Even if you started a college fund as soon as your son or daughter was born, chances are you are still in for a shock when you find out how much college is really going to cost.
The distressing truth is that while the inflation rate has gone up 115% since 1985, the college education inflation rate has risen nearly 500% during the same time period.
Gordon Wadsworth, author of The College Trap, who has lengthy experience in the world of college financial aid, breaks it down like this:
“…if the cost of college tuition was $10,000 in 1986, it would now cost the same student over $21,500 if education had increased as much as the average inflation rate but instead education is $59,800 or over 2.5 times the inflation rate.”
(And yes, you read that right. It’s okay. Take a moment.)
To make sure you have a handle on what to expect, check out the very helpful College Cost Calculator from The College Board HERE.
To get a quick number, the calculator can automatically fill in the “Annual college costs, in today’s dollars” box with average costs for 2-year and 4-year public and private schools, both in-state and out-of-state. Just pick one and plug in the rest of the info, including whether or not you are putting in any money from savings and how many years there are until your student goes to college.
While this tool is supremely handy on its own, if you have an idea of specific colleges your student is considering, you can search the site, select the “Payment” link in the left-hand menu of the school’s dedicated page, and see the breakdown of tuition and fees, room and board, books and supplies and more – for both in-state and out-of-state. This is especially nice to get an even more accurate idea of costs to expect for each potential scenario.
So, if your student plans to go to college, arm yourself to minimize scary financial surprises. Learn what your family is really looking at, and stay on top of estimated costs with the College Cost Calculator.