The value of college education is immeasurable. However, the cost of college education is another matter. For many parents, as well as students who plan to support themselves, the price of college education seem totally unaffordable. And we have heard too many horror stories about college loans. So, what is really the cost of college education? To shed light into the current cost of a college education, here are three facts about college education cost.
First, according to the U.S. Department of Education Institute of Education Sciences National Center for Education Statistics, college education costs are significantly higher today than in the last couple of years. For the school year 2010 2011, the cost of undergraduate tuition fee, board and lodging is about $13,600 in public schools. For the same academic year the cost of undergraduate tuition fee, board and lodging in private and not for profit educational institutions is around $36,300. And for private for profit educational institutions, the cost for undergraduate tuition fee, board and lodging is around $23,500. This shows that the cost of college education in public school is about half the cost of college education in private for profit institution and it is even significantly higher in private nonprofit educational institutions. So if you are sending your child to the university in the next academic year, you can already see how much you will spend on the average.
Second, the cost of college education increased by 42 percent in under a ten year period in public institutions. From 2000 2001 academic year to 2011 2012 academic year, the cost of college education in public schools which included undergraduate tuition fee, board and lodging rose by 42 percent . For that same academic year comparison, in private not for profit educational institutions, the cost of college education, which included undergraduate tuition fee, board and lodging increased by 31 percent . For private for profit educational institution, the undergraduate tuition fee, board and lodging increased only by 5 percent . The rate of increase is already adjusted for inflation. This trend shows you how the cost of college education in the United States has increased in a decade. If you are sending your child in college in five years you can expect additional increase based on this statistics.
Third, the above stated cost of college education does not include other expenses, such as books. Books and other expenses vary per educational institution. In some universities, books and supplies can cost only $800. In some schools, the cost of books and supplies can reach $1,500 or more. It depends on the school and the program. Aside from these there are other expenses to be considered as you send your child to college.
