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Is Online College the More Affordable Alternative to a Higher Education?

As if college wasnt already a bank breaker, public colleges and universities around the nation continue to hike tuition costs. In fact, two and four year public universities will experience an average 7% tuition increase in 2012, according to the College Board Advocacy & Policy Center.

Naturally, these tuition hikes will prompt students and their parents to take out more costly loans which may lead to debt—especially with low income students. While some students may think that skipping college all together is a more feasible decision, there may be a more cost-effective alternative that can give you the quality education you desire while saving you money: online education.

While online education is designed for those that need a more flexible schedule due to career and family obligations, it can also serve as a platform for anyone looking to save a few thousand dollars in the long run. To learn how online education can be cheaper than traditional college, continue reading below.

1. Charges Per Credit Hour. Online colleges differ than most brick-and-mortar universities because they charge per credit hour, not semester. This alone may give students a better bang for their buck. For example, The University of Texas at Austin has a set flat tuition rate for each of its majors. This means prices may vary slightly depending on whether students choose to study engineering or fine arts for example; but fulltime students within designated majors will be expected to pay the same semester fee. So for example, if you choose to study communications at UT fulltime—anywhere from 12 to 15 hours (4 to 5 classes)— you will be expected to pay $4,832 in tuition a semester. If you take all five classes you get a bargain; but if you only take the four, not so much.

The University of Phoenix, on the other hand, does not designate prices for different majors and only charges per credit hour, not semester. Since each credit hour costs $365, this means it costs $1,095 per class. In total, a fulltime student who chooses to take four classes a semester will spend $4,380— about $400 less than UTs price for four classes.

2. No Need for Transportation. If you do not live on campus, commuting back and forth to your school can be a huge gas guzzler. Not to mention that you will have to buy costly parking permits. Some can cost as high as $300 a year. Granted you could always choose to take the more eco-friendly route and ride the metro to school, but bus passes can add up too. With an online education however, those frequent trips to and from campus become obsolete, as well does the need for an expensive parking permit or bus pass.

3. No Need for Daycare Services. If you have children, you can play student and mommy (or daddy) at the same time. The luxury of being able to attend classes at the confinements of your own home is that you get to continue to keep a watchful eye on your family while studying. That’s not to say that this task will be easy— you can get easily distracted. But if you cant afford to hire a babysitter while you attend classes at the nearby physical college or university, distance education could be a solution.

4. No Need for a Dorm or College Apartment. Lastly, and by far the biggest money saver, is the opportunity to skip on campus housing. Campus housing packages are expensive. While they do come with all bills paid and are furnished, you are paying a steep bundle of cash for something that’s not even worth it—you basically get a bed, a communal bathroom, and possibly an incompatible roommate. To give you a ballpark figure of how much campus housing can cost, room and board is estimated at $9,800 a year at the University of Houston. Continuing to live with your parents while enrolled in online classes for example (or choosing to live at a more affordable location not on campus) can save almost a whopping $4,000 a year.

By-line:

This guest post is contributed by Katheryn Rivas, who writes on the topics of online university.  She welcomes your comments at her email Id: katherynrivas87@gmail.com.

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This entry was posted on Thursday, January 5th, 2012 and is filed under Debt Consolidation. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.
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