Tuition . . . And Fees

Depending on how your child’s college compiles bills, you may be surprised to notice that “fees” sometimes cost more than tuition. So, what exactly are these “fees” and why do they cost so much?

Almost every college charges some kind of fees and they cost so much because they cover so many things. Fees usually cover the nuts and bolts of the university. Obviously, a college has physical structures to maintain, utilities to pay, water to treat, lawns to mow, and custodians to pay, these are usually lumped into something called facilities fees.

Other fees may cover technology including hardware maintenance, software licenses, print stations, the IT folks who make the computers and servers work. Still more fees may cover all the student events and activities that keep your child engaged in fun, positive activities instead some of the rather unhealthy activities that some students enjoy in bars and nightclubs.  In short, fees cover most of the non-academic foundations of the university and make it a nice, safe place to live and learn. At community, technical, and online colleges, these fees are much lower, but also cover fewer amenities, so where your child attends college will make a big difference in his fee requirements.

Here's another way to look at fees - Consider all of the things that your child spent money on all through high school.  There were probably several small fees for several events, activities, sports teams, and field trips that you paid each month as the need arose, and if you ever kept a running total you'd easily see a figure between $600.00 to $6000.00 per year. But, now that your child is in college, those expenses are rolled into a lump sum called "activity fees".

Having said that, it is absolutely essential that you and your child know exactly where your fee money goes. Students who pay fees for a recreation center need to use that center unless they are interested in throwing away their money. Students whose fees include usage of the campus bus system can save thousands by taking the bus, that they’ve already paid for, instead of using a car.

More Ways for Freshmen to Save

Suggest he use the floor fridge or microwave - Almost any dorm or residence hall floor has a shared fridge and microwave. If you avoid buying these appliances for your child you will save about $240.00. Instead, check to see if his residence hall or even his floor has a shared fridge and microwave. Using these to store food and cook will keep him from using meal plan dollars for food that he can easily prepare on his own.

Skip the soda at the fountain - Switching to water instead of soda pop will save money and calories. Soft drinks cost anywhere from .99 to $2.50 or more per meal. Over a semester that can add about $400.00 in meal plan usage and 45,000 empty calories.

Leave the car at home - If given the choice between living at the college of their choice without a car or living at home, attending the local college and keeping the car, most students will opt for the former. Owning and maintaining a car is expensive even if it’s paid off. Added up over four years, just the cost to fuel, insure and maintain a car is easily in the thousands or tens of thousands. That is probably equivalent to the cost of at least a semester or two of tuition. Unless your child absolutely needs his own car on campus ask him to decide between the car or living at home. He can always swap the car for a bike, scooter, or prepaid bus pass.

How to get a new set of dishes for you own home - Having kids at home means that your once complete set of dishes, glasses, or flatware has become a partial set of chipped, bent, and mismatched items that you’ve come to resent. Conveniently, at about the same time that you really want to get a new set of dishes, your child needs to take a couple of dishes to college. You see where I’m going with this right?

Avoid the dorm décor hype - Big box stores and online college dorm room outfitters will heavily advertise complete, coordinated dorm room décor sets and small appliances expressly for the college bound set. While these are really nice, new and coordinated, if you buy into the hype advertised on the glossy advertisements every June through September you can usually kiss more than $900.00 of your textbook money goodbye just to decorate a single room.

I know that your child wants new towels, dishes, shelves, lamps, chairs, and a coffee pot in the school’s colors for his room, but I’ll bet you already have most of this stuff at home and if you don’t, maybe some family members or friends do. My advice on these items is, save your money and if you still want to buy dishes with it get them for your family home instead. You’ll take better care of them anyway.

Thrift shopping - I have known college students who arrive on campus with practically nothing and within a couple of weeks their room is completely furnished all for about $47.50. By their nature, college towns have mobile populations, and college students are always arriving, leaving, or moving among dorms and apartments.  Thrift stores in these towns are great places to find cheap useful items.

On my campus, a thrift store is opened each fall semester where students can buy items donated or left on campus by students the previous spring, and the proceeds benefit charity. Thrift stores on campus or in the community offer win-win solutions for college kids who need to get rid of stuff and buy stuff cheap. 

* Yes, he should absolutely inspect any piece of furniture or fabric for bed bugs!

Money Saving Tips for Your College Freshman

Save green by going green - Most colleges give away reusable bottles, tumblers and coffee mugs and encourage their use. Some students on my campus have had the same Nalgene bottles, coffee mugs, and tumblers for years and when they refill them in the food court it costs less and saves a lot of disposable cups, lids, and straws that would otherwise go into the trash each week. The average savings on my campus for a year is $160.00.

Evaluate meal plans - There are usually two kinds of meals plans available to college students. One is a set number of meals such as 200 meals for the entire semester. This is more often seen on smaller campuses that offer a traditional cafeteria or buffet in one central location. The other option is a "declining balance" meal plan that operates much like a pre-paid debit card. You put $1500.00 on the plan at the beginning of the semester and your child uses the plan until he depletes the account or until the end of the semester.

Whichever one your child’s college offers, it is important to figure out the average costs per meal and the policy on unused dollars. Will he get a full, partial or no refund or will money carry-over to the next semester? If not, it is in your child’s best interest to get the cheapest meal plan possible and use it completely. If your child is a light eater, choose the smallest meal plan available and if he still depletes it before the end of the semester he can usually add money without a penalty or can just use cash or debit instead of the meal plan.

