Financial Aid can't be overlooked. I went to #5 Skidmore and came out with only $15K in student loan debt. It's a good idea to pick a college with a firm idea of the maxim amount of debt you/your kids are willing to endure for an education(I wouldn't go above $30K). And a tip for all you kids considering grad school, yes, you are almost garenteed that someone will offer you a full ride plus stipen in any of the life/physical sciences as long as you get the support of a faculty member during the admissions process.

You are, of course, correct mazzic1083. I love how Ben and Laura were so quick to tell me that something is wrong with my system instead of using some common sense as to what I meant. I guess it's not just the commenters that blame the OP.

That's why I didn't go there. Went to Princeton instead. I was born in North Carolina but that loan package was totally ridiculous.

Fees that are optional, or only apply to students who enroll in certain classes (lab fees, books, etc) are not considered qualified educational expenses for tax purposes.

This distinction should be reflected on a student's annual 1098-T, which should include both tuition and mandatory fees.

All of that was just to say that this list is pretty meaningless without a breakdown or at least a number showing what the average student actually pays.

I managed to get back from the school more than what I paid for my undergrad during my doctoral program. (In case you're wondering where the money goes.)

I know several (pretty successful) producers, and not a single one of them has gone to "producer school". They all pretty much did an old-fashioned apprenticeship working in studios for a pittance. And would all laugh/sneer at graduates of colleges like this... although I doubt they'd turn down a highly-paid job teaching at such a college, of course!

However, I do see a few schools my kid wants to apply to. (be afraid)

LOL! Beautiful.

Then again, if you look at the numbers, the difference between #10-70 is only 2k. Which, on one hand is a lot of money, but on the other, it's a very small margin. All of the NESCACs are up there...

Couldn't agree more. Truth is, the first job I picked up out of college really didn't require a college degree to carry out. However, it did teach me about responsibility, and how satisfying it is to really work at something.

I'm in an accelerated MBA program right now (65 credits in 12 months!) but I'm getting far more out of these 12 months than I did screwing around college for 4 years. The difference is that the experience of having worked out there in the "real world" taught me the value of the opportunity in the education system. You can reap dramatic and tangible results from school if you commit to being the top of your class.

Fortunately, Princeton is well known for its generous financial aid (as are most of the other Ivies).

I make my own education at home, with ingredients I've grown myself.

My alma mater wastes tons of money on a mediocre DI football team that few of the students particularly care about. If they got rid of it, or even dropped down to DIII, the university could cut tuition by $3000-5000 a head with no other downsides. Yet when the consultants told them this, they still decided to keep throwing money down that pit.

Similar deal here, ~23k plus tuition waiver as a TA/RA but they only have us babysit the students in lab sections for the most part instead of teaching actual classes.

After financial aid, it ended up being cheaper for a friend of mine to get his JD at U of C over his well regarded state school as an in-state applicant.

Foreign students don't qualify for any sort of federal aid or funding. They don't necessarily have to pay everything up front, but most places make them file some sort of financial statement to convince them that they'll be able to pay for four years of education.

Depending on what discipline you want to get your graduate degree in, they may pay you to go there. I'm currently getting about $23,000/yr plus tuition waiver to get my Ph.D in chemistry (though not at Yale or U of C.)

Of course, my undergrad is on the top half of that list. And my brother's school is on the bottom half. My poor parents.

Is there more than one "Dickinson College" in the US?

My alma mater has James Baker, Steve Jackson (of Steve Jackson Games), and, erm, Alberto Gonzales.

@NeverLetMeDown: if we're picking nits, it's not a spelling mistake, it's simply using the wrong word. the two words are basically homonyms, but different. i hate that i'm correcting grammar on a message board. see what you started?

@denb: I hope you study something useful because you may be regretting going to Expensive Uni with a degree in Finnish studies.

They don't use the money to renovate the school btw. GW classrooms were constructed in the 70's (ish) when I went there.

I wouldn't say I had weak academics in high school nor sat. I was above the average for where I went (top 20) and the program I got into.

@johnfrombrooklyn: I had the reverse experience: private college and public university for grad school. I haven't taught aside from assistantships during grad school.

On the one hand, I agree it's true that talented and motivated students will succeed anywhere. On the other, I have a hard time agreeing that, in general, someone who got an undergrad degree from a big state university got just as good an education as someone from a selective liberal arts college.

