Tips for Parents and Prospective Students

• Some universities give students a big discount the first year, but then raise the price.  They might even guarantee the same amount of aid, but neglect to mention that it won’t increase along with the inevitable sticker-price increases.
• Tip:  Before accepting a university’s offer, call the admissions office and ask “In subsequent years, if my family’s income remains the same, can I expect to have the same percentage of my need met?”
  
  
• Some universities hide information, like their cost of attendance and their graduation rate.  The average four-year graduation rate at four-year universities is just 37 percent.
• Tip:  Every universities four-year and six-year graduation rates and other key information are available online at http://nces.ed.gov/globallocator
  
  
• Some universities publish confusing statistics on, for example, how small their classes are.  They may boast that half their offerings enroll 20 or fewer students, but not many take those small classes, while the classes that are more widely attended typically have 100 to 500 students.
• Tip:  Ask the admissions office, “How many students are in classes like psychology or chemistry?”
  
  
• Some universities offer enticing majors like journalism, television broadcasting, and studio art, but fail to mention that most of their graduates never earn enough from those degrees to even pay back their student loans.
• Tip:  Contact the university’s career center and ask, “What percentage of graduates in the major that interests me are professionally employed in that field within six months of graduation?”  UMC has a 97% job placement rate, with a 96% placement in field of study.
  
  
• Some universities know they don’t have enough housing for all their freshman
• Tip:  Ask what housing you will be guaranteed and for how long.  Get it in writing.

These suggestions are adapted from The Chronicle of Higher Education