Education is affordable and accessable if you make the correct choices and plan properly. Biggest problem as I see it is that we live in a "gotta have it all now" society. I come from single parent household and it came down to if we wanted to go to college, we had to pay for it. I worked and saved thoughout high school and my summers. I got good grade and got scholarships. No car, no expensive clothes, modest family vacations. In other words, I worked my ass off. I got my BA and went to law school and ended up with less than $10,000 in debt. (I graduated in 83.) When I got a job, I shared an apartment, took public transportation and paid off my debt in just over 2 years. Yes, expenses were lower back then but so were salaries.
When I worked financial aid, rarely did I see students with much savings. They didnt want to take work study because it would take time from the "college experience"...i.e....partying. I saw a lot of stupid choices.
My advise to those of you who have kids.....
1. Make sure they complete as many AP courses as they can while in high school. Any college credits you can get while in high school are a huge savings in the long run.
2. Complete your general education courses at a community college....huge savings there. Then transfer your credits to a 4 year college.
3. Attend state schools for undergrad. A Harvard undergrad degree is really no better that a University of Minnesota or Wisconsin degree. There are a lot of great state schools with grad programs too!
4. Stay away ....I mean run away from proprietary for profit schools. University of Phoenix is a great example of a degree mill. Employers chuck resumes with that school listed. ITT is another one.
5. Live at home if at all possible. Take public transportation. In most major cities you can live without a car.
6. Start saving early. My girls are 10 and 12 and we have been saving since birth. We make it a point to put something in their education accounts each month. When my hubby was unemployed we still managed to squeek $20 a month into their accounts. Even my girls will add money to the accounts from their birthday and christmas money.
Post secondary education is not a right in this country. If you cannot afford, obviously you will have to borrow to attend. Borrow the minimum amount possible
Ex-Financial Aid Officer
Ex-Student Loan Collector