The big difference I have seen is that those who graduated from public colleges who are otherwise bright are a lot more likely to have glaring omissions in their general body of knowledge. I work in a field with many educational requirements and both highly technical and creative aspects. You would assume that most of the people I work with are, in general, "educated." For example, and I'm still talking in gross generalizations, those who got degrees from public colleges cannot write. By cannot write, I mean they are unable to compose a short document that is logically structured and grammatically correct. Likewise, they have a lot of trouble reading technical literature well enough to apply it correctly. In contrast, among the people I went to school with everyone is highly literate, even the ones in science or engineering disciplines where it's not of primary importance.

Seriously...sarah lawrence and GW...academically you're below a state school so do a qoea (quality of education adjustment).

I remember going to school with this saudi who had 3 cars on campus. A blue ferrari 360, a red ferrari 360, and a dodge viper gtr with racing stripes and a roll cage. I guess a porsche would be too flashy.

They don't offer any on-campus housing because their campus is located in a strip mall. The previous tenants were an Albertson's grocery store and other smaller shops. It's pretty bad.

On the other hand, a cheap college list may have some really scary institutions on it. Any alums of University of Tobacco Spit?

I went to private universities and I'm now working at a public one, and while I have no regrets about my path I think you're mistaken about the degree of advantage conferred. Have a look at Malcolm Gladwell's Outliers, where he notes the undergraduate institutions for Nobel winners, and notes that they're quite a varied lot. Going to a bad school is a problem, but the difference between going to a pretty good school and a top school? Not much once you get out of school.

@VidaBlueBalls:
Dunno. I started my college career there. Then I ran out of money and went to the U of AZ.

@johnfrombrooklyn: I would agree on the GPA, but not on where you got your diploma.

My experience is that people will infer a great deal about where you went to college. If you graduated from a very selective school people will assume, "Well, if he went to Faber U. he must have something going on."

And no, I don't work for any of the organizations you mentioned.

@BinaryTB:

State school. I go to an "Ivy State" which is one of the best schools in the country for what I am doing- poli sci. I pay about $9,500.00 for Tuition and fees per year. I have a friend that goes to a small, private college and it costs her nearly 3 times to go to a department that isn't even ranked in the top 50.

And international schools not only can be MORE expensive, but can teach your child little. I don't recommend England for higher ed unless it is Oxbridge, LSE, Kings College, etc. You do not learn much (or at least I didn't in all of last year) based on the way the curriculum is designed. And yeah, with international fees at a crappy uni there, the cost can be WELL over $20,000.00 a year. And then add on REDICULOUS cost of living expenses if you are in England - $1200.00 for a flat, $300-$400.00 a month for food, $500.00 for a tube pass, $1,000.00 RT to get there and a $1000.00 to come home for Christmas, and private health insurance if you are like me and have discovered that the NHS will not treat your condition properly.

I went to GWU (on a partial scholarship... or else I wouldn't have gone).
You would think with all that money on tuition you would have these amazing professors... but no. The money is spent (no kidding) on limos for the president of the school and random events. For example, while I was there, we once had a petting zoo in the quad for a week to help us with stress and an ice skating rink for 2 months just for fun.

No matter where they land on the US News list, they can always turn it into the best-ever PR. Missed the top 10 this year? Just say we made into the top 15 and make it sound like an elite group. One year after they dropped like a rock in the rankings, they claimed "we're in the top 10 among similar colleges!", never mind that they created their own subset list of 'similar colleges' so they could claim some sort of high ranking.

@meg9:

That's not a typo - it's a spelling mistake. A typo would be "acepted."

Now I'm at another school, and here, it's a mix. They work. They work hard, but they also work hard to just get the A, not perhaps to actually learn. I suspect there is a different monster behind this, but I won't go on a No Child Left Behind Tangent.

That may dangerously humanize you!

I had looked into the CIA and a culinary route; if you get into a program like that you often work at elite hotels/restaurants. They pay pretty well; but it's one of those positions that you either need to be young and have a huge history of moving up or you need a very good school. It's not worth it to have a small restaurant position and that degree. You'll be eaten alive through payments.

The school my son wants to go to? #29.

