How to Make College Less Expensive

Disclaimer

I am not a financial adviser, nor do I have children in college. I am just a woman with A LOT of student loan debt. Hind sight is 20/20. So with the knowledge I now have this is the way I would have saved money on college.

Feel free to pass some of these tips on to anyone you know who is college bound.

Things You Can Do in High School

1. Take A.P. classes
A.P. classes are a great way to get some of your general education classes out of the way (for free). The fewer classes you have to take, the more money you save.

2. Get Good Grades (I did this)
I graduated high school with a B average, with that I was able to get a small grant for my freshman year. Money saved. If I had it to do again I would have really tried for an A average.

3. Go to Summer School (I did this too)
Back in my day (Class of 97) it was very hard to graduate high school early. I think the school got more money if they had a certain amount of students. But if you live some where that they will let you skip a grade and/or graduate early do it. This looks good for colleges and you may get a scholarship. If not (this is if you want to go to an out of state public school), you can move to the state that you want to go to school. After you live in a state for a year you become a resident (unless the rules have changed). Residents get in-state tuition, this can be the difference between $100 a credit and $400 a credit.

Things To Do In College

1. Go to Community College
At most schools the first two years is dedicated to taking general education classes. For a fraction of the cost you can go to community college, take the same classes, and save a lot of money.

2. Go to a Public School
Now days most public universities are just as good as private universities. Unless going to Harvard or Princeton are family traditions (in which your parents can probably can afford to pay for your school anyway) find a good public school and save some money

3. Go to an In-State School
Most states have at least one stand out school (I'm lucky Florida has 5 that I can think of off the top of my head). Find one with the major you are interested in and go to it. If there isn't one in your state, consider moving there for a year and become a resident.

4. Try Not to Take Private Student Loans and/or Take Only What You Need.
This was my down fall. The first time I went to college I had federal loans and I took every cent I could get. Not to bad considering it was a public school. The second time I went to college I went to a private school and had to take out a private student loan. I still took every cent I could get. BIG Mistake.

So, those are my thoughts. Please add any that you may have.

Back Story - Part 1

So how did I get myself into this financial pit? It all started a long time ago (1997) in a galaxy far, far, away (Tallahassee, Fl).

In 1997 I was a freshman in college. I was foot loose and debt free (not completely, I had a student loan). It was the week before class started and I was walking through the campus. I remember there were tables set up and you could get a "free" t-shirt if you signed up for a credit card. Like a fool I signed up for 6, not thinking that I would actually get approved. So you can imagine my surprise when the cards started showing up in the mail. Before I knew it I was the proud owner of a Discover card, Master Card, and 4 Visa's.

Hearing the horror stories of college kids and credit cards I did not use the cards for months. Then it happened, I needed books for class and my voucher would not cover the cost. So I charged them. It was down hill from there. A small part of me is proud to say I did not necessarily max out my cards on stuff like trips, eating out, and other college kid crap. I used my cards to live, groceries, gas, text books, sometimes even other bills all went on the credit cards. Of course I bought clothes too, but the majority went to survival.

Fast forward 4 years, I graduate and get a job making decent money considering what I majored in. I thought I would be able to pay off the cards, but between rent, car payments, utility bills, student loan payments, and food I barley had enough money left over to cover the minimum payments. Eventually I defaulted on two out of the four cards. I made payment arrangements with one and my mother lent me the money to pay off the other.

To be continued........