It is no secret that the cost of college has been rising over the past decade so much so that it has outpaced the average Americans salary increase during the same period. A recent study by the National Center for Public Policy and Higher Education Titled “Measuring Up, The National Report Card On Higher Education” notes that all types of colleges-public and private have increased their cost of tuition, books, room and board since the 1990’s. The study uses a range of measurements to give states grades, from A to F, on the performance of their public and private colleges
The report notes, “The nation’s colleges and universities have become less affordable for students and their families since the early 1990s. This year, no states received an “A” or a “B” in this category, and 43 states flunked, reflecting the deterioration of college affordability.” What this means in non-technical language is that 43 out of 50 states received an “F” in the college affordability category.
The report also notes that the percentage of family income that is needed to pay for continuing education at a public institution in many states ranges from 20-42% of the families salary. That is equivalent to a house payment. The figure does not include financial aid.
So what does all of this mean for you? If you have a five year old that started Kindergarten this year and he or she wants to attend a non ivy-league, private college upon graduation from high school, you will need approximately $225,000 for the four-year education. In today’s dollars the average cost is about $28,000 per year or a mere $112,000 over four years-or about half of what it will cost in 15 years.
The message that this report made clear is that if our children want to attend college, and we are not independently wealthy, we are going to have to come up with some creative ways to help them through the four plus years of education. Children of today will need additional schooling in order to be competitive in the global economy.