New federal data on college costs released, but economic outcomes remain the prize of education

AppId is over the quota
AppId is over the quota
August 8th, 2012 by Ken

As originally posted on the Chronicle of Higher Education, the Education Department’s National Center for Education Statistics on Tuesday published new federal data on student financial aid, including the average price of attendance before aid and the net price of attendance for first-time undergraduate students. For those students attending public four-year institutions in the 2010-11 academic year, average price before aid was roughly $17,600 and the net price was approximately $11,000. For students attending private, nonprofit four-year colleges, average price before aid was about $34,000 and net price was roughly $19,800. At for-profit four-year institutions, the average price before aid was roughly $27,900, while the net price was slightly more than $22,500, the report said.

What this means for students: College continues to be expensive. This report will provide average numbers to help guide student’s and their families through the school selection process.

What needs to be scrutinized even more is outcomes: Pertinent economic value is necessary if money is borrowed to fund education. This is because loans need to be paid back. No one wants to be saddled with much more debt than what their degree is worth. Judging schools by price tag is only half the equation. If the value of the knowledge gained must be considered. Take a look at average salaries based on degrees earned on PayScale.com for some estimates.

Individual results will vary: Remember, the numbers supplied by NCES and PayScale are averages based on past data. The economy has undergone massive structural changes over the years. While some traditionally lucrative occupations have seen downturns in employment and income, other occupations have been rising, like ship captains and make-up artists. Geographical location must be considered as well. North Dakota’s oil boom has drove unemployment to as low as 1% regionally, as there are not enough people to handle all the new work demands.

Some truckers make bank.......

Before committing to a particular school or degree, consider outcomes. If borrowing money for school is necessary, forecast your total required debt outlay before starting the education journey. Know what you owe long before committing to the years of study to acquire certain knowledge and skills, this way a rational outcome can be more easily achieved.

Tags: attendance, average salaries, chronicle of higher education, economic value, education department, four year colleges, geographical location, institutions, national center for education statistics, nces, occupations, oil boom, price tag, school selection, selection process, ship captains, student financial aid, undergraduate students, unemployment, what this means, work demands