Cut 25% Off The Total Cost of a College Degree

Three million Americans over the age of 60 are still paying off student debt. Approximately 40,000 of them are having Social Security or other government payments garnished.  It shouldn’t be this way.  To avoid the likelihood of joining these ranks, parents and students need to do some careful planning well before deciding on their college of choice.

One of the best ways of reducing the total cost of a college education is reducing the number of years spent acquiring a college degree.  By taking Advanced Placement (AP) courses in high school, taking an extra course (at no extra charge) during some college semesters, and/or taking courses at a college close to home in the summer, students can often complete their college requirements in three years, cutting 25% off what is typically a four-year college bill.
 
Another way to minimize costs is to choose the institution wisely.  When considering potential colleges, students should not necessarily reach for the stars – unless it’s to a college with an impressive endowment.  Students will find that if they apply to a college a tier below the level of school to which they could likely get accepted, the scholarship money will almost certainly be much greater. 

Students planning to major in business, for example, often seek to gain acceptance to NYU’s Stern School of Business where the cost hovers around $70,000 a year for tuition, fees, room, and board. These same students could reasonably expect to be welcomed at St. John’s University in New York, St. Joseph’s University in Philadelphia, and a host of other institutions with impressive business schools, substantially lower costs of attendance, and generous merit money to attract strong students. Parents can also negotiate financial aid offers with colleges, particularly when they have varying scholarship offers from different schools.

Families should also be proactive in seeking outside scholarship money. As fans of “Shark Tank” know, there’s a highly effective app called “Scholly” that identifies potential scholarships that are available to college-bound students.  Students go to www.myscholly.com or the Apple App Store or Google Play Store to download the application for “Scholly Scholarship Search.” 

Parents should be sure to file a FAFSA (Free Application for Federal Student Aid) and answer “yes” to the question on whether the student would like to be approved for Work Study.  It’s always wise to be eligible for work-related opportunities on campus, particularly if a job comes along to do research for a college professor or partake in some other academic endeavor.  Work study is also a great way for students to earn spending money, as the last thing they should do is accumulate credit card debt to add to any college debt.

Students can do their part to maximize scholarship funds by carefully preparing for the SAT and taking it several times in order to get the best possible score.  Almost every college awards merit money, which is renewed each year, based on SAT scores.  This is frequently the easiest and most productive way for students to minimize their student debt.

Susan Alaimo is the founder of SAT Smart. For the past 25 years, SAT Smart’s Ivy League educated tutors have prepared students for the PSAT, SAT, ACT, Subject Tests, AP courses, and all high school subjects. Visit www.SATsmart.com or call 908-369-5362.