Sigh.

Many schools that don't play "big" football still have football teams (like the Ivies), typically cost-centers, but part of the whole "educating the whole person" thing. And "bringing in alumni donations."

Another thing people often ignore is the value of the trademark -- sports can help increase the value of a school's trademark, and all that logowear can bring in significant money to the university. When you see a list of "most valuable sports trademarks" there are typically several colleges in the list along with the Cowboys and Yankees and whatnot.

@jamar0303: Just don't express opinions contrary to what the people paying for that college to be open want you to have.

@Ben Popken: I think GreatGerm means on the article itself, as I also see the University of Phoenix ad. Of course no ads on consumerist (which is always nice!)

@donnie5: I think a snake actually hands out the applications.

Oh wait...

But hey, at least I have a job to go along with my mortgage payment sized loan bill.

I guess I should say, "I am glad I did not get duped into going to Full Sail"

@Red-headed bookworm: Crap, and if I could type it would look so much better. Engineering, not what I typed up there. We really need an edit button on this board.

@denb: Wow, elitism at it's best. Guess that Purdue degree in Engineerigng is too far beneath you since it's a state school...except they rank 9th on this list.

[colleges.usnews.rankingsandreviews.com]

A high cost does not equal a good education. Frankly, I'm quite happy with my Purdue education where I had professors who actually had worked in the real world and would use that knowledge in class.

Why do people feel the need to be so rude on sites like this when someone has a typo?

We still have student loans, but those paid primarily for food and lodging, not tuition.

(Eyebrows is a Domer, with the incriminating 'Backer pics to prove it!)

That's way more than I paid for...medical school.

@KernelM: I've never paid a dime. I'm in my fourth year of a Masters/PhD combined program. I get ~15k per year for 10-12 hours per week of work as a TA/tutor. Now I'm getting slightly more as an instructor.

My school probably should have been on this list, but instead of having tuition increases has crazy fees ($2k/semester). They have grad students teach classes. To kids paying $48k/year to attend. Parents, you should be incensed!

as an example, my sister was going to attend a private school with the sticker price of $20,000/year. right off the bat, the school hooked her up with a "scholarship" that made it only $10,000/year. that's before financial aid & outside scholarships. & the only requirement was that she keep attending school there & maintain at least a 3.0.

public schools rarely have "scholarship" programs like this.

@lilyHaze: Depends on the grad school. Professional schools generally don't have any aid, true. PhD track students, at least in the sciences, generally have all costs waived and get a bit of stipend to boot, based on fellowships and/or being an RA/TA.

@donnie5: I'm sure some of them get jobs otherwise, I would think it wouldn't be around otherwise.

One of the guys I know did get a somewhat related job about 8 years after graduation. Of course he got that job by working at a company and slowly getting on the job training anyway, so he would have gotten it anyway I think. He was also one of those smart as hell, sorry pastor I mean heck, guys who was kind of wasting it at full sail

@donnie5: I had some friends who worked sound and lights for a big church during college. They had a blast. Maybe you could find a local church that needs a sound guy? Of course, they'd have to be okay with you not being a member of their church.

@bohemian: My college tuition was around $12,000 a semester, so $20,000 a year isn't a whole lot for top notch education.

Teachers get such a bad rap. They're overworked, underpaid, and no one goes into teaching for the money. This is obvious. Some people fall into it because they don't know what else to do, but a lot of teachers love what they do, and enjoy the work. The money is pithy, but my best professors do it because they love it.

And really top notch professors can make a pretty good amount. Not a ton of money, but enough to make a big dent in loans and such.

"The comprehensive fee for 2009-10 is $51,115. It covers tuition and room and board as well as lab fees, studio fees and other course expenses. It also covers special programs such as our funded internships, some course-related travel, study away and even music lessons."

[www.fairfield.edu]

Cost of attendance to Fairfield University. If CC can have a full scope thing listed as tuition than perhaps it shouldn't be in the running based on just room & board considering the full scope of other colleges would take them out anyway.

@Coelacanth: Definitely not. There are very little grants/scholarship for grad schools whether it's income or merit-based. Most financial aid is through loans, right?

@ams199: It depends. Many honor students went to a school "beneath" them to get merit-based aid. I know that some decent colleges offered full scholarship to those who were National Merit Finalists.

