For the past few decades, when a college education has moved from a luxury to almost a necessity for a white collar job (and even many blue collar positions), the worry for parents as to how to save for their children’s education has been a constant worry. The fact of the matter is that a college degree has become so commonplace that it holds about the same weight on a resume that a high school degree once did. Those without this education are at a serious disadvantage compared to those who do have it – not that this can’t be overcome, but this disadvantage exists just the same.

The biggest problem with this transformation is that the cost of a college education has not gone down despite its added importance and increased volume. Collegiate costs have risen at a rate much greater than that of inflation and job salaries. This is not just the case for prestigious private schools, which have always featured higher costs and catered more towards the wealthy or students on scholarship, but even public state schools are moving their tuition to levels that may saddle students with decades’ worth of debt.

For new parents, the costs for their children to attend college (in fifteen to twenty years) are expected to approach $50,000 for even the most affordable in-state four year institutions. Private schools could push well into six figures. This means that parents will have to save somewhere in the neighborhood of $3000 per year just for their children’s education. Of course, time value of money with a favorable interest rate could bring this number down significantly, but – given the current economy – a favorable rate of return is a promise to no investor.

Student loans with lower interest rates (compared to other forms of debt) have served to help solve these cost issues in the past. However, they still lead to students exiting college with thousands upon thousands of dollars’ worth of debt. With the unemployment rate still sky high for new graduates, it is easy to see how defaults can begin to occur almost immediately and some graduates (or drop-outs) may be facing a debt that will be hanging over them for the majority of their lives.

For profit schools claim to offer an affordable alternative. While it is true that they are typically lower priced than the four year counterparts, there are some problematic issues here as well. For example, there is still a stigma associated with for profit / technical schools – that they are more accurately described as degree mills. In addition, they are also currently facing scrutiny for being overzealous in pushing students to take on loans and debts for their own benefits. The end result is, for better or for worse, these types of institutions typically do not hold the weight on a future application that traditional four year colleges do.

All of the aforementioned text does not even address the costs of going to graduate or professional schools. For medical schools, it is virtually impossible for a student to pay out of pocket. Loans are almost a necessity, which leaves future doctors in tremendous debt and helps contribute to the high cost of health care for the general public – but that is an issue for another article.

Author Bio: By Felix Chesterfield; To discover more data on college costs and Medical School Tuition specifically, please contact the author at your convenience.

Category: Finances
Keywords: College, student loans, medical school