Yesterday I wrote about college coop programs that link students up with jobs while they are still students. Here is the post:
Do You Need a Coop Program To Get a Job?
What I am far more interested in sharing is what these and other private universities, many of which are located on the East Coast, cost. I’m going to use Drexel as an example because my blog reader had asked about that school that’s located in Philadelphia.
I’d argue that Drexel is an example of a high-cost, high-debt university. You can learn about this phenomenon in an excellent article entitled, The Prestige Racket, that Daniel Luzer wrote in the Washington Monthly a few months ago. Luzer focused on George Washington University in the article, but he mentioned American University and New York University as examples of this phenomenon. I’d toss Drexel and Northeastern, another coop school, into this unenviable category.
Why These Schools Are So Expensive
Schools like Drexel, GWU, NYU and others have jacked up the price of their schools while not providing enough financial aid for many of its students. One reason why they can do this is because they are located in East Coast cities. Students across the country want to go to school in places like Boston, Washington DC, Philadelphia and New York City.
The vast majority of teenagers who want to attend schools in big cities aren’t going to have the academic profile to get into the most elite schools with urban zip codes such as University of Pennsylvania, Columbia University and Harvard, but they can get into schools like Drexel and NYU. If NYU was in the Ozarks it couldn’t get away with charging a high tuition, while giving low financial assistance.
Rankings Perversion
These schools can also get away with being expensive because US News & World Report’s college rankings doesn’t punish them for being unaffordable. In fact, the magazine’s rankings methodology perversely rewards colleges for spending money, but they don’t bestow demerits for being unaffordable. I would urge you to read the blog post that I wrote about it here:
Blaming College Rankings for Runaway College Costs
When looking at the the sort of financial aid statistics that are commonly available on the Internet for individual schools, I had a hard time finding them for Drexel. One stat that I always like to look at is the average indebtedness at graduation for students at a particular school. To find that I called up Drexel’s profile on the College Board and then I clicked its Cost & Financial Aid link. Drexel declined to divulge this figure, which can be a sign that the school is not generous.
Schools with lower debt levels are typically going to be eager to share this figure. Across the country, the average student graduates from colleges with $23,000 in student loans. Beyond this figure, Drexel also didn’t divulge any statistics about financial aid on the College Board site.
Next I headed over to the federal College Navigator, which is the federal US Department of Education massive database of statistics on colleges and universities. I had better luck there. On Drexel’s profile, I found the typical costs for Drexel students of different income levels:
Drexel University’s Average Net Price
Family Income
- $0-$30,000 $33,888
- $30,001 – $48,000 $34,694
- $48,001 – $75,000 $37,532
- $75,001 – $110,000 $36,731
- $110,001 and up $37,574
What’s stunning about the above figures is that poor and middle-class students pay close to the same price as affluent families! This is clearly an unaffordable school for many students.
To get a comparison, I’m sharing the federal statistics for the University of Pennsylvania, an Ivy League institution, which is also in Philadelphia. Penn has a policy of meeting the full financial need of its students.
University of Pennsylvania’s Average Net Price
Family Income
- $0-$30,000 $6,704
- $30,001 – $48,000 $8,505
- $48,001 – $75,000 $15,139
- $75,001 – $110,000 $21,312
- $110,001 and up $39,684
Obviously, Penn’s financial aid packages are far superior to Drexel’s.
Bottom Line:
If your child is eager to attend an expensive East Coast school that offers poor financial assistance be prepared for the financial shock. And please walk away if you can’t afford it!
Lynn O’Shaughnessy is the author of The College Solution and she also writes a college blog for CBSMoneyWatch. Follow her on Twitter.
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Interesting! We were planning to visit Drexel next week, but we will have to keep this reality check in mind. Thanks for the valuable information!
The choice of school really depends on the candidate student who received acceptance letter. I started my school at public school. Every parent(s) and student strives to attain the necessary – profile to be accepted to their desired school. There exist other quality school(s) beside, the schools you mention. Look at Rochester, NY and Boston other school (RIT, University of Rochester, Northeastern U, and Boston U).