@babyruthless: At the time, my private college had a 4.5 or 5 year maximum. If you didn't matriculate in that time frame, you were kicked out.

@pecan 3.14159265: This is true. In my first year, after grants and scholarships, my private college cost was $1,000 cheaper than the public university. Both are reputable schools.

I spent the weekend obsessively checking my email :P

@geekgrrl77: My college used to be consistently ranked as one of the top values in a liberal arts education in the country. My freshman year, the cost of tuition, room, board, and fees was about $17k. The year after I graduated, the price was almost $30k. The cost nearly doubled in 5 years...

Yeah, this would be good to know.

@adent1066: You realize when our founding fathers wrote "all men are created equal," they only meant white land owning men, right? I mean, these same dudes made the 3/5ths compromise.

I think we are already there. Education and health care are reserved for the small amount of aristocratic people who have found a way to pillage the serious lack of regulation in banking and business. The rest of us are financing their lifestyles. I wish more people would wake up to this. Reforming health care, reforming the student loan system and the cost of college could revolutionize the country.

When I did finally go to college I was ready to crack down and do it. It probably also helped that the job market completely sucked and I spent about half of that time off unemployed. When the unemployment office becomes a social event where you run into everyone you know the economy truly sucks.

I will say that twenty years on a big name on my resume has opened a few doors.

These schools have wildly divergent financial aid policies. Some of these schools have almost no endowments, so tuition accounts for all the costs of attendance. At others, (Yale comes to mind), generous aid policies mean even students from families earning >$100k/year don't pay close to the full cost of attendance. Harvard didn't make this list, but there, no one whose parents earn less than $200k/year is asked to pay more than 10% of their income.

Also, the value of degrees from each of these schools, and the value of degrees in different fields from any one of these schools, means a lot more than the difference in the tuition you pay to attend them. It may make financial sense to attend a state school over a local private college, or if you want a major where is doesn't matter what school you went to. But an education at a top school in a lucrative or highly competitive field can more than make up for any difference in tuition, compared to a less expensive alternative.

You need to be smart, and look beyopnd the price tag.
Note: in practice this is almost impossible, since few students have any real idea what they will study or what care4er they will enter, even if they think they do.

@Tawnie is NJ bound:Correction I see the full list now #97 Princeton.

Drexel is also a 5 year school for most students. At the same time, most students work full time half the year which can get the students several grand.

Dang it. I got ripped off! I want a refund!

One of or kids was looking at going to CIA (culinary inst. of America). It was going to cost $20k a year. Unless your that one person who is going to become wildly famous writing books, having a TV show and a string of prominent restaurants your probably going to be struggling to pay $80k plus back even as an exec chef somewhere.

I am just thankful I do not see Princeton in that list. My daughter is determined to get into Princeton and while it is a lofty goal, I just hope it stays reasonable in price.

Two fields that schools seem to churn out far more candidates than there will ever be jobs for, video game designers and web designers.

@zigziggityzoo: It's a public university, that's why it didn't make the list.

@vangogh71: not living in Canada: priceless.

Sorry had to do it. I've really got nothing against the place.

@geekgrrl77: 75k.

Private universities will slowly become a luxury.

@mac-phisto: Jonny Carson, Colonel Sanders, Fritz Klein, Wilford Brimley.

I hope spelling doesn't count

@pecan 3.14159265: It happened to me as well, it's why I mentioned it. I had the grades and the SAT scores and everything to get into an Ivy League, but my parents made "too much" money and my sister goes to a very very expensive elementary school, so my yearly tuition had to be cheaper than her 3rd grade tuition.

(Yes, I'm slightly bitter over it).

In state tuition/room+board is more along the lines of $25,000, so maybe that's why it didn't make the list?

@Smashville_now with Monster Energy: Did she factor in the cost of books, fees, meals, etc.? It still wouldn't be 64k, but it wouldn't be cheap.

Average undergraduate tuition

Newfoundland $2,619

Quebec $2,272

Manitoba $3,377

PEI $4,710

British Columbia $4,840

Saskatchewan $5,238

New Brunswick $5,479

Alberta $5,520

Nova Scotia $5,696

Ontario $5,951

@BabyFirefly: Nah, some of them have really great programs like U of Florida I think has a really good med program.

