It’s true, you can save a fortune if you use one simple strategy.

As a Certified Financial Planner, I’ve been actively trying to figure out how to cut college tuition costs. As a dad with have three kids in college in 2019 it’s especially timely!

HERE’S HOW I AM MAKING COLLEGE MORE AFFORDABLE

We all know college costs are out of control and there are several popular strategies people use including:

1. Taking Advanced Placement (AP) classes in high school and testing well enough to have the high school class get your child college credit.
2. In some school districts your child can take class(es) at a community college while in high school and get dual credit. This is terrific, except the local school district teachers don’t like it because it reduces their demand for classes and teachers.
3. Have your child go to junior college. This is especially inexpensive if they go to school in your area, getting resident rates. The cost of a junior college class at College of DuPage (online), for example, is about $450 for a 3 credit class or $150/credit hour. My daughter goes to U. of Minnesota where they charge roughly $1,100 per credit hour or $3,300 for the same three-hour class as a full-time student. Hello??? This is a massive savings!  All three of my kids took online summer school saving me a bundle of money!
4. Of course, going to an in-state four-year college is usually much less expensive than paying out-of-state tuition. Staying in-state will save you a bundle and it’s my belief that once you have a degree, what you do after college is the biggest determinant of your ultimate success. Generally, that’s a much better value, but what if you child’s heart is set on going to a more expensive school?

How do I give my kid the great 4 year college experience at half the price?

The answer is to have them go as a “part-time” student to the four-year college. From my research, most schools have one full-time rate that covers anything over a certain number of credit hours. For example, my daughter goes to U. of Minnesota (UM) and full-time means 13 or more credit hours per semester. For 13 or more credits the non-resident tuition cost is $14,368 per semester. Ouch! If possible, it would be a cost saving move to take as many credits as possible, say 18, since the price is the same. There is another way to do it that’s cheaper.

Have her take 2, three credit courses at U. of Minnesota. At UM if you take less than 13 credits you are considered part-time and are charged per credit. For the Class of 2022, the per credit cost is $1,105. So the UM bill for the part-timer taking 6 credits this semester is ($1,105 x 6 credits) $6,630. Then supplement those courses while living on campus by taking 3, three credit courses from a community college. For example, Western Civilization, Business Law and Religion 101. At the College of DuPage (COD), the resident costs for these online courses is about $500 per course.  Therefore, the cost of taking 9 credit hours at COD is $1,500. Add the $1,500 (COD) to the $6,630 (UM) and you get $7,130 or about half the cost of the full-time tuition cost! B10 College Costs are Frightening

JUST SAVED $7,000 FOR THE SEMESTER AND $14,000 PER YEAR!

5. My son goes to DePaul and they are on a quarter system. He’s on his way to a Finance degree from this fine private college. It’s a pricey school at $13,000 per quarter. The math works just as well with DePaul. Their full-time student quarterly fee is the same for 12+ credits and their part-time credit fee is only $630/credit. So last year he took Statistics and Marketing courses at DePaul while living in Lincoln Park three blocks from campus. As a “part-time” (less then 12 credits) DePaul student this cost 8 credits x $630 = $5,040.  He took history and religion at COD online which cost $1,000 for the 8 credits he earned there.

My son’s total tuition for the quarter was $5,040 + $1,000= $6,040 Quarterly savings of ($13,000-$6,040)  $6,960!

Doing that for three quarters adds up to well over $20,000 of tuition savings! I believe this works for most four-year schools. This works especially well for the first couple years of college while taking basic courses at a community college. In most cases, your student will want to be taking the courses in their major from the four-year school. Many college mandate that the last 30-60 credit hours be taken at their school in order to get their degree.

If you are wondering if the courses will transfer in to the four-year school, the answer is “yes”. You can check ahead of time with the school before registering to confirm. Most four-year schools have websites that help you check this or speak with an advisor. There is also a great website called Transferology that allows to search every university that has a class that will be allowed at the college your child attends to meet the course requirement. It’s terrific!  You just type in your child’s college and the course number, click to find every college that offers a course that will be accepted for that credit. It’s that simple.

In this day and age, college costs are out of control and we know that our kids need “the paper”, the diploma to give them the best opportunity in life.

I strongly consider looking into these strategies as it’s a way to enjoy the great four-year college experience and shave off thousands of dollars in tuition costs.

Don’t hesitate to contact me via email or call if you have questions about this or other financial strategies.

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