Degree Programs Leave Students ‘Financially Worse off’ Than Before College: Report

For some students, particularly those in certain tech, economics and healthcare fields, the answer is an unequivocal “yes.” Like engineering majors — 95% of which can expect to make more than $80,000 by mid-career, according to FREOPP. But 28% of college degree programs actually leave alumni “financially worse off than if they had never gone to college at all,” … Read more

Yes, Colleges Really Can Cut Your Financial Aid if You Win Other Scholarships

Most colleges around the country practice scholarship displacement, meaning they reduce financial aid when students bring in outside scholarships, even though critics say it penalizes students who put in the effort to apply for awards from community organizations and non-profit groups. What’s more, sometimes families don’t see the impact until the fall bill shows up, … Read more

College Tuition Payment Plans Can Stick Students With Exorbitant Fees: Report

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) identified a number of flaws and risks with college tuition payment plans in a new 35-page report. Payment plans have traditionally been presented as a relatively innocuous tool to help manage college bills and even avoid student loans, but, per the CFPB, often have less-than-ideal terms in their fine print. The … Read more

Parents Are Increasingly Worried About the Cost of College for Their Kids

What the data says Results of a survey published by financial services firm Discover Student Loans on Wednesday find that 70% of parents say they are worried about financing their kids’ college expenses — a share that’s steadily climbed since at least 2021, when only 63% of parents said they felt this anxiety. Last year, the number … Read more

4 Tips for Finding the Best College for You

Don’t get caught up on sticker prices One of the first things you need to consider when you get serious about your college search is how much you can afford to pay, and relatedly, how much a college will cost. “You wouldn’t go look at houses to buy without talking about money, and you wouldn’t … Read more

4 Myths About College Scholarships That Could Cost You

Scholarships come in different kinds of packages, from institutional scholarships, to state-sponsored merit awards or need-based scholarships, to smaller scholarships from private foundations. They play a key role in affording college, with some 60% of families using them to cover a portion of the bill, according to the Sallie Mae’s 2022 How America Pays for … Read more

How to Pay for College Without Loans

Most college students use a combination of money sources: Last year, for example, families reported that scholarships and grants covered 26% of costs, while 54% came from parent and student income and 18% from loans, according to Sallie Mae’s How America Pays for College report. If your goal is to avoid student loan debt — … Read more

Here’s the Top Reason People Choose Not to Go to College

Courtney Brown, vice president of impact and planning at the Lumina Foundation, a private foundation that focuses on education beyond high school, says there’s actually some good news in the report — specifically, that the majority of people who both are and aren’t in college still see the value of a degree. “The problem is, … Read more