The money required for a university education

By George Dodson


Parents and their children ponder the same question throughout most of the world: what to do after high school graduation. The choice is now between finding a job or getting more qualified through college. If one is planning to have a decent and comfortable life, higher education is pretty much a requirement.

Unlike previous decades, more than half of recent graduates in the United States engage in some type of schooling after high school. So jobs that use to only a high school education previously now are asking for an associate degree.

The earnings of those with a bachelor degree are approximately 70% higher than the earnings of anyone with just a high school education. Those qualified with two year diplomas even get much more than high school qualifiers. Those years are a small investment compared to a child's life time earning potential.

The point here is whether you have the financial capacity to afford the expensive college education for your ward. Nevertheless, you can also not risk to deprive them of it. Ideally, an education fund should be started before your children are even born. Let us now see how much money would we require for this.

It's cheaper to go to a college or university in the state where you live. In most of the states, the public schools, tend to charge higher fees from the non- resident students.. However, private universities mostly have the same fee structure for both residents and non residents.

The estimated cost for each year of college is based on tuition, room and board, books, supplies and living expenses. This usually would cross about twenty thousand dollars for most universities. However you will have to shell out at least five thousand dollars more for sending your child to other states and double of that to the private schools. You may get some relief with scholarships, but that would be only a fraction of the bill.

A large portion of that amount is for room and board. So, if the student can eat and live at home that would be a huge savings. Next comes the money required for tuition and other fees, which is continuously increasing over the years. The remaining amount includes the money spent on transportation, books and other items. There are ways to save on those with sales, used books and public transportation.

These costs are different depending on where you live and what type of lifestyle the student makes his own. If the child attends a school which is really far from home, transportation expenses must be factored in. With the price of gas continuing to increase, this expense could be astronomical. You may also have to cater for a computer, depending on the course, along with other expenses for food, entertainment and clothing.

These are the usual anticipated expenses for completing a four-year degree course, but you can find technical schools and community colleges where expenses are lesser. Some students may even find them more appealing.

It's hard to estimate how much college will cost several years down the road, but you should estimate an increase of about 10% a year. Undertake some research yourself. If you find that setting up a fund for future education of your child is not possible, then opt for a savings account. You may also have a look at the local 529 plan and consider whether it can help you to avail some tax savings. It is assured that your investment on studies will pay you back in a great way.




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