Paying for a child’s college education can be difficult.
This is especially true if you’re going to have multiple children attending
college at once and/or if you’re sending your child to a very prestigious
school. Prestige often means a much higher price tag than, say, the local
community college.
It’s important to understand, however, that, with a few
exceptions, those “prestigious” colleges may not really be worth it. Some of
those big-deal schools don’t actually offer an education that’s any better or better
career prospects than other, cheaper schools.
Don’t believe that? Well, amazingly, a recent study by the
Brookings Metropolitan Policy Program revealed that in terms of mid-career
earnings, loan repayment rate, and occupational earnings, graduates of
Washington and Lee University, Harvey Mudd College, Clarkson University, and
other cheaper schools actually fared better in these categories than Harvard
graduates! Harvard is just about as prestigious as it gets, and if its
graduates aren’t doing any better than graduates at other colleges, that should
really make you think twice about forking over double the money just so your
child can attend a “big name” school.
You also want to take your child’s major into consideration
when choosing a college. In some fields, such as the technology field, the
potential for earning a lot of money after graduation is high, and there’s a
lot of competition, so, in that case, having a degree from a well-known
institution could really be worth it. Your son or daughter might have a better
chance of getting a job after graduation with the right degree and would be
able to pay off any loans once that job was secured. With other, less
competitive fields, however, it might not make a difference, in terms of career
prospects, where a degree is from, and a graduate might not make enough,
perhaps even ever, to pay off the loans he might accrue from attending a more
prestigious (and expensive) school. Thus, it’s important to be practical and to
consider what your child wants to major in and do after college and then factor
the realities of that career choice into the college decision.
Finally, you always want to think about the potential
connections your child could make at school and/or the alumni resources
available to him or her after graduation. If your child stands to meet a lot of
important people in his or her chosen field and make good, professional
connections at a particular college, then it may be worth a higher price tag.
Likewise, if a school offers lots of resources to help graduates secure
employment and find success, paying more might just be worth it.
In the end, only you can decide if a particular school’s
price and name is worth it to you and your child. Just be practical when you
make this decisions and consider all the factors at play.
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