Want a shortcut to getting your kid through college debt-free?
If one of these colleges is a good fit for your son or daughter, you may have just struck gold.
The 11 colleges and universities below are known for lavishing astounding amounts of financial aid and scholarships on accepted students.
At College of the Ozarks your son will pay for room and board, but thanks to a $350 million endowment his tuition will be free as long as he’s willing to work while he learns. Students work on campus 15 hours per week during the academic year and two additional 40-hour work weeks each year. Students may mow lawns, do receptionist work, or process paperwork in the college’s administrative offices, or they may work on a dairy farm or do custodial work. Any scholarship or grant money students receive from outside sources also goes to cover tuition costs at College of the Ozarks. Students may also work off the cost of College of the Ozarks’ room and board through the college’s Summer Work Program.
Colleges such as Alice Lloyd College, Berea College, Blackburn College, and Warren Wilson College, have similar “work and learn” programs, though Berea College and Alice Lloyd College are the only other institutions I know of that offer students totally free tuition.
Deep Springs College in Inyo County, California, also deserves a mention here as it is the United States’ only two-year work college. Deep Springs students are awarded free tuition in exchange for work on the school’s cattle ranch and alfalfa farm.
The Webb Institute is an engineering college that provides free tuition valued at $41,500 per year to just 80 admitted U.S. citizens and green card holders. Students pay only for room and board. The school is able to do this because it provides only two select majors: Marine Engineering and Naval Architecture. All students double major in both and complete an internship each year that provides them invaluable hands-on experience in the maritime industry. 100% of Webb’s graduating seniors land jobs after graduation.
MaCaulay Honors College (part of the larger City University of New York network) provides a laptop, $7,500 in “opportunity funds,” and free tuition valued at $5,730 a year to highly academically accomplished residents of the state of New York. The greatest benefit of being selected as a MaCaulay Honors College student is not financial, however. It’s being granted the privilege of taking courses with the top professors at any of the eight CUNY institutions in New York City.
Southwestern University offers full scholarships to students ranked in the top 5 percent of their high school classes, provided they can pass a personal interview and have scored 1400 or more on the math and critical reading sections of the SAT. (Or, alternatively, have scored a 31 on the ACT.)
Barclay College is a small (think 200 −300 students) Christian college that educates students who know in advance that they want to work in pastoral care or other Christian-based professions. Students complete 96 service hours before graduation, and the small, close-knit, cohesive nature of the student body often leads to deep and long-lasting friendships. In addition, if you attend Barclay as an on-campus, full-time resident, your tuition is free.
Admission to the Curtis Institute of Music requires an audition. Students who are accepted receive full-tuition scholarships.
U.S. Coast Guard Academy (CT), U.S. Naval Academy (MD), U.S. Merchant Marine Academy (NY), U.S. Air Force Academy (CO), U.S. Military Academy West Point (NY)
These five United States service institutions are funded by the United States government. Tuition valued at $72,000.00 per year is free, though in some cases students are asked to pay certain fees. After students graduate they serve in their branch of the military for between five and eight years.
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Have you been to one of these very generous colleges or universities? What was your experience like? Were you able to graduate debt free? Comment below, or LIKE Jeannie Burlowski, Author on Facebook and let’s talk about it there.
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Who is Jeannie Burlowski?
Jeannie Burlowski is a full-time author, and conference speaker. She helps parents set their kids up to graduate college debt free and move directly into careers they excel at and love. Her book LAUNCH: How to Get Your Kids Through College Debt Free and Into Jobs They Love Afterward is due out in 2016. Follow her on Twitter @JBurlowski.
“We only got around to doing a fraction of what Jeannie tells people to do, and we saved well over $50,000 on college costs. Our daughter earned a four year degree from an excellent private university at age 20, and she’s now in California happily working her dream job at Disney. Get to one of Jeannie’s live classes if you can. Buy a plane ticket if you have to!” — Liz and Tim Weatherhead, parents, Bloomington, MN