Caveat Emptor or Buyer Beware 8: Do Not Underestimate College Costs

Saturdays we share tips or cautions to facilitate getting scholarships or avoiding problems

Erica, with a 3.0 GPA and 31 ACT test score, applied for scholarships . She earned a full-ride scholarship to the college of her choice. She stopped applying for more. She failed to consider how much it would cost for laboratory fees, books, computers, food, and transportation to fly to school, fly home for Christmas, fly back to school after Christmas, and back home again at the end of the semester. She and her family paid for the additional costs out of their own pockets.

Prepare for all the Costs of College

Many students fail to consider how many things they need to pay for to go to school. They consider tuition, yet never add in the other aspects of college life. For example, you have to pay for

• Tuition
• Books, laboratory, and more
• Laptops (So you can upgrade half way through college)
• Housing (which includes rent, utilities, and sewage)
• Food (and drinks for many students)
• Clothing for school, internships, and job interviews
• Transportation (gas locally and flights out-of-state)
• Social expenses like dating
• More and more college students include a new car in those costs.

Too many students fail to consider they might marry during school and pay for all of the above for two people or more. We encourage you to consider all the costs of college. Prepare a budget forecast to cover costs. Set a goal to earn enough financial aid to cover all the costs.

Scholarships with Strings and Those Without Strings

A lot of people tell us “scholarships won’t pay for all costs. You can only use the money for tuition, books, or housing.'” We tell them “It depends on the kind of financial aid you get.”

• Some declare that you may only use the money for tuition, housing, or books
• Others require proof of enrollment, but do not specify how you use the money

You use money without strings (unspecified) to pay for the costs not covered by scholarships with strings.

Tuesday we review Petersen’s.com as a source of funding and scholarships