The decision on whether to go to a state or private college is still quite a ways off for me, but the finances involved make for a big decision. Since I'm planning to have all my college funding saved by the time I turn 18, if I choose to go to a college that is less expensive, I will have money left over to begin my life once out of college. I will have to seriously weight the benefits of both options to see what is best.
I started thinking about this from an article in the
Philadelphia Inquirer:
Sending a child to a prestigious school is a real accomplishment. But lots of happy and successful people have come out of the state schools. At less than one-third the cost, maybe they're a better buy.
4 comments:
For that matter, community colleges are a better buy than state colleges. Get a 2-year degree then transfer.
The is probably a list of about 20 - 25 Private Institutions in the US that I think are worth the tuition based on reputation, quality, opportunities. Other than that you are getting a better value with a state school.
I think that there are about two dozen prestigious school that are worth the money for the education, reputation, and connections that you can make. If you can't get into these schools you are better off at a state school. The cost flexibility that state schools allow is critical to allow young people to chase the career path ( easier to change career path or to take a enriching low paying job) that they want to.
I would recommend going to the school that will cost the least to you. This doesn't necessarily mean the cheapest school, but factor in financial aid/scholarships to determine the least costly. I graduated from a top 20 university a couple of years ago, and looking back on it, the only ways in which going to a more "prestigious" school may help you would be if you're going into business or shooting for an extremely competitive graduate program. Even then, you may end up changing your mind about your future, so stick with the one that will cost the least for you.
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