Community colleges tend to be a GREAT bargain for students. (Do you wonder what gives me the credential to say that? Click here.) But what about 4-year state universities? Are they smart choices for students who want to keep college costs low? At first glance the 4-year state university’s sticker price looks appealing enough. But is it really a good deal?
Here’s the big question to ask:
What is this state university’s four-year graduation rate?
If it’s nearly impossible to get through this college in four years, that’s deeply concerning. Why? Because financial aid doesn’t stretch to cover years five and six. Too often, years five and six get paid for by expensive private loans and credit card debt. Plus, of course, going to college for six years is likely to cost a student two years of full time income.
Yikes. Not a bargain at all.
Here’s what you can do to protect yourself.
Here’s what you can do to protect yourself:
Before deciding that any college is a bargain choice, check its 4-year graduation rate by going to collegedata.com.
Enter the university’s name in the search bar, click “search,” and you’ll instantly reach a vast amount of interesting information about that school. Scroll over to “OUTCOMES.” See the school’s “freshman satisfaction rate” and “4-year graduation rate”? If these numbers are low, proceed with caution.
Here are some colleges that might be better bargains.
When working with your son or daughter to create a list of colleges to apply to, strongly consider some private colleges that do not require the CSS/Profile financial aid form.
(If you’re moving along on the journey to debt free college by regularly clicking on your kid’s age in the “WHAT TO DO WHEN” section at JeannieBurlowski.com, you’ll completely understand why I say this.)
Here’s the upshot. If your child attends a private college, he or she may finish faster and pay less for the privilege.
To see my post warning even highly paid professionals away from student loan debt, click here.
“How do I determine whether a college my child is considering requires the CSS/Profile financial aid form?”
For a list of U.S. colleges and universities that do require the CSS/Profile financial aid form, click here.
There’s no part of parenting more important than setting your kid up for successful college and career life.
For clear, step-by-step help getting your kids through college debt-free, don’t rely on a loose collection of blog posts. You’ll miss hundreds of details that way. Instead, get your copy of my book:
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Read just one chapter of LAUNCH every 1–3 months while your child’s in middle school and high school, and you’ll know every viable strategy for debt-free college at exactly the right time to implement it.
And if your child’s already well past middle school? That’s OK; you can run to catch up. But the process of getting your kids through college debt-free goes more smoothly the earlier you start it—especially if you’re not planning to save up any money to pay for college.
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Who is Jeannie Burlowski?
Jeannie is a full-time academic strategist, podcast host, and sought-after speaker for students ages 12–26, their parents, and the professionals who serve them. Her writing, speaking, and podcasting help parents set their kids up to graduate college debt-free, ready to jump directly into careers they excel at and love. Her work has been featured in publications such as The Huffington Post, USA Today, Parents Magazine, and US News & World Report, and on CBS News.
Jeannie also helps students apply to law, medical, business, and grad school at her website GetIntoMedSchool.com. You can follow her on Bluesky @jburlowski.bsky.social.
No part of this article was written using AI.