Will High Tuition Limit College to the Financially Elite?

Ideas and Tips to Find Ways to Fund College Education

The New York Times reports that college tuition is rising so rapidly that soon only the financially elite may be able to afford college tuition. A recent report from the National Center for Public Policy states that "College tuition and fees increased 439% from 1982 to 2007."

During this time of recession in America, colleges are receiving fewer large donations and hence tuitions may rise at unusually high rates in the near future. Many families may be faced with skyrocketing college costs at the same time they may be losing jobs and their investments are declining in value.

The good news is that there have always been ways to obtain a college education without spending a lot of money. Families need to be creative and aggressive to find ways to finance education. A strong education is always a good investment.

Ways to Obtain Education without Spending a lot of Money

Free Grants for Tuition

Harvard, Princeton, and many other colleges offer full tuition grants to students who are eligible for financial aid. Be sure to call colleges you are interested in and ask if they offer this sort of grant. Some colleges are able to offer this type of grant due to large donations from alumni.

If you are successful alumni of a college perhaps you might want to help struggling families and make a donation to the college to provide educational grants.

Move to Kalamazoo, Michigan

Kalamazoo, Michigan has a program called The Kalamazoo Promise that provides full college tuition to students who have lived in the town in the K-12 years. Even students who move to the district later during their education get partial tuition coverage. For more information go to: www.KalamazooPromise.com.

More towns should start programs like this. Contributions for the program come from businesses and private individuals. If you have some time available call your local Board of Education and offer to volunteer to do fundraising for scholarship money.

Obtain a Job at a College

Some colleges give tuition reimbursement to students. Thus if you work on a college campus you may be able to take classes for free. This is a very valuable job perk.

Start at a CountyCollege