@johnfrombrooklyn: You did? That's my dream school.

@johnfrombrooklyn: that was why a lot of studio guys I talked to wouldn't hire Full Sail foks. they would rather the person learn first hand from somebody while working in the studio.

We were number 9 only two or three years ago!

They should count first-year expenses in their ratings.

@SkittleKicks: I don't know about that first part, I just saw barista's.

Problem is that once you're done there, you don't have a "real" degree for non-industry jobs.

The people I know that got jobs in the industry actually went to Valencia CC so they at least have an AA or AS to fall back on.

With the way things are going in my home state, I wouldn't be surprised to see my alma mater on this list in a few years. And it's a public university.

@pecan 3.14159265: What I meant to say was that since it's in Baltimore, I don't really count that as being part of the DC area. It's a good 40 miles.

Kinda blows my friend's argument that she paid 64 grand a year to go to Belmont out of the water (I was always like...how come you paid 4x as much as I did...and we graduated at the same time?)

@mmmsoap: I graduated with people who waited a year or two before starting college...and among them, half of them never actually started. I couldn't wait to go to college, but then again, I liked school and I wasn't into partying. The only shots I ever did were shots of espresso.

@SkittleKicks: What if you become wildly successful at being a barista?

It went up TWENTY THOUSAND DOLLARS in 15 years??!! Holy crap! What the heck will people be paying another 10 years from now?

your kids could go to state school and learn just as much, if not more, well aside from MIT I guess.

If they're willing to do the work and make the most out of their education. Too many kids are really too young, at 17-18, to really make use of their college experience beyond partying. I wish it was more common (and more feasible) for kids to wait a year or two. A year of bagging groceries and getting some of the party-animal out of their systems, and most kids would value a $25k per year education much more. As it is, much of the time it's a continuation of high school, where "getting by" and "getting grades" is more important than the learning that gets done.

@jvanbrecht: Johns Hopkins isn't in DC, it's in Baltimore.

You may have to put up with conversations about sports, though.

@Dr_Doofus: Does the same hold true for grad schools (earning a professional degree - MBA, JD, MD)?

@BabyFirefly: One of my friends couldn't get any financial aid from the government for college because her parents made too much money - but oh yeah, she also has four siblings, so guess where the majority of the money went? It was a sad, sad thing. She struggled a lot of times, but things are better for her now. She's in a master's program.

@BabyFirefly: Try UC Berkeley (for in-state residents). Oh wait, they're hiking fees!

Christ I thought that place was pricey when I graduated from there in 2001. $50K!!! Hey kids, screw education take your $200K from 4 years of college and buy a friggin' Ferrari!

When I was there R&B was about $8K. I've been in Baltimore all my life and I still drive by campus every now and again. They have all these new fancy student dorms so I'd imagine that 8 years later R&B is probably closer to $12K, making tuition $40K. Gaht dayum!

@BabyFirefly: The University of Virginia is a state school and is one of the top 14 law schools. It's extremely respected in a variety of fields.

State school really means that it receives government assistance in funding. Private schools don't take government funds, which is usually why they charge more.

(bonus points if you can name all 4)

Remember, most of these schools have a lot of financial need based grants available, and then add to that all the federally subsidized loans available.

@unpolloloco: And what of the middle class who has too much money to get Pell Grants and other aid, but too little to shell out 50k a year?

Oh right. 30 years worth of debt in private student loans.

@The Porkchop Express: Yes, but from my understanding, state schools are considered mediocre and not respected...?

@BinaryTB: Careful with that. A lot of European unis are into that game now and have "international student" fees which are insane. I wanted to study in the University of Sydney, and it would've cost me about 26k as an international student.

@donnie5: If you're a pastor who wishes he wasn't a pastor, and had gone to do something else instead, please stop being a pastor and invest your time elsewhere. If you're not fully dedicated to being a pastor, don't do it.

@adent1066: This means nothing. The US has always had a privileged class. In the 1800s and early to mid 1900s it was mostly company owners, developers, and entrepreneurs. The Carnigie family, the Knights, the Vanderbilts, etc. Now we've just expanded it to include political families such as the Clintons, Bushes, etc. The children benefit from being part of the privileged family, and from having access to that heritage.

