private school. A more apt comparison would be looking at UW's estimate for Washington Residents who live away from home, which is $12K tuition and $27K estimated total expense ($10K of which comes from room and board. As someone whose alma mater quoted something like $13K for room and board, I can speak anecdotally that those estimates come from on-campus dorms & meal plans, which are awful; you're basically paying $15/meal.)