College students are notorious for being broke. I cannot count the number of times each week I hear someone say, “Sorry, I can’t go out to eat/go to the movies/go to the clubs. I’m broke.”

However, maybe we college kids aren’t as broke as we think we are. Something that I find pretty interesting is that 66 percent of students receive funds from home each month, and the average amount of money received is $312. Another 49 percent of students have a part-time job and report an average monthly earning of more than $450.

So what do we spend our money on? Surprisingly, 40 percent of the average student’s money goes to discretionary spending, including 6.5 percent for entertainment, 6.7 for apparel and services, and 4.7 percent for travel and vacation. Another 26 percent of the budget goes toward room and board, two very important things if you don’t want to share a bridge with a few random rodents. Read the rest of this entry »

We have all been writing blog after blog about how to save for rising tuition and prepare for the costs of college, but here is a way to save your money while spending money on everyday items.

Upromise is a free service that allocates money towards college bills and student loans when you purchase groceries, shop online or buy gas. Students can also use the money for 529 investment programs.

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St. Mary's College of Maryland

With most private colleges costing around $40,000 a year, students are opting for a cheaper education at schools that offer an amazing education, but at public school prices. And St. Mary’s College of Maryland is one hot-spot school that is attracting students who are hungry for a solid college education, but don’t have the appetite for private school tuition rates.

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It is no secret that a college education is expensive.

In fact, the average price for tuition at a private college according to the College Board for the 2009-2010 was $26,273, a 4.4 percent increase from 2008 and public school was an average of $7,020, up 6.5 percent. Over the next 18 years, the cost of a college degree is expected to increase to a couple hundred thousand dollars.

There is hope however for families who will need to start planning now for those expensive four years.

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With ever-rising loan interest rates, dwindled savings from financial hardship and less scholarships on the market than in years prior, high school graduates are having to decide between Ivy League and state schools based on price versus prestige.

With seven out of ten high school graduates heading straight to college, the student enrollment is up, as are the tuition prices.

Private colleges are averaging about $35,000 and state universities are about $15,000 a year. When compared with the value comparison calculators offered on most state university websites, students may see that after four years they could potentially save over $100,000. Those numbers are hard to argue with.

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Whether you believe in the adage “the ends justify the means,” this story is sure to incite a variety of reactions in those who read it.

A resident of New Mexico, who was accused of ordering marijuana from California, was arrested late last week, but he wasn’t selling drugs for the usual reason. Andrew Vega claims he sells drugs to help pay for college.

Police traced a “controlled delivery” from California all the way to Louie Duran, a 34-year-old who lives in Albuquerque.

Officers arrived at Duran’s residence and saw him standing with Vega. An officer, dressed as a FedEx employee, approached Duran and Vega with the package.

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Most students take four to six years to graduate from college. Some take longer, but the average is around there. However, with college tuition costs sky-rocketing, some students are trying to cram a four-year degree program into three years.

Now, several schools, including Hartwick College, are redesigning their programs so students can graduate in three years, saving around $50,000.

Carmen Lookshire is a freshman at Hartwick and plans on graduating in only three years.

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Lawrenceville School

In the 1950s and 1960s, a group of women infiltrated Lawrenceville School, an upper class boarding school in New Jersey. These women were not students though; they were the wives of the teachers at Lawrenceville. They held weekly coffee breaks for the students and acted as mother-figures in the otherwise entirely male school. These “Ladies of Lawrenceville” played a huge role in the school and the lives of the students.

Lawrenceville School became co-ed in 1987 and most of the Ladies of Lawrenceville became a thing of the past. However, a few are still strongly connected to the school. Jean Stephens still bakes cookies for the students and coaches the drama club. Ginnie Chambers stays in contact with 810 former students by sending them annual Christmas cards. Edith Eglin is a trustee emerita.

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I recently posted a blog about the Top 10 Best Value Colleges in the U.S. It made sense to me why these were good schools. They have reasonable tuitions, are respectable schools, and the average student debt is lower at these schools than the national average student debt upon graduation. But according to an article in CBS’ Moneywatch, maybe I should rethink my opinion of these schools.

Evidently the people at the Princeton Review who ranked the top public and private  best value schools forgot to take something very important into account: Scholarships.

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The country’s economy has officially been in a recession for more than two years. This has made paying for a college education increasingly difficult for many students. It is not only harder to find a job, but it is becoming more difficult to find financial aid as government aid programs and private scholarships decrease in number. For many students, attending college is becoming more and more of a distant dream, due to financial limitations only.

In an effort to help students get the most bang for their buck, Kiplinger has released their list of the best values in higher education for the 2009-2010 school year. Kiplinger is a private company based in Washington, D.C. that publishes business forecasts and personal finance advise. They ranked the schools based on overall value, which is a combination of cost and quality of education.

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