It's like that in other countries as well. The British Royal Family has significant advantages when it comes to luxuries, preferential treatment, etc.

@BinaryTB: your kids could go to state school and learn just as much, if not more, well aside from MIT I guess.

@idip: I go to a school that should be on this list. No one* graduates in four years because their mommies and daddies have lots of money** and even though it is hella expensive, they like to go and drink and not study a whole lot

*yes, of course, some people graduate in four years. But entirely too many don't for a $48k school
**there must be, like, six people here who aren't trust fund babies, so they are excused. But I have seen kids driving Lambos, so something is awry in the land of the Southern Methodists.

@Topcat: Yup, I think the only advantage I would get going to a prestigious US school is the reputation of the school. At least where I live, if you have "Harvard" on your CV, people just about kiss your toes.

@wrjohnston91283: I'm a graduate student at Southern Methodist. The (undergrad) tuition is $15,600 for a semester, with $1980 worth of fees. Room is $4,230.00 and board is $2,215.00 (these are all one-semester numbers)--this puts us above $48K for a year's schooling. Wowzers, I'm glad I don't pay that much. We're not on the list. If you included our almost $4k per year in fees, we would be.

@donnie5: From my experience with 4 people that went there and in speaking with sound guys (at least music studio guys), you would still be a pastor. A very broke pastor, with lots of debt.

@idip: It's amazing how some of these schools cost, but it obviously also doesn't count scholarships and grants that a lot of people can apply for and have a good chance of getting.

If Notre Dame has a phenomenal teaching program and you think you can afford it, by all means, do it. You'll spend more money in the long run if you go to a cheaper school for less valuable education and find out later that you really could have used a better one.

Expensive doesn't always mean good, obviously, but universities like Sarah Lawrence, Yale, Notre Dame, NYU, etc. have a pedigree.

@wrjohnston91283:

Forgot to finish the last part - not to say that cheaper school student's DON'T try, but if you are paying close to $40,000 a year, my experience is that you have less of those who try to glide through with simply a passing grade.

@idip:
I completely agree - I went to a public high school, and a $35,000 a year private college. The mindset difference between the students was amazing, especially after freshman year weeds out the few remaining students who don't want to try. I actually graduated in 3.5 years and saved a semester of tuition. (took a few summer courses but those are cheaper).

Not to say that cheaper school kids DON'T try.

@veg-o-matic:

I think all of those schools are private, so there is no instate/out of state difference.

Most private schools DON'T have mandatory "fees". Tuition, room and board (if used) and maybe a student activity fee or tech fee (if on campus).

Another downside to schools having required "fees" is that they aren't considered tuition for tax benefit purposes.

@TWinter: Full Sail is a private, for-profit school. I don't think it's counted because it's not a normal four year university.

Also, probably because it seems a little shady, even though it may very well be legitimate. I read the Wikipedia page and it seems to be focused exclusively on media arts.

It doesn't offer any on campus housing, so that $72k figure is only for tuition.

sadly all of her school debt is from law school, no matter where you go for that you're coming out with debt.

@TWinter:
They are a for profit university that charges by the program not by course or semester (they don't have semesters). Books and supplies are built into the cost of tuition. Like many for profit schools, they don't have regional accrediation. They are accredited by ACCSCT, (career/vocational school accrediation body).

(Art institute graduate). and now current student at a real university.

Aaaaand now I'm glad I live in a country where I don't have to fork out this much money for my degree AND get a great education....

That being said, I'm dreaming of going to the University of Chicago or Yale for my grad...

Although some of these colleges are expensive, one has to wonder... Since the fees are so high are the students going to these colleges going because they really want to go and are actually graduating on time.

Some of the cheaper universities tend to draw the students who go to party. Not to say this is always true, there are plenty of students who do very well at the cheaper institutions... but perhaps the 4 year graduation rate isn't as high.

At some schools, the mandatory fees are higher than tuition itself, precisely so that the school can claim to have "not raised tuition," or "kept tuition stable," etc..

Plus, is this for in-state or out-of-state..? Hurrrmmm...

What is Full Sail University? I've worked in higher ed for 15 years and never heard of them.

Sarah Lawrence! What, what???

Shush our only claim to fame is Rahm Emanuel and JJ Abrams. We'll take what we can get!