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Nov 28, 20232 min read

There are many factors to consider when comparing college costs.

Comparing college costs is not as straightforward as reading the financial aid award. Do you know the 4-year graduation rate versus the 5-year Graduation rate? College financial aid offers do not differentiate between grants scholarships and loans when showing what you need to pay Be careful when comparing. The cost of college has 2 significant factors. How much you will need to pay and borrow and how long it will take to graduate? Many colleges have very low 4-year graduations and the average may be 9,10 or even 11 semesters.

Chapter 4 of Financially Independent Teens goes into more detail on how to do a college cost comparison and the importance of learning the average number of semesters it takes to graduate from each college you are comparing and explains how to understand your financial aid offer.

The book Financially Independent Teens, available on Amazon, goes into many more topics than just financing college. It covers the basics of what every young person should learn about money, budgeting, credit, investing, your first job, entrepreneurship, and how to plan for a successful life after college.


For more information check out our website https://parentsfin.wixsite.com/website/books or our books on Amazon

Raising Financially Independent Children

Financially Independent Teens

Financial Independence Essentials

Financial Essentials for Couples

Financial Essentials for Women by Women

Budgeting for Women by Women



Comparing college costs. The line at the bottom of the financial aid statement is not a good place to start.


Other things to consider are:

Years to complete degree

Loans vs grants

Off-campus housing costs

Food costs- Are meal plans required? Are there cooking facilities?





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