Affordable four-year Catholic college education

The Angelicum Academy site has a piece, "College Tuition Costs: A Broader View," that breaks down some of the (often massive) numbers that come with pursuing a good, four-year Catholic college education:

$ 142,544 – AVG. FOUR YEAR COLLEGE COSTS.  2009-2010 tuition and fee costs  for  private,  four-year colleges

increased on average  4.4% or $1,096 per year from the prior year to a whopping $26,273 per year (up 47% since 2002 when it was $18,596) or over $105,092 for four years; at the same time average college room and board costs climbed 4.2% or $377 per year to $ 9,363. That totals to an average of over $35,636 per year or $142,544 for a four-year degree (Ivy League colleges hover about $50,000 per year – $200,00 for four years[i]; Notre Dame is $48,850[ii] per year) absent any scholarships.[iii] 

$ 1,187 PER CREDIT HOUR.  Calculating the same average on a per hour basis, using the standard minimum of 120 hours for a bachelor’s degree, with room and board added in, the total cost is $1,187 per credit hour ($1,666 for the higher end colleges). 

$ 250 PER CREDIT HOUR IN LSP.  The Liberal Studies Program (LSP) cost per credit hour is $250 for the first 48 hours ($12,000 total) of the program. The remaining hours vary from $250 (online courses) up to $600 (c. $912 including room and board, at Benedictine College).

LSP BACHELOR’S DEGREES FROM $28,088.  Eight bachelor’s degrees in the LSP can be obtained for under $29,000.[iv] Another 31 LSP bachelor’s degrees may be completed at residential colleges for a range from $28,088 (Campion Australia, including tuition, fees, room and board[v]), to $93,722 (Benedictine College, including tuition, fees, room and board) [iii]  utilizing three annual 15% reenrollment discounts with the Angelicum Great Books Program), and absent any scholarships.

Read the entire piece, which contains a lot of helpful information. And visit the Liberal Studies Program site.

Also see:

• Fr. Joseph Fessio, S.J., Launches New Catholic College-Credit Online Program | Introducing the Ignatius-Angelicum Liberal Studies Program.

Comments

[Laura]

This is depressing! Though one option for Catholics is a secular state university with a good Newman Center and/or a FOCUS chapter. That's what our family will have to do when our children reach college age -- we will not be able to afford any college education for them unless they take advantage of the free tuition for professors' kids at the U where my husband teaches. By the way, higher education is not a guarantee of high salary. With a doctorate, my husband makes far less than the chart in the article indicates.