My recommendation to “shopping for college(s) is ask your child, do you have what it takes to succeed at this (->) school you have (&) = reference(s) and A* (Pointers to some search resource).
My profile, completed a “college-degree(s)” from public and (&&) private school(s). Completed coop at public CC, succeed in learning a trade. Then was accepted in private (college || university || *) selected an upstate North East school. These school(s) you point out are “Fast School” and “Cut-throat”.
My sibling received partial-scholarship to one of the big school mention, but also receive full-scholarship && partial scholarship from smaller private schools in Pennsylvania, VA, NJ. She was accepted to Pre-Med program, then switch to “Business School”. This sibling is managing publisher on Wall Street today.
Another sibling received acceptance to top schools, but was not accepted in “IVY league schools” undergraduate. He completed his JD IP in one of the school you mention.
We had two home(s), my folks parent(s) has two Degree(3) MBA – Accounting / MS Taxation / CPA from Northeast State. Mother has two Degree (2) Commerce & Accounting / Education from overseas.
Suggest to savvy college shopper
Create Debit & Credit – simple grid
Establish – check list – top columns (n)
Refer to published work from – commercial resources
Use their established criteria – left rows (n) –
Refer to “pulp annual college report” ranking schools.
You can create your own Criteria / Metrics to allow your child to Succeed
Try your own criteria –
Quality of Life,
How will your child handle Independence?
Will there be night light by local village / metro area?
Will your offspring participate in sports or school club sport or school newspaper, etc?
How far commute to home?
During home visit will you child bring their laundry home?
Do you have friend(s) or family near the city or village?
Where you child will attend (university)?
Far-point Friends and family Support system
Is there mass transit system?
Can you child survive without their own wheel(s)
Finally, Plane(s), train(s), automobile(s) during holiday season
Does the school(s) selected have good
Infrastructure to support your child needs
Tutoring services
Libraries (study space)
Quality of Instructor(S) – do they speak coherent English?
Is there opportunity to participate in Research for those
Desiring to attend post-4 year education
Do you thing you Child will have good overall experience
Do you think your child will succeed at the select the college(s) / school(s)
Life is like a supermarket – taken from the sound track of from the band the clash.
Let the student determine their destiny, but keep in mind
Can the child pay off the “college debt” = tuition, room & board & other expenses after graduation.
FYI there is some students who might complete course work beyond the normal 4year or 5 year college program.
Finally what will be the summation of the end result of the child “college major” && the overall “college experience(s)”. Will the offspring enjoy themselves outside the classroom / labs?
* Work-study is really pocket money while at school.
What I am trying to say is – the Child / Student job is = School
Other(s) activities are white noise.
When I was in school
We did not have – cable TV, in my off-campus flat after freshman year.
Most of the time was spent in lab(s) or library finding a warm place to study and complete course work.
What happen(s) if child does not like or enjoy a competitive school?
Time to return to the nest.
Inclosing, it is not just the school. It is combination of factor(s).
My overall experience was that selection of “college major” that require
“COOP” or internship at public or private school that helps the student fine his/her way
To their next potential career opportunities.
Hats off to you Lynn to Enlightening our awareness of the “danger zone” in selecting school for your “off-spring(s)”
Raising this issue of The Real Cost of Attending an Expensive East Coast University
Cheers
web source:
College Acceptance Letters Are Glitzier, but Rejections Are Harsher
http://www.usnews.com/education/articles/2009/02/25/college-acceptance-letters-are-glitzier-but-rejections-are-harsher
Lynn, thank you for taking your advice from informing readers to actually campaigning for them. To the uninformed, college financial aid is a black box. By opening the box, you are helping SO many people. As an advisor, I think one of the most valuable things I can do for my clients is to share this information with them, so they can educate their children without jeopardizing their financial security. Keep up the great work!
Dave