Fred Lutz participates in class

When we think of a college graduate, we often think of 20- or 30-somethings, who have yet to embark on their chosen career path. Fred Lutz is different from most graduates. At the age of 86, the WWII veteran became one of the oldest graduates to receive a diploma from Lake Forest College last Saturday.

His age isn’t the only thing that sets him apart from his fellow graduates. While most students want to go to college to make more money, or choose a career that requires a college education, Lutz did it because of his late wife, Virginia. She died after a long battle with diabetes in 2007, and he felt like his days were meaningless. His empty hours led him to take a couple of college courses at Lake Forrest.

“I know my Virginia is proud of me,” he said. “I’d like to think she had a hand in me getting back to class. I don’t want to sound too silly about that, but I think that she’s sort of watching over me and smiling, saying, ‘Good work.”‘

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Young celebrities face a difficult decision: is it better to pursue their careers while they’re hot or an education to ensure a future? It’s a very hard choice; the newest starlet can never know how long she will remain popular, so she has to choose between the volatile celebrity lifestyle or the more reliable college education.

Honestly, I am not sure which I would choose if I was a young star in Hollywood today. Both options are appealing for their own reasons. I mean, who wouldn’t love to get dressed up to attend movie premiers in designer clothes on a regular basis? But then again, having a college education can take you a long ways in this world.

EDUinReview has told you of many celebrities who have earned their college degree. However, many others choose not to attend college. According to the Huffington Post, here are 10 celebrities who are choosing the red carpet in favor of the school library.

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The average college student graduates with $24,000 in debt. This can be attributed to the fact that the average college tuition has increased by at least 5.6 percent in the past ten years.

So, what’s the average, broke college student to do? Should you sell all of your worldly possessions so you can take Intro to Biochemistry? Heck no! How about using StraighterLine?

StraighterLine is a complete online “school” that offers a cheap alternative for introductory level classes. StraighterLine allows students to pay under $1,000 for an entire year’s worth of classes. These “101″-level classes offer the same information as traditional freshmen-level classes at many universities, but they eliminate the costs of running a college. Read the rest of this entry »

Mark C. Taylor is the chair of the department of religion at Columbia University. Obviously, this is a man who has spent years teaching and who has had plenty of experience with the college education environment. Considering this, it makes it even more interesting that he has written a new book called Crisis on Campus: A Bold Plan for Reforming Our Colleges and Universities.

In his book, Taylor argues that the higher education system in the U.S. does not prepare students for success in the real world. He also claims that is is “headed for a financial meltdown.”

“If we project from where we are today, within ten years, the cost of four years at a top-tier school will be $350,000,” said Taylor. “Parents used to pay for their kids’ education by taking out a second mortgage, but of course that option has blown up.”

If the cost of an education does increase this drastically, we can be sure that the average student will graduate with even more debt. Today, the average student graduates with $23,000 in debt; imagine how much debt he/she will graduate with in 10 years. Read the rest of this entry »

According to a recent report by The Lumina Foundation for Education, only 37.9 percent of Americans have earned a college degree. The foundation recommends that 60 percent of Americans should have their college degree by 2025, in order for the U.S. to stay academically competitive with other countries.

However, this 37.9 percent is a national average. There are several states that have a higher-than-average percent of college graduates. Is your state one of them? Check out the list of the 10 states with the highest percentages of college graduates.

1. Massachusetts: 49.6 percent
2. Connecticut: 46.6 percent
3. New Hampshire: 46 percent
4. Colorado: 45.3 percent
5. North Dakota: 45.2 percent
6. Minnesota: 45 percent
7. New Jersey: 44.6 percent Read the rest of this entry »

According to the U.S. Department of Education, one of the biggest factors impacting whether an individual will live in poverty is a college education.  According to data from 2003, people with four year degrees had a poverty rate of only about 1.6 percent, while people with two year degrees had a poverty rate of about 2.8 percent.  In contrast, high school graduates had a poverty rate of about 6 percent, while high school dropouts had a poverty rate of about 14 percent. No, education is not the only factor in predicting poverty — race, gender, and parenthood also are important factors — but education level is one crucial factor in determining whether someone will live in poverty.

This is in part because of the changing economy. In the post-war years, manufacturing jobs were abundant, and an individual could easily graduate from high school, or not, and get a good-paying job in an auto plant or other manufacturing area.  Workers could expect to earn enough money to raise a family and have a comfortable, if not wealthy, standard of living, often on just one income.  With manufacturing jobs dwindling and moving oversees, that’s no longer the case. Read the rest of this entry »

With the rising cost of college education, fewer parents are able to help significantly with their children’s educational costs. Moreover, some parents who have the means to do so are refusing to do so, both because of the growing financial burden of a college education, and because they feel their kids will appreciate their education more if they pay for it themselves.

Here’s a recent article about this topic in the Chicago Tribune discussing why there are More College Students Paying Their Own Way.

Unfortunately, the financial burden of a college education has become so cumbersome that families have some tough decisions to make. On the one hand, it’s becoming increasing difficult for students to pay their own way through college with part time jobs and financial aid packages, even at state schools. This is what I did fifteen years ago, with some help from my family, and although money was pretty tight, it worked. And yes, I do feel that I appreciated my education all the more because I worked for it. But a mere fifteen years later, this scenario becomes very difficult without taking out excessive amounts of student loans or working exceptionally long hours at a part time job. At most, I worked about 20 hours a week. That’s nothing compared to the hours many students put in today.

On the other hand, college has become so expensive that many parents can’t afford it either. Most of my college friends had their bills footed by parents, and none of my friends came from families that were particularly wealthy. Today, paying for college for middle class families can mean second mortgages, and dips into retirement funds, and other financial transactions that can put a burden on a family’s financial future.

So what to do? Parents and college-bound kids need to sit down for some serious discussions about college finances. Who’s going to pay for what? Who’s going to take out the loans? How many hours should the student need to work? How much are the parents willing and able to help? These talks can be uncomfortable, but the current state of higher education mandates open communication between parents and their kids about finances.