10 Big and Small Ways to Save Money on College

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Would like to add that in-state isn't necessarily less expensive. I have a daughter who attends a state school in in Wisconsin that is considerably less expensive to attend than any of the state schools in Illinois, even though we live in Illinois. A couple of schools in the Wisconsin public school system offer incentive (reduced tuition) for potential students from Illinois , Iowa and Minnesota. Don't know if this is available in other states, but never hurts to shop around.

TwinsDad of IL 10:10PM February 27, 2013

You missed the absolute best college money saver - CLEP and DSST tests. You take a test and when you pass you instantly get college credit. Not all schools accept them but it seems like almost all community colleges and state colleges/universities do - even University of Phoenix.

Rachel of CA 10:08PM February 18, 2013

My daughter is an artist--a good one--but wants to attend a traditional college, rather than an art school, so we investigated traditional colleges with great art programs, which led us to Syracuse University, R.I.T., Temple University's Tyler School of Art, Virginia Commonwealth University, and Salisbury University (our in-state choice, little name recognition for art, but a fabulous looking program). Although her scholarships and merit awards at all the schools were significant, our in-state option turned out to be the option that does not require her to take out student loans. Sure, Syracuse University offered her 20K, but Salisbury more than cut her tuition in half, making it as affordable as our local community college in terms of tuition dollars. Her first choice school was Tyler (private within Temple), and though she got their most prestigious scholarship, there was simply no comparison. In-state--for us--turned out to be the best deal. I would not overlook in-state schools, although I would advise anyone who asked to apply to both and to make sure that they and their college-bound kids fully investigate their "safe" schools.

Violet of MD 12:40AM May 09, 2012

Scott, You're right that private schools don't differentiate between in state and out of state. In our experience, however, the private school options were always more expensive. That certainly won't be the case for everyone, however.
In addition, the in-state school in our cases also came up with nice scholarships, which brought the tuition down even more.
Good point about Truman State. They do a really good job of making excellent academics available at an affordable price, even for out of state students.

Julie Mayfield of KS 4:43PM September 01, 2011

The myth that In-state colleges are always less expensive just won't die.
First of all, private colleges make no differentiation of in-state vs out-of-state.
Second, many public out-of-state colleges are less expensive than in-state colleges. For example: University of Illinois cost of attendance in-state is almost $27,000. Truman State next door in Missouri out-of-state cost of attendance is right around $24,000.
Third, many public and private universities will pony up extra financial aid dollars to get students from geographically diverse areas. This often makes those out of state schools much more attractive.
Don't fall victim to the myths about college finances. Get educated.
www.edulaunchpad.com

Scott Anderson of IA 12:33PM August 31, 2011