Hi bloggers,

Some of you may have read the recent article from U.S. News & World Report outlining the rising costs for some colleges out there.  If you missed it, click here.  While this article is very alarming and may leave you wondering how you might ever afford to pay for a college education, please know that there are options available to everyone!

Yes, there are some very expensive colleges out there.  And yes, many do offer scholarship money to help make them more affordable to you if $60k a year is a little too high for your college budget, but there is no guarantee that the particular college you have in mind is able to do that.  The best piece of advice I can give you is to apply to a variety of schools.  Definitely send your application to the pricier college in the hopes of receiving a healthy financial aid package from them, but also apply to colleges with a lower price tag, one that would be more affordable for you and your family.  It’s all about keeping your options open.

Many students are opting to attend one of the community colleges and then transferring to a four-year college to complete their Bachelor’s degree.  Here in the state of New Hampshire we have articulation agreements in place between the Community College System of New Hampshire and the University System of New Hampshire (the four-year public colleges) stating that college credits earned are transferable.  For more information, visit www.nhtransfer.org .

Students have so many options; research them all!  And while you are keeping your options open, apply to as many scholarships as possible.  Whether they help pay tuition at a college that costs $50,000 or $5,000 it doesn’t matter because it’s all free money that you no longer have to pay out of pocket or in the form of a loan.

As you are navigating your college options, please feel free to call us at the Center for College Planning at 888.7.GRADUATE ext. 119.  We would be happy to answer any questions and help guide you through your college search.

Take care,
Val