Just one! And it is no doubt higher in price today.
That figure, by the way, was an average of all four-year, two-year, public and private institutions.
Start saving up, right?
I always joke that I plan on home schooling my children for college to save money. But in reality, I have dreams of them attaining a college degree just like you do.
But wait. What if someone came up to you and said "why bother?"
There are those who believe a college education is not worth the cost. This could be the first reason why:
Too many college students end up not learning anything. At least that is what a book just published last week claims.
"Academically Adrift: Limited Learning on College Campuses" details a study conducted by two sociologists, Richard Arum of New York University and Josipa Roksa of the University of Virginia. We talked about this on Action News when the book came out.
The study looked at 2,300 college students at 24 different schools, and found that 45 percent of the students barely learned anything after two years. After four years, the study found that more than a third of the students showed little improvement.
The study has its doubters, of course, many of them in the education community, who say there are too many factors at play to paint college students with such a broad brush.
Decide for yourself. Here is a link to the book: http://www.amazon.com/Academically-Adrift-Limited-Learning-Campuses/dp/0226028550
This brings us to the "Seven Reasons Not to Send Your Kids to College."
They are from an article written by James Altucher, a writer for the Wall Street Journal and frequent commentator on CNBC. Here are his seven reasons, as they appeared in his column on Daily Finance (link: http://srph.it/def0fd):
1. More than 60-percent of people entering college take more than four years to graduate. So whatever you think your kids are going to cost you to go to college, add 20-percent to 100-percent.
2. The cost of the average college tuition has gone up nine-fold since 1976 versus seven-fold for health care and three-fold for inflation.
3. The differential in lifetime income between a college graduate and a non-college graduate over a 45 year career is approximately $800,000 (read on).
4. If I put that $200,000 that I would've spent per child to cover tuition costs, living expenses, books, etc. into bonds yielding just 3-percent (any muni bonds) and let it compound for 49 years (adding back in the 4 years of college), I get $851,000. So my kids can avoid college and still end up with the same amount in the worst case.
5. If smart, motivated, ambitious kids (the type of kids who get the most out of college) avoided college I'm sure the differential would be a lot less than $800,000 and may even be negative (i.e. they would make more if they avoided college and started going into the business world earlier).
6. The average debt burden of a college graduate is $23,000. Up from $13,000 10 years ago. Students with professional degrees can see their debt burden go higher than $200,000. Total student borrowing has topped $75,000,000,000. It's too much for young adults just starting their careers.
7. Alternatives to spending $200,000 per kid so they can waste four years of their lives:
- Give them $20,000 to start one to five businesses. Most businesses fail but that's ok. The education from the process lasts a lifetime and the network you build when you start a business will lead to many future jobs and possibilities.
- Travel the world. That would be an education that pays many dividends and is much cheaper. Your kids can then go to college with a much more mature view of the world.
- Work. They won't get the best jobs but they can make money, network, get a "hands-on" education, learn the value of money and go to college in their 20s when they can afford it -- and make every dollar worth it. Plus your kids will have a more clear idea of what they want to do in the world.
- Volunteer. Let them see a side of life that is harder and where they can add value. An education like that is invaluable.
- Do nothing but read. Get the benefits of a college education without paying the $200,000. I'd be happy to support a child that wants to home school a college education.
Sure. But the question you have to ask yourself is: is all the money worth it? And only you know the correct answer.
By the way, I graduated from the University of Delaware. In four years. And I learned a lot.
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