The Rising Cost of College: You Are Not Alone
As you begin your journey to afford college, it’s important to know that you are not alone.
In the United States, state funding and wages have remained stagnant compared to the ballooning cost of college:
Cost of College vs. Minimum Wage Salary and State Funding Levels, 2000-2021
To put these numbers into perspective:
The average cost of college tuition and fees at public 4-year institutions has risen 179.2% over the last 20 years.
The rising costs of college tuition outpace the rate of inflation 171.5%.
Since 1990, average tuition and fee rates have increased 130% after adjusting for inflation.
These growing costs have made college increasingly out of reach. For most students, this gap between financial aid and the cost of college means student loans, which have outpaced both credit card and auto loan debt to become the second-highest form of consumer debt outside of mortgages at $1.7 Billion. Also, with students now returning to in-person classes on campus, it’s unclear how long the temporary pause in tuition hikes due to COVID-19 will last.
So, the next time someone tells you that they afforded college in ‘93 by working part-time at the library and they don’t know why you’re complaining, take that sentiment with a grain of salt.
What This Means for You
For the average student, this means that it’s more important now than ever before to own your finances and learn the financial aid and scholarship strategies to afford school. While you are in college or preparing for college, you can deploy these strategies and save thousands of dollars. Once you have signed on the dotted line for debt and have already graduated, however, you are stuck with the amount you borrowed.
That’s why it’s important to tackle your financial situation head-on while you are still a student. As many of my fellow millennials will tell you, this will save you a lot of pain later on when you open up your first student loan bill.
Not being saddled with student loan debt at the beginning of your adult life means that you have more choices - choices to move out of your parent’s place, travel, buy a car, get pets, help your family, or bounce back from an emergency. Although it’s easy to forget when you’re still a student, college is just the very start of your adult life and having minimal student loan debt will help you achieve your other goals.
Get Started
To get started, download the eBook “Debt-Free College Degree”, the comprehensive guide on how to afford college.
For questions or comments, feel free to reach out to DebtFreeCollegeDegree@gmail.com.