Cutting college's cost
As tuition increases, students are finding ways to reduce burden
April may best be known as the month for fools and rain showers, but for high school seniors, it's also a time of angst. Many will spend spring break trying to decide which college they will attend come September.
Some will make the decision with their heart: Stay close to home or embark on a new adventure in a distant city? Others have a more practical concern: How am I going to pay for this?
With tuition and fees at many schools spiraling faster than the rate of inflation, education expenses can be a heavy burden, but several local families have done their homework and adopted creative strategies for slashing the price of a bachelor's degree.
Some area high school students are calculating the benefits of studying across the border: Several schools in Canada are considered just as prestigious as Ivy League schools in the United States, and offer huge savings: A bachelor's degree from McGill University in Montreal costs less than half of one earned at New York University.
Others are choosing to stay closer to home. They are taking special academic exams or advanced-placement courses to earn college credit for basic classes before their feet ever hit a university campus. And a growing number of savvy scholars are opting to enroll in a local community college, and then transfer to the four-year school of their dreams.
"I wanted to stay close to home -- and out of debt," said Melissa Lovato, 19, an engineering and electronic technology major who is completing her studies at Northern Essex Community College, in her hometown of Haverhill, before transferring to Merrimack College. "By coming to Northern Essex first, I saved tens of thousands of dollars in tuition, room, and board. And in the end, I'll have the same bachelor's degree."
Lovato, a 2005 graduate of Whittier Regional Vocational Technical High School, employed several tactics to rein in her college costs. She took advantage of a Tech Prep program that allowed her to earn college credits for three courses she took in high school, a decision that shaved several hundred dollars off her tuition bill at Northern Essex.
And by enrolling at the local community college instead of heading off to a pricey private university right out of high school, Lovato was able to continue living with her parents, saving her thousands of dollars in tuition, room, and board. And finally, thanks to a partnership between Northern Essex and Merrimack College, Lovato is expecting to get a deep discount on her tuition bill at the four-year school. Lovato's high grades in the honors program at Northern Essex have earned her an opportunity to attend Merrimack College for the price of a public university.
Her projected savings: $40,000.
"I think a lot of parents and students are looking at the cost of a four-year degree and are intimidated by prices of 20, 25, or $30,000 a year," said Peter Monaco, senior academic counselor for North Shore Community College. "Our fear is that they might be discouraged, and choose not to go to college at all because they think they can't afford it, but there are ways to cut costs."
Nationwide, the average cost of attending a public four-year university ballooned 35 percent between the 2002-2003 and 2006-2007 academic years after factoring in inflation -- the highest five-year rate of increase since the mid-1970s.
In the last year alone, tuition and fees increased 6 percent at both private and public four-year institutions, according to a study by the College Board, the nonprofit that administers the SAT college-entrance exam.
To put that in perspective, the Consumer Price Index shows that inflation is up 2.4 percent this year over last.
To keep costs at Massachusetts public colleges under control, state legislators in the House and Senate are considering separate bills that would cap tuition and fee hikes while giving the schools a change they have long lobbied for -- the right to keep tuition dollars instead of passing them along to state coffers.
In past years, the colleges have been raising mandatory fees instead of tuition charges because schools are able to pocket the fees as revenue. As a result, fees at some Massachusetts public colleges are triple the tuition costs.
"It's the fees that kill you," said Adrienne Blue, whose son, Nate, is going to the University of Massachusetts at Amherst in September after simultaneously earning his high school diploma at Lynnfield High and an associate's degree at North Shore Community College this spring through a dual enrollment program called STEP. "Of the $16,000 we expect to pay each year at UMass, only $1,600 is tuition. The rest is mandatory fees and room and board."
Through the STEP program, the Blues expect to save roughly $35,000.
"Not only do I spend half of my college years at community college, which costs significantly less than UMass, I also save a lot of time," said Nate Blue, 18, who will study business administration. "I'll be a junior at UMass this fall, while other students in my [high school] graduating class will just be starting out as freshmen."
Community college may also be a good fit for students who aren't ready for a four-year school.
"A lot of kids getting out of high school are not really 100 percent sure what they want to do," noted Monaco. "When you're 17 or 18 years old and not sure of what you want, to go to a four-year private school to do a lot of experimenting doesn't make much sense. Better to come to a place like North Shore, and save money in the process."
For Seabron L. Stafford, an aviation major at North Shore, settling on a career path wasn't the issue. He's wanted to be a pilot since seventh grade.
For him, it was a question of staying close to home. The 23-year-old East Boston resident had moved from Dorchester to Lebanon, N.H., in high school and wasn't ready to make another big transition. Leaving the city had been difficult, and his grades reflected the inner turmoil.
Stafford graduated from high school with a C average. He knew his grades wouldn't get him a coveted seat at Purdue University or Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University, the Harvard and Yale of aviation science.
And then there was that other seemingly insurmountable obstacle -- the price tag of a prestigious education.
To overcome both challenges, Stafford chose to go to the local community college. Today, he's an honors student who earns high grades and receives $11,600 in merit-based scholarship aid each year.
His estimated savings as opposed to four years at a typical private college: $50,000.
"I have opportunities now that I didn't have coming out of high school," Stafford said. "North Shore has been a great stepping stone. Coming here gave me a clean slate -- an opportunity to raise my grade-point average -- and helped reduce my loan burden, which really weighs on me.
"I think community college is great for anyone who can't afford to go to a university from the start. Hopefully, my story will inspire others who think they can't afford a bachelor's degree."
Brenda J. Buote may be reached at bbuote@globe.com.
NorthTalk
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