Other things to consider while selecting a meal plan are the locations and operating hours of the campus dining halls or food courts, and the dining options adjacent to campus. Consider whether or not your child will have the time in his schedule on an average day to reach the dining halls or food courts during their operating hours. If your student’s off-campus choices are low cost pizza places and taco shops, he may be eating off campus more than on campus.  If on the other hand, high priced restaurants and pastry shops surround campus, it will be cheaper to eat on campus or in his residence hall room.

*Students who have allergies, intolerances, or other dietary needs should be aware of typical menu items and what they can eat, and where. Many campuses have nutritionists or dietary specialists who can help students plan appropriate meals from the dining choices available on campus.

Learn how to cook basic meals - If he can boil water, he can boil eggs for quick breakfasts, make pasta, rice and cook vegetables and boxed meals. The summer before his freshman year is a good time to have your child learn to cook if he already doesn’t know how. If you don’t cook either don’t worry, cooking classes and cook-offs on campuses have grown in popularity over the past several years and many residence halls feature shared kitchens. In addition YouTube is full, I mean full, of how-to videos on basic cooking techniques.

Where to Work While Attending College

Students who work while attending college become experts at managing time and money and take their college education more seriously. They also gain valuable work skills. The kind of job depends on your student and his schedule and financial needs, but the hours shouldn’t stretch beyond about 16 hours per week. College students already have a full-time job as a college student, so adding more than 16 hours of additional work during the week is usually detrimental to academic success.

On Campus Jobs

I really prefer to see students in on-campus jobs for a number of reasons. First of all, the commute is extremely easy. If your child can find a job in his residence hall as a front desk clerk or food service worker, his commute may not even take him out of the building. Secondly, on campus jobs usually offer very flexible hours that fit easily into students’ schedules. Faculty and staff recognize and appreciate that students will place their academics first and their job second, and are usually willing to work around class schedules.

Finally, on-campus jobs are usually easy enough to find if your child isn’t too picky. The two departments on campus that always seem to be hiring are food services and custodial or housekeeping. While I know these jobs aren’t for everyone, they usually offer the most flexible schedules and it is common for food service jobs to offer students free or discounted meals, a definite bonus when you’re watching a budget.

Off Campus Jobs

Most college towns have a lot of service jobs readily available for students and while they may offer higher pay than on-campus jobs, it will be incumbent on the student to continually remind his off-campus supervisor that he is a student first and an employee second. Some off campus jobs will offer students unique opportunities in their field of study.

If your child can find such a job it is ideal, but even if he can’t, any job experience is a plus for a future job search. Upon graduation, employers will want to see a prospective employee who has a proven record of experience in the work world regardless of where that experience was gained.

Become an Entrepreneur

Some students don’t want to worry about a set schedule or punching in and out on a regular basis. If your child is looking for an extremely flexible way to earn money, he may consider working for a temp agency or becoming an entrepreneur. Students can earn extra money by starting their own businesses such as offering pick-up and drop off laundry services for other students, pet or house sitting, dog walking, web site development, photography, foreign language practice partner or other tutoring, care package assembly and delivery, you name it!

Work Study

Work Study is a program administered through the Department of Education that provides a win-win scenario for students and employers. Students who are eligible for work -study (this will be included in the student’s financial aid award letter) can work at approved work-study jobs on and off campus and keep the money they earn for their educational expenses. In exchange for hiring work-study eligible students, employers receive a subsidy to defray the cost of employing the eligible student.³¹

Many campus offices will try to hire work-study eligible employees before they open jobs for others to apply. So, if your child is eligible for work study make sure that he applies for these jobs early, even before arriving on campus. 

Saving Money on Textbooks

Required textbooks and lab supplies can cost anywhere from a couple hundred dollars to thousands per semester depending on the books and where they are purchased. Campus bookstores usually offer the best selection, easy returns and exchanges, and the convenience of buying books that were ordered directly by the professors who are teaching the classes, but it’s true that students pay a premium for this convenience and service. A number of online options are available and although students can save anywhere from 25-85 percent on the cost of textbooks from these sites, they need to be aware of common problems students encounter when buying online.

Sites like Textbooks.com, Bigwords.com, and of course Amazon.com do a good job of providing the most commonly used college textbooks, but most students will not be able to buy all of their books from only one site. Students who want to save money by buying online need to shop around a lot and make absolutely sure they are buying the correct books and editions for their classes. To avoid common snags students should:

 Make sure they are ordering the correct book by the correct author(s)

Confirm the edition numberConfirm the ISBN, or International Standard Book Number. This is a unique 10 to 13 digit number usually found on the barcode on the back of the book.

Confirm that the book is in the correct language. Many books have several editions in several languages.

Only buy from a reputable site and understand the return or exchange policy before buying.

Many campuses also have textbook swap meets or exchanges or may offer the book on reserve in the library. Although I’m a big fan of students getting whatever they can for low or no cost, freshmen especially need to start their first semester with all of the correct books for all of their classes in hand. After the first semester, they can decide if they prefer to buy on campus, online, or